Master of the World (1961)

In Morgantown, Pennsylvania, in 1868, a giant voice was heard booming from the mountain ridge known as The Great Eyrie. It was quoting from the Holy Book. John Strock (Charles Bronson), an agent for the United States Department of the Interior, decides to investigate this phenomenon and asks inventor/arms manufacturer Mr. Prudent (Henry Hull) to journey up to the mountain with him in his air balloon. Going along the ride is Prudent's daughter Dorothy (Mary Webster) and her fiancée Philip (David Frankham). 

However, the foursome never make it to the summit because their balloon is shot down by a giant airship called The Albatross. At the helm is Robur, a Nemo-like character who wants to stop warfare by forcing nations to disarm by the threat of destroying their instruments of war. Strock and the others are held prisoners onboard the Albatross until Strock hatches a plan to destroy Robur and his flying weapon. 

Producer Samuel Arkoff is best-known for his budget horror films (War of the Zombies, The Raven) and beach-party comedies (Bikini Beach, Beach Blanket Bingo) but Master of the World, released in 1961, marked his foray into Irwin Allen's territory of family-friendly sci-fi adventure. It wasn't a bad venture, either. 

Charles Bronson plays a likeable hero; the rest of the cast are engaging enough (especially Henry Hull), and the set design and bright color schemes are pleasant on the eye. The story, based on two novels by Jules Verne, is pretty much "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" now set in the air. Vincent Price plays a good Robur, but he lacks the convincing anguish that James Mason gave to Nemo in the 1954 classic 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and it is hard to feel compassion for his character. Perhaps it is because the audience is never given a reason why Robur is bent against stopping warfare, unlike Nemo whose family was killed in a war. 

The film could have used a sprinkling of comedy. 20th Century Fox's excellent sci-fi adventure Journey to the Center of the Earth was released just two years prior to Master of the World but what a world of difference in terms of production quality and entertainment. Master of the World would have been marvelous with James Mason, Pat Boone, Diane Baker and perhaps Richard Haydn cast as the aerial prisoners. Vito Scotti's kitchen humor just wasn't enough to add the element of fun to Master of the World, something the film needed. 

Nevertheless, the movie is one that I can re-watch numerous times. It is a classic steampunk picture released years before the term was even invented. 

The music, by conductor Les Baxter, is lovely and the supporting cast, made up of several less-known players are good in their parts. David Frankham, who plays Philip, was a familiar face on the small screen where he did numerous guest appearances in sitcoms, westerns, and dramas throughout the 1960s. Mary Webster was also a television actress (Arkoff was always mindful of the budget) and this was one of the rare feature films she made. Henry Hull was one of the few big-names on the roster, being an old character actor from the 1940s.

American International Pictures released Master of the World along with Konga as a double-feature in 1961, so if sci-fi did not appeal to the audience they could be entertained by a gorilla.

British Pathé: Royal Film Performance of 1962

This month's British Pathé newsreel features color footage from the 1962 Royal Film Performance which had Queen Elizabeth, Princess Margaret, and Lord Snowdon in attendance....not to mention 16 big-name stars who were presented to the queen prior to the showing. These included Yul Brynner, Cliff Richard, Melina Mercouri, Pat Boone, Horst Bucholz, Peter Sellers, Janet Munro, Peter Finch, and Leslie Caron. Also in attendance was Richard Beymer and director Robert Wise, which may give you a hint to what film was chosen for the Royal Performance, something the announcer failed to mention: West Side Story. I think Queen Elizabeth was in for a treat at the movies. 

Instead of linking to the video on Youtube, we are just going to embed it right here so you can easily watch it. 

Other similarly themed British Pathe shorts: 

Royal Film Performance (1956) - 1:31 sec 

Royal Film Performance ( 1959 ) - 2:05 sec

Royal Film Performance (1969) - 1:11 sec 

Film Albums: Lee Evans Plays Themes from Great Motion Pictures

There was a plethora of great piano music albums released in the 1960s. Most of them were from the "big names" like Ferrante and Teicher, Horst Jankowski, Liberace or Frankie Carle... but a name that deserves to rank among those famous ivory-ticklers is Lee Evans. 

Evans name may not be familiar to most people because he worked behind-the-marquee as a music director for Engelbert Humperdinck, Tom Jones, Carol Channing and others. He also was the creative talent behind nearly 90 songbooks released through Hal Leonard Publishing, so if you play the piano yourself, you've probably been playing Lee Evans arrangements. 

Evans released five albums in the 1960s with Capitol and MGM Records, all of which are excellent. If we had to choose a favorite it would be Lee Evans Plays Themes from Great Motion Pictures, naturally because it features film themes. 

Evans style is similar to Ferrante and Teicher with numerous trickly arpeggios and lush strings accompanying him, but the arrangements (by Dick Hyman) are unique and lovely to listen to. This album (MGM, SE-4460) has three particularly must-listen-to pieces: "Early in the Morning", a Frank DeVol piece from The Happening (1967), a sporty version of Georgy Girl, and a haunting rendition of "Wednesday's Child", made famous by Matt Monro. 

Track Listing

Side One

Born Free

Theme from "The Sand Pepples"

A Man and a Woman

Early in the Morning ("The Happening")

Warning Shot

Tara's Theme

Side Two:

Georgy Girl

Lara's Theme

Theme from "The Deadly Affair"

Wednesday's Child from "Quiller Memorandum"

Hurry Sundown Blues

This is My Song

Top Picks: Theme from The Sand Pebbles, Early in the Morning, Lara's Theme, The Deadly Affair, Wednesday's Child

From the Archives: The Deadly Mantis (1957)

 

William Hopper is giving Craig Stevens a hearty hello handshake but the Air Force-man only has eyes for Alix Talton....as does the men behind him. Of course, later all of them are more concerned about the giant mantis than romancing women from Washington. 

From the Archives is our latest series of posts where we share photos from the Silverbanks Pictures collection. Some of these may have been sold in the past, and others may still be available for purchase at our eBay store: http://stores.ebay.com/Silverbanks-Pictures

Tommy Ivo - Child Actor and Drag Racer

Tommy Ivo's name often comes up when one mentions child actors of the 1940s and 1950s, but did you know that his name is more recognized in racing circles than at film clubs? Ivo became popular as a drag strip racer in the 1960s-1990s where he was known as "TV Tommy". 

Tommy Ivo began making films when he was 7-years old and starred with some of the biggest stars in Hollywood (William Powell, Spencer Tracy, Donna Reed, etc) but, like many child stars, once he sprouted, he was no longer in demand. So, in the 1950s, Ivo turned his attention to his love of racing and floored anything with four-wheels. He raced the Twin Buick in the late 1950s which broke the speed records for a gas-powered dragster, it also won NASCAR's first National Drag Race. 

In the 1960s, he raced nitro-powered dragsters which he designed (notably "The Barnstormer" and "The Streamliner") and even toured England to promote drag racing. By the 1970s, he was one of the most popular guest performers at any drag racing event and in 2005 was inducted in the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America. 

AMT's Tommy Ivo Streamliner plastic model car kit

Today, at the age of 88, Tommy still makes rare appearances at racing events. To read more about Tommy Ivo and his career, check out his website. 

This entry is a part of our latest series entitled "Did You Know?".....sometimes we just feel like sharing interesting fragments of television and movie history and now we have a place to do just that. If you have a hot tip that you would like us to share on Silver Scenes, drop us a line!

MeTV Toons - A New Cartoon Channel

On June 25th, 2024, MeTV debuted a new channel devoted strictly to cartoons: MeTV Toons. This was obviously in response to viewers requesting more cartoons than what was offered through MeTV's regular morning "toons" lineup on Toon in with Me. 

What a great selection of cartoons this new channel has to offer! In addition to Bugs Bunny, Scooby-Doo, Casper, The Jetsons, Yogi Bear and The Flintstones, there are also shows that are not as frequently shown on mainstream TV like Atom Ant, Wacky Races, The Peter Potamus Show, Marine Boy, Popeye and Pals, Inspector Gadget and The Underdog Show. Best of all is the Cartoon All-Stars Hour playing at 1pm EST and 10pm EST which features the oldies-but-goodies from the golden age of Hollywood (Warner Bros, MGM, Columbia, Fleisher and other studios). 

24-hours of toons. Sounds good to me! 

To see what channel MeTV Toons plays in your area, check out their website here. The colorful site also offers some great toon-related articles and games. 

June Bride (1948)

Hours before embarking on an assignment, magazine editor Linda Gilman (Bette Davis) has been thrust with a new reporter who happens to be her old lover, foreign correspondent Carey Jackson (Robert Montgomery). The two bickering sweethearts are heading to Indiana with a staff of workers to cover the wedding of two young lovebirds for the June issue of "Home Life".

From the onset, Linda finds herself beset with problems: the McKinley-era house needs updating to bring it into Truman-era style, the February snow outside the windows needs to be disguised to look like June sunshine but, worst of all, the bride needs to be found after she runs off with an old beau named Jim! 

This last problem Linda blames on Carey whom she believes lured Jim back with the intent to break up the wedding. Why? Because she thinks Carey sneers at old-fashioned happily-ever-after wedding stories and would rather have a fresh "angle" to an article then pen a simple straightforward love piece. 

Over the course of one busy week, Linda finds she may have misjudged Carey. 

If June Bride plays out like a filmed adaptation of a popular Broadway comedy, it is because it was a play, but one that went unproduced - "Feature for June" by Graeme Lorimer, Sarah Lorimer and Elaine Tighe. Screenwriter Ranald MacDougall adapted it but something was lost in the translation. The script is witty enough (it earned the Writers Guild of America award for Best Written American Comedy) and the players all handle their parts capably but, overall, the picture lacks punch...zip...verve...snap. In short, it falls flat. Whether this is director Bretaigne Windust's fault is difficult to determine but June Bride certainly could have been enhanced in the hands of a better director. Preston Sturges would have done wonders with this material and cast! 

Nevertheless, on its release it was a critical and box-office success and Bette Davis' contract with Warner Brothers was renewed for four more pictures (Bette only made one more film with the studio before walking out on her contract).

Bette Davis looked chic and youthful in the film and was bedecked in outfits designed by Edith Head. In spite of playing a successful single working woman, her character would be pooh-poohed by modern feminists because ultimately she chooses to "carry the bags" and walk two steps behind her man. 

Supporting roles went to Tom Tully (a fine actor in every film he made), Fay Bainter, Jerome Cowan and Mary Wickes. The younger roles were well-played by Betty Lynn (The Andy Griffith Show), Barbara Bates and Raymond Roe (The Major and the Minor).