Carmen Jones (1954)

Director:

Otto Preminger

Writers:

Oscar Hammerstein II (book)
Harry Kleiner (screenplay)
(more)

Release Date:

28 October 1954 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Musical | Romance

Plot:

Contemporary version of the Bizet opera, with new lyrics and an African-American cast.

Plot Keywords:

Opera | Love | Desire | Parachute | African American

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 6 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Harry Belafonte	...	Joe
Dorothy Dandridge	...	Carmen Jones
Pearl Bailey	...	Frankie
Olga James	...	Cindy Lou
Joe Adams	...	Husky Miller
Brock Peters	...	Sergeant Brown (as Broc Peters)
Roy Glenn	...	Rum Daniels
Nick Stewart	...	Dink Franklin
Diahann Carroll	...	Myrt
LeVern Hutcherson	...	Joe (voice) (as Le Vern Hutcherson)
Marilyn Horne	...	Carmen Jones (voice) (as Marilynn Horne)
Marvin Hayes	...	Husky Miller (voice)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Alvin Ailey	...	Dance Soloist (uncredited)
DeForest Covan	...	Trainer (uncredited)
Joseph E. Crawford	...	Dink Franklin (singing voice) (uncredited)
Carmen De Lavallade	...	Dance Soloist (uncredited)
Bernie Hamilton	...	Reporter (uncredited)
Margaret Lancaster	...	Singing Voice (uncredited)
Mauri Lynn	...	Sally (uncredited)
Sam McDaniel	...	Waiter (uncredited)
Bernice Peterson	...	Myrt (singing voice) (uncredited)
Max Roach	...	Max (uncredited)
Carmencita Romero	...	Dancer (uncredited)
Archie Savage	...	Dance Soloist (uncredited)
Madame Sul-Te-Wan	...	Hagar - Carmen's Grandmother (uncredited)
Rubin Wilson	...	Kid Pancho (uncredited)

Directed by
Otto Preminger

Writing credits
Oscar Hammerstein II		(book) (as Oscar Hammerstein 2nd)
Harry Kleiner		(screenplay)
Prosper Mérimée		novel (uncredited)

Produced by
Otto Preminger	....	producer

Cinematography by
Sam Leavitt		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Louis R. Loeffler

Art Direction by
Edward L. Ilou
John DeCuir		(co-art director) (uncredited)

Set Decoration by
Claude E. Carpenter

Costume Design by
Mary Ann Nyberg

Production Management
Herman E. Webber	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
David Silver	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Roger Heman Sr.	....	sound (as Roger Heman)
Arthur von Kirbach	....	sound (as Arthur L. Kirbach)
Gene Previdi	....	sound editor (uncredited)
Sam Woodward	....	sound editor (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Albert Myers	....	camera operator
Robert Willoughby	....	special still photographer (uncredited)

Casting Department
Lina Abarbanell	....	casting consultant

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Sam Benson	....	wardrobe (uncredited)

Music Department
Leon Birnbaum	....	music editor
Georges Bizet	....	music: based on "Carmen"
George Brand	....	music editor
Ted Dale	....	associate musical director
Herschel Burke Gilbert	....	musical director
Billy Rose	....	producer: Broadway musical play "Carmen Jones"
Murray Spivack	....	music recordist
Vinton Vernon	....	music recordist
Jester Hairston	....	choral director (uncredited)
Jester Hairston	....	vocal coach (uncredited)
Dimitri Tiomkin	....	co-musical director (uncredited)

Other crew
Saul Bass	....	title designer
John Indrisano	....	fight stager
Otto Preminger	....	presenter
Max Slater	....	production assistant (as Maximilian Slater)
Herbert Ross	....	choreographer (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Carlyle Productions

Distributors

• Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation (1954) (USA) (theatrical)
• Twentieth Century Fox Film Company (1954) (UK) (theatrical)
• Fox Video (1991) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Fox Video (1994) (USA) (VHS) (pan/scan)
• Fox Video (1995) (UK) (VHS) (pan/scan)
• Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• BFI Video (2003) (UK) (DVD)
• Alpha Video Distributors (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Umbrella Entertainment (2005) (Australia) (DVD)
• British Film Institute (BFI) (2006) (UK) (theatrical)

Also Known As:

"Oscar Hammerstein's Carmen Jones" - USA (complete title)

Runtime:

105 min | Argentina:108 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.55 : 1

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (Western Electric Recording) (magnetic prints) | Mono (optical prints)

Certification:

Argentina:16 | Finland:K-16 | USA:Approved (PCA #17140) | Sweden:15 | Australia:PG | UK:A (original rating) | UK:U (re-rating)

Filming Locations:

California Highway 118 between Moorpark & Somis, California, USA

Company:

Carlyle Productions

Trivia:

The singing voices of Harry Belafonte and Dorothy Dandridge were dubbed by LeVern Hutcherson and Marilyn Horne respectively, even though Belafonte and Dandridge were both accomplished singers. However, neither had the training nor the range to sing operatic roles. Catherine Hilgenberg, a soloist with the Roger Wagner Chorale (morphed later into the Los Angeles Master Chorale), was originally signed to sing the Carmen role, and a number of the arias were already recorded (with piano, on a separate track), when director Otto Preminger's bullying behavior became too much for her and she quit. Horne ("Jackie") was a 19-year-old music student at nearby USC. She auditioned for the part and was immediately hired - for $300. But it was a terrific break for her, and she grabbed it, and did an outstanding job, re-recording what Hilgenberg had already sung, plus the balance of the music. It's also fun to note that Horne was a singer for Tops Records, a company that made sound-alike recordings of hit records with identical arrangements (in those days arrangements could not be copyrighted) and "stand-ins" who could mimic the artists who made the hit record. Jackie Horne, later to become a major 20th-century opera star, was funding her college expenses, in part, by recording Kay Starr's hits. Starr was famous for belting out her songs with a certain razzmatazz style, and Horne's rendition was a dead-ringer. The Tops Records offices, it should be noted, were within walking distance from the USC campus.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: Carmen blinks after being strangled.

Quotes:

Frankie:Somethin' tells me Chicago's gonna be real good for you.
Myrt:Somethin' tells me you gonna be real bad for Chicago.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Dreamgirls (2006)

Soundtrack:

HE GOT HIS SELF ANOTHER WOMAN

A powerful display of Dandrige's appeal...

Dorothy Dandrige's roles went beyond that of sex symbol to being a parody of female sexuality… Carmen Jones is a powerful display of her appeal…

Based on Bizet's operatic masterpiece, Otto Preminger's film is the story of a GI about to go to flying school (Harry Belafonte), a noble young man who loves the cigarette-maker Carmen very dearly…

Filled with passionate songs and a first-rate supporting cast, the movie is filled with exciting musical numbers that are necessary to the film… But as impeccable and skillful the supporting cast is, this is Dandrige's magnetic star of enduring international appeal… Her Carmen is a flame of fire, isolating in a few moments the essence of her attraction… Her enigma sustained throughout a career notable for its startling changes of tempo and direction…Her shapely figure, blazing eyes, with the air of the unexpected add up a touch of melancholy to even the most routine sequences… Her performance was a parable of love and its power to destroy if misused…