Little Boy Lost
Encyclopedia
Little Boy Lost is a 1953
Paramount Pictures
black-and-white
drama
motion picture
starring Bing Crosby
. Others in the cast include Claude Dauphin
, Christian Fourcade, Gabrielle Dorziat
, and Nicole Maurey
.
Directed
by George Seaton
, the screenplay
was adapted by Seaton based on the 1949
novel
Little Boy Lost
by Marghanita Laski
. The movie was produced
by William Perlberg
.
Original music was by Miarka Laparcerie (song: "Mon Coeur est un Violin"), and the team of Johnny Burke
& Jimmy Van Heusen, and Victor Young
(music score). Costumes were designed by Edith Head
. Makeup was supervised by Wally Westmore
.
Little Boy Lost received the Golden Globe Award
for Best Film Promoting International Understanding. It was also entered into the 1954 Cannes Film Festival
.
Scenes were shot on location in Paris
, France
.
an American
war correspondent
, Bill Wainwright (played by Crosby), was stationed in Paris. He met and fell in love with a French
singer, Lisa Garret (played by Maurey). They married and had a son, Jean.
Wainwright was then assigned to cover the Battle of Dunkirk
and after the evacuation of Allied troops and the French surrender he could not return to Paris. He later learned that his wife was murdered by the Nazis
for participating in the French Resistance
and that his small son went missing during a bombing raid.
The above information was learned by the audience in a flashback, which is narrated by Wainwright. The war is now over and the grieving widower has returned to Paris to find his lost little boy. His best friend is Pierre Verdier (played by Dauphin).
Wainwright has been told that his son is living in an orphanage. He finds a sad and confused boy (played by Fourcade), who does bear a striking resemblance to Lisa, and Wainwright believes he might be his son. The Mother Superior (played by Dorziat) insists that the boy is his, but Wainwright becomes skeptical and tests him. When the boy fails the test, Wainwright confronts the nun. She then confesses her scheme and tells him of her determination to see that the orphans are placed in good homes and have happy lives.
Though Wainwright and the boy have formed a loving bond, he cannot get over his grief until he receives wise counsel from his good friend.
The movie ends with Wainwright showing up at the orphanage realizing that he needs the boy he no longer sees as his son, but is surprised to find out that Jean is his son by a gift sent. This gift, an ugly stuffed dog Wainwright called "Binky," is also known to Jean as "Binky," a long-lost identical stuffed dog that Wainwright had won at a carnival for Lisa.
1953 in film
The year 1953 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*September 16 — The Robe debuts as the first anamorphic, widescreen CinemaScope film.-Top grossing films : After theatrical re-issue- Awards :Academy Awards:A...
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
black-and-white
Black-and-white
Black-and-white, often abbreviated B/W or B&W, is a term referring to a number of monochrome forms in visual arts.Black-and-white as a description is also something of a misnomer, for in addition to black and white, most of these media included varying shades of gray...
drama
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
motion picture
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
starring Bing Crosby
Bing Crosby
Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby was an American singer and actor. Crosby's trademark bass-baritone voice made him one of the best-selling recording artists of the 20th century, with over half a billion records in circulation....
. Others in the cast include Claude Dauphin
Claude Dauphin (actor)
Claude Dauphin was a French actor. He appeared in over 130 films between 1930 and 1978.He was born in Corbeil-Essonnes, Essonne. His father was Maurice Étienne Legrand, a poet who wrote as Franc-Nohain, and who was the librettist for Maurice Ravel's opera L'heure espagnole.Dauphin married...
, Christian Fourcade, Gabrielle Dorziat
Gabrielle Dorziat
Gabrielle Dorziat was a French stage and film actress. Dorziat was a fashion trend setter in Paris and helped popularize the designs of Coco Chanel. The Théâtre Gabrielle-Dorziat, a theater in Épernay, France is named for her.-Biography:...
, and Nicole Maurey
Nicole Maurey
Nicole Maurey is a French actress, who has appeared in 65 film and television productions between 1945 and 1997. Born in Bois-Colombes, a northwestern suburb of Paris, she was originally a dancer before being cast in her first film role in 1944...
.
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 George Seaton
George Seaton
George Seaton was an American screenwriter, playwright, film director and producer, and theatre director.Born George Stenius in South Bend, Indiana, Seaton moved to Detroit after graduating from college to work as an actor on radio station WXYZ. John L...
, the screenplay
Screenplay
A screenplay or script is a written work that is made especially for a film or television program. Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of writing. In them, the movement, actions, expression, and dialogues of the characters are also narrated...
was adapted by Seaton based on the 1949
1949 in literature
The year 1949 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*Arthur C. Clarke becomes Assistant Editor of Science Abstracts.*Bertrand Russell receives the Order of Merit....
novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
Little Boy Lost
Little Boy Lost (novel)
Little Boy Lost is a dramatic novel by Marghanita Laski that was published in 1949. It was then republished in 2001 by Persephone Books.-Film, TV or theatrical adaptations:...
by Marghanita Laski
Marghanita Laski
Marghanita Laski was an English journalist, radio panellist and novelist: she also wrote literary biography, plays and short stories.- Personal life :...
. The movie was produced
Film producer
A film producer oversees and delivers a film project to all relevant parties while preserving the integrity, voice and vision of the film. They will also often take on some financial risk by using their own money, especially during the pre-production period, before a film is fully financed.The...
by William Perlberg
William Perlberg
William Perlberg was an American film producer.William Perlberg was born Wolf Perelberg, son of Israel Jakob Perelberg , a fur manufacturer, and Tajbe Markus. Seven months after his father, he came to the U.S.A...
.
Original music was by Miarka Laparcerie (song: "Mon Coeur est un Violin"), and the team of Johnny Burke
Johnny Burke (lyricist)
Johnny Burke was a lyricist, widely regarded as one of the finest writers of popular songs in America between the 1920s and 1950s.-Biography:...
& Jimmy Van Heusen, and Victor Young
Victor Young
Victor Young was an American composer, arranger, violinist and conductor. He was born in Chicago.-Biography:...
(music score). Costumes were designed by Edith Head
Edith Head
Edith Head was an American costume designer who won eight Academy Awards, more than any other woman.-Early life and career:...
. Makeup was supervised by Wally Westmore
Wally Westmore
Walter 'Wally' James Westmore was a make-up artist for Hollywood films....
.
Little Boy Lost received the Golden Globe Award
Golden Globe Award
The Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign...
for Best Film Promoting International Understanding. It was also entered into the 1954 Cannes Film Festival
1954 Cannes Film Festival
-Jury:*Jean Cocteau *Jean Aurenche *André Bazin *Luis Buñuel*Henri Calef *Guy Desson *Philippe Erlanger *Michel Fourre-Cormeray *Jacques-Pierre Frogerais...
.
Scenes were shot on location in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
Synopsis
During World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
war correspondent
War correspondent
A war correspondent is a journalist who covers stories firsthand from a war zone. In the 19th century they were also called Special Correspondents.-Methods:...
, Bill Wainwright (played by Crosby), was stationed in Paris. He met and fell in love with a French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
singer, Lisa Garret (played by Maurey). They married and had a son, Jean.
Wainwright was then assigned to cover the Battle of Dunkirk
Battle of Dunkirk
The Battle of Dunkirk was a battle in the Second World War between the Allies and Germany. A part of the Battle of France on the Western Front, the Battle of Dunkirk was the defence and evacuation of British and allied forces in Europe from 26 May–4 June 1940.After the Phoney War, the Battle of...
and after the evacuation of Allied troops and the French surrender he could not return to Paris. He later learned that his wife was murdered by the Nazis
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
for participating in the French Resistance
French Resistance
The French Resistance is the name used to denote the collection of French resistance movements that fought against the Nazi German occupation of France and against the collaborationist Vichy régime during World War II...
and that his small son went missing during a bombing raid.
The above information was learned by the audience in a flashback, which is narrated by Wainwright. The war is now over and the grieving widower has returned to Paris to find his lost little boy. His best friend is Pierre Verdier (played by Dauphin).
Wainwright has been told that his son is living in an orphanage. He finds a sad and confused boy (played by Fourcade), who does bear a striking resemblance to Lisa, and Wainwright believes he might be his son. The Mother Superior (played by Dorziat) insists that the boy is his, but Wainwright becomes skeptical and tests him. When the boy fails the test, Wainwright confronts the nun. She then confesses her scheme and tells him of her determination to see that the orphans are placed in good homes and have happy lives.
Though Wainwright and the boy have formed a loving bond, he cannot get over his grief until he receives wise counsel from his good friend.
The movie ends with Wainwright showing up at the orphanage realizing that he needs the boy he no longer sees as his son, but is surprised to find out that Jean is his son by a gift sent. This gift, an ugly stuffed dog Wainwright called "Binky," is also known to Jean as "Binky," a long-lost identical stuffed dog that Wainwright had won at a carnival for Lisa.
Cast
- Bing CrosbyBing CrosbyHarry Lillis "Bing" Crosby was an American singer and actor. Crosby's trademark bass-baritone voice made him one of the best-selling recording artists of the 20th century, with over half a billion records in circulation....
- Bill Wainwright - Claude DauphinClaude Dauphin (actor)Claude Dauphin was a French actor. He appeared in over 130 films between 1930 and 1978.He was born in Corbeil-Essonnes, Essonne. His father was Maurice Étienne Legrand, a poet who wrote as Franc-Nohain, and who was the librettist for Maurice Ravel's opera L'heure espagnole.Dauphin married...
- Pierre Verdier - Christian Fourcade - Jean (The Little Boy)
- Gabrielle DorziatGabrielle DorziatGabrielle Dorziat was a French stage and film actress. Dorziat was a fashion trend setter in Paris and helped popularize the designs of Coco Chanel. The Théâtre Gabrielle-Dorziat, a theater in Épernay, France is named for her.-Biography:...
- Mother Superior - Nicole MaureyNicole MaureyNicole Maurey is a French actress, who has appeared in 65 film and television productions between 1945 and 1997. Born in Bois-Colombes, a northwestern suburb of Paris, she was originally a dancer before being cast in her first film role in 1944...
- Lisa Garret - Colette DeréalColette DeréalColette Deréal, born Colette Denise de Glarélial, 22 September 1927 in Saint-Cyr-l'École, Seine-et-Oise , France and died 12 April 1988 in Monaco, is a French actress and singer.-Eurovision Song Contest 1961:...
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