Blue Denim
Encyclopedia
Blue Denim was a successful Broadway
play by writer James Leo Herlihy
, the author of the novels All Fall Down
(1960) and Midnight Cowboy
(1965). It starred Carol Lynley
, Warren Berlinger
and newcomer Burt Brinckerhoff
in the lead male role. Opening on February 27, 1958, the play ran for 166 performances.
The following year, on July 30, 1959, the film version was released by 20th Century Fox
with Lynley and Berlinger reprising their stage roles, but with a 17-year-old Brandon De Wilde
in his first "adult" role as the male lead Arthur Bartley. Macdonald Carey
, Marsha Hunt
and Roberta Shore
appear as supporting characters.
Dealing with the issues of teenage pregnancy
and (then-illegal) abortion
, both versions were not without controversy. The play and the film each had different endings, and the word abortion was excised from the play's script when it was adapted into the film's screenplay.
Blue Denim has never been released on video home media.
, during the 1950s, and revolves around sixteen-year-old Arthur Bartley (DeWilde) and his schoolmates, fifteen-year-old Janet Willard (Lynley) and Ernie (Berlinger). While widower's-daughter Janet laughs at Arthur and Ernie's forays into smoking, drinking, and playing cards, she's always been interested in Arthur, and as Arthur's parents try to shelter him from negative things in life (like the euthanasia
of the family dog, done while he's at school), he turns to Janet for comfort.
The relationship between Janet and Arthur results in her becoming pregnant. Unable to ask their parents (who misinterpret their pleas as "ordinary" teenage curiosity about sex and adulthood) for help, they turn to Ernie, who'd boasted earlier about "helping a sailor who got his girl in trouble" by directing him to an abortionist – only to discover Ernie made it all up, based on secondhand stories. The three seek together to arrange an abortion and raise the funds, only to be discovered by their parents at the last moment. In the meantime, Arthur and Janet find out how much they do not yet know about life – and how much they truly care about each other.
impact, Blue Denim was still being decried as late as the 1980s by Fundamentalist
preachers.
or DVD
media. It plays occasionally on cable TV and video on demand
.
. Among Herrmann's scores were Citizen Kane
(1941) for Orson Welles
and The Man Who Knew Too Much
(1956), Vertigo
(1958), North by Northwest
(1959) and Psycho
(1960) for Alfred Hitchcock
.
Herrmann's Blue Denim score was released on CD on November 15, 2001. It is on the Film Score Monthly
label, as FSM0415, along with Elmer Bernstein
's score for The View from Pompey's Head
(1955), another film directed by Philip Dunne. It has been described by FSM as a "Baby Vertigo" type of score reminiscent of his anguished romantic writing for Hitchcock. "Perhaps overbearing for the film, it has long been a fascinating curio in Herrmann's career (with several unused cues) and is a powerful score with many elegiac passages written by Herrmann amidst North by Northwest, Twilight Zone
s first season and Journey to the Center of the Earth
(1959).", wrote FSM.
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
play by writer James Leo Herlihy
James Leo Herlihy
James Leo Herlihy was an American novelist, playwright and actor.Born into a working class family in Detroit, Michigan, Herlihy is known for his novels Midnight Cowboy and All Fall Down and his play Blue Denim, all of which were adapted for cinema...
, the author of the novels All Fall Down
All Fall Down (novel)
All Fall Down is a 1960 novel by James Leo Herlihy, which was adapted into a 1962 film directed by John Frankenheimer.-Explanation of the novel's title:...
(1960) and Midnight Cowboy
Midnight Cowboy (novel)
For the 1969 film adaptation of this novel, see Midnight Cowboy.Midnight Cowboy is a 1965 novel by James Leo Herlihy that chronicles the naïve Texan Joe Buck's odyssey from Texas to New York City, where he plans on realizing his dream of becoming a male prostitute servicing rich ladies...
(1965). It starred Carol Lynley
Carol Lynley
Carol Lynley is an American actress and former child model.-Life and career:Lynley was born Carole Ann Jones in New York City, the daughter of Frances , a waitress, and Cyril Jones. Her father was Irish and her mother, a native of New England, was of English, Scottish, Welsh, German, and Native...
, Warren Berlinger
Warren Berlinger
Warren Berlinger is an American character actor, with both Broadway runs and over a thousand television appearances to his credit.-Personal life:...
and newcomer Burt Brinckerhoff
Burt Brinckerhoff
Burt Brinckerhoff , is an American actor, director, and producer best known for directing the WB television series 7th Heaven from 1996 to 2002; some older works credit him as Burt Brinkerhoff.-Biography:Burt Brinckerhoff was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1936 to J...
in the lead male role. Opening on February 27, 1958, the play ran for 166 performances.
The following year, on July 30, 1959, the film version was released by 20th Century Fox
20th Century Fox
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation — also known as 20th Century Fox, or simply 20th or Fox — is one of the six major American film studios...
with Lynley and Berlinger reprising their stage roles, but with a 17-year-old Brandon De Wilde
Brandon De Wilde
Andre Brandon deWilde was an American theatre and film actor. He was born into a theatrical family in Brooklyn. Debuting on Broadway at the age of 7, De Wilde became a national phenomenon by the time he completed his 492 performances for The Member of the Wedding and was considered a child...
in his first "adult" role as the male lead Arthur Bartley. Macdonald Carey
Macdonald Carey
Edward Macdonald Carey was an American actor, best known for his role as the patriarch Dr. Tom Horton on NBC's soap opera Days of our Lives...
, Marsha Hunt
Marsha Hunt
Marsha Hunt may refer to:* Marsha Hunt * Marsha Hunt...
and Roberta Shore
Roberta Shore
Roberta Jymme Schourop , better known as Roberta Shore, is an American actress and performer, most famous for her youthful television and movie roles in the 1950s and early 1960s....
appear as supporting characters.
Dealing with the issues of teenage pregnancy
Teenage pregnancy
Teenage pregnancy is a pregnancy of a female under the age of 20 when the pregnancy ends. It generally refers to a female who is unmarried and usually refers to an unplanned pregnancy...
and (then-illegal) abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
, both versions were not without controversy. The play and the film each had different endings, and the word abortion was excised from the play's script when it was adapted into the film's screenplay.
Blue Denim has never been released on video home media.
Plot
The story is set in Dearborn, MichiganDearborn, Michigan
-Economy:Ford Motor Company has its world headquarters in Dearborn. In addition its Dearborn campus contains many research, testing, finance and some production facilities. Ford Land controls the numerous properties owned by Ford including sales and leasing to unrelated businesses such as the...
, during the 1950s, and revolves around sixteen-year-old Arthur Bartley (DeWilde) and his schoolmates, fifteen-year-old Janet Willard (Lynley) and Ernie (Berlinger). While widower's-daughter Janet laughs at Arthur and Ernie's forays into smoking, drinking, and playing cards, she's always been interested in Arthur, and as Arthur's parents try to shelter him from negative things in life (like the euthanasia
Euthanasia
Euthanasia refers to the practice of intentionally ending a life in order to relieve pain and suffering....
of the family dog, done while he's at school), he turns to Janet for comfort.
The relationship between Janet and Arthur results in her becoming pregnant. Unable to ask their parents (who misinterpret their pleas as "ordinary" teenage curiosity about sex and adulthood) for help, they turn to Ernie, who'd boasted earlier about "helping a sailor who got his girl in trouble" by directing him to an abortionist – only to discover Ernie made it all up, based on secondhand stories. The three seek together to arrange an abortion and raise the funds, only to be discovered by their parents at the last moment. In the meantime, Arthur and Janet find out how much they do not yet know about life – and how much they truly care about each other.
Cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Carol Lynley Carol Lynley Carol Lynley is an American actress and former child model.-Life and career:Lynley was born Carole Ann Jones in New York City, the daughter of Frances , a waitress, and Cyril Jones. Her father was Irish and her mother, a native of New England, was of English, Scottish, Welsh, German, and Native... |
Janet Willard |
| Brandon De Wilde Brandon De Wilde Andre Brandon deWilde was an American theatre and film actor. He was born into a theatrical family in Brooklyn. Debuting on Broadway at the age of 7, De Wilde became a national phenomenon by the time he completed his 492 performances for The Member of the Wedding and was considered a child... (as Brandon deWilde) |
Arthur Bartley |
| Macdonald Carey Macdonald Carey Edward Macdonald Carey was an American actor, best known for his role as the patriarch Dr. Tom Horton on NBC's soap opera Days of our Lives... |
Maj. Malcolm Bartley, Ret |
| Marsha Hunt Marsha Hunt (actress) Marsha Hunt is an American film, theater, and television actress who was blacklisted by Hollywood movie studio executives in the 1950s.-Career:... |
Jessie Bartley |
| Warren Berlinger Warren Berlinger Warren Berlinger is an American character actor, with both Broadway runs and over a thousand television appearances to his credit.-Personal life:... |
Ernie |
| Buck Class | Axel Sorenson |
| Nina Shipman | Lillian Bartley |
| Vaughn Taylor | Professor Willard |
| Roberta Shore Roberta Shore Roberta Jymme Schourop , better known as Roberta Shore, is an American actress and performer, most famous for her youthful television and movie roles in the 1950s and early 1960s.... |
Cherie |
| Mary Young | Aunt Bidda |
| Malcolm Atterbury Malcolm Atterbury Malcolm Atterbury was a stage and vaudeville actor who was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He is probably most well known as Bixby in Wagon Train and Lee Reinhard in Dragnet... |
Marriage License Clerk (uncredited) |
| William Schallert William Schallert William Joseph Schallert is an American actor who has appeared in many films and in such television series as The Smurfs, The Rat Patrol, Gunsmoke, The Patty Duke Show, The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, The Waltons, Bonanza, Leave It to Beaver, The Dick Van Dyke Show, Love, American Style, Get... |
George - Bank Vice President (uncredited) |
Differences between stage and film versions
In the original stage version, Janet does have her pregnancy aborted, and she and Arthur talk it over later as they settle their feelings for each other. When the play was adapted for Hollywood, however, strict production codes forbade anything but the condemnation of abortion, so the storyline was changed. Arthur and Janet instead go off together, to get married and stay with Janet's aunt in another city until the baby is born.Critical and public reception
While the play and then the movie came and went, at first causing a minor controversy, then becoming part of the 'canon' of Broadway adaptations, and studied for its sociologicalSociology
Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
impact, Blue Denim was still being decried as late as the 1980s by Fundamentalist
Fundamentalism
Fundamentalism is strict adherence to specific theological doctrines usually understood as a reaction against Modernist theology. The term "fundamentalism" was originally coined by its supporters to describe a specific package of theological beliefs that developed into a movement within the...
preachers.
Home media
Video
20th Century Fox has never released Blue Denim on VHSVHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
or DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
media. It plays occasionally on cable TV and video on demand
Video on demand
Video on Demand or Audio and Video On Demand are systems which allow users to select and watch/listen to video or audio content on demand...
.
Soundtrack
The score for Blue Denim had music composed and conducted by Bernard HerrmannBernard Herrmann
Bernard Herrmann was an American composer noted for his work in motion pictures.An Academy Award-winner , Herrmann is particularly known for his collaborations with director Alfred Hitchcock, most famously Psycho, North by Northwest, The Man Who Knew Too Much, and Vertigo...
. Among Herrmann's scores were Citizen Kane
Citizen Kane
Citizen Kane is a 1941 American drama film, directed by and starring Orson Welles. Many critics consider it the greatest American film of all time, especially for its innovative cinematography, music and narrative structure. Citizen Kane was Welles' first feature film...
(1941) for Orson Welles
Orson Welles
George Orson Welles , best known as Orson Welles, was an American film director, actor, theatre director, screenwriter, and producer, who worked extensively in film, theatre, television and radio...
and The Man Who Knew Too Much
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956 film)
The Man Who Knew Too Much is a suspense film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring James Stewart and Doris Day. The film is a remake in widescreen VistaVision and Technicolor of Hitchcock's 1934 film of the same name....
(1956), Vertigo
Vertigo (film)
Vertigo is a 1958 psychological thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring James Stewart, Kim Novak, and Barbara Bel Geddes. The screenplay was written by Alec Coppel and Samuel A...
(1958), North by Northwest
North by Northwest
North by Northwest is a 1959 American thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint and James Mason, and featuring Leo G. Carroll and Martin Landau...
(1959) and Psycho
Psycho (1960 film)
Psycho is a 1960 American suspense/psychological horror film directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Janet Leigh and Anthony Perkins. The film is based on the screenplay by Joseph Stefano, who adapted it from the 1959 novel of the same name by Robert Bloch...
(1960) for Alfred Hitchcock
Alfred Hitchcock
Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, KBE was a British film director and producer. He pioneered many techniques in the suspense and psychological thriller genres. After a successful career in British cinema in both silent films and early talkies, Hitchcock moved to Hollywood...
.
Herrmann's Blue Denim score was released on CD on November 15, 2001. It is on the Film Score Monthly
Film Score Monthly
Film Score Monthly is an online magazine founded by editor-in-chief and executive producer Lukas Kendall in June 1990 as The Soundtrack Correspondence List...
label, as FSM0415, along with Elmer Bernstein
Elmer Bernstein
Elmer Bernstein was an American composer and conductor best known for his many film scores. In a career which spanned fifty years, he composed music for hundreds of film and television productions...
's score for The View from Pompey's Head
The View from Pompey's Head
The View from Pompey's Head is a novel by Hamilton Basso which spent 40 weeks on The New York Times Bestseller List after it was published by Doubleday in 1954....
(1955), another film directed by Philip Dunne. It has been described by FSM as a "Baby Vertigo" type of score reminiscent of his anguished romantic writing for Hitchcock. "Perhaps overbearing for the film, it has long been a fascinating curio in Herrmann's career (with several unused cues) and is a powerful score with many elegiac passages written by Herrmann amidst North by Northwest, Twilight Zone
Twilight zone
-Television series and spinoffs:*The Twilight Zone, the anthology television series and its franchise:**The Twilight Zone , the 1959–1964 original television series***Twilight Zone: The Movie, a 1983 film based on the original series...
s first season and Journey to the Center of the Earth
Journey to the Center of the Earth (1959 film)
Journey to the Center of the Earth is a 1959 adventure film adapted by Charles Brackett from the novel by Jules Verne. It stars Pat Boone, James Mason, Arlene Dahl, Peter Ronson, Diane Baker, Thayer David and Alan Napier...
(1959).", wrote FSM.
In other media
- In Truman CapoteTruman CapoteTruman Streckfus Persons , known as Truman Capote , was an American author, many of whose short stories, novels, plays, and nonfiction are recognized literary classics, including the novella Breakfast at Tiffany's and the true crime novel In Cold Blood , which he labeled a "nonfiction novel." At...
's book In Cold BloodIn Cold BloodIn Cold Blood is a 1966 book by Truman Capote.In Cold Blood may also refer to:* In Cold Blood , a 1967 film and 1996 miniseries, both based on the book* In Cold Blood...
(1966), Bobby Rupp, Nancy Clutter's beau, says, "We talked for a while, and made a date to go to the movies Sunday night - a picture all the girls were looking forward to, Blue Denim." - Is seen briefly in Less Than ZeroLess Than Zero (film)Less Than Zero is a 1987 American drama film loosely based on Bret Easton Ellis' novel of the same name. The film stars Andrew McCarthy as Clay, a college freshman returning home for Christmas to spend time with his ex-girlfriend Blair and his friend Julian , who is also a drug addict...
(when Clay and Blair are in bed in the loft).