Morton Gould Movies
Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Morton Gould has penned scores for Broadway plays, ballets, symphonies, orchestras, television, radio, and feature films. He has especially been noted for his ability to integrate American folk themes into his music. Born in 1913, Gould started out as a child prodigy and published his first work at age six. His filmwork includes Delightfully Dangerous (1945). Gould's first television soundtrack was for the mid-'60s documentary series World War I. In 1994, Gould received one of five Kennedy Center Honors in Washington. He received his Pulitzer Prize the following year. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
The now-legendary miniseries Holocaust first aired as a presentation in NBC's Big Event series. Written by Gerald Green, the story begins in the Germany of 1935. We are introduced to the family of Jewish doctor Joseph Weiss (Fritz Weaver) his wife Berta (Rosemary Harris), his brother Moses (Sam Wanamaker), his sons Rudi (Joseph Bottoms) and Karl (James Woods), and his daughter Anna (Blanche Baker). We also meet struggling lawyer Erik Dorf (Michael Moriarity), who is urged by his ambitious wife to join the SS. As the Nazis' persecution of the Jews is stepped up, most of the Weiss family is deported to the Polish ghetto--then to Auschwitz, which is overseen by Erik Dorf. Rudi and his Jewish girlfriend Helena (Tovah Feldsuh) witness the 1941 Baba Yar massacre, then join the Russian partisans in their battle against the Nazis. Also appearing in Holocaust is Meryl Streep as Karl Weiss' Christian wife Inga. The winner of eight Emmy awards, Holocaust was originally telecast in four parts on April 16, 17, 18, and 19, 1978. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Fritz Weaver, Rosemary Harris, (more)
- 1976
This TV movie delves into the unhappy later years of novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald (here played by Jason Miller). Broke and virtually written-out by the late 1930s, Fitzgerald is compelled to accept screenwriting work in Tinseltown where he is frustrated that his work is extensively rewritten and revised -- if not rejected altogether. On a personal level, Fitzgerald must deal with his wife Zelda (Tuesday Weld), now sequestered in a North Carolina mental institution. Seeking some reason for living, Fitzgerald inaugurates an affair with Hollywood columnist Sheila Graham (Julia Foster). Not all that incisive, and saddled with an unsympathetic drunkard as a central character, F. Scott Fitzgerald is still superior to Hollywood's previous version of the Fitzgerald/Graham romance, Beloved Infidel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1958
Windjammer was the first and last feature-length film lensed in the widescreen Cinemiracle process (a three projector sytem similar to Cinerama).This is the filmed record of the 18,000-mile shakedown cruise of the Christian Radich, a square-rigger (or "windjammer"). The vessel's ports of call include Oslo, the West Indies and New York. The real-life sailors are called upon to play "roles" in the course of the film, though it must be admitted that they're better seamen than actors. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1955
Released two years after This is Cinerama, Cinerama Holiday is the second feature-length demonstration of the famed three-camera process. As plotless as the first entry, Holiday nonetheless kept its audience enthralled throughout its 119 minutes. Among the sights displayed on the curved, 165-degree screen are the man-made canyons of New York, the Swiss Alps, the beauties of Paris, the autumnal splendor of New Hampshire, the glitz and glitter of Las Vegas and a high-rise restaurant in San Francisco. The "money scenes" include a motorcycle ride and a cowpunchng demonstration. The various sequences are tied together by two couples, the Marshes and the Trollers, who are ostensibly taking the holiday that is being recorded by the Cinerama cameras. Produced by Louis de Rochemont (of March of Time fame), Cinerama Holiday was codirected by former child actor Philippe De Lacy. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John March
In her second starring film, teenaged singing sensation Jane Powell plays Cheryl Williams, a 15-year-old music student who is led to believe that her older sister Josephine (Constance Moore) is a big Broadway star. In truth, Josephine is a stripper in a tawdry burleycue house, but fortunately Cheryl (apparently) never reads any out-of-town newspapers and thus is in a state of blissful ignorance. The fun begins when Cheryl arrives in New York, figures out the truth, and tries to marry Josephine off to big-time Broadway producer Arthur Hale (Ralph Bellamy). As a result, both Josephine and Cheryl are starring in Hale's latest production. Yes, it's a Deanna Durbin picture without Deanna, right down to newly arranged versions of old operetta favorites. Delightfully Dangerous is currently available from several video companies thanks to its "public domain" status. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jane Powell, Ralph Bellamy, (more)
