Samson and Delilah (1949)

Director:

Cecil B. DeMille

Writers:

Jesse Lasky Jr. (screenplay) &
Fredric M. Frank (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

January 1950 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | History | Romance

Tagline:

HISTORY'S MOST BEAUTIFUL AND TREACHEROUS WOMAN! (original print ad - all caps)

Plot:

Though his people, the Israelites, are enslaved by the Philistines, Samson, strongest man of the tribe of Dan...

Plot Keywords:

Philistine | Bible | Hair | Sword And Sandal | Betrayal

Awards:

Won 2 Oscars. Another 4 nominations

Cast

Hedy Lamarr	...	Delilah
Victor Mature	...	Samson
George Sanders	...	The Saran of Gaza
Angela Lansbury	...	Semadar
Henry Wilcoxon	...	Prince Ahtur
Olive Deering	...	Miriam
Fay Holden	...	Hazelelponit
Julia Faye	...	Haisham
Russ Tamblyn	...	Saul (as Russell Tamblyn)
William Farnum	...	Tubal
Lane Chandler	...	Teresh
Moroni Olsen	...	Targil
Francis McDonald	...	Story Teller (as Francis J. McDonald)
William 'Wee Willie' Davis	...	Garmiskar (as William Davis)
John Miljan	...	Lesh Lakish

Also Known As:

Cecil B. DeMille's Samson and Delilah (UK) (complete title) (USA) (complete title)

Runtime:

131 min | Argentina:134 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

Canada:PG (Ontario) | USA:Approved (certificate #13447) | UK:U | Argentina:13 | Finland:K-12 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Alabama Hills, Lone Pine, California, USA

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

Sunset Blvd. (1950) was also being filmed around Paramount at the same time as this movie. In a scene where Gloria Swanson's character Norma Desmond visits the sound stage to see Cecil B. DeMille, he was actually directing a scene from Samson and Delilah (1949) and the actual cast members and crew are seen taking a break from this feature.

Goofs:

Factual errors: Although the Phillistines did indeed worship the god Dagon, everything else about them as depicted in the film is untrue; not even the clothing corresponds with archaeological evidence. We now know the Philistine men shaved their facial hair and wore their head hair long, thanks to depictions of them found at the ruins of the actual Phillistia, which was not discovered until long after this movie had come out. The fact is that we do not know much about the Phillistines at all. In fact, we do not even know whether or not Phillistine women were treated as equals by the men!

Quotes:

[Samson has chosen Semadar as his bride over Delilah]
Delilah: I hate him.
Delilah's Father: Because he's a Danite?
Delilah: Because he's a fool!
Delilah's Father: Most men are, Delilah. There's nothing you can do about it.
[leaves]
Delilah: [smiles craftily] Sometimes a bee can move an ox.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in 'Sunset Blvd.': A Look Back (2002) (V)

Soundtrack:

THE FAT PHILISTINE MERCHANT

Hedy Lamarr as Delilah, makes this a truly memorable film.

Hedy Lamarr was the most beautiful woman in films. Her ability as an actress was limited, but as a femme fatale, capable of bringing down a mighty warrior, she certainly was convincing to me. The fact that Samson fell for Angela Langsbury, in the first place, was laughable. Victor Mature was a good choice, for the part of Samson. George Sanders gave the best performance; he simply had no peer, when it came to playing sophisticated, world-weary, men of wisdom. Compare this role to his part in Rebecca, All About Eve, and you'll see what I mean. Again, just watching Hedy Lamarr, is like watching a beautiful work of art. Entertaining, old fashion Hollywood stuff. They don't make them like this anymore, and there certainly is no contemporary beauty that comes close to Hedy Lamarr.