The View from Pompey's Head

The View from Pompey's Head (1955)

NOT SINCE SCARLETT AND JEZEBEL HAS THE SOUTH PRODUCED SUCH A WOMAN!

Anson Page, a lawyer with Southern roots leaves New York, his wife and his kids for Georgia. His assignment is to investigate the case of Garvin Wales, a famous writer, now nearly blind and embittered, whose royalties have apparently never reached him. Back in his native South, Page finds himself immediately exposed to what he had fled : racial and class prejudices. But he also meets his former love, Dinah, now married to go-getter uncouth businessman Mickey Higgins. Will he find out whatever happened to 2,000 dollars in rights Wales did not cash? Will Dinah and Anson renew their love story?

Date of release
1955-11-04
TMDB
3.8 / 10 (5)
Runtime
1h 37m
Genres
Drama
Director
Philip Dunne

Casting

Interesting facts

  • Based on: The View from Pompey's Head

The View from Pompey's Head is a 1955 American drama film, written and directed by Philip Dunne and based on the 1954 novel The View from Pompey's Head by Hamilton Basso. The film stars Richard Egan, Dana Wynter, Cameron Mitchell, Sidney Blackmer, Marjorie Rambeau and Dorothy Patrick. The film was released on November 4, 1955, by 20th Century Fox.

Production

The novel, set in a South Carolina town called Pompey's Head, took Basso several years to write. Reviews were, on the whole, superb. The New York Times praised it as a book of "controlled art and distinction".

The book became a best seller. A copy of it was on the bedside of Serge Rubinstein when he was discovered murdered.

Film rights were purchased by 20th Century Fox in November 1954 for a reported $100,000. Fox head of production Darryl F. Zanuck said, "It's a terrible title, but the rave notices of the book and the distinguished manner of writing make this much more than an average suspense story." Julian Blaustein was assigned to produce, Phillip Dunne to write and direct. Zanuck wanted Gregory Peck to star.

Blaustein resigned from Fox in December. Dunne took over as producer.

Peck did not end up appearing in the film. Fox tried to borrow Glenn Ford, but he was under contract to MGM, which would not loan him out. Dunne ended up casting studio star Richard Egan. Because Egan was busy on Seven Cities of Gold filming on Head was pushed back to June 2.

Read on Wikipedia · Text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Data from Wikidata.

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