| Porgy and Bess | |
|---|---|
&sq=Envato&lang=en&file=File:Porgy_and_Bess_(1959_film_poster).jpg) Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Otto Preminger |
| Written by | N. Richard Nash |
| Based on | Porgy and Bess by DuBose Heyward |
| Produced by | Samuel Goldwyn |
| Starring | Sidney Poitier Dorothy Dandridge Sammy Davis Jr. Pearl Bailey |
| Cinematography | Leon Shamroy |
| Edited by | Daniel Mandell |
| Music by | André Previn Songs: George Gershwin Ira Gershwin |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 138 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $7 million[1] |
| Box office | $3.5 million[2] |
Porgy and Bess is a 1959 American musical drama film directed by Otto Preminger, and starring Sidney Poitier and Dorothy Dandridge in the titular roles. It is based on the 1935 opera Porgy and Bess by George Gershwin, DuBose Heyward and Ira Gershwin, in turn based on Heyward's 1925 novel Porgy, as well as Heyward's subsequent 1927 non-musical stage adaptation, co-written with his wife Dorothy. The film's screenplay, which turned the operatic recitatives into spoken dialogue, was very closely based on the opera and was written by N. Richard Nash. In 2011, the film was chosen for inclusion in the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress.[3]
The project was the last for Samuel Goldwyn. Due to its controversial subject matter, the film was shown only briefly following its initial reserved seat engagements in major cities, where it drew mixed reviews from critics. Two months after its release, Goldwyn grudgingly conceded "No one is waiting breathlessly for my next picture."[4]
The film was unavailable on home video for years, and has been described as the "Holy Grail of "lost films."[2] One of the few complete copies of the film was shown in 2007, 2010 and 2019.[5]
- ^ Hirsch 2007, p. 296.
- ^ a b Masters, Kim (February 23, 2017). "David Geffen, Samuel Goldwyn and the Search for the "Holy Grail" of Missing Movies". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved February 2, 2019.
- ^ "Complete National Film Registry Listing". Library of Congress. Retrieved May 7, 2020.
- ^ Berg 1989, p. 488.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
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