Throwback Thursday FYC: 1964 Oscar Ads
Thursday, June 12, 2014 at 8:00PM The only ones I could find. We'll start with three pre and post-nomination ads aiming for the actual gold. This first for Anne Bancroft in The Pumpkin Eater is possibly just a poster but those sometimes double as FYC's when they're focused enough and this one is.
Three more ads and Oscar trivia after the jump...
And I love this corny one which counts down seven reasons why Seven Days in May, a political thriller, deserves to win some gold. I'm assuming it's a pre nomination ad because it's not focused on the art direction and Edmond O'Brien which were its only nominations. That future "Day in April" was April 5th, 1965 when the Oscars were held. Seven Days fared better at the Globes where it picked up four nominations.
And finally here's a bid for a nomination that was unsuccessful from Tony Franciosa for a movie called Rio Conchos. Franciosa had been a Best Actor Oscar nominee for Hatful of Rain (1957) so he wasn't unfamiliar to AMPAS but the Golden Globes liked him more, nominating him twice thereafter (all three times in Best Actor in a Drama). But only three of the Drama nominees from the Globes transferred (both Becket men and Zorba the Greek) to make room for the Globe comedy winner Rex Harrison (My Fair Lady) and Peter Sellers in Dr. Strangelove who was also Globe nominated but for The Pink Panther instead!
But Franciosa was at least in the conversation or should've been according to Bosley Crowther
It's sometimes alarming how much a difference an Oscar nomination can make in keeping a movie's name in lights. Oscar favor doesn't necessarily translate into longevity or availability for older films but it definitely doesn't hurt.
Have you seen any of these three features?
Reader Comments (14)
I desperately miss Anne Bancroft.
The Pumpkin Eater (terrific performance, solid movie) and Seven Days in May (solid movie).
Jack Clayton is quite a director, isn't he?
He directed both Anne Bancroft (The Pumpkin Eater) and Maggie Smith (The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne) in their best cinematic performances!
I really respect this gentleman.
Seven Days in May is a decent film but not timeless.
Anne Bancroft is brilliant in the Pumpkin Eater giving a really beautiful performance. I wasn't crazy about the film but she was award worthy.
I've never heard of Rio Conchos, I looked it up out of curiosity to see some specifics about it. Edmond O'Brien was in it too, a busy boy that year, it sounded interesting enough to check out but the film isn't readily available.
Forgot to say that I love that Pumpkin Eater poster! It's The Three Faces of Anne!
I saw Seven Days in May on television when I was little, and it left quite an impression on me at the time (this was prior to the collapse of the Soviet Union when nuclear war was still a threat). Would love to revisit it and contrast it with Stanley Kubick's Dr. Strangelove -- they were both released at the same time, but had contrasting takes on the dangers of nuclear brinkmanship.
Great finds, Nathaniel!
I don't think I've ever seen a face as beautiful as Anne Bancroft's in The Pumpkin Eater. I watched the film as a freshman in college and her performance haunted me for weeks after. Masterful work by a gifted actress who was gone too soon.
Craig: And Fail-Safe, also 1964.
Kim Stanley needed no ads. Hers is one for the ages. But Supporting Actress was a fierce contest. Can't wait for the outcome of the smackdown.
Love Kim Stanley...
Yavor: Jack Clayton also directed Room at the Top and its fabulous performance by Simone Signoret.
I like Seven Days In May, but Edmond O'Brien's performance not so much. I certainly don't like The Pumpkin Eater, but I love Anne Bancroft's performance.
In any case, the many faces of Anne instantly reminded me of the unfortunate fact that my beloved year 1964 - which gave me no less than three musicals I love (and none of them is Mary Poppins of course) as well as my favorite Bond film - will be forever tainted by the worst Best Actress Oscar win ever. (Give or take Grace Kelly in The Country Girl.)
Yavor, I assume you were asking a rhetorical question, but I at least don't think that Jack Clayton is quite a director. Only the first two of his seven films (Room At The Top and The Innocents) are noteworthy, the rest is more (Something Wicked This Way Comes) or less (Our Mother's House) forgettable. I'd also say that the impact of Anne's and Maggie's performances in The Pumpkin Eater and The Lonely Passion Of Judith Hearne respectively is regrettably lessened by the to my mind rather weak movies Clayton put around them. Hm, it just crossed my mind that Maggie also had a small role in The Pumpkin Eater.
While we're on the subject, I do wish Jack Clayton's "Our Mother's House" had turned out better. I stumbled across the book last year (and subsequently tracked down the film). The source material is kind of stunning, but is hard to translate to the screen because of the limitations attached to using child performers.
I've seen The Pumpkin Eater with Anne Bancroft and Peter Finch. I can see why Bancroft was nominated. She is a great actress, but the film isn't anything special. It's kind of dull.
Seven Days in May, on the other hand, is a great film. Fredric March and Burt Lancaster go toe-to-toe with each other in the acting department. And Edmond O'Brien probably deserved the Oscar 50 years ago. The film is just as relevant today as it was then and it should be the Frankenheimer film that is put on a pedestal, as opposed to the overrated The Manchurian Candidate.
I have not seen Rio Conchos and your point about how a nomination for an Oscar making the film sort of immortal is very true. I like Anthony Franciosa, and I've seen A Hatful of Rain, so I may seek it out.