Harum Scarum (1965)

Director:

Gene Nelson

Writer:

Gerald Drayson Adams (written by)

Release Date:

15 December 1965 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime | Musical

Tagline:

THE GOLDEN AGE OF ROMANCE AND SONG!

Plot:

American singer Johnny Tyrone is enlisted by sinister forces to assassinate an Arab king whose daughter he has fallen in love with.

Plot Keywords:

Desert | Middle East | Assassination | Arab | Action Hero

Cast

Elvis Presley	...	Johnny Tyronne
Mary Ann Mobley	...	Princess Shalimar
Fran Jeffries	...	Aishah
Michael Ansara	...	Prince Dragna
Jay Novello	...	Zacha
Phillip Reed	...	King Toranshah (as Philip Reed)
Theodore Marcuse	...	Sinan (as Theo Marcuse)
Billy Barty	...	Baba
Dirk Harvey	...	Makar
Jack Costanzo	...	Julna
Larry Chance	...	Capt. Herat
Barbara Werle	...	Leilah
Brenda Benet	...	Emerald
Gail Gilmore	...	Sapphire
Wilda Taylor	...	Amethyst
Vicki Malkin	...	Sari
Ryck Rydon	...	Mustapha
Richard Reeves	...	Scarred Bedouin
Joey Russo	...	Yussef
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Carolyn Carter	...	Heroine of 'Sands of the Desert' Film (uncredited)
Suzanne Covington	...	Naja (uncredited)
Eileen Diamond	...	Dancer (uncredited)
Judy Durell	...	Cashier (uncredited)
Art Gilmore	...	Trailer Co-Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
Robert La Mont	...	President of Babalstan (uncredited)
Ralph Lee	...	Noble (uncredited)
Hugh Sanders	...	U.S. Ambassador McCord (uncredited)
Maja Stewart	...	Princess (uncredited)
Les Tremayne	...	Trailer Co-Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
Red West	...	Assassin (uncredited)

Directed by
Gene Nelson

Writing credits
Gerald Drayson Adams		(written by)

Produced by
Sam Katzman	....	producer

Original Music by
Fred Karger		(uncredited)

Cinematography by
Fred Jackman Jr.		(director of photography) (as Fred H. Jackman)

Film Editing by
Ben Lewis

Art Direction by
McClure Capps		(as H. McClure Capps)
George W. Davis

Set Decoration by
Henry Grace
Don Greenwood Jr.

Costume Design by
Beau Vanden Ecker		(uncredited)
Gene Ostler		(uncredited)
Margo Weintz		(uncredited)

Makeup Department
Sydney Guilaroff	....	hair stylist
William Tuttle	....	makeup artist
Don L. Cash	....	makeup artist (uncredited)
Larry Geller	....	hair designer: Elvis Presley (uncredited)
Jane Gorton	....	hair stylist (uncredited)

Production Management
Lindsley Parsons Jr.	....	assistant production manager: MGM (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Eddie Saeta	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Franklin Milton	....	recording supervisor
Frank Antunez	....	sound (uncredited)
Salvador Robinson	....	sound (uncredited)
James Utterback	....	sound (uncredited)
Charles Wallace	....	sound (uncredited)

Stunts
Paul Baxley	....	stunts (uncredited)
Chuck Hicks	....	stunts (uncredited)
Glenn Randall Jr.	....	stunts (uncredited)
Paul Stader	....	stunts (uncredited)
Del 'Sonny' West	....	stunts (uncredited)
Red West	....	stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Hank Forester	....	grip (uncredited)
Bill Ion	....	assistant camera (uncredited)
Joe Jackman	....	camera operator (uncredited)
George Lasher	....	gaffer (uncredited)

Music Department
The Jordanaires	....	vocal backgrounds
Fred Karger	....	conductor
Fred Karger	....	music supervisor

Other crew
Earl Barton	....	choreographer
Tom Parker	....	technical advisor (as Colonel Tom Parker)
Robert Stone	....	production coordinator

Production Companies

• Four-Leaf Productions

Distributors

• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1965) (USA) (theatrical)
• Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (1968) (USA) (TV) (broadcast premiere)
• MGM Television (1975-1986) (USA) (TV) (original syndication release)
• Turner Program Services (TPS) (1986-1998) (USA) (TV)
• Warner Bros. Television (1998-) (USA) (all media)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (1984-1997) (USA) (VHS) (????)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (1997-1998) (USA) (DVD) (????)
• Warner Home Video (2002-) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Vídeo (1998-2002) (Brazil) (VHS) (????)
• Warner Home Video (2004) (Germany) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)  presents

Also Known As:

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Australia:G | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:11 | USA:Approved (PCA #20983)

Filming Locations:

Iverson Ranch - 1 Iverson Lane, Chatsworth, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Four-Leaf Productions

Trivia:

Elvis Presley's costume was designed by director Gene Nelson.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the climactic fight scene, set at night, the lighting changes from torchlit darkness to broad daylight, and back, several times.

Quotes:

Johnny Tyronne:I'm inclined to believe you.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Into the Night (1985)

Soundtrack:

WISDOM OF THE AGES

Quite depressing, really

Elvis returns, this time he is slightly weathered, quite a bit more lethargic, and desperate to escape his captors. But, his captors are not the oil paint smeared Arabs, nor the fairly innocuous women that surround him. His captors are much bigger than one motion picture could possibly describe. They are the entire industry he has found himself immersed in. They are the money-hungry culture vultures that readily devour a popular figure like him until he is but a bloated pasty corpse. This film shows them as they are through their sinister machinations. They can be seen with invisible marionette string as they force Elvis to march around in costume, as they prod him with sharp knives into doing little lackluster dances that turn into morose forced marches across the barren tundra of his once mighty career. This is not the Elvis of folklore, nor is it the Elvis that will return one day and save us from mediocrity. This is the dry Elvis, milked fully, udders raw, yet ever sedated. The Elvis that might have died on the screen in front of your eyes and you might have not even noticed it. Don't let the bright lights and forced smile fool you. It is your duty to lament this vision before you, because it is an ugly one.