East of Eden (1955)

Director:

Elia Kazan

Writers:

John Steinbeck (novel)
Paul Osborn (screenplay)

Release Date:

10 April 1955 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

Of what a girl did . . . what a boy did ... of ecstasy and revenge!

Plot:

In the Salinas Valley, in and around World War I, Cal Trask feels he must compete against overwhelming...

Plot Keywords:

Love | Lettuce | Beans | Mob Rule | Scrubbing A Floor

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 8 wins & 9 nominations

Cast

Julie Harris	...	Abra
James Dean	...	Cal Trask
Raymond Massey	...	Adam Trask
Burl Ives	...	Sam the Sheriff
Richard Davalos	...	Aron Trask
Jo Van Fleet	...	Kate
Albert Dekker	...	Will Hamilton
Lois Smith	...	Anne
Harold Gordon	...	Gustav Albrecht
Nick Dennis	...	Rantani
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Abdullah Abbas	...	Townsman at Carnival (uncredited)
Rose Allen	...	Townswoman at Carnival (uncredited)
José Arias	...	Prisoner (uncredited)
Barbara Baxley	...	Nurse (uncredited)
John Beradino	...	Coalman at Lettuce Field (uncredited)
Joe Brooks	...	Townsman at Carnival (uncredited)
Timothy Carey	...	Joe (uncredited)
Jack Carr	...	Charlie - Townsman at Carnival (uncredited)
Wheaton Chambers	...	Townsman at Carnival (uncredited)
Lonny Chapman	...	Roy Turner - Automobile Mechanic (uncredited)
George Church	...	Townsman at Carnival (uncredited)
Edward Clark	...	Draft Board Member (uncredited)
Harry Cording	...	Bouncer (uncredited)
Roger Creed	...	Townsman at Carnival (uncredited)
Bryn Davis	...	Townswoman at Carnival (uncredited)
Ray Dawe	...	Workman (uncredited)
Anna Dewey	...	Townswoman at Carnival (uncredited)
Lester Dorr	...	City Official at Parade (uncredited)
Joe Dougherty	...	Townsman at Carnival (uncredited)
Darren Dublin	...	Student (uncredited)
Franklyn Farnum	...	Townsman at Carnival (uncredited)
Al Ferguson	...	Townsman at Carnival (uncredited)
Cliff Fields	...	Student (uncredited)
Lloyd Ford	...	Townsman at Carnival (uncredited)
Robert Foulk	...	Man at Boxcar (uncredited)
Nick Franke	...	Student (uncredited)
Robert Gardett	...	Townsman at Carnival (uncredited)
Richard Garrick	...	Dr. Edwards (uncredited)
Chief Leonard George	...	Townsman at Carnival (uncredited)
John George	...	Townsman at Carnival (uncredited)
Ruth Gillis	...	Undetermine Role (uncredited)
John Halloran	...	City Official at Parade (uncredited)
Sam Harris	...	Official at Parade (uncredited)
Jonathan Haze	...	Piscora's Son (uncredited)
Ramsay Hill	...	English Officer (uncredited)
Earle Hodgins	...	Shooting Gallery Concessionaire (uncredited)
Diane Howe	...	Student (uncredited)
Charles Anthony Hughes	...	City Official at Parade (uncredited)
Gail Kobe	...	Student (uncredited)
Effie Laird	...	Townswoman at Carnival (uncredited)
Billy Mahan	...	Townsman at Carnival (uncredited)
Lou Marcelle	...	Trailer Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
Mike Marienthal	...	Townsman at Carnival (uncredited)
Frank Mazzola	...	Student (uncredited)
Edward McNally	...	Soldier (uncredited)
Ken Miller	...	Student (uncredited)
Tex Mooney	...	Bartender (uncredited)
Robert Morris	...	Student (uncredited)
Paul Nichols	...	Townsman at Carnival (uncredited)
Gil Perkins	...	Lettuce Truck Worker (uncredited)
William 'Bill' Phillips	...	Coalman at Lettuce Fields / Man at Exercise Class (uncredited)
Rose Plumer	...	Rose - Townswoman at Carnival (uncredited)
Patricia Prest	...	Student (uncredited)
Julian Rivero	...	Prisoner (uncredited)
Mickey Roth	...	Student (uncredited)
Henry Rowland	...	Helper at Boxcar (uncredited)
Loretta Rush	...	Card Dealer (uncredited)
Charles Sherlock	...	Milk Bottle Concessionaire at Carnival (uncredited)
Mario Siletti	...	Mr. Piscora (uncredited)
Hal Taggart	...	City Official at Parade (uncredited)
Bette Treadville	...	Madame (uncredited)
Sailor Vincent	...	Townsman in Parade / Townsman at Carnival (uncredited)
Max Wagner	...	Workman (uncredited)
Lillian West	...	Townswoman at Carnival (uncredited)
Chalky Williams	...	Townsman at Carnival (uncredited)

Directed by
Elia Kazan

Writing credits
John Steinbeck		(novel)
Paul Osborn		(screenplay)

Produced by
Elia Kazan	....	producer

Original Music by
Leonard Rosenman

Cinematography by
Ted D. McCord		(director of photography) (as Ted McCord)

Film Editing by
Owen Marks

Casting by
Harvey Clermont		(uncredited)

Art Direction by
James Basevi
Malcolm C. Bert		(as Malcolm Bert)

Set Decoration by
George James Hopkins
William Wallace		(uncredited)

Costume Design by
Anna Hill Johnstone		(wardrobe designer)

Makeup Department
Gordon Bau	....	makeup artist
Robert Ewing	....	makeup artist (uncredited)
Tillie Starriett	....	hairdresser (uncredited)

Production Management
Don Alvarado	....	unit manager (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Don Alvarado	....	assistant director (as Don Page)
Horace Hough	....	assistant director
Claude Archer	....	third assistant director (uncredited)
C. Carter Gibson	....	second assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
George Sweeney	....	assistant props (uncredited)
Red Turner	....	props (uncredited)

Sound Department
Stanley Jones	....	sound
Everett A. Hughes	....	boom operator (uncredited)
Ed McDonald	....	recordist (uncredited)

Stunts
Mushy Callahan	....	stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Jack Albin	....	stills (uncredited)
Andy Anderson	....	camera operator (uncredited)
William Classen	....	grip (uncredited)
Conrad L. Hall	....	camera operator (uncredited)
Ernest Long	....	best boy (uncredited)
Charles O'Bannon	....	gaffer (uncredited)
William John Ranaldi	....	camera assistant (uncredited)
Fred Terso	....	camera assistant (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Oral Johnson	....	wardrobe: women's (uncredited)
Leon Roberts	....	wardrobe: men's (uncredited)

Editorial Department
John Hambleton	....	color consultant

Music Department
Maurice De Packh	....	orchestrator (uncredited)

Other crew
Guy Thomajan	....	dialogue director
Rhea Burakoff	....	secretary: Mr. Kazan (uncredited)
Irva Mae Ross	....	script supervisor (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Warner Bros (presents) (A Warner Bros.-First National Picture)

Distributors

• Warner Bros (1955) (USA) (theatrical) (A Warner Communications Company)
• Warner Bros. (1955) (Canada) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (1955) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. Films (1955) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros (1957) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Warner Bros. Films (1968) (Finland) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Warner-Columbia Films (1981) (Finland) (theatrical)
• AFEX (1955) (Austria) (theatrical)
• Asociace Ceských Filmových Klubu (ACFK) (2006) (Czech Republic) (theatrical)
• Argentina Video Home (2005) (Argentina) (DVD)
• Argentina Video Home (2005) (Argentina) (VHS)
• Fazer Musiikki Oy/Fazer Video (1989) (Finland) (VHS)
• Mainostelevisio (MTV3) (1997) (Finland) (TV) (1998)
• Warner Bros. Entertainment Finland Oy (2005) (Finland) (DVD)
• Warner Bros. (2005) (Argentina) (all media) (re-release)
• Warner Home Video (2005) (Germany) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (19??) (Netherlands) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (2005) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Vídeo (2005) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Warner Home Vídeo (????) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Yleisradio (YLE) (1995) (Finland) (TV)

Also Known As:

"John Steinbeck's East of Eden" - USA (complete title)

MPAA:

Rated PG for thematic elements and some violent content (2005 re-issue)

Runtime:

115 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Warnercolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.55 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Perspecta Sound encoding) (35 mm optical prints) | 4-Track Stereo (35 mm magnetic prints) (RCA Sound Recording)

Certification:

Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | Chile:14 | Finland:K-16 | South Korea:15 | Sweden:11 (re-release) (1962) | Switzerland:16 (canton of the Grisons) | USA:PG (2005 re-issue) | Peru:14 | Portugal:M/12 | Iceland:L | Spain:13 | UK:AA (1976) (cut) | UK:PG (video rating) | Sweden:15 | USA:Approved (PCA #17086) | Japan:PG12 (2009) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Netherlands:14 (original rating) (1955) | USA:TV-PG | USA:PG | West Germany:16 (nf)

Filming Locations:

Denslow-Morgan-Preston Mansion - 45200 Little Lake Street, Mendocino, California, USA

Company:

Warner Bros

Trivia:

Elia Kazan, in his autobiography "A Life" (1988), said that Raymond Massey came to despise James Dean. Kazan did nothing to dispel the tension between the two, as it was so right for their characters in the film.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: During WWI, a band organ at the carnival plays "Ain't We Got Fun", which is from 1921.

Quotes:

Abra:But you must give him some sign, Mr. Trask, some sign that you love him... or he'll never be a man. All his life he'll feel guilty and alone unless you release him.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Film Geek (2005)

Soundtrack:

I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles

Elia Kazan and James Dean at their best

I've seen this movie several times, most recently on DVD with an additional DVD that includes the premier and a documentary about James Dean. Each time I see this movie I see it from a new perspective. I learned from the DVD and from reading Elia Kazan's comments that the character Cal (played by Dean) is really Steinbeck in many ways in his youth and Kazan also identified with him. I learned that there was real friction between Dean and the man who played his father, Raymond Massey and that Dean deliberately provoked Massey to get angry with him to bring out the moment in the film of the father's feelings towards his son. I also marvel each time i see this movie at the outstanding performance of Jo Van Fleet. She deserved her best supporting actress academy award. This movie resonates on many levels as do most of Kazan's films. It is modern retelling of the garden of eden story and it is the story of the troubled youth of the fifties fighting against the conservatism of the Eisenhower years. It is a story of the confusion and conflicts in a family with a war approaching and it's a story about a woman (Van Fleet's character) who doesn't like being bottled up in a controlled religious setting. Many things to enjoy here and one wonders where the artists of Kazans stature are in this day and age. I only wish that all of Kazan's films were on DVD, such as Baby Doll and Wild River. I wonder if anyone but me notices that on the extra DVD where there is an interview with John Steinbeck that he shifts and contorts his mouth in a manner very like Dean in the movie. It was said that neither Steinbeck nor Kazan originally liked Dean but both agreed that he was perfect for the part and both identified with him very much.