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Noble House (TV miniseries)
Encyclopedia
Noble House was an American
television miniseries
that was produced and broadcast by NBC
in 1988. Based upon the novel Noble House
by James Clavell
, it featured a large cast headlined by Pierce Brosnan
as business tycoon Ian Dunross
and was directed by Gary Nelson. However, due to time restrictions, several of the many subplots from the book were removed.
This was NBC's second miniseries adaptation of a Clavell novel, the first being 1980's Shōgun
. Both take place in the same fictional universe (see The Asian Saga
) with Noble House featuring connections to Shōgun and another Clavell work, Tai-Pan
.
For the miniseries, the timeframe of the novel was changed; Clavell's original novel took place in the early 1960s, but the miniseries was updated to the 1980s. The building prominently displayed and used as Struan's is Jardine House
.
. The MPs
were removed, along with Peter Marlowe. Tip Tok-Toh was changed from a mysterious, unofficial contact of the Bank of China
to a good friend of Dunross that often appeared at parties. The bank runs were limited to the Ho-Pak, with the Victoria and Blacs not having any loss of confidence. Finally, although First Central and Dave Murtagh were introduced, the Bank of China bailed Dunross out in return for arranging Brian Kwok's release.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
television miniseries
Miniseries
A miniseries , in a serial storytelling medium, is a television show production which tells a story in a limited number of episodes. The exact number is open to interpretation; however, they are usually limited to fewer than a whole season. The term "miniseries" is generally a North American term...
that was produced and broadcast by NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
in 1988. Based upon the novel Noble House
Noble House
Noble House is a novel by James Clavell, published in 1981 and set in Hong Kong in 1963.It is a massive book, well over 1000 pages, with dozens of characters and numerous intermingling plot lines. In 1988, it was adapted as a television miniseries for NBC starring Pierce Brosnan...
by James Clavell
James Clavell
James Clavell, born Charles Edmund DuMaresq Clavell was an Australian-born, British novelist, screenwriter, director and World War II veteran and prisoner of war...
, it featured a large cast headlined by Pierce Brosnan
Pierce Brosnan
Pierce Brendan Brosnan, OBE is an Irish actor, film producer and environmentalist. After leaving school at 16, Brosnan began training in commercial illustration, but trained at the Drama Centre in London for three years...
as business tycoon Ian Dunross
Ian Dunross
Ian Dunross is a fictional character in James Clavell's novel Noble House, and a minor protagonist behind the scenes in Whirlwind.Dunross is the 10th tai-pan of Struan's, who rose to that office in 1960 and took the company public. Prior to this, he was a lifelong Struan's employee, a son and...
and was directed by Gary Nelson. However, due to time restrictions, several of the many subplots from the book were removed.
This was NBC's second miniseries adaptation of a Clavell novel, the first being 1980's Shōgun
Shogun (TV miniseries)
Shōgun is an American television miniseries based on the namesake novel by James Clavell. As with the novel, the title is often shown as Shōgun in order to conform to Hepburn romanization. The miniseries was broadcast over five nights, between September 15 and September 19, 1980 on NBC in the...
. Both take place in the same fictional universe (see The Asian Saga
The Asian Saga
The Asian Saga is a series of six novels written by James Clavell between 1962 and 1993. The novels all center on Europeans in Asia, and together they explore the impact on East and West of the meeting of these two distinct civilizations.-Overview:...
) with Noble House featuring connections to Shōgun and another Clavell work, Tai-Pan
Tai-Pan (novel)
Tai-Pan is a novel written by James Clavell about European and American traders who move into Hong Kong in 1842 following the end of the First Opium War. It is the second book in Clavell's "Asian Saga".-Plot summary:...
.
For the miniseries, the timeframe of the novel was changed; Clavell's original novel took place in the early 1960s, but the miniseries was updated to the 1980s. The building prominently displayed and used as Struan's is Jardine House
Jardine House
Jardine House , formerly known as Connaught Centre , is an office tower in Hong Kong. The building is located at 1 Connaught Place, Central on the Hong Kong Island. It is owned by Hongkong Land Limited, a subsidiary of Jardines. At the time of its completion in 1972, Jardine House was the tallest...
.
Differences from the novel
Many of the subplots from the novel were left out in the miniseries due to time restraints. For instance, the entire Sevrin and AMG arc were removed, as the series aired near the close of the Cold WarCold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
. The MPs
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
were removed, along with Peter Marlowe. Tip Tok-Toh was changed from a mysterious, unofficial contact of the Bank of China
Bank of China
Bank of China Limited is one of the big four state-owned commercial banks of the People's Republic of China. It was founded in 1912 by the Government of the Republic of China, to replace the Government Bank of Imperial China. It is the oldest bank in China...
to a good friend of Dunross that often appeared at parties. The bank runs were limited to the Ho-Pak, with the Victoria and Blacs not having any loss of confidence. Finally, although First Central and Dave Murtagh were introduced, the Bank of China bailed Dunross out in return for arranging Brian Kwok's release.
Cast
- Pierce BrosnanPierce BrosnanPierce Brendan Brosnan, OBE is an Irish actor, film producer and environmentalist. After leaving school at 16, Brosnan began training in commercial illustration, but trained at the Drama Centre in London for three years...
as Ian Dunross - Deborah RaffinDeborah RaffinDeborah Iona Raffin is an American film and television actress.Raffin was born in Los Angeles, California, the daughter of Trudy Marshall, a Brooklyn-born former movie actress, and Phillip Jordan Raffin, a restaurateur and meat/brokerage executive.She appeared in several 1970s Hollywood films...
as Casey Tcholok - Ben MastersBen MastersBen Masters is an American actor who is best known for his portrayal of Julian Crane on daytime drama Passions from July 8, 1999 to the show's final episode on August 7, 2008.-Acting career:...
as Linc Bartlett - John Rhys-DaviesJohn Rhys-DaviesJohn Rhys-Davies is a Welsh actor and voice actor. He is perhaps best known for playing the charismatic Arab excavator Sallah in the Indiana Jones films and the dwarf Gimli in The Lord of the Rings trilogy...
as Quillian Gornt - Gordon JacksonGordon Jackson (actor)Gordon Cameron Jackson, OBE was a Scottish Emmy Award-winning actor best remembered for his roles as the butler Angus Hudson in Upstairs, Downstairs and George Cowley, the head of CI5, in The Professionals....
as Supt. Armstrong - Burt KwoukBurt KwoukBurt Kwouk OBE , born Herbert Kwouk, is an English actor of Chinese descent, known for many television appearances and for his role as Cato in the Pink Panther films.-Career:...
as Phillip Chen - Khigh DheighKhigh DheighKhigh Alx Dhiegh was an American television and motion picture actor of mixed North African ancestry, noted for portraying Asian roles. He is perhaps best remembered for portraying villains, in particular his recurring TV guest role as Chinese agent Wo Fat on Hawaii Five-O , and brainwasher Dr...
as Four Finger Wu - Julia Nickson-SoulJulia Nickson-SoulJulia Nickson-Soul is an actress. She first came to the attention of audiences in the United States in the Sylvester Stallone film, Rambo: First Blood Part II...
as Orlanda Ramos - Richard Durden as Paul Havergill
- David Henry as Bruce Johnjohn
- Denholm ElliottDenholm ElliottDenholm Mitchell Elliott, CBE was an English film, television and theatre actor with over 120 film and television credits...
as Alastair Struan - Keith Bonnard as Tip Tok-toh
- Bennett Ohta as Richard Kwang
- Edward PetherbridgeEdward PetherbridgeEdward Petherbridge is a British actor. Among his many roles, he portrayed Lord Peter Wimsey in several screen adaptations of Dorothy L...
as Jason Plumm - Tia CarrereTia CarrereTia Carrere is an American actress, model, voice artist, and singer, perhaps most widely known for her role as Cassandra Wong in the feature films Wayne's World and Wayne's World 2, Queen Tyr'ahnee in Duck Dodgers, and as Sydney Fox in the TV series Relic Hunter.-Early life:Carrere was born in...
as Venus Poon - John HousemanJohn HousemanJohn Houseman was a Romanian-born British-American actor and film producer who became known for his highly publicized collaboration with director Orson Welles from their days in the Federal Theatre Project through to the production of Citizen Kane...
as Sir Geoffrey Allison