The Long, Hot Summer (1958)

Director:

Martin Ritt

Writers:

William Faulkner (stories) (novel "The Hamlet")
Irving Ravetch (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

18 May 1958 (West Germany)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Adapted from the Sensational Novel by William Faulkner

Plot:

Accused barn burner and con man Ben Quick arrives in a small Mississippi town and quickly ingratiates himself with its richest family, the Varners.

Plot Keywords:

Barn | Ambition | Mississippi | Ambulance | Sharecropper

Awards:

2 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Paul Newman	...	Ben Quick
Joanne Woodward	...	Clara Varner
Anthony Franciosa	...	Jody Varner
Orson Welles	...	Will Varner
Lee Remick	...	Eula Varner
Angela Lansbury	...	Minnie Littlejohn
Richard Anderson	...	Alan Stewart
Sarah Marshall	...	Agnes Stewart
Mabel Albertson	...	Elizabeth Stewart
J. Pat O'Malley	...	Ratliff
Bill Walker	...	Lucius (as William Walker)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Robert Adler	...	Ambulance Driver (uncredited)
Val Avery	...	Wilk (uncredited)
Jim Brandt	...	Linus Olds (uncredited)
Brian Corcoran	...	Harry Peabody (uncredited)
Lee Erickson	...	Tom Shortly (uncredited)
Byron Foulger	...	Harris (uncredited)
Eugene Jackson	...	Waiter (uncredited)
I. Stanford Jolley	...	Houston (uncredited)
Nicholas King	...	John Fisher (uncredited)
Terry Rangno	...	Pete Armistead (uncredited)
Ralph Reed	...	J.V. Bookright (uncredited)
Victor Rodman	...	Justice of the Peace (uncredited)
Pat Rosemond	...	Minor Role (uncredited)
Helen Wallace	...	Minor Role (uncredited)
Steve Widders	...	Buddy Peabody (uncredited)

Directed by
Martin Ritt

Writing credits
William Faulkner		(stories "Barn Burning" and "The Spotted Horses") (novel "The Hamlet")
Irving Ravetch		(screenplay) and
Harriet Frank Jr.		(screenplay)

Produced by
Jerry Wald	....	producer

Original Music by
Alex North

Cinematography by
Joseph LaShelle		(director of photography) (as Joseph La Shelle)

Film Editing by
Louis R. Loeffler

Art Direction by
Maurice Ransford
Lyle R. Wheeler

Set Decoration by
Eli Benneche
Walter M. Scott

Costume Design by
Adele Palmer

Makeup Department
Ben Nye	....	makeup artist
Helen Turpin	....	hair stylist
Edwin Allen	....	makeup artist (uncredited)
Layne Britton	....	makeup artist (uncredited)
Ruby Felker	....	hair dresser (uncredited)
Mildred Quinn	....	body makeup artist (uncredited)
Roy Stork	....	makeup artist (uncredited)

Production Management
Arthur Lueker	....	unit production manager (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Eli Dunn	....	assistant director
Al Murphy	....	second assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
Norman Rockett	....	props (uncredited)

Sound Department
Harry M. Leonard	....	sound
E. Clayton Ward	....	sound
L. Ralph Zerbe	....	recordist (uncredited)

Special Effects by
L.B. Abbott	....	special photographic effects
Ray Deter	....	special effects (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Walter Davis	....	still photographer (uncredited)
James E. Lavin	....	key grip (uncredited)
Irving Rosenberg	....	camera operator (uncredited)
Don Scott	....	gaffer (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Charles Le Maire	....	executive wardrobe designer (as Charles LeMaire)
Willie Mae Neal	....	wardrobe (uncredited)
James Taylor	....	wardrobe (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Leonard Doss	....	color consultant

Music Department
Lionel Newman	....	conductor
Maurice De Packh	....	orchestrator (uncredited)

Other crew
Curtis Harrington	....	assistant to producer (uncredited)
Marie Kenney	....	script supervisor (uncredited)
Marguerite Lamkin	....	dialogue coach (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Jerry Wald Productions

Distributors

• 20th Century Fox (1958) (France) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox (1958) (UK) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox of Germany (1958) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation (1958) (USA) (theatrical)
• CBS/Fox Video (1990) (USA) (VHS)
• Koch Media (2012) (Germany) (DVD)
• National Broadcasting Company (NBC) (1963) (USA) (TV) (original airing) (pan & scan)
• Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (2003) (USA) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Bausch & Lomb  CinemaScope lenses
• Plantation Village Studios  location
• Plantation Village Studios  soundstage

Also Known As:

Runtime:

115 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (35 mm magnetic prints) (Westrex Recording System) | Mono (35 mm optical prints)

Certification:

Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | Chile:14 | Finland:S | Sweden:15 | Iceland:L | USA:Approved (certificate #18811) | Canada:PG (video rating) | West Germany:16 | UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (video rating) | France:U

Filming Locations:

Asphodel Plantation - 4626 Highway 68, Jackson, Louisiana, USA

Company:

Jerry Wald Productions

Trivia:

The title song "The Long Hot Summer" was a hit single for Jimmie Rodgers who had a peak year in 1958 with 7 consecutive hit recordings.

Quotes:

Eula:Why, you sound free as a bird. Don't he sound free as a bird?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in That Most Important Thing: Love (1975)

Soundtrack:

The Long, Hot Summer

Faulkner hell! We're in Williams country...

...and loving it! This movie takes the best of CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF, A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE, SUMMER AND SMOKE, throws in more than a dollop of William Inge's PICNIC, borrows the basket auctioning bit from OKLAHOMA! and the digging-for-treasure-by-the-old-collapsing-house subplot from GOD'S LITTLE ACRE - hell, we even get a variation on the cotton gin burning from BABY DOLL - and somehow delivers an original and unforgettable entertainment, the kind of movie they truly don't make any more. Every member of the cast is superb, with Woodward being a standout and Lee Remmick being gorgeous. How audiences must have swooned in 1958! How many people left the theater thinking they had seen something truly naughty and adult! This film has great dialog, atmosphere to spare, stunning yet understated costumes by Adele Palmer, and gorgeous cinematography. This is all tied together by another fine Alex North score. Check out the scene - lasting no more that 45 seconds - when Newman and Woodward cross a small bridge to share a picnic lunch. This music cue is magical. Jerry Wald produced many high-class soap operas at Fox during the late 1950's, but this one is by far the best. Lansbury shines, Welles hams, and Newman takes his shirt off - what more could an audience ask for? A dreamy title tune crooned over the credits? You got it!