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Posted: |
Jan 8, 2017 - 10:25 PM
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By: |
Bob DiMucci
(Member)
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Francine York was working as a showgirl at Frank Sennes' Moulin Rouge, a popular nightclub on Sunset Blvd. in Hollywood, where she performed in three shows a night, seven nights a week for six months. Tired of sharing a stage with elephants, pigeons, and horses, she moved on to pursue her acting career and began study with famed actor/teacher Jeff Corey. While performing in Corey's class, Francine was spotted by a theatrical producer, who cast her in a play called Whisper In God's Ear at the Circle Theatre.
The same producer gave York her very first movie role, starring in SECRET FILE: HOLLYWOOD, a film about the day-to-day operations of a sleazy Hollywood tabloid. In the film, "Maxwell Carter" (Robert Clarke), an unemployed private detective, accepts an offer from "Nan Torr" (York) to work as a candid photographer for the scandal magazine, Secret File: Hollywood. His first assignment is to take compromising pictures of director "James Cameron" [!] (John Warburton) with starlet "Gay Shelton" (Maralou Gray). Ralph Cushman directed the film, which was shot in 1961. The film was scored with stock music.
The independent production had trouble finding distribution, however, and in the interim, York appeared in 1961's THE SERGEANT WAS A LADY for Universal-International. Eventually, SECRET FILE: HOLLYWOOD was acquired by low budget distributor Crown International. The movie premiered in May 1962 in Francine's hometown of Aurora, Minnesota, which gave her the biggest thrill of her life as the whole town, the press, her family, friends, and even the high school band turned out at the airport to greet her with banners proclaiming, "Welcome Home, Francine!"
York's big break, however, came when Jerry Lewis cast her in his 1962 comedy IT'S ONLY MONEY, in which she played a tantalizing sexpot, a role which brought her a tremendous amount of publicity. Walter Scharf's score for the film has not had a release.
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York had a small role in the 1965 Elvis Presley film TICKLE ME, the only film Elvis made for Allied Artists. Norman Taurog directed. None of Walter Scharf's score was included on the 45-EP album of Presley's songs that was released by RCA Victor.
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Francine York appeared in her fourth Jerry Lewis film, playing an air hostess in 1965's THE FAMILY JEWELS. Lewis directed the film, which has an unreleased score by Pete King.
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THE CURSE OF THE SWAMP CREATURE was one of a series of cheap horror and sci-fi films that producer-director Larry Buchanan made for American International Television in the mid-1960s. In this film, "Dr. Simon Trent" (Jeff Alexander) is conducting experiments on evolution reversal. Star John Agar is a geologist looking for oil near Trent's bayou retreat, and Francine York plays Trent's captive wife. Ronald Stein did the uncredited score.
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York played "Connie, the Mayor's Wife" in the 1967 western THE RIDE TO HANGMAN'S TREE. Alan Rafkin directed the film, which has a unreleased score by Frank Skinner.
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Back in 1962, after Francine York had completed work on her first film, SECRET FILE: HOLLYWOOD, the producer of that film, Rudolph Cusumano, decided to try his hand at directing. With York as his star, he filmed "Drivers to Hell" in the Mojave Desert. The film is about a group of violent young sports car enthusiasts who murder an ex-convict (Sydney Mason) on his way to the desert to unearth $240,000 buried there. Learning of the treasure, the psychotic teenagers kidnap their victim's wife (York) in the hopes that she will lead them to the money.
The film was unable to find a distributor, and remained on the shelf until 1967, when Emerson Film Enterprises acquired it and released it as WILD ONES ON WHEELS.
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Posted: |
Jan 9, 2017 - 12:16 PM
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By: |
Bob DiMucci
(Member)
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WELCOME HOME, SOLDIER BOYS begins as four Green Beret soldiers — "Danny" (Joe Don Baker), "Fatback" (Elliott Street), "The Kid" (Alan Vint), and "Shooter" (Paul Koslo), fresh from combat in Vietnam — arrive at Fort Hunter Ligget, a Separation Center in Arkansas. Single and unsure about the future, the men decide to pool their savings and head for Napa Valley, California, where Kid owns 300 acres of land. Somewhere in Texas, the men stop at a deserted motel, where the owner offers to fix them up with some “off-duty” waitresses. The veterans horse around the motel pool and have sex with the women, who also give them comfort and a sympathetic ear. Danny confesses to "Lydia" (Francine York), who is unhappily married to a rich man, that he killed 113 people in Vietnam.
Richard Compton directed the 1971 drama. The film had no original score. Ken Wannberg acted as music supervisor. Singer-composer Ronee Blakley and bluegrass group The Country Gazette performed several pieces on the film’s soundtrack.
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In 1973's THE DOLL SQUAD, Francine York plays sexy secret agent "Sabrina Kincaid," leader of an elite team of gorgeous female assassins who attempt to stop a diabolical madman (Michael Ansara) from destroying the world with a deadly plague virus. As to who the "star" of the film is, the credits are of little help. The order of the end cast credits differs significantly from the order of the opening cast credits. In the opening cast credits, which appear several minutes into the film, Michael Ansara is listed first, followed by Francine York and Anthony Eisley. Ansara is listed seventh in the end credits, however, and Eisley, ninth. York is listed first in the end credits, followed by the five other actresses playing members of the “Doll Squad.” York is listed again, in the eighth position after Ansara. The film's poster follows the order of the opening credits.
Many modern sources have commented on the similarity between THE DOLL SQUAD and the popular television series "Charlie’s Angels" (1976—1981), produced for the ABC network by Aaron Spelling. According to one source, THE DOLL SQUAD actress Tura Satana invited Spelling to a screening of the picture, and two years later, "Charlie’s Angels," with its trio of beautiful undercover agents, including one named “Sabrina,” made its television debut.
Ted V. Mikels directed the film. The score by Nicholas Carras was released by Monstrous Movie Music in 2014.
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In THE CENTERFOLD GIRLS, a depraved religious fanatic (Andrew Prine) sets out to punish all the "immoral" women who have posed for the centerfold of a men's magazine. Francine York plays "Melissa," a photo editor. She and her sometime lover, "Perry" (Ray Danton), are also targeted by the killer.
York didn't get along with Danton during shooting. She revealed in a magazine interview that since her character wasn't supposed to get along with Danton's character in the movie, it made the scenes in which the two argue and fight with each another that much easier to do. John Peyser directed the thriller, which has a unreleased score by Mark Wolin.
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Francine York re-teamed with Anthony Eisley, one of her co-stars from THE DOLL SQUAD for the domestic comedy HALF A HOUSE. In the film, after ten years of marriage, "Jordan and Bitsy Blake" (Eisley and Pat Delany) design and build a dream house. Reflecting their respective professional careers, the house includes an architect’s office for Jordan on one side and an interior design studio for Bitsy on the other. Guess what happens when they have a falling out? York played "Jessica," Bitsy’s best friend, who eagerly consoles Jordan.
Brice Mack directed the film, and songwriter Sammy Fain composed the film's score. Rampart Releasing, the film's distributor, opened the film at a Beverly Hills, CA, theater on 17 December 1976 to qualify for Academy Awards consideration. The main reason for the preview booking was that the film’s theme song, “A World That Never Was,” was written by Sammy Fain and Paul Francis Webster. The pair had already won two Academy Awards for “Secret Love” from ANNIE GET YOUR GUN and the theme song from LOVE IS A MANY-SPLENDORED THING. The ploy was successful, and the song did receive an Academy Award nomination on 10 February 1977.
Rampart took out full-page advertisements in the 25 February 1977 and 15 March 1977 issues of Daily Variety, touting the song, and noting that “It would be nice if we had a commercial record, but we don’t.” and “It would also be nice if we were in a widely seen motion picture, but we don’t have that either.” Instead, the ad “cordially invited” AMPAS members to call “Dial-a-Song” and hear Fain sing “A World That Never Was.” (Susie Brabeau recorded “A World That Never Was” for the film's soundtrack.) Actor Edward Albert performed the song live at the 49th Academy Awards presentation. However the song lost the Oscar to "Evergreen (Love Theme from A STAR IS BORN)" by Barbra Streisand and Paul Williams.
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