The Naked Jungle
Encyclopedia
The Naked Jungle is a 1954 film
directed by Byron Haskin
, and starring Charlton Heston
and Eleanor Parker
. Telling the story of an attack of army ant
s on a Peru
vian cocoa plantation, it was based on the short story "Leiningen Versus the Ants
" by Carl Stephenson
.
), a New Orleans woman arrives at the South American cocoa plantation to meet her new husband, plantation owner Christopher Leiningen (Charlton Heston
) whom she has married by proxy.
Leiningen is cold and remote to her, rebuffing all her attempts to make friends with him. She's beautiful, independent, and arrives ready to be his stalwart helpmate; however, no one has told him she's a widow. He rejects her. During the next week, as she awaits the boat to take her back to the United States
, they learn that legions of army ants - the Marabunta
- will strike in a few days' time. Leiningen refuses to give up the home he fought so hard to create. Instead of evacuating, he resolves to make a stand against this indomitable natural predator. Joanna joins the fight to save the plantation; their courage and his probable loss of all he's worked for may crack his resolve to send her away.
The screenplay, was co-written by Ranald MacDougall
and the blacklisted writer Ben Maddow
. The film was produced in Technicolor
by George Pal
, who also made The War of the Worlds
, Tom Thumb
, and The Time Machine
. The film's title is presumably a reference to how the ants "strip" the jungle and turn it into a wasteland.
William Conrad
, who had starred as Leiningen in a 1948 adaptation of Stephenson's story for the radio program Escape
, appears in the film as a district commissioner.
The unique "sound" of the ants devouring everything in their path was created by swirling a straw in a glass of water with crushed ice, which was then amplified.
. This small town is located in Putnam County west of the county seat, Palatka. The dynamiting of the bridges was one of the scenes filmed here. A local citizen died when he was thrown from his horse during one of the explosions.
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...
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 starring Charlton Heston
Charlton Heston
Charlton Heston was an American actor of film, theatre and television. Heston is known for heroic roles in films such as The Ten Commandments, Ben-Hur for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor, El Cid, and Planet of the Apes...
and Eleanor Parker
Eleanor Parker
Eleanor Jean Parker is an American screen actress. Her versatility led to her being dubbed Woman of a Thousand Faces, the title of her biography by Doug McClelland.- Early life :...
. Telling the story of an attack of army ant
Army ant
The name army ant is applied to over 200 ant species, in different lineages, due to their aggressive predatory foraging groups, known as "raids", in which huge numbers of ants forage simultaneously over a certain area, attacking prey en masse.Another shared feature is that, unlike most ant...
s on a Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
vian cocoa plantation, it was based on the short story "Leiningen Versus the Ants
Leiningen Versus the Ants
"Leiningen Versus the Ants" by Carl Stephenson is a classic short story published in the December 1938 edition of Esquire.The story centers on a scrappy, no-nonsense plantation owner called Leiningen , and his stubborn refusal to abandon his plantation in the face of a seemingly unstoppable mass of...
" by Carl Stephenson
Carl Stephenson (author)
Carl Stephenson was a German author best known for his short story "Leiningen Versus the Ants". It was first published in 1938 and has appeared in numerous collections of short stories...
.
Plot
As the film opens, Joanna (Eleanor ParkerEleanor Parker
Eleanor Jean Parker is an American screen actress. Her versatility led to her being dubbed Woman of a Thousand Faces, the title of her biography by Doug McClelland.- Early life :...
), a New Orleans woman arrives at the South American cocoa plantation to meet her new husband, plantation owner Christopher Leiningen (Charlton Heston
Charlton Heston
Charlton Heston was an American actor of film, theatre and television. Heston is known for heroic roles in films such as The Ten Commandments, Ben-Hur for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor, El Cid, and Planet of the Apes...
) whom she has married by proxy.
Leiningen is cold and remote to her, rebuffing all her attempts to make friends with him. She's beautiful, independent, and arrives ready to be his stalwart helpmate; however, no one has told him she's a widow. He rejects her. During the next week, as she awaits the boat to take her back to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, they learn that legions of army ants - the Marabunta
Army ant
The name army ant is applied to over 200 ant species, in different lineages, due to their aggressive predatory foraging groups, known as "raids", in which huge numbers of ants forage simultaneously over a certain area, attacking prey en masse.Another shared feature is that, unlike most ant...
- will strike in a few days' time. Leiningen refuses to give up the home he fought so hard to create. Instead of evacuating, he resolves to make a stand against this indomitable natural predator. Joanna joins the fight to save the plantation; their courage and his probable loss of all he's worked for may crack his resolve to send her away.
The screenplay, was co-written by Ranald MacDougall
Ranald MacDougall
Ranald MacDougall was an American screenwriter who scripted such films as Mildred Pierce , The Unsuspected , June Bride , and The Naked Jungle ....
and the blacklisted writer Ben Maddow
Ben Maddow
Ben Maddow was a prolific screenwriter and documentarian from the 1930s through the 70s. Educated at Columbia University, Maddow began his career working within the American documentary movement in the 30s.In 1936 he co-founded the short-lived left-wing newsreel The World Today...
. The film was produced in Technicolor
Technicolor
Technicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...
by George Pal
George Pál
George Pal , born György Pál Marczincsak, was a Hungarian-born American animator and film producer, principally associated with the science fiction genre...
, who also made The War of the Worlds
The War of the Worlds (1953 film)
The War of the Worlds is a 1953 science fiction film starring Gene Barry and Ann Robinson. It was the first on-screen loose adaptation of the H. G. Wells classic novel of the same name...
, Tom Thumb
Tom thumb (film)
Deliberately uncapitalised, tom thumb is a 1958 fantasy-musical film directed by George Pal and released by MGM. It was based on the fairy tale of the same name...
, and The Time Machine
The Time Machine (1960 film)
The Time Machine is a 1960 American science fiction film based on the 1895 novel of the same name by H. G. Wells in which a man in Victorian England constructs a time-travelling machine which he uses to travel to the future...
. The film's title is presumably a reference to how the ants "strip" the jungle and turn it into a wasteland.
William Conrad
William Conrad
William Conrad was an American actor, producer and director whose career spanned five decades in radio, film and television....
, who had starred as Leiningen in a 1948 adaptation of Stephenson's story for the radio program Escape
Escape (radio program)
Escape was radio's leading anthology series of high-adventure radio dramas, airing on CBS from July 7, 1947 to September 25, 1954. Since the program did not have a regular sponsor like Suspense, it was subjected to frequent schedule shifts and lower production budgets, although Richfield Oil signed...
, appears in the film as a district commissioner.
The unique "sound" of the ants devouring everything in their path was created by swirling a straw in a glass of water with crushed ice, which was then amplified.
Filming location
Portions of this movie were filmed in Florahome, FloridaFlorahome, Florida
Florahome is an unincorporated community in Putnam County, Florida, United States. It is located on State Road 100. The town was established in 1899 by the Georgia Southern and Florida Railway. The streets are laid in a grid system. Streets north and south are named for trees or shrubs. Streets...
. This small town is located in Putnam County west of the county seat, Palatka. The dynamiting of the bridges was one of the scenes filmed here. A local citizen died when he was thrown from his horse during one of the explosions.