the jolson story is a 1946 technicolor musical biography which purports to tell the life story of singer al jolson .

it stars larry parks as jolson , evelyn keyes as julie benson ( approximating jolson 's wife , ruby keeler ) , william demarest as his manager , ludwig donath and tamara shayne as his parents , and scotty beckett as the young jolson .

the columbia pictures production was written by sidney buchman ( uncredited ) , harry chandlee , stephen longstreet and andrew solt .

the dramatic scenes were directed by alfred e. green , with the musical sequences directed by joseph h. lewis .

a sequel called jolson sings again was released in 1949 .

the jolson story

the jolson story <EOT> al jolson and larry parks trying to get along on the jolson story set .

with the headline : larry parks , actor , is dead ; won acclaim for ‘jolson story’ .

" the real al jolson story " south bank show ~ pt . 4 of 4 ~ 1986

" the ' real al jolson story ' south bank show ~ pt . 1 of 4 ~ 1986

jetboy " i can ' t die yet . i haven ' t seen the jolson story . "

james cagney turned down the lead role in the jolson story ( 1946 ) , which went to larry parks .

the jolson story ( 1946 ) directed by alfred e . green • reviews , film + cast • letterboxd

coming to terms with the short story , edited by susan lohafer . this collection of essays by renowned short story critics is a treasure of information about the short story as a genre and its role as the “stepchild of literature . ”

looking for movie tickets ? enter your location to see which movie theaters are playing the jolson story near you .

the jolson story is a 1946 musical biography which purports to tell the life story of singer al jolson . it stars larry parks as jolson , evelyn keyes as " julie benson " ( approximating jolson ' s wife , ruby keeler ) , william demarest as his manager , ludwig donath and tamara shayne as his parents , and scotty beckett as the young jolson .

a sequel to " the jolson story " was produced in 1949 ( named " jolson sings again ! " ) , also starring larry parks , that covered the period of jolson ' s life between 1939 and 1948 .

shortly before the war , jolson was in almost total eclipse . but the war , which brought him before large audiences again , and columbia’s gamble in ‘making the jolson story rescued him from oblivion .

among the details to be worked out were how to frame the story , and who in the world could play jolson other than the man himself . it has written in some jolson biographies that skolsky had reportedly been careful in not leaking the news to jolson prematurely ,

in addition to the fee he received for selling the rights to his life story , al jolson also was paid $ 25 , 000 for recording the songs for the film .

the jolson story , in which larry parks portrays jolson , with al dubbing in the singing , is a reasonable but condensed facsimile of al’s biography , though it performs the extraordinary synthesis of rolling four wives into one .

hempel’s successes come from another direction . in her one fully - realized , moving story , “in the cemetery where al jolson is buried , ” and to

jolson’s singing proves the big excitement for this technicolorful film biog of the great mammy - singer’s career . the jolson story emerges as an american success story in song . the yearning to sing to give generously of himself , cued by the still famed - in showbiz catchphrase , ‘you ain’t heard nothin’ yet’ ; the sunday nights at the winter garden , [ … ]

hallett , cynthia j . whitney . “minimalism—the short story . ” dissertation , university of south florida , 1996 .

the jolson story emerges as an american success story in song . the yearning to sing to give generously of himself , cued by the still famed - in showbiz catchphrase , ‘you ain’t heard nothin’ yet’ ; the sunday nights at the winter garden , the birth of the runway as jolson got closer to his audience , the incidental whistling in between vocalizing – all these are recaptured for the screen .

" the jolson story " has since become something of a classic , a regular on the late show . but jolson ' s blackface songs , and parks ' version of them , have taken on different overtones since 1948 .

in the long shot of jolson performing on the " runway " , al jolson played himself ; his only appearance in the film .

the jolson story was different because it attempted to show the story of al jolson ( played by larry parks ) , a jewish immigrant performer who in 1927 starred in the jazz singer . i may have felt ambivalent about jolson blacking up , but i did recognise that it was a familiar practice among white and black performers in pre - civil rights america . plus , jolson ' s passion was clearly for the music , as proved by iconic songs such as my mammy .

basically the story of a man forced to finally see the injustice around him . riley’s movie is designed to do the same thing to you . …

in 1946 , columbia pictures released " the jolson story , " a highly fictionalized musical biography of al jolson . the film starred larry parks as al jolson , evelyn keyes as julie benson ( based on jolson ' s third wife ruby keeler ) , william demarest ( who played his manager ) , ludwig donath and tamara shayne ( who played jolson ' s parents ) , and scotty beckett , who played the young jolson ( though beckett did not actually sing in the film , nor did he do young jolson ' s whistling . )

at the gates of the animal kingdom , hempel’s second collection of short stories , which includes the well - received story about writing stories , “harvest . ”

the story opens with the unnamed narrator visiting her friend , who is also unnamed , in a hospital near hollywood , california , where the . . .

watch " ma blushin ' rosie " from the jolson story at : urltoken my mammy : introduced by al jolson in his winter garden production " sinbad " in 1918 . he actually interpolated the sam lewis , walter donaldson and joe young song into sinbad in 1920 . larry parks mouths the words to jolson ' s 1946 new and revised columbia studio recordings for the award winning musical biography of his life , " the jolson story " . it is still considered today by many to be the finest musical biography ever made ! !

al jolson in the 1927 film the jazz singer . photograph : ronald grant archive

lew dockstader and oscar hammerstein did not discover al jolson . by the time dockstader signed jolson in 1908 , jolson had been performing in vaudeville with his brother harry for several years .

tor books have published ghost girl takes manhattan on their website as a standalone short story . it can be found here .

a double bill of films making up a biopic of broadway entertainer al jolson . in ' the jolson story ' , young jolson ( scotty beckett , and later larry parks , whose voice is dubbed for the musical numbers by jolson himself ) has an ambition to perform in vaudeville , although his parents would prefer that he pursued an alternative career . however , jolson pursues his dream , becoming the biggest broadway star of his time . ' jolson sings again ' chronicles jolson ' s 1940s comeback , finding popularity anew as he works to entertain the us forces during world war two .

while jolson’s precise age can only be estimated , one thing is certain : he is one of the most durable performers ever to star on stage , screen and radio . his life story has already been screened in the jolson story and a second biographical treatment is coming up at mgm . today jolie has more money , earns more money and works harder than at any time in his life .

in this sequel to the jolson story , we pick up the singer ' s career just as he has returned to the stage after a premature retirement . but his wife has left him and the appeal of the . . . see full summary »

howard waldrop wrote only one story for the entire series , but it is the single story that the wild cards premise is held together by . waldrop created jetboy is an homage to airboy , an aviator hero in a comic book series published by hillman periodics . howard waldrop is a fan of the character .

an oscar cesare caricature of jolson in the wonder bar published in the ny times .

by 1930 , the public had already moved on from this , and were even growing tired of the 18 months ' worth of musical revues that had been churned out as studios learned to wrestle with sound . they wanted story more than music . in most regards , the story elements were strong for

interestingly , the cover picture of " the jolson story " soundtrack album , consisted of a drawing of two hands with white gloves , with no reference to his , at times controversial , " black face " makeup .

the jolson story / jolson sings again [ 1946 / 1949 ) [ vhs ] : larry parks , evelyn keyes , barbara hale , william demarest , bill goodwin , ludwig donath , tamara shayne , myron mccormick , alfred e . green , henry levin : urltoken video

twenty years after he starred in " the jolson story , " larry parks still meets people like the cab driver who took him to the theater the other day . parks and his wife , betty garrett , got into the cab and the driver said , " say , aren ' t you larry parks ? i saw you in the jolson picture . "

" it ' s quite a story , " parks recalled . " in the beginning , jolson wanted to play himself . well , that ' s understandable , but he was too old . he was 68 . so then jolson wanted james cagney for the role . cagney had just finished playing george m . cohan . " jolson was never too happy with me . and i had another problem . all of jolson ' s movies were for warner brothers , and we were making ' the jolson story ' for columbia . so harry cohn , the studio boss , asked jack warner if we could borrow the jolson films so i could study them . and jack warner , in a heartwarming display of reciprocity , said hell no .

the films imply that jolson had only two wives although he actually had four . his last two wives were ruby keeler and erle galbraith , though their real names weren ' t used in the film . keeler , having been divorced from jolson for more than six years , did not even want her name associated with the picture . at the time " the jolson story " was released , jolson was happily married to his fourth wife , erle , since march 1945 .

" the ballad of narayama " is a japanese film of great beauty and elegant artifice , telling a story of startling cruelty . what a space it opens…

" the jolson story " was highly successful and did much to revive jolson ' s career which had been sagging during the years previous to the film ' s release . the film won numerous academy awards , i . e . for best music , scoring of a musical picture , and best sound recording . larry parks was nominated for best actor in a leading role , and william demarest was nominated for best actor in a supporting role . the film was also nominated for best cinematography , color and film editing . the great success of " the jolson story " spawned a sequel " jolson sings again " just three years later - - also successful , but not as much as the first film . " the jolson story " introduced the talents of al jolson to a new generation . this lead to many guest appearances on the radio , as well as a starring role on a nbc radio program called " the kraft music hall , " which ran from october 1947 to may 1949 .

jolson singing a dixie song in the 1926 sound short , a plantation act .

in the following interview , which was conducted in cooperation with the american prose library on november 6 , 1991 , sapp discusses hempel’s approach to writing fiction , especially the story “in the cemetery where al jolson is buried , ” which was one of the first stories hempel ever wrote .

jolson says , " hey , wait a minute ! " the stage manager says " call the orchestra leader . tell him we ' re cutting out the jolson number . "

the airwaves instantly responded with jolson tributes all around the country and on the networks . sales of jolson records picked up . there was truly an international period of mourning that followed .

" lux radio theater " broadcast a 60 minute radio adaptation of the movie on february 16 , 1948 with evelyn keyes reprising her film role . al jolson who performed the songs for larry parks in the film plays himself in this version of his life story .

a standout of the musical film - bio genre , the jolson story was a box office smash , despite the fact that it contained just about every show business cliche imaginable . it ' s a highly idealized portrait of jolson , remembered by everyone who knew him to have been as personally difficult as he was professionally talented . jolson was larry park ' s first big role . . . read more

one of my favourites . used to watch it with my grandma . great songs and the main actor does a fantastic job . love the story . fun to sing along everytime !

hempel also has editorial credits . along with her friend jim shepherd , she co - edited unleashed : poems by writers’ dogs . in tribute to her status as a master short story writer , she is the only northerner to have guest edited algonquin books’ “new stories form the south , ” the 2010 twenty - fifth anniversary edition of the annual short story collection .

" here ' s a clipping from the portland oregonian , " parks said . it was an editorial suggesting that times had changed , that blackface was offensive , and that " the jolson story " should be quietly laid to rest by tv stations .

jolson’s singing proves the big excitement for this technicolorful film biog of the great mammy - singer’s career .

the same scene from the film the jazz singer ( 1927 ) with al jolson , eugenie besserer and warner oland .

how the hard‐working mr . parks won the plum role in the jolson biography reads like one of those stereotyped hollywood star‐is‐born stories . it is said that columbia interviewed and tested dozens of actors and jolson‐imitators for the al jolson role , and ended up finding the right man right there at columbia .

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al jolson relaxing in the surf at palm beach , florida , in january of 1921 .

jolson ( r ) with rex o ' malley and marie hunt in the wonder bar .

avalon ( uncredited ) music by vincent rose lyrics by buddy g . desylva and al jolson sung by al jolson originally from the broadway musical " bombo " , 1921

the soundtrack album , the first of its kind . titled " the jolson story " ( decca ) , released in 1947 , consisted of re - recordings by jolson of many of his standards performed in the film to the lip sync of larry parks . it was first issued as 6 two sided 78 rpm records in an actual " record album " . lps were not introduced until 1948 .

whether it was genuine or for show , eddie cantor publicly " buried the hatchet " with jolson for whatever tiff they might have been experiencing . jolson himself admitted that he was hoping for a good result , and gave a sad story about how much he had lost in the stock market as well as the box office . " nobody wanted me—al keeler . "

this is an incredibly moving and sad story . the tale features two characters , both of whom are unnamed . firstly there is the dying friend that the narrator visits . her attempt to confront and . . .

jolson caught wind of the story and became excited at the prospect of turning it into a photoplay . he shopped it to a few studios , but was turned down wholesale , perhaps wondering how they could make a silent film about a not - so - silent singer .

“hills like white elephants , ” ernest hemingway ’s minimalist short story about a couple at a crossroads in their relationship . like “in the cemetery , ” their strongest feelings go unspoken .

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“the jilting of granny weatherall , ” katherine anne porter ’s 1929 story about a dying woman troubled by her past ; written in first - person , stream - of - consciousness narrative .

well made , but not exactly an enticing rise to fame story . pretty much some average performances singing and dancing for the best part of 2 hours where not all that much happens .

jolson sings again " hawked the newsboys along hollywood boulevard . " jolson sings again , " they repeated over and over holding up the bold headline that was destined to change lives and careers in the 1950s .

the jolson exuberance and the jolson tricks didn’t work the magic immediately . his first broadway hit was made the , hard way at the winter garden in 1911 , in la belle paree . jolson didn’t get on stage until after midnight . his exertions at that late hour only annoyed a laughed - out audience , and jolson “died . ” next day he went to j . j . shubert and quit . shubert urged jolson to try once more and moved his appearance up by two hours . jolson became a star at once and has been one ever since .

. at that time in april of 1927 , he was staying at the biltmore hotel in hollywood as was jolson , reportedly in suites on the same floor . jolson , still on the west coast portion of his

jolson ' s contract , signed on may 26 , 1927 , was for $ 75 , 000 initially for his eight weeks in front of the camera , with installments out of the profits once it was in the theaters . jolson ' s instincts , which included the notion that he could bring more to his own life story than anyone , were absolutely correct , but nobody knew that as filming began .

al jolson and his " boss " christopher columbus in a scene from bombo .

a life magazine picture of overflowing mourners at al jolson ' s hollywood funeral .

asa yoelson , a . k . a . albert " al " jolson .

not a lot of relation to the truth , but with all those jolson songs on the soundtrack it hardly matters .

a parable is a story that teaches a lesson . within “in the cemetery” is the story about the chimpanzee who learns sign language . in the parable , the mother chimp lies twice when asked “who did it on the desk . ” this conscious misdirection of language parallels the pattern of distortion found in the trivial dialogue exchanged by the two women . they refuse to confront death , and in effect their idle conversation is a form of “lie” in which they are protecting themselves from pain . at the end of the story , the narrator relates that the chimpanzee’s signed request to her dead child is “baby , come hug , baby , come hug . ” the chimp has become “fluent now in the language of grief . ” by relating this parable , the narrator has also learned to examine her grief , rather than ignore it .

minimalism in american literature can be traced back to the early works of ernest hemingway , who believed that what is stated overtly in a story should be just the “tip of the iceberg . ” in his 1964 book , a moveable feast , he proposed a “new theory that you could omit anything if you knew that you omitted and the omitted parts would strengthen the story and make people feel something more than they understood . ” in “in the cemetery , ” what is omitted is key : the narrator does not discuss her friend’s impending death with her then or ever ; in fact , after the narrator leaves the hospital , the next mention of the friend is that she was “moved to the cemetery . ” discussion of the friend’s death , before and after the fact , is completely omitted from the story .

the songs get to be a bit much sometimes , but larry parks is great as al jolson .

jolson took it . later , he made a motion picture and another million under the same title .

“in the cemetery” explores the theme of friendship by showing the strain the terminal illness has placed on the women’s relationship . the narrator feels guilty when introduced as the generic “best friend , ” a label that indicates the withering of their closeness . “so how come , i’ll bet they’re wondering , it took me so long to get to such a glamorous place ? . . . two months , and how long is the drive ? ” the narrator asks herself , realizing that her absence is a betrayal of their friendship . the implication is that the fearful narrator took too long coming to the side of her dying friend and , once there , will not stay until the end . in its final form , the story also alludes to the friendship between amy hempel and the now deceased jessica wolfson , whom hempel promised to write a story about and to whom the story is dedicated .

jolson ' s singing proves the big excitement for this technicolorful film biog of the great mammy - singer ' s career .

next article : james t . farrell : " my past is considered better than my future . " previous article : abbey lincoln : " you can ' t really tell the story until everyone gets on the stage . "

jolson in blackface sings a love song to a little future champion in big boy .

we laugh and cry at the same things . humour helps throw into relief moments that are not funny . beckett does this . the american short story writer flannery o’connor does too . and , in my own opinion , the wonderful amy hempel short story in the cemetery where al jolson is buried proves that comedy and tragedy run together , co - exist . i don’t think i could set down a story of despair employing a despairing tone . nor could i write comedy as a relentless seam of gags . i need to find another way in , approach it from an angle ( as opposed to tackling the subject matter head on ) . i think it was john mcgahern who said the imagination insists that life be told slant and i am inclined to agree .

often after his performances , jolson would have friends come up to his apartment until the wee hours . while there , he would often perform for them . during one of these post - performance parties he sings " cantor on the sabbath " ( in yiddish . ) this scene was cut out of the final version of the film , as it was considered to be " too ethnic . " jolson ' s song " sonny boy " was originally supposed to be included in " the jolson story , " but this too was also excluded in the version released to the public .

the story opens with the unnamed narrator visiting her friend , who is also unnamed , in a hospital near hollywood , california , where the friend is dying , presumably of cancer . the friend asks the narrator to “tell me things i won’t mind forgetting . ” the things the narrator tells her friend are funny and light , items of trivia about the first tape recorder in america and the flying patterns of insects , things which may or may not be true . the friend is interested in hearing about the first chimp that was trained to talk until the narrator warns her that the outcome is sad , at which point the friend commands her to stop the story .

but the real star of the production is that jolson voice and that jolson medley . it was good showmanship to cast this film with lesser people , particularly larry parks as the mammy kid . it’s quite apparent how he must have studied the jolson mannerisms in black - and - white because the vocal synchronization ( with a plenitude of closeups ) defies detection .

there must be times when larry parks wonders if the world is filled with would - be jolson imitators .

larry parks , the actor who reached hollywood stardom with his forceful performance in “the jolson story” in 1946 but whose acting career all but came to a halt in 1951 when he admitted past membership in the communist party , died sunday night of a heart attack in his home in studio city , calif . he was 60 years old .

larry parks repeats his unforgettable role as al jolson in this musical extravaganza . the dramatic story of one of america ' s all - time favourite entertainers continues in this captivating motion picture . the drama unfolds when jolson exits retirement and heads back to broadway where he discovers that musical syles have changed and his exuberant brand of music no longer pulls top - billing . discouraged and tired of a life of wine , women and song - jolson turns to his friends and manager who enlists him to entertain roops during the war . then he falls in love and marries a beautiful army nurse who encourages al to sing again . get set for an exciting array of al jolson ' s most popular songs including baby face , sonny boy , in this electrifying and true - to - life story !

" bombo " is much like its predecessors . harold atteridge has written the mediocre book and lyrics , while sigmund romberg has remembered the music… the show takes its name from that of the blackamoor who acts as servant to no less a person than christopher columbus and tells the story of the discovery of america and the incidents that preceded it . it is bombo , in the person of jolson , who makes the voyage of discovery possible by putting queen isabella and everybody else , including the audience , in good humor… [ jolson ] makes it one of the best shows of the winter garden type that the shuberts have presented .

frank morgan , edgar connor and al jolson in hallelujah , i ' m a bum .

an al hirschfeld caricature of al jolson and martha raye in hold on to your hats .

i’ve been singing al jolson since i was 12 . you can check my show at youtube

the narrator enrolls in a “fear of flying” class that same day . she also finishes the story about the chimpanzee that her friend did not want to hear . the chimp used sign language to communicate with its baby . even after the baby dies , the chimp attempts to communicate with it , “fluent now in the language of grief . ”

just who was going to play al jolson on screen became the number one topic around town . jolson wanted to do it himself , of course , but he was nearly 60 and cohn talked him out of it . cohn did give jolson a say in the casting process , however , as the studio began testing dozens of hopefuls . jolson wanted james cagney , but cagney wasn ' t interested in doing another musical biopic after

. one of the hot properties of that time was a play that had been on broadway and was now touring the country . while it was a good story overall , and a familiar one in some regards , it was also an obvious choice for a sound feature , given the content . even when they shot jolson ' s sound short in the fall of 1926 ,

as either a film or a stage musical . even though he was sitting right across from the very inspiration of his story , raphaelson was less than thrilled with the idea and rejected the notion . he then proceeded to write it as a dramatic stage production .

other references made by the narrator in the story serve as a type of shorthand . a reader familiar with elisabeth kubler - ross , whose book on death and dying was published in 1969 , will understand the characters’ discussion of her stages of grief . using such a tactic allows the author to accomplish a great deal with few words , effectively relying on the reader’s knowledge of contemporary culture . lastly , by referring to american jazz singer al jolson in the title , hempel helps establish the story’s american context even before it begins . in the united states , and particularly in california , places often come to be identified with their connections to the rich and famous . thus , the cemetery where the narrator’s friend is “moved to” is not notable for its name , but for the fact that a famous person , al jolson , is buried there .

in the singing fool , jolson rehearsed his big aria in a los angeles theater before a crowd of 3 , 000 movie extras . the song fell flatter than a cold pancake . jolson rushed from the theater to phone de sylva in atlantic city .

readers never know exactly what illness the sick friend dies of or precisely what her symptoms are ; therefore , the major focus of the story is on the women’s verbal , behavioral , and psychological responses in confronting their own mortality . the one is dying , the other ( the narrator ) is observing both her friend’s behavior and her own reactions to the phenomenon of death .

well , for me , a story is as short or as long as it needs to be . i have finished stories that are several thousand words long , and also stories that don’t even reach the bottom of the first page . in either case the length was immaterial . nor do i attach labels to what i’ve done ( flash , micro , and so forth ) . as far as i’m concerned , nudging any given story over the finish line is the real accomplishment ( length will take care of itself ) .

the jolson story / jolson sings again dvd 1946 / 1949 2003 : urltoken larry parks , evelyn keyes , william demarest , ludwig donath , bill goodwin , myron mccormick , tamara shayne , gertrude astor , steve benton , peter brocco , michael cisney , dick cogan , barbara hale , william e . snyder , henry levin , alfred e . green , william a . lyon , sidney buchman : dvd & blu - ray

i don ' t much care for the real - life jolson so it was predictable i was not in love with this movie . jolson fans will probably love it . the man himself dubs parks ' s singing . reviewed on urltoken

this takes us away from the subject , which for me smells of liberal paternalism ( read : fear ) as the producer ' s decision in jolson & co removes al jolson from the context of his era and denies the fact that blackface and minstrelsy have been intrinsic to western entertainment since the 19th century . to put it another way , the idea of contemplating al jolson without blacking up is like considering marvin gaye without sex ; if the producers wanted to avoid controversy , they shouldn ' t be doing a musical about al jolson .

garrett also claims that jolson worked with parks only a little bit , teaching him some signature body movements , but he always resented that the " kid " was playing him and ultimately became such a nuisance that his access to the set was restricted . parks , garrett wrote , did not imitate jolson so much as channel the " essence " of jolson .

“in the cemetery” is ultimately a story about the limits of language . like the mother chimp who is trained to sign , the narrator and her friend train themselves to speak only in trivia—like signing , an alternate and artificial form of language—to speak only about things that do not matter . the substitution here of trivia for what is real renders the story the ideal minimalist marriage of form and content : one - liners substitute for authentic communication , and what is omitted , to harken back to hemingway , becomes most important of all . like the protective mask that the friend ultimately flings off in rage , this artificial language can shield the characters from—but never prevent—the threat of the friend’s imminent death .

" show ' s running too long . it ' s almost eleven now . who ' s on next ? " asks the stage manager . " jolson . " " we ' ll cut jolson out and jump to the finish . "

although jolson is approximately 65 , the question of his real age became a national pastime soon after his kraft show went on the air . eddie cantor , bob hope , bing crosby and fred allen profess to believe that jolson is prehistoric .

al jolson and his " walk out " on d . w . griffith were the sole talk of broadway film circles this week . jolson ' s sailing on the majestic for europe last saturday in company with j . j . shubert threw the monkey wrench into the works as far as the picture the blackface star was to make under the direction of the " master of the films . "

after all these years , and all my countless viewings , " the jolson story " remains the most magical and thrilling of all hollywood musical biographies . it also stands as testament to " the world ' s greatest entertainer , " al jolson , and his tremendous impact on show business for all time . jolie ' s fantastic voice , filled with warmth , power and soul , will always be heard as long as this wonderful movie is viewed . larry parks and his supporting cast are superb , but it is that jolson voice , electricity - personified , that elevates the film to immortal status .

was successfully previewed in santa barbara . jolson surreptitiously listened as the audience exited . one elderly woman , in a now - famous remark , said : " what a pity that jolson never lived to see this . "

one of the greatest musicals ever made , the joson story is an electrifying cavalcade of lavish production numbers with an all - star cast . the film traces the meteoric career of sa yoelson , a talented cantor ' s son determined to make it big in the " biz " . after changing his name to al jolson , asa captivates audiences eveverywhere as a spellbinding minstrel and jazz performer . featuring 25 songs by jolson , this is a compelling tribute to an incomparable performer once hailed as " america ' s greatest entertainer !

robert peltier is an english instructor at trinity college and has published works of both fiction and nonfiction . in the following essay , he discusses the nature of truth as it is regarded by the characters in this “postmodern” story , ultimately stating that the narrator’s belief in her “language of grief’ is a lie .

although hempel lives and works in new york city , most of her stories resound with the sounds and images of california . some dramatic events in hempel’s short stories correspond with several of her own unhappy life experiences , which include traumatic car and motorcycle accidents , her mother’s suicide , her father’s mental illness , and the death of a close friend . in discussing “in the cemetery where al jolson is buried , ” for example , hempel told jo sapp of the missouri review that although the dialogue of the story was completely fabricated , it is a true story that accurately reflects her relationship with her dying friend . her stories have been translated into twelve languages and anthologized in the united states and several other countries . hempel’s literary awards include the silver medal from the commonwealth club of california for reasons to live and the best american short stories pushcart prize . her work regularly appears in such popular magazines as vanity fair , the new york times magazine , and vogue . hempel is the author of two collections of short stories : reasons to live which contains her most anthologized short story , “in the cemetery where al jolson is buried , ” and at the gates of the animal kingdom .

, m . d . , director of pediatric neurosurgery at the johns hopkins hospital in baltimore , md . from yale , he went to the medical school of the . . . download well race you , henry : a story about henry ford ( creative minds biography ) read online

in 1946 , saul chaplin adapted iosif ivanovici ' s romanian ' waves of the danube ' ; al jolson and saul chaplin wrote the lyrics .

jolson first clapped eyes on erle galbraith at hot springs during the war . she was an x - ray technician and jolson saw her as he was leaving a building . “you waiting for my autograph ? ” he asked .

this story is an intriguing , frank , and pithy rendering of complex reactions to the dying of loved ones . hempel’s clipped style and the ironic humor of the friends’ interchanges serve only to emphasize the seriousness of the situation . the friends confront imminent death and loss in the tone that has characterized their relationship since college days , which seem not to be very far behind them .

work has featured in the irish times , 2014 / 15 / 16 national flash fiction day anthologies , flash : the international short - short story magazine , nano , litro , the lonely crowd , wales arts review , the incubator , firewords quarterly and others . she won or placed in the british screenwriters’ awards , the short story , tethered by letters , flash500 , domineer , the new writer , prick of the spindle and 99fiction . net . a 2016 frank o’connor mentorship recipient , marie also is a pushcart and best of the short fictions nominee . she has a master of studies in creative writing from the university of oxford and lives in cork , ireland .

tour went back to the greater new york city area , and on rare nights when jolson was not engaged on the stage , he did the occasional radio appearance . almost the same week that

the producers of a new musical about the broadway star al jolson have been criticised for deciding that the actor who plays him will not wear his trademark " black face " during the show .

( 1946 ) was upon its release . al jolson biographer michael freedland has written , " not since

i thought you might like to see a memorial for al jolson i found on findagrave . com .

jack benny , george jessel , george burns and al jolson at a friars club event in 1946 .

suggested to al that he try performing as many minstrels and stage actors had to that time , using burnt cork to create a blackface look . this created a virtual mask that seemed to free up the younger jolson ' s inhibitions , and he suddenly became much more broad and dynamic . accounts vary on who ultimately suggested this and when , but the dooley story seems to be the most reliable of the recollections .

i actually really enjoyed this movie . it was a modest but nice little look on the rise of al jolson ' s career . the songs were performed by jolson himself and dubbed over larry park ' s voice . it also makes reference to the jazz singer ( the first talkie ever ! ) and honestly , i found this to be an enjoyable biopic which paid great respect to the talents and stardom of jolson .

. frustrated by cohn and columbia during the inactive period , jolson threatened to take the project to warner brothers in late 1944 , but had no script in hand , so eventually ceded production control to cohn on the terms of the deal . even before a choice was made , jolson , confident that his story would score well in the theaters , eventually signed a contract that allowed him a good share of the profits from the film . this further indicates that his overall popularity had not sunk nearly as low as some accounts have traditionally reported . rumors of his professional demise were clearly premature .

in order to understand al jolson ' s complex personality and motivations , it is helpful to understand some of his back story , as told here . in spite of his ego and constant need to perform , which interfered with his marriage , as did dalliances with other women , jolson really did have a big heart and a soft spot for those who had helped him along during the years , and many loyal friends who often fiercely defended him . one of the better examples of this unfailing streak of professional integrity played out during the late spring of 1912 . part of the way through the run of the a whirl of society run , lew dockstader opened with his latest show at the broadway theater . he had not been doing quite so well in the wake of many changes occurring on the american stage , and a step away from the now - outdated minstrelsy . the review from the new york times of may 28 , 1912 , tells the story :

as to the content and accuracy of the motion picture , jolson being the primary source of the information and the consultant romanticized some of it , and the four screenwriters did the rest . most people who knew something of al ' s life were aware this was a story full of seminal events that had been tweaked a bit , but also some basic untruths . for example , in the story , al ' s birth mother was still around , even in the late 1930s , and his relationship with the rabbi yoelson was portrayed as quite a bit warmer than other accounts had indicated . his manager , former vaudevillian " steve martin , " played by william demarest , who had also been in the jazz singer in 1927 , was a composite of several people in his life . his first two marriages were ignored . warner brothers made it clear they could not use any portion of the jazz singer other than the title , limiting options on how that would be presented . ruby keeler would not allow her name or some facets of her life to be used , so bitter was their relationship , and she became the more sympathetic " julie benson , " although starring in the same - named shows as keeler had also done . for her cooperation with offering a little bit of her side of the story while not stirring the pot in the press , she was awarded $ 25 , 000 by the studio . that so many variances of the truth had been affected on the story of al ' s life was a point deftly , if curiously , acknowledged in the follow - up film , where parks as jolson , dictating his life to a writer , stated :

the narrator comforts herself by saying that “it is just possible i will say i stayed the night . and who is there that can say that i did not ? ” in a world that makes no distinction between truth and lies , she has justified her lack of compassion and decency and— perhaps most disturbing of all—she claims to have gained a knowledge of grief . the most loathsome moment in the story comes at the end when she tells the story of the birth of a baby to that other liar , the talking chimp . the baby dies and the mother chimp “signs” to her baby over and over , “fluent now in the language of grief . ” the parallel between the chimp and the narrator is not just strained , it is entirely false . the narrator has not learned the language of grief and will not until she breaks through the barrier of postmodern detachment .

and his orchestra . appearing in his outdated blackface makeup , jolson appeared much darker than his negro counterpart .

california , here i come ( uncredited ) music by joseph meyer lyrics by buddy g . desylva and al jolson sung by larry parks ( dubbed by al jolson ) , evelyn keyes ( dubbed by virginia rees )

in the 1970s , the diet of british television on a given weekend might have included the sitcom love thy neighbour , light entertainment such as the black and white minstrel show and , occasionally , the 1946 hollywood movie the jolson story . watching the black and white minstrel show felt like hearing nails scratching a blackboard . while i was aware of the american and british theatrical tradition of white performers blacking up for grotesquely caricatured slave plantation dances and singing styles , it seemed offensive for such programmes to be produced in the multi - ethnic britain of the 1970s without any sense of irony .

the jolson story [ import ] : urltoken larry parks , evelyn keyes , william demarest , bill goodwin , ludwig donath , scotty beckett , tamara shayne , jo - carroll dennison , john alexander , ernest cossart , the robert mitchell boy choir , robert kellard , alfred e . green , gordon griffith , sidney buchman , sidney skolsky , andrew solt , harry chandlee , stephen longstreet : dvd

themes . in a black comedy , an author will frequently make fun of things of a serious nature , such as illness , death , or disease . in this story , the narrator uses black humor in an effort to ease her fear of death . and the sick woman , ironically , uses it to put her friend at ease , too , like when she wraps the phone cord around her neck or exclaims , “oh , you’re killing me . ” a further irony in the story is the metaphor of the hospital as a television set , a place for actors . the narrator and her friend assume the role of actors , yet their situation is real .

" in the cemetery where al jolson is buried . " short stories for students . . retrieved july 09 , 2018 from urltoken urltoken

despite the evident strain this tour put on jolson ' s body , a fact that was later lamented by akst in his recollection of the trip , after his return to los angeles on september 30 and a week spent in the dry desert of palm springs , al penned a deal with rko pictures to star in stars and stripes forever opposite dinah shore . it was intended to be the story of a uso troupe in the pacific theater during world war ii . there were other lucrative deals in the work as well . jolson had his eye on the growing medium of television , hoping to perhaps host his own show on nbc for the 1951 season .

jolson often pestered his father to tell him his real age . once , at the height of his fame , he tried to pin the old man down .

) , memorial page for al jolson ( 26 may 1886–23 oct 1950 ) , find a grave memorial no .

al jolson with united artists talent , november , 1930 . l to r : al jolson , mary pickford , ronald coleman , gloria swanson , douglas fairbanks , joseph schenck , charles chaplin , samuel goldwyn , eddie cantor .

“in the cemetery where al jolson is buried” begins with the narrator’s reluctant visit to a dying friend but evolves into an elegy for the terminally - ill woman and a confession of the narrator’s own fear of dying .


the scarlet letter is a 1995 american romantic drama film .

it is a film adaptation of the nathaniel hawthorne novel of the same name .

it was directed by roland joffé and stars demi moore , gary oldman , and robert duvall .

this version was " freely adapted " from hawthorne and deviated from the original story .

it was nominated for seven golden raspberry awards at the 1995 ceremony , winning " worst remake or sequel . "

the scarlet letter ( 1995 film )

the scarlet letter ( 1995 film ) <EOT> featured in the scarlet letter / the celluloid closet / jade / blue in the face / les miserables ( 1995 ) . see more »

the bulk of the scarlet letter - - the " freely adapted " film - - is devoted to the back story of the scarlet letter - - the strictly written novel .

the scarlet letter movie analysis : from the small page to the big screen .

october 20 , 1995 web posted at : 3 : 02 p . m . edt

( 18 ) nathaniel hawthorne . the scarlet letter . london : penguin , 1994 . , 219 .

here are some of the best or most noteworthy versions of the scarlet letter to help you study and better understand the work .

- the scarlet letter : an analysis of puritanism and sin the scarlet letter is a modern classic of american literature written about controversy and published with controversy . the main topic of the book , adultery , is written in a dark and sad way , as hawthorne describes injustice , fate or predetermination and conscience ( van doren , 1998 ) . no other american novel of the time has such a controversial theme as hawthorne ' s , the scarlet letter . the setting of nathanial hawthorne ' s the scarlet letter is the seventeenth century puritan new england . . . . [ tags : scarlet letter hawthorne ]

the scarlet letter is rated r . that ' s for nudity ( surprise ! ) , sexual situations and violence .

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mla citation : " the scarlet letter freely adapted as a movie . " urltoken . 09 jul 2018 < urltoken > .

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despite the cast taking themselves very seriously indeed , the scarlet letter is a great comic turn , complete with cod - accents and other period jiggery - pokery .

those in search of a more faithful adaptation might check out 1926 ' s the scarlet letter starring silent film siren lillian gish as hester prynne . this one touches on many themes that the modern take has left out .

- the novel vs . film of the scarlet letter films of this era are criticized for substituting violence and special effects for " substance " . many believe that creating a movie script is a juvenile form of writing , a shrub to the oak of a novel . upon reading both the novel the scarlet letter by nathaniel hawthorne and viewing the film produced by roland joffe , one notices the tremendous effort put into both . this essay will explore the many differences and similarities between the book and movie . . . . [ tags : movie film comparison compare contrast ]

- written in 1850 , the scarlet letter stood as a very progressive book . with new ideas about women , main characters’ stories intertwined , and many different themes , the scarlet letter remains today as a extremely popular novel about 17th century boston , massachusetts . not only was the 19th century a time for the abolition of slavery movement but it was also the beginning of the first wave of feminism . women such as elizabeth cady stanton , susan b . anthony , and lucretia mott catalyzed the women’s rights movement . . . . [ tags : the scarlet letter ]

once you have to seen the the scarlet letter movie staring demi moore , gary oldman and robert duvall , and hear the wonderful music , you will want to have the soundtrack . beautiful and spiritual ! !

barry ' s score was released on cd by sony records upon the film ' s release in 1995 . a cd of bernstein ' s rejected score was released by varèse sarabande in 2008 . no recordings of morricone ' s score have been released to the public .

one area where this movie version of the scarlet letter is masterful is in its depiction of the setting . the mock - up of colonial boston is convincing , and great care is taken to assure that there are no obvious anachronisms . the forest , which is virtually a character in the novel , has its own life in the film , as well . on the whole , this is a beautiful - looking picture , but the scarlet letter is in need of more than a nice appearance .

- the scarlet letter : the significance of the letter adultery has been around almost as long as people . it has maintained a harsh punishment , from banishment to death , but in the puritan world of colonial america ( from about 1620 - 1640 ) , its punishment may have been worse than either . in the scarlet letter by nathaniel hawthorne , hester prynne is a lonely puritan woman who commits infidelity with a preacher and has a son from the untruthful union . to punish her for this act , the council of leaders forces her to wear a large “a” on her bosom , to let all know what she has done . . . . [ tags : scarlet letter essays ]

it & apos ; s amazing what a single box office turkey can do to a great filmmaker & apos ; s career . before he tragically directed demi moore and gary oldman in the critically savaged 1995 mess the scarlet letter , roland joffé was a very respected shotcaller with a pair of oscar - nominated movies to his name : the killing fields ( 1984 ) and the mission ( 1986 ) .

- the secrets of the scarlet letter nathaniel hawthorne ' s the scarlet letter is considered by many to be the greatest accomplishment of an author hailed as the master of the american short story . it is set in salem , massachusetts . in this strictly controlled puritan town the inhabitants live by harsh laws and fierce prejudices . hester prynne , a young wife whose husband is presumed dead , is being publicly humiliated for the sin of adultery . the proof of her sin is her baby girl pearl . she conceals the identity of pearl ' s father to protect him from the harsh judgement of puritan law . . . . [ tags : scarlet letter essays ]

oldman is good . this film is not too good . do not have the flick .

- morality in the scarlet letter " . . . pain is in itself an evil ; and indeed , without exception , the only evil ; or else the words good and evil have no meaning . " ( chase 127 ) in the novel the scarlet letter , nathaniel hawthorne presents a very clear view of his stand on morality , which he carefully cultivates through the course of the story . the moral , which is " be true ! " applies equally well to all of the characters in the novel . though his view does seem to stand as true through the length of the story , it does not , unfortunately , transfer as smoothly to our lives today . . . . [ tags : scarlet letter essays ]

- the double life exposed in the scarlet letter irish novelist brian moore observed , " there comes a point in many people ' s lives when they can no longer play the role they have chosen for themselves " . from hollywood movie stars to professional athletes , people have and will continue to lead false lives , under the public spotlight , concealing their personal travails . in literature , the preceding statement has held true numerous times , in works such as nathaniel hawthorne ' s the scarlet letter . minister and respected citizen , arthur dimmesdale , was perceived as an upstanding member of the community who preached the word of the heavenly father . . . . [ tags : scarlet letter essays ]

let’s face it , it’s tough for any film to recreate the spirit of a novel . but once in a while , a film perfectly brings the magic of a book to the big screen . on the other hand , a film can also completely destroy a classic piece of literature . in honor of international literacy day , dmg entertainment reviews the five best and five worst book to film adaptations .

- the themes of the scarlet letter the scarlet letter is a romantic novel , mainly because it is a long , fictitious tale of heroes and extraordinary events . unfolding over a seven year period , we are treated to the heroism of hester prynne and her adulterous beloved , the reverend arthur dimmesdale and the mysterious actions and behavior of their love child , pearl , and the witch , mistress hibbins . the story is set against the background of puritan , new england , a stern , authoritarian , colony founded by a group of religious reformers . before the novel begins , hester is guilty of an affair which produced pearl while her husband was abroad . her husband , roger chillingworth , comes to a . . . [ tags : scarlet letter essays ]

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fayed & apos ; s father owns london & apos ; s famous harrods department store , as well as fulham football club and the ritz - carlton hotel in paris . fayed was best known for his flamboyant lifestyle , but made his way to a career in film , working as a producer for 1980 & apos ; s breaking glass , 1981 & apos ; s chariots of fire , and 1986 & apos ; s f / x , along with its sequel and television series . he also served as executive producer for 1991 & apos ; s fantasy film hook , with robin williams , and 1995 & apos ; s film adaptation of the scarlet letter . he founded his own production company , allied stars inc .

the credits acknowledge that this new version of “the scarlet letter” has been “freely adapted from the novel by nathaniel hawthorne , ” which is one of the understatements of the year . opening with what look like outtakes from “the mission” and continuing with fat slices of “the last of the mohicans , ””the crucible” and hothouse eroticism that’s [ … ]

the movie scarlet letter was not a great film by any means , but the soundtrack is simply astounding . the romantic melodies are sweeping , and the mix of indian tones works . i would recomend buying it if you like john barry or james horner . it ' s a must own , i would say it is more impressive than titanic with ease .

not only does the film bear little resemblance to the source novel , but it ' s cluttered with ridiculous symbolism .

read the book . forget this movie . if you can track down the pbs version of the scarlet letter of a number of years back ( starring meg foster , i believe ) try that . it ' s not great , but it is faithful to the spirit of the story .

the sense of place is as pervasive as a character in “moss , ” a film by daniel peddle .

the music is just what you ' d expect from john barry : full of lust and romance , with lovely lyrical themes , and all with a perfect musical structure . it ' s quite similar in a lot of ways to his score for roland joffe ' s ill - advised 1995 version of the scarlet letter ( not surprising , since that too was a romantic period drama ) . but those who have criticised swept from the sea as being just yet another reworking of the same idea by barry are mistaken .

in this essay i set out to find the basis for a dialogue among three texts under the same title , the scarlet letter : nathaniel hawthorne’s novel , and victor sjöström’s and roland joffé’s film versions . the aim was far from listing the differences in the texts or from simply condemning any of the films for not following closely enough the plot line of the „original” novel . my attempt was to see how one medium informs the other via a story , and what this transposition reveals about that story . although i worked with a limited number of examples , i think they proved to be enough to see how the very same „scarlet letter” appears ( or disappears for that matter ) in each and every textual or visual manifestation .

- nathaniel hawthorne’s the scarlet letter is one of the most respected and admired novels of all time . often criticized for lacking substance and using more elaborate camera work , freely adapted films usually do not follow the original plot line . following this cliché , roland joffe’s version of the scarlet letter received an overwhelmingly negative reception . unrealistic plots and actions are added to the films for added drama ; for example , hester is about to be killed up on the scaffold , when algonquin members arrive and rescue her . . . . [ tags : nathaniel hawthorne ]

this hungarian film is a careful , compassionate and beautifully acted character drama with a social conscience .

the credits acknowledge that this new version of “the scarlet letter ” has been “freely adapted from the novel by nathaniel hawthorne , ” which is one of the understatements of the year . opening with what look like outtakes from “the mission” and continuing with fat slices of “the last of the mohicans , ””the crucible” and hothouse eroticism that’s pure hollywood , this borderline campy look at the puritans is politically correct melodrama with sex on the brain . demi moore’s feisty hester prynne could prove inspiring to teenage femmes , who rep the film’s best commercial hope , but mainstream audiences are unlikely to make this a red - letter b . o . draw .

run time : 2 : 15 u . s . release date : 1995 - 10 - 13 mpaa rating : " r " ( sexual situations , violence , nudity ) genre : drama subtitles : none theatrical aspect ratio : 2 . 35 : 1

- the scarlet letter : the book vs . the movie demi moore ' s portrayal of hester in the movie the scarlet letter proved her worth as a feminist actress , which led her to other , more modern female empowerment roles ranging from striptease to gi jane . but in the moviemakers ' attempt to give the story what they might think is a little modern flavor , they barbarously misconstrued the theme , and thus the importance , of a timeless story . in the novel , there can be little doubt that hester is a strong person , but the movie made her out to be a martyr for women ' s rights . the female empowerment theme of the movie also inevitably led to the characterization of christians and their ethics as tyra . . . [ tags : movie film comparison compare contrast ]

sjöström’s film sheds light on the dialogic nature of the study of adaptation : it shows how the specificity of one medium ( words – literature ) can be transposed very differently , yet with the same purpose into another medium ( images – film ) . this film version goes beyond the limits of comparative analysis : it is in futile to match the character descriptions of the novel to the characterization ( including the casting policy ) of the film , as one can learn about hester more by „reading” lillian gish back into the novel than vice versa , struggling to find all the buttons on her garment in the image .

the tomatometer score — based on the opinions of hundreds of film and television critics — is a trusted measurement of critical recommendation for millions of fans . it represents the percentage of professional critic reviews that are positive for a given film or television show .

( 20 ) i deliberately use the word „invader , ” as this is joffé’s to be released film this year .

there are a few things keeping " the scarlet letter " from being a bad movie classic among the likes of " the room " or " troll 2 . " while the dialogue is bad , it ' s not especially weird or quotable . the movie ' s too long , the pacing is sluggish , and there are long periods of time between the truly outrageous moments .

credit should be given to the film makers for attempting to adapt a classic american novel for modern audiences . ( the most recent previous english - language motion picture treatment was made over sixty years ago . ) unfortunately , poor casting and script choices have reduced this film to little more than a period piece soap opera . the letter placed upon hester ' s breast may be an " a " , but roland joffe ' s film doesn ' t deserve much better than a " c - " on its report card .

before i tackle specific questions in the process of adaptation of hawthorne’s novel to film , i wish to claim the theoretical stand i am taking in the following investigation . this is imperative since i will not join the debates centering upon the issue of fidelity , for my concern here is not whether the film remains faithful to the original or departs from it , and if it does , to what extent . listing such details would simply mean condemning a film adaptation because it fails to „be” the novel one reads ( or praising it for taking up all the details of the novel ) . however , i think a film adaptation should „transform” the literary text in order to „become” a film and change from the medium of literature . otherwise , the film fails , i . e . it does not become an adaptation , but a mere parroting mechanism . this is the basic difference between the dominant view on adaptation and the view i am advocating in what follows .

as adaptations go , easy a takes a refreshing turn from the average remake . while it may be a teen rom - com version of hawthorne ' s novel , it doesn ' t try to be the exact same story . set in modern day california , the film ' s laced with similar themes and plot points as the scarlet letter , in a clear homage to the novel . it follows a high school student , olive , who acts as a modern day hester prynne .

the credits acknowledge that this new version of " the scarlet letter " has been " freely adapted from the novel by nathaniel hawthorne , " which is one of the understatements of the year . opening with what look like outtakes from " the mission " and continuing with fat slices of " the last of the mohicans , " " the crucible " and hothouse eroticism that ' s pure hollywood , this borderline campy look at the puritans is politically correct melodrama with sex on the brain .

( 13 ) jennie rose , „women in film , ” available at urltoken ; accessed on 7 aug , 2004 .

she leans back and the dark cascade of hair ripples over her shoulders . now i see why english director roland joffe had to have her for hester prynne , the outcast heroine of the scarlet letter . " her face was beautiful from regularity of feature and richness of complexion , " wrote nathaniel hawthorne , describing prynne . " she has dark and abundant hair , so glossy that it threw off sunshine like a gleam . " there ' s no sunshine in this hotel room but if there were , moore ' s hair would fling it against all four walls at once . hair , however , will not save her from the critics lining up to massacre the scarlet letter .

scientology founder l . ron hubbard published battlefield earth in 1982 . although the book received mixed reviews by critics , it became a new york times best seller and sold over 150 , 000 copies . john travolta , a strong supporter of scientology , was eager to create the film version of hubbard’s novel . after a series of financial and distribution problems , franchise pictures released the film version of battlefield earth in 2000 . between the film’s bad acting , horrible cgi , and terrible writing , the film earned seven razzies . although the studio considered a sequel , the idea was quickly scrapped due to the poor reception and franchise pictures’ bankruptcy .

oldman has heard the criticisms of the changes and shrugs them off . moore is much less relaxed . she feels compelled to repulse the charges as though her big salary makes her the poster girl for hollywood ' s artistic values - but then many have said the scarlett letter is her audition to become a more serious character actress . the reception the film gets is probably more important to her than oldman .

: pip’s name was changed to finn for the film , which was the name of ethan hawke’s dog ; finn’s name was changed to jimmy for the novelization , which is the name of jimmy fallon .

hmm . inasmuch as there is an actual scarlet letter , which moore ' s hester prynne has to slap on her dress as a punishment for having a baby out of wedlock , the film stays close to the book . it also covers the overwhelming guilt of her lover , the reverend dimmesdale ( oldman ) and the planned revenge of her husband , roger chillingworth ( duvall ) . it details puritanical life in colonial america ( a favored subject of nathaniel hawthorne and the cornerstone of his novel ) , and it touches on the sense of guilt that the puritan lifestyle stressed so deeply .

english teachers still wake up screaming in a cold sweat to memories of the infamous demi moore version of the scarlet letter . it has all the hallmarks of a swanky high - end product : lush visuals , a classic novel at its source , a prestigious director in roland joffé , and a talented cast that includes gary oldman , robert duvall , and joan plowright .

dodi fayed was an egyptian heir and film producer who dated and was killed with princess diana of wales in a paris car crash .

" the ballad of narayama " is a japanese film of great beauty and elegant artifice , telling a story of startling cruelty . what a space it opens…

i must inform you that that roland joffé has utterly bastardized nathaniel hawthorne ' s work with this film , but i find i must review the film as a film , rather than an adaptation due to the strength of the film itself in comparison to the original literary work . as an adaptation , it is a sexed - up , stylized - down piece of detritus . but as a film . . . this work stands alone , as it will not bear up under scrutiny when compared against hawthorne , but aside from that , this " based on " work is a fabulous dramatization of hawthorne ' s story . i have to say the performances are marvelous , the story is captivating , and the emotion of the portrayals is wrenching . i highly enjoyed this bastardization , and rate it at a 7 . 6 / 10 from . . . the fiend : .

( 9 ) brian mcfarlane . novel to film . an introduction to the theory of adaptation . oxford : clarendon press , 1996 . , 65 - 66 .

crime novel writer mario puzo the godfather made it to book stores in 1969 . the novel was an eye - opener for american audiences , providing new insight into the history of the new york mafia . hollywood was eager to make the godfather into a movie , allowing puzo to team up with francis ford coppola to write the film version . paramount pictures released the godfather in 1972 and became an american cinematic essential , considered the second greatest american movie by the american film institute .

winston groom had his book forrest gump published in 1986 . the enchanting novel touched the hearts of readers and caught hollywood’s interest . paramount pictures released the movie adaptation in 1994 . although hollywood changed some parts of the story , such as forrest’s nasa mission and primate companion , forrest gump was a box office triumph . the film earned six academy awards and landed a spot on the american film institutes’ 100 years…100 movies list .

stephen king’s horror novel the shining hit the bookshelves in 1977 . inspired by his own struggles with alcoholism , king’s novel quickly became a bestseller and solidified his status as a prominent horror writer . stanley kubrick and diane johnson adapted the shining for film and released the movie in 1980 . although the shining was a tremendous success , launching jack nicholson and stanley kubrick into fame , king publicly detested the film , believing it was unfaithful to the book .

with the scarlet letter , a universally panned nathaniel hawthorne adaptation that barely broke double - digit box office grosses but cost $ 46 million , joffé squandered all of his hard - earned good will , and it & apos ; s been uninspired torture porn ( captivity , 2007 ) and poorly reviewed , minimally released historical pics ( there be dragons , 2011 ) ever since .

to make sure that we grasp this elemental symbol of adulterous guilt , joffa , in a remarkable gesture , provides a symbol of the symbol , a red bird that comes flying through the film at significant moments ( e . g . , the reverend’s nude swimming scene ) . how did they get a bird this shade of magenta , anyway ? it looks like a canary that fell into a cherry slurpee . somehow , though , it’s an appropriate mascot for this clunky , dawdlingly literal - minded scarlet letter , a movie that doesn’t so much adapt the book as give it an expensive makeover .

where are you , john morris ? where have you gone with your thematic accessibility ? your knack for simple but effective harmonies ? your wonderfully reserved orchestration ? please , come backand bring with you whatever muse was at your side when you scored the scarlet letter . the fact that this the score to this ' 70s mini - series has grown on me so is all the more remarkable in that i don ' t really care for the source material . i found hawthorne ' s novel over - rated , and have yet to see a film adaptation which transcends it . good film music , however , has the ability to stand quite well on it ' s owneven if it was written for utter dreck . morris ' score transcends the program for which it was written in a manner at once delicate and powerful .

yet this raises a question : why adapt the scarlet letter in the first place ? what lasting power could this grimly gothic nightmare possibly hold ? the answer , i think , lies in the way that hester , for all her sensuality and pride , remains spiritually bound to the society that shuns her . in the novel , she wears her disgrace on the outside but also , in a more ethereal way , on the inside ( most dramatically , by giving birth to a mystic demon child ) . the book is a parable of how american societal repression can tear apart even the freest of souls .

the huge sums she now earns may faze some people , but not moore . she sees her pay days as a standard for other women . " the sum itself is inconsequential . the mark in time that women are finding an equivalent box office response to men is what ' s more important . the attitude changing is more important . " in other words , she brought in the punters for disclosure , not michael douglas , and she ' ll do the same for the scarlet letter . qed , demi moore gets the bucks and so should her fellow actresses .

( 3 ) robert stam , „the dialogics of adaptation , ” in james naremore ( ed . ) film adaptation . new jersey : rutgers university press , 2000 . , 57 .

i’d vote no ; the film still clearly cashes in our cultural passion for the tale of two doomed dudes sharing a single body - - and , as per this film , a single crush on julia roberts as the titular housemaid . despite the many technically impressive weird cgi baby arms rising out of john malkovich’s skin during this jekyll - hyde transformation scene , the film was a critical and commercial flop , nominated for more than one razzie in the year of its release and making back only $ 12 million worldwide off of its $ 47 million budget , which , as you’ll see , is kind of a theme here .

although michael crichton’s jurassic park became a bestseller in 1990 , steven spielberg had acquired the film rights in 1989 for $ 1 . 5 million . in 1993 , universal studios released spielberg’s adaptation of the novel jurassic park . the film was a hollywood game changer through its groundbreaking use of cgi and animatronics . jurassic park not only became one of spielberg’s personal triumphs , but also sparked multiple sequels to the beloved classic .

finally , i have to emphasize that my aim with this essay was far from „proving” anything about either of the texts under discussion or meticulously study the adaptation process from word to word and from image to image – the length of this essay would not have allowed such an exercise . what i wished to offer is merely to outline an alternative way of looking at novels and film adaptations without the unnecessary constraints of fidelity criticism ( i . e . without the compulsory and fruitless questions of a text being faithful to another one , or whether the quality of an adaptation matches the quality of the original , etc . ) . the scarlet letter proves to be a classic not because it is part of the literary canon , but – from the point of view of the present essay – because its numerous film adaptations cannot exhaust its interpretative capacity and even add further potential readings to it . this is what is at stake in a study of adaptation , which – i might venture to claim – is a richer study of the novel as well .

in that spirit , let’s examine five of the most egregious book - to - film adaptations in recent history , rated against the golden standard of “i , frankenstein” on a scale of one to five gargoyles , five being the absolute worst .

the scarlet letter was the first , and the tendency of criticism is to pronounce it the most impressive , also , of these ampler productions . it has the charm of unconsciousness ; the author did not realize while he worked , that this “most prolix among the tales” was alive with the miraculous vitality of genius . it combines the strength and substance of an oak with the subtle organization of a rose , and is great , not of malice aforethought , but inevitably . it goes to the root of the matter , and reaches some unconventional conclusions , which , however , would scarce be apprehended by one reader in twenty . for the external or literal significance of the story , though in strict correspondence with the spirit , conceals that spirit from the literal eye . the reader may choose his depth according to his inches but only a tall man will touch the bottom .

the scarlet letter without this scoring would have just been another period film with a gorgeous woman . . . . . . . lack lustre . . . . . but john barry does it once again . . . proving why he is the king . . . . from the beginning native indian inspired traveling to a new land . . . . . . . . till the ending vindication as love triumphs over old world . . . harsh beliefs . . . . another great score by barry that would remind you of this " the last valley " . . . his soundtrack is getting harder to find at a decent price . . . get it while yah can . . . . .

between hawthorne ' s earlier and his later productions there is no solution of literary continuity , but only increased growth and grasp . rappaccini ' s daughter , young goodman brown , peter goldthwaite ' s treasure , and the artist of the beautiful , on the one side , are the promise which is fulfilled in the scarlet letter and the house of the seven gables , on the other ; though we should hardly have understood the promise had not the fulfillment explained it . the shorter pieces have a lyrical quality , but the longer romances express more than a mere combination of lyrics ; they have a rich , multifarious life of their own . the material is so wrought as to become incidental to something loftier and greater , for which our previous analysis of the contents of the egg had not prepared us .

imagine if quentin tarantino came to england and directed tess of the d ' urbervilles as a romance in which tess did not hang and all her enemies were annihilated by marauding celts . that ' s about the kind of liberty joffe has taken with the scarlet letter . the ending has been radically altered from the book . moore has a saucy love scene with co - star gary oldman that certainly wasn ' t written by hawthorne , and native americans massacre most of prynne ' s foes . in the movie , oldman and moore both do some serious over - acting .

and christopher crowe to produce a body of work also entitled the scarlet letter . the effort to introduce the american audience to this classical piece of literature was undertaken , as the film’s star demi moore asserts , because " not many people have read the book " ( qtd . in mr . showbiz , par . 4 ) . however , in doing so , joffe has taken away the essence of hawthorne . " it [ is ] sorrowful to think how many days and weeks and months and years of toil [ have ] been wasted on these musty papers [ of hawthorne’s ] never more to be glanced at by human eyes . but , then , what reams of other manuscripts - filled [ · ] with the thought of inventive brains and the rich effusion of deep hearts - [ have ] gone equally to oblivion " ( hawthorne 46 ; the

the film was shot in british columbia on vancouver island , in and around campbell river ( beaverlodge lands—now rockland road and north island college / timberline secondary , lupin falls and myra falls in strathcona provincial park , little oyster river , and white river ) , and in the nova scotia towns of yarmouth and shelburne in 1994 . in shelburne , the waterfront area was substantially altered to resemble a puritan new england town in the mid - 17th century . some of the buildings on dock street retain the grey - tone paint finishes used for the film .

welcome to massachusetts , 1666 , where puritans , indians , and adultery come together in roland joffe ' s overlong , overwrought re - interpretation of nathaniel hawthorne ' s classic , the scarlet letter . literary purists will be aghast at some of the liberties taken with the original text , but my complaints have more to do with cinematic misjudgments than with those in the book - to - screen translation . and , believe me , there are plenty of problems with this production without having to resort to a cry of " it ' s not faithful to the book ! "

well , no ; let ' s talk about demi moore first . the actress was in new york last week to promote her new movie , the scarlet letter , based on the nathaniel hawthorne classic . she has top - billing and looks like she ' s always been hollywood ' s number one , the best - paid actress in tinsel town . her dark hair hangs down like some rare substance found only on other planets . maybe that ' s how she spends her money - buying impossibly exotic hair products at $ 1m a bottle .

when the minister wants to talk to him , he discovers his dead body hanging from the roof of the room . he runs back to town and offers his throat instead of hester ' s , admitting that he is the father of the child . when he is about to be put to death , the indians save him and hester , and a battle between them and the villagers starts . both sides sustain heavy casualties , with no clear winner . later , after visiting hester ' s husband ' s grave , the three leave on a horse - driven buggy after hester abandons her scarlet letter , and pearl , who had been playing with it , drops it on the ground .

: hard to call , as this works from martin’s novel , which is , by all accounts , pretty good—but the fact that jekyll and hyde are very clearly and obviously the same actual person from minute one of the film can’t be what martin or stevenson envisioned .

whether or not you enjoy this hyper - stylized take on the dickens’ coming of age classic is probably mostly a question of taste and / or taste for ethan hawke . it had the most mixed critical reception of any film here , and was helmed by alfonso cuaron , who’s actually made a whole thing out of doing excellent book - to - film translations in " a little princess " and " children of men . "

set in puritanical boston in the mid 1600s , the story of seamstress hester prynne , who is outcast after she becomes pregnant by a respected reverend . she refuses to divulge the name of the father , is " convicted " of adultery and forced to wear a scarlet " a " until an indian attack unites the puritans and leads to a reevaluation of their laws and morals .

the weakest part of the script is the ending . aside from straying significantly from that of the book , the final quarter - hour turns this rather lugubrious melodrama into an action film . someone tuning in late in the proceedings might mistake the finale for a scene from the last of the mohicans . in principle , i don ' t have a problem with changing hawthorne ' s downbeat conclusion , but the result should be more thoughtful than this painfully facile , " hollywood - ized " version .

after refusing to name the father of her child , hester is condemned to wear a scarlet letter on her bodice . her daughter pearl is born , and grows up as a willful little vixen . it is revealed that the father of the child is arthur dimmesdale ( gary oldman ) , leader of the local bluenoses denouncing hester . and then her long - lost husband , roger prynne ( robert duvall ) , turns up , assumes another identity and tries to determine who was the thief of his wife ' s affections . the novel ends with poor dimmesdale confessing his sin , crying out " his will be done ! farewell ! " and dying .

rage , love , defiance , confusion , fear - - moore just sticks out her chin and makes her eyes brim with tears . she ' s the stolidly immovable object at the film ' s center , and there ' s no getting around her .

it ' s hard to imagine who would dare to pay her less than a man , let alone suggest that $ 12m may be too much . " the day that happened to me , when i got that deal , i was really grateful . it changed the business for all women . " moore says the fees for a scarlet letter and striptease have set a new standard for female stars that the industry will now have to follow . " tomorrow , it may be another woman earning more than me , and that ' s ok , because in turn , that feeds back to me . "

in film , the viewer sees a story from the director’s perspective . when experiencing a novel , the reader is drawn into the authorâs story and relates to the characters and events created by the author . he is allowed to bring forth his own imagination to recreate the characters and events by visualizing what the writer describes . he chooses the voice of each character , pictures how the character looks , and brings his own personal experiences forth to enhance the written word . he has an opportunity to be one - on - one with the author , hear his words , and experience for myself the charactersâ emotions .

inspired by a string of shark attacks along the new jersey coast , peter benchley published jaws in 1974 . through a successful marketing campaign , jaws sold millions of copies and was on the bestseller list for 44 weeks . before the book was published , steven spielberg and richard d . zanuck bought the film rights . universal pictures released jaws in 1975 and shocked the nation . spielberg’s jaws became the first summer blockbuster and forever changed the way we think about the deep - sea .

with its dewy - eyed love story , its reverend dimmesdale looking like a goateed college rock star , its fiery ”action” climax that pits settlers against noble native americans , the new scarlet letter , ”freely adapted” from hawthorne , is a ponderously overstuffed hollywood package that’s too busy canonizing its heroine to make much sense of her . almost anyone would agree that hester prynne , the original feminist martyr of american literature , suffers to an outrageous degree for her adulterous ”crime . ” her punishment , extreme even by puritan standards , can’t help but strike modern audiences as borderline medieval in its cruelty .

anyway . demi moore looks fa - a - a - a - bulous in this film . love the hair . love the basic black with than chic - but - shocking crimson vowel on the bodice ( as if ms . moore needed to call further attention to her bosom ! ) . she glistens in the bathing scene and cries quite picturesquely . when it comes to acting , though , she seems clueless about hester ' s strength or spirituality . moore is definitely less ( a lot less ) in this film . period work is not her forte .

this is barry ' s first song for quite a while , and the wait has been worth it . most songs for films these days are just shameless cash - ins that have nothing to do with the rest of the score . john barry is firmly of the opinion , though , that if a song is written for the film , it should be based around the themes from that film . in fact , it is for this reason that he declined to score tomorrow never dies . it is often stated that the dispute was over money - - but this is false . the producers simply didn ' t want barry to have any involvement at all with the title song , and he refused to work under those conditions . it seems to me like the producers knew nothing at all about the previous scores ; just imagine goldfinger without the wonderful instrumental version of the theme cropping up throughout the score !

i class swept from the sea - - by some considerable distance - - as the best new film score from a largely - poor year - to - date ( and i don ' t include goldsmith ' s air force one or the edge in that , and i ' ve not yet heard seven years in tibet ) .

theodor geisel’s ( also known as dr . seuss ) the cat in the hat is a classic children’s book that has enchanted children since 1957 . the novel’s colorful characters and playful language quickly made the book one of the best - selling children’s books of all time . while various media outlets have adapted the book , the most infamous adaptation was bo welch’s dr . seuss’ the cat in the hat starring mike myers , alec baldwin , and dakota fanning . critics trashed the film and it was nominated for ten razzies , but only won one for “worst excuse for an actual movie” .

another question comes up here : to what should a film be faithful then ? „is the filmmaker to be faithful to the plot in its every detail ? , ” asks stam . it would lead to „a thirty - hour version of war and peace . ” ( 4 ) or should the filmmaker conform to the „intentions” of the author ? according to stam , this path would cause further problems , as

in 1666 in the massachusetts bay colony , puritans and algonquian have an uneasy truce . hester arrives from england , seeking independence . awaiting her husband , she establishes independence , fixing up a house , befriending quakers and other outsiders . passion draws her to a young pastor . he feels the same ; when they learn her husband has probably died at the hands of indians , they consummate their love . a child is born , and on the day hester is publicly humiliated and made to wear a scarlet letter , her husband appears after a year with indians . calling himself chillingworth , he seeks revenge , searching out hester ' s lover and stirring fears of witchcraft . will his murderous plot succeed ? written by

joffe , who directed the killing fields and the mission , is clearly interested in the conflict between man ' s view of sin and god ' s . this forms the core of the film . is love wrong just because it contravenes certain man - made laws ? themes of guilt , which are so critical to the book , are toned down in the movie , and the character of chillingworth has been reduced from a bitter , betrayed man to a bent , sadistic killer . robert duvall ' s abilities are seriously underused in the role as envisioned by joffe and stewart .

the movie axes hawthorne ' s more supernatural elements . the " a " appearing in the sky , the dangers of the woods , and the notion that the puritans are living in a wild and uncivilized area are all ignored in favor of another , seemingly scarier foe .

( 12 ) op . cit . , 39 . the term „paratext” is coined by gerard genette , and refers to all the material referring to a given text that is not strictly speaking a part of that very text , only connected to it in some ways , such as preceding it ( trailers , posters , interviews , etc . ) or coming after it ( criticism , memorabilia , etc . ) . for further discussion and on genette’s relevance for film theory , see : robert stam . film theory : an introduction . malden , mass : blackwell , 2000 .

when hester is finally forced to admit that she’s pregnant , she’s jailed until her daughter is born , after which she’s released but forced to wear an embroidered red letter “a” for adultery whenever she goes out in public . all blame would be shifted to the guilty man if she would only reveal his identity , but their secret is well kept .

( as an aside : david arnold has written a separate song for tomorrow never dies , sung by kd lang , and to be heard over the end credits of the film , and has incorporated this into his underscore . this will probably , in years to come , be viewed as the definitive song from the film by fans , rather than the sheryl crowe opening - title song . another aside : the best use of a song for a main title in recent years is michael kamen ' s " have you ever really loved a woman ? " from don juan de marco . he obviously spent an awful lot of time and effort in creating it , and the result is not only an outstanding song , but one based entirely around music from the rest of the score . if you haven ' t already done so , be sure to check it out . )

that ' s about all we got because the rest of the book—including its most important themes—get chucked right out the window .

thus , even though the silent film version par excellence dispenses with the discursive mode of the prose fiction , it nonetheless succeeds in transforming this field of utterance to a visual aspect . instead of verbally insisting on the differences between the moral , ethical , emotional , and social positions of hester and dimmesdale , „sjöström cuts insistently between hester and dimmesdale , the shot - reverse shot alternation establishing firmly the opposition between man and woman , private guilt and public guilt , agitation and composure . ” ( 11 ) the tension between the two sides of the dichotomy – which is ostensibly highly stressed in this adaptation – is furthermore emphasized by the exaggerated facial expressions and the evidently contrasting bodily postures of the actress and the actor . lillian gish’s hester prynne presents her „star - gaze” ( frontally looking directly into the camera , with a determined , motionless look ) to oppose the pleading , almost crying , helpless look of dimmesdale .