His Majesty O'Keefe
Encyclopedia
His Majesty O'Keefe is a 1954
adventure film
starring Burt Lancaster
. The film was directed by Byron Haskin
and Otto Heller
and included choreography by Daniel Nagrin
. The cast also included Joan Rice
, André Morell
, Abraham Sofaer
, Archie Savage, and Benson Fong
.
The film is based on the book of the same name by Laurence Klingman and Gerald Green
(1952).
(Burt Lancaster), seeking his fortune in the 19th century South Pacific
, decides to enlist island natives to harvest copra
, but runs into a wall of cultural problems. Backed by a Chinese dentist, he obtains a ship and sets about harvesting copra while fending off cantankerous native chieftains and evil German empire-builders. The natives, happy with their existence, see no reason to work hard to obtain copra, either for a German trading company or for O'Keefe. He finally motivates them by showing them how to produce large quantities of their valued coinage.
(1954).
The basis for this story is believed to be an actual event. A sailor named David O'Keefe
was shipwrecked on Yap
in the Caroline Islands
, where he found the natives highly prized Rai stones
quarried at great effort and danger on the island of Palau
. He organized the natives to produce these largest of all coins
more easily and then traded them for copra and other items. The carved stones he produced were not valued as highly as those obtained by traditional methods due to the lack of personal sacrifice in their production.
1954 in film
The year 1954 in film involved some significant events and memorable ones.-Events:*May 12 - The Marx Brothers' Zeppo Marx divorces wife Marion Benda...
adventure film
Adventure film
Adventure films are a genre of film.Unlike pure, low-budget action films they often use their action scenes preferably to display and explore exotic locations in an energetic way....
starring Burt Lancaster
Burt Lancaster
Burton Stephen "Burt" Lancaster was an American film actor noted for his athletic physique and distinctive smile...
. The film was directed by Byron Haskin
Byron Haskin
Byron Conrad Haskin was an American film and television director. He was born in Portland, Oregon.He is remembered today for directing 1953's The War of the Worlds, one of many films where he teamed with producer George Pal. In his early career, he was a special effects artist, with a number of...
and Otto Heller
Otto Heller
Otto Heller, B.S.C. was a Czech cinematographer. He worked on almost 200 films, including the Ealing comedy The Ladykillers and the thriller Peeping Tom....
and included choreography by Daniel Nagrin
Daniel Nagrin
Daniel Nagrin was an American modern dancer, choreographer, teacher, and author. He was born in New York City.Nagrin studied with Martha Graham, Anna Sokolow, Hanya Holm, and Helen Tamiris whom he later married...
. The cast also included Joan Rice
Joan Rice
Joan Rice was a British film actress.Rice is best known for her role as Dalabo in the film His Majesty O'Keefe which co-started Burt Lancaster...
, André Morell
André Morell
André Morell was a British actor. He appeared frequently in theatre, film and on television from the 1930s to the 1970s...
, Abraham Sofaer
Abraham Sofaer
Abraham Sofaer was a stage actor of Burmese-Jewish descent who became a familiar supporting player on film and television in his later years. He was born in Rangoon, Burma...
, Archie Savage, and Benson Fong
Benson Fong
Benson Fong was a Chinese American character actor.Born in Sacramento, California, Fong was from a mercantile family...
.
The film is based on the book of the same name by Laurence Klingman and Gerald Green
Gerald Green (author)
Gerald Green was an American author, journalist, producer and director.-Biography:Green was born in Brooklyn, New York as Gerald Greenberg. He was the son of a physician, Dr. Samuel Greenberg....
(1952).
Plot summary
Captain David O'KeefeDavid O'Keefe
David Dean O'Keefe was an Irishman who immigrated to Savannah, Georgia, USA before becoming a historical figure to the island of Yap....
(Burt Lancaster), seeking his fortune in the 19th century South Pacific
Oceania
Oceania is a region centered on the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean. Conceptions of what constitutes Oceania range from the coral atolls and volcanic islands of the South Pacific to the entire insular region between Asia and the Americas, including Australasia and the Malay Archipelago...
, decides to enlist island natives to harvest copra
Copra
Copra is the dried meat, or kernel, of the coconut. Coconut oil extracted from it has made copra an important agricultural commodity for many coconut-producing countries. It also yields coconut cake which is mainly used as feed for livestock.-Production:...
, but runs into a wall of cultural problems. Backed by a Chinese dentist, he obtains a ship and sets about harvesting copra while fending off cantankerous native chieftains and evil German empire-builders. The natives, happy with their existence, see no reason to work hard to obtain copra, either for a German trading company or for O'Keefe. He finally motivates them by showing them how to produce large quantities of their valued coinage.
Production
The film was partly shot on location in the South Pacific. Some pre-production was done out of Sydney, Australia and a number of Australian actors had roles in the support cast. Haskin later returned to Australia to make Long John SilverLong John Silver (film)
Long John Silver is a 1954 Australian film about the eponymous pirate from Treasure Island, starring Robert Newton as Silver and Rod Taylor as Israel Hands....
(1954).
Cast
- Burt LancasterBurt LancasterBurton Stephen "Burt" Lancaster was an American film actor noted for his athletic physique and distinctive smile...
as Captain David O'KeefeDavid O'KeefeDavid Dean O'Keefe was an Irishman who immigrated to Savannah, Georgia, USA before becoming a historical figure to the island of Yap....
/ Narrator - Joan RiceJoan RiceJoan Rice was a British film actress.Rice is best known for her role as Dalabo in the film His Majesty O'Keefe which co-started Burt Lancaster...
as Dalabo aki Dali - André MorellAndré MorellAndré Morell was a British actor. He appeared frequently in theatre, film and on television from the 1930s to the 1970s...
as Alfred Tetins - Abraham SofaerAbraham SofaerAbraham Sofaer was a stage actor of Burmese-Jewish descent who became a familiar supporting player on film and television in his later years. He was born in Rangoon, Burma...
as Fatumak, Medicine Man - Charles HorvathCharles HorvathCharles Horvath was a Hungarian-American soccer player who spent one season in the National Professional Soccer League, one in the International Soccer League and at least two in the German American Soccer League. He also earned one cap with the U.S...
as Bully HayesBully HayesWilliam Henry "Bully" Hayes has been described as a South Sea pirate and "the last of the Buccaneers", who together with Ben Pease, engaged in blackbirding in the 1860s and 1870s. Hayes operated across the breadth of the Pacific in the 1850s until his murder on 31 March 1877 by his cook Peter... - Lloyd BerrellLloyd BerrellLloyd Berrell was a New Zealand actor who played Roo in the original Sydney production of Summer of the Seventeenth Doll. He worked extensively in Australian radio and theatre, and appeared in a large portion of the few films being shot locally at the time...
- Grant TaylorGrant taylorGrant Taylor is a professional skateboarder who grew up in Atlanta, Georgia. He is the son of former professional skateboarder Thomas Taylor. He began skating at an early age and turned pro in 2009...
- Guy DolemanGuy DolemanGuy Doleman was a New Zealand actor.He is perhaps best known for his role as "Count Lippe" in the 1965 James Bond film Thunderball, and as "Colonel Ross" in the three film adaptations of Len Deighton's "Harry Palmer" novels, starring Michael Caine, in the 1960s...
- Harvey Adams
- Muriel SteinbeckMuriel SteinbeckMuriel Steibeck was an Australian actor who worked extensively in film, theatre, radio and television. She is best known for her performance as the wife of Sir Charles Kingsford Smith in Smithy and for playing the lead in Autumn Affair , Australia's first television serial.-Selected Filmography:*...
Historical basis
David O'Keefe
David Dean O'Keefe was an Irishman who immigrated to Savannah, Georgia, USA before becoming a historical figure to the island of Yap....
was shipwrecked on Yap
Yap
Yap, also known as Wa'ab by locals, is an island in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean. It is a state of the Federated States of Micronesia. Yap's indigenous cultures and traditions are still strong compared to other neighboring islands. The island of Yap actually consists of four...
in the Caroline Islands
Caroline Islands
The Caroline Islands are a widely scattered archipelago of tiny islands in the western Pacific Ocean, to the north of New Guinea. Politically they are divided between the Federated States of Micronesia in the eastern part of the group, and Palau at the extreme western end...
, where he found the natives highly prized Rai stones
Rai stones
Rai, or stone money, are large, circular stone disks carved out of limestone formed from aragonite and calcite crystals, Rai stones were mined in Palau and transported for use to the island of Yap, Micronesia...
quarried at great effort and danger on the island of Palau
Palau
Palau , officially the Republic of Palau , is an island nation in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Philippines and south of Tokyo. In 1978, after three decades as being part of the United Nations trusteeship, Palau chose independence instead of becoming part of the Federated States of Micronesia, a...
. He organized the natives to produce these largest of all coins
Money
Money is any object or record that is generally accepted as payment for goods and services and repayment of debts in a given country or socio-economic context. The main functions of money are distinguished as: a medium of exchange; a unit of account; a store of value; and, occasionally in the past,...
more easily and then traded them for copra and other items. The carved stones he produced were not valued as highly as those obtained by traditional methods due to the lack of personal sacrifice in their production.