Don't Make Waves
Encyclopedia
Don't Make Waves is a Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
sex farce (with elements of the beach party genre
) which starred Tony Curtis
, Claudia Cardinale
, Dave Draper
and Sharon Tate
. The film is based on the 1959 novel, Muscle Beach, by Ira Wallach
, who also wrote the screenplay.
Directed
by Alexander Mackendrick
, the film depicted a series of romantic triangles between different groupings of the principal cast and supporting players among several backdrops involving Southern California culture (swimming pools, bodybuilding, beach life, fantastic real estate, mudslides, metaphysical gurus, etc.).
During the previous few years, films and pop music which related to California
beach culture had proved very popular, although by the late 1960s, the popularity of Tony Curtis as a matinee idol was beginning to wane. In recent times the film has received more positive comments from reviewers, such as Leonard Maltin
who describes it as "a gem", and makes note of the "fine direction and funny performance by Sharon Tate".
. Jim McGuinn
and Chris Hillman
wrote the title song, "Don't Make Waves," performed by The Byrds
over the opening credits.
told her husband Roman Polanski
that her experience working on this film was not particularly enjoyable. The production atmosphere was tense, and it was worsened when an uncredited stuntman drowned when he parachuted into the Pacific Ocean
.
The film was Sharon Tate's third to be produced, but as it was the first to be released in cinemas, it is generally considered to be her debut. MGM mounted an extensive publicity campaign upon its release that was based largely on Tate and her character, Malibu, and life-sized cardboard cutouts of Tate wearing a bikini were placed in cinema foyers throughout the United States. It was also linked to a widespread advertising campaign by Coppertone which also featured Tate, but the film received generally poor reviews and failed to achieve success at the box office.
The Malibu Barbie doll, first produced in 1973, may have been based on Tate and her character, Malibu.
Dave Draper
, who plays Malibu's boyfriend Harry, was the 1965 IFBB
Mr. America
and the 1966 IFBB Mr. Universe
.
1966 NABBA Mr. Universe bodybuilder Chester Yorton
, who plays Ted Gunder, made one other film - in 1964's Muscle Beach Party
, he plays the character named Hulk.
In American Prince, his 2009 autobiography, Tony Curtis wrote of making Don't Make Waves: "The plot was utterly ridiculous, but I agreed to appear in the film because I got a percentage of the gross."
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of films and television programs. MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation and Louis B. Mayer...
sex farce (with elements of the beach party genre
Beach Party film
Beach party movies were an American 1960s genre of feature films created by American International Pictures with their surprise 1963 hit, Beach Party, and copied by virtually every other studio...
) which starred Tony Curtis
Tony Curtis
Tony Curtis was an American film actor whose career spanned six decades, but had his greatest popularity during the 1950s and early 1960s. He acted in over 100 films in roles covering a wide range of genres, from light comedy to serious drama...
, Claudia Cardinale
Claudia Cardinale
Claudia Cardinale is an Italian actress, and has appeared in some of the most prominent European films of the 1960s and 1970s. The majority of Cardinale's films have been either Italian or French...
, Dave Draper
Dave Draper
David Draper bodybuilder, actor and author, nicknamed "The Blond Bomber."-Biography:Draper was born in Secaucus, New Jersey...
and Sharon Tate
Sharon Tate
Sharon Marie Tate was an American actress. During the 1960s she played small television roles before appearing in several films. After receiving positive reviews for her comedic performances, she was hailed as one of Hollywood's promising newcomers and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for...
. The film is based on the 1959 novel, Muscle Beach, by Ira Wallach
Ira Wallach (writer)
Ira Wallach was an American screenwriter and novelist.Born in New York City, He wrote the novel Muscle Beach and collaborated with Peter Ustinov on the screenplay for Hot Millions...
, who also wrote the screenplay.
Directed
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
by Alexander Mackendrick
Alexander Mackendrick
Alexander Mackendrick was a Scottish American director and teacher. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts and later moved to Scotland...
, the film depicted a series of romantic triangles between different groupings of the principal cast and supporting players among several backdrops involving Southern California culture (swimming pools, bodybuilding, beach life, fantastic real estate, mudslides, metaphysical gurus, etc.).
During the previous few years, films and pop music which related to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
beach culture had proved very popular, although by the late 1960s, the popularity of Tony Curtis as a matinee idol was beginning to wane. In recent times the film has received more positive comments from reviewers, such as Leonard Maltin
Leonard Maltin
Leonard Maltin is an American film and animated film critic and historian, author of several mainstream books on cinema, focusing on nostalgic, celebratory narratives.-Personal life:...
who describes it as "a gem", and makes note of the "fine direction and funny performance by Sharon Tate".
Music
The score was composed by Vic MizzyVic Mizzy
Vic Mizzy was an American composer for television and movies whose best-known works are the themes to the 1960s television sitcoms Green Acres and The Addams Family. He also penned top-20 songs from the 1930s to 1940s.-Biography:Vic Mizzy was born in Brooklyn, New York and attended New York...
. Jim McGuinn
Jim McGuinn
Jim McGuinn, born James Slusarek, is an American radio personality. He served as program director of the now defunct Y100 100.3FM and its predecessor, WDRE in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania , both of which changed formats after being bought by Radio One. McGuinn also served as Program Director for...
and Chris Hillman
Chris Hillman
Christopher Hillman was one of the original members of The Byrds which in 1965 included Roger McGuinn, Gene Clark, David Crosby, and Michael Clarke....
wrote the title song, "Don't Make Waves," performed by The Byrds
The Byrds
The Byrds were an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California in 1964. The band underwent multiple line-up changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn remaining the sole consistent member until the group disbanded in 1973...
over the opening credits.
Production notes
Sharon TateSharon Tate
Sharon Marie Tate was an American actress. During the 1960s she played small television roles before appearing in several films. After receiving positive reviews for her comedic performances, she was hailed as one of Hollywood's promising newcomers and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for...
told her husband Roman Polanski
Roman Polanski
Roman Polanski is a French-Polish film director, producer, writer and actor. Having made films in Poland, Britain, France and the USA, he is considered one of the few "truly international filmmakers."...
that her experience working on this film was not particularly enjoyable. The production atmosphere was tense, and it was worsened when an uncredited stuntman drowned when he parachuted into the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
.
The film was Sharon Tate's third to be produced, but as it was the first to be released in cinemas, it is generally considered to be her debut. MGM mounted an extensive publicity campaign upon its release that was based largely on Tate and her character, Malibu, and life-sized cardboard cutouts of Tate wearing a bikini were placed in cinema foyers throughout the United States. It was also linked to a widespread advertising campaign by Coppertone which also featured Tate, but the film received generally poor reviews and failed to achieve success at the box office.
The Malibu Barbie doll, first produced in 1973, may have been based on Tate and her character, Malibu.
Dave Draper
Dave Draper
David Draper bodybuilder, actor and author, nicknamed "The Blond Bomber."-Biography:Draper was born in Secaucus, New Jersey...
, who plays Malibu's boyfriend Harry, was the 1965 IFBB
IFBB
IFBB can refer to:* Independent Family Brewers of Britain* International Federation of BodyBuilders...
Mr. America
Mr. America
Mr. America may refer to:* AAU Mr. America, bodybuilding contest held by the Amateur Athletic Union from 1939 onwards* IFBB Mr. America, bodybuilding contest held by the International Federation of BodyBuilders in 1949 and 1959-1988...
and the 1966 IFBB Mr. Universe
World Amateur Bodybuilding Championships
The World Amateur Bodybuilding Championships is a male bodybuilding contest organised by the International Federation of BodyBuilding & Fitness and first held in 1959. The name was changed in 1976 to avoid confusion with the NABBA Mr...
.
1966 NABBA Mr. Universe bodybuilder Chester Yorton
Chester Yorton
Chester Yorton is a bodybuilder. He defeated Arnold Schwarzenegger at the 1966 NABBA Mr. Universe held in London. He is one of three men in the world to have beaten Arnold Schwarzenegger in competition....
, who plays Ted Gunder, made one other film - in 1964's Muscle Beach Party
Muscle Beach Party
Muscle Beach Party is the second of seven beach party films produced by American International Pictures. It was made in 1964 and was directed by William Asher, who also directed four other films in this series...
, he plays the character named Hulk.
In American Prince, his 2009 autobiography, Tony Curtis wrote of making Don't Make Waves: "The plot was utterly ridiculous, but I agreed to appear in the film because I got a percentage of the gross."
Cast
| Actors | Characters | info |
|---|---|---|
| Tony Curtis Tony Curtis Tony Curtis was an American film actor whose career spanned six decades, but had his greatest popularity during the 1950s and early 1960s. He acted in over 100 films in roles covering a wide range of genres, from light comedy to serious drama... |
Carlo Cofield | |
| Claudia Cardinale Claudia Cardinale Claudia Cardinale is an Italian actress, and has appeared in some of the most prominent European films of the 1960s and 1970s. The majority of Cardinale's films have been either Italian or French... |
Laura Califatti | |
| Sharon Tate Sharon Tate Sharon Marie Tate was an American actress. During the 1960s she played small television roles before appearing in several films. After receiving positive reviews for her comedic performances, she was hailed as one of Hollywood's promising newcomers and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for... |
Malibu | |
| David Draper Dave Draper David Draper bodybuilder, actor and author, nicknamed "The Blond Bomber."-Biography:Draper was born in Secaucus, New Jersey... |
Harry Hollard | |
| Joanna Barnes Joanna Barnes Joanna Barnes is an American actress and writer.Barnes was born in Boston, Massachusetts, but moved to Los Angeles, California soon after finishing her education, and took up a contract with Columbia Pictures... |
Diane Prescott | |
| Robert Webber Robert Webber Robert L. Webber was an American actor who starred as Juror #12 in the 1957 film 12 Angry Men.Webber was born in Santa Ana, California, the son of Alice and Robert Webber, who was a merchant seaman. He was a U.S. Marine during World War II serving on Guam and Okinawa... |
Rod Prescott | |
| Reg Lewis | Monster | |
| Mort Sahl Mort Sahl Morton Lyon "Mort" Sahl is a Canadian-born American comedian and actor. He occasionally wrote jokes for speeches delivered by President John F. Kennedy. He was the first comedian to record a live album and the first to perform on college campuses... |
Sam Lingonberry | |
| Edgar Bergen Edgar Bergen Edgar John Bergen was an American actor and radio performer, best known as a ventriloquist.-Early life:... |
Madame Lavinia | |
| Dub Taylor Dub Taylor Walter Clarence Taylor, Jr. , better known as Dub Taylor, was an American actor who worked extensively in Westerns, but also in comedy from the 1940s into the 1990s.-Early life:... |
Electrician | |
| Mary Grace Canfield Mary Grace Canfield Mary Grace Canfield is an American actress who often played the role of a romance-starved spinster/wallflower... |
Seamstress | |
| Holly Haze | Myrna | |
| Sarah Selby | Ethyl | |
| Julie Payne Julie Ann Payne Julie Payne is an American actress whose career in television and films lasted from 1959 to 1967.-Acting career:A native of Los Angeles, Julie Anne Payne is the daughter of John Payne, film and television leading man of the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s, and Anne Shirley, who started as a child actress... |
Helen | |
| Douglass Henderson | Henderson | |
| Chester Yorton Chester Yorton Chester Yorton is a bodybuilder. He defeated Arnold Schwarzenegger at the 1966 NABBA Mr. Universe held in London. He is one of three men in the world to have beaten Arnold Schwarzenegger in competition.... |
Ted Gunder | |
| Ann Elder Ann Elder Ann Elder is an American Emmy Award-winning screenwriter. She won Emmy awards also for comedy writing, . She also wrote for Mama's Family as well. Elder appeared several times on The Match Game during its run in the 1970s.-External links:... |
Millie Gunder | |
| Marc London | Fred Barker | |
| Paul Barselou | Pilot | as Paul Barselow |
| George Tyne | Newspaperman | |
| David Fresco | Newspaperman | |
| Gilbert Green | Newspaperman | as Gil Green |
| Eduardo Tirello | Decorator | |
| Jim Backus Jim Backus James Gilmore "Jim" Backus was a radio, television, film, and voice actor. Among his most famous roles are the voice of Mr... |
Himself | uncredited |
| Henny Backus | Herself | uncredited |
| China Lee China Lee China Lee, born Margaret Lee, is an American model and actress. She was Playboy's Playmate of the Month for the August 1964 issue. Her centerfold was photographed by Pompeo Posar. She was the first Asian American Playmate... |
Topless swimmer | uncredited |
| Joanne Hashimoto | Female Gymnast | uncredited |
External links
- Review of Don't Make Waves at TVGuide.comTV GuideTV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...