At the end of September 1953 Ray, with Marguerite and their first two daughters, passed close to my now home in South Wales towards the end of their tortuous journey to Dublin to embark on Ray's ordeal with the monster - and I don't mean the whale! Some digging has turned up the surprising fact, just a mention, that when filming finally started it was in Wales. Does anyone know which scenes, or type of scenes were filmed here, or whereabouts?
We have a local fish & chip shop called Moby Dick's and if I can produce a decently presented link between the film and the area for customers to read while awaiting the preparation of their lethal dishes it should be worth a few free meals!
I'm Alive!
02 October 2016, 08:01 AM
Walt
You may know these already but if not, hope they'll be a start for your search. On Imbd, 6 of the 27 locations listed for the filming of Moby Dick, in 1956, mention Wales:
Anyone checked out the new Blu-Ray of Huston/Ray's Moby Dick, from Twilight Time? I've got it and it really is something. It is the first and only home video release that restores the color palette of the original film. Apparently, Huston wanted to mimic the style of 19th century whaling prints.
Sadly, I snagged my copy right before it sold out (it's a very limited edition, due to rights, I assume). However, think you can still track down copies relatively inexpensively on ebay and Amazon, from second-hand vendors.
Today's very funny LIO comic strip, by Mark Tatulli. In his film script for MOBY DICK, Ray Bradbury had Ahab saying these words while on top of the white whale. In today's LIO comic strip...well, just take a look!
The link below will take you to an interview with Ray Bradbury discussing the writing of the screenplay for MOBY DICK. The end credits indicate it dates from around 2004, and was produced by the late Arnold Kunert for a exhibit about John Huston that was being put on by a museum in Ireland. (Arnold Kunert, of course, was the person who played such a significant role in obtaining an honorary Oscar for Ray Harryhausen, special effects genius and Ray Bradbury friend.)
As he did in the interview referenced in the post immediately above, Ray Bradbury often spoke about writing the screenplay for MOBY DICK. Ray would mention that when director John Houston first asked if he would like to write the screenplay for the film, he told Houston that he had "never been able to read the damn thing." And that when he agreed to read as much as possible of the novel that evening and let Houston know the following day if he wanted the job, he went home to his wife and said, "Pray for me. I have to read a book tonight and give a book report in the morning." Given the foregoing, I think Ray would have enjoyed today's ZITS comic strip:
You can access yesterday's PEANUTS comic strip by clicking on the link below. Ray Bradbury started his MOBY Dick screenplay, and Snoopy started his novel, in the exact same way. What a coincidence!
The link below will take you to interviews by Canadian television host Elwy Yost with, among others, John Houston and Ray Bradbury, discussing the film MOBY DICK for which Ray wrote the screenplay. I had not seen this particular interview with Ray before:
What an outstanding review of the intricacies that were a part of the writing efforts Mr. Bradbury put into the tremendously complex and legendary story of that Great White Whale! He was only 33 yrs. old at the time and had very little experience in dealing with the Hollywood-likes of John Huston.
Mr. B's own recount of his screenplay challenges in capturing Herman Melville's story into movie form are so well narrated in Green Shadows, White Whale - which I have twice enjoyed reading. (The first time was while traveling to coastal villages along the ocean shores of Maine, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia. How ironic!?)
I had read before that Gregory Peck was not totally comfortable with his lead role as Capt. Ahab. On the other hand, when teaching TKAM, we always viewed his wonderful characterization of Atticus Finch, for which he won an Academy Award for Best Actor. The storytelling of Harper Lee in Mockignbird is so closely paralleled to RB's classic small town episodes in Dandelion Wine. Quite different in social themes, yet both stories share a similar movement of plot, youthful experiences, and the lessons of fear, friendship, loss, and courage.
Mr. Bradbury's amazing realm of influences, whether in written form, when viewed on film, or shared in interviews are treasures to be enjoyed by young and old alike!
*Quite a find, Richard!This message has been edited. Last edited by: fjp451,
