Fiddler on the Roof (1971)

Director:

Norman Jewison

Writers:

Sholom Aleichem (book)
Joseph Stein (play)
(more)

Release Date:

3 November 1971 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Family | Musical

Tagline:

a tradition (re-release)

Plot:

In pre-revolutionary Russia, a poor Jewish peasant must contend with marrying off his three daughters while antisemitic sentiment threatens his home.

Plot Keywords:

Jewish | Russia | Milkman | Tradition | Pogrom

Awards:

Won 3 Oscars. Another 6 wins & 13 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Tue. Dec. 22

10:00 AM

TCM

Cast

Topol	...	Tevye
Norma Crane	...	Golde
Leonard Frey	...	Motel
Molly Picon	...	Yente
Paul Mann	...	Lazar Wolf
Rosalind Harris	...	Tzeitel
Michele Marsh	...	Hodel
Neva Small	...	Chava
Paul Michael Glaser	...	Perchik (as Michael Glaser)
Ray Lovelock	...	Fyedka (as Raymond Lovelock)
Elaine Edwards	...	Shprintze
Candy Bonstein	...	Bielke
Shimen Ruskin	...	Mordcha
Zvee Scooler	...	Rabbi
Louis Zorich	...	Constable
Alfie Scopp	...	Avram
Howard Goorney	...	Nachum
Barry Dennen	...	Mendel
Vernon Dobtcheff	...	Russian Official
Ruth Madoc	...	Fruma Sarah
Patience Collier	...	Grandma Tzeitel
Tutte Lemkow	...	Fiddler
Stella Courtney	...	Shandel
Jacob Kalich	...	Yankel
Brian Coburn	...	Berl
George Little	...	Hone
Stanley Fleet	...	Farcel
Arnold Diamond	...	Moishe
Marika Rivera	...	Rifka
Mark Malicz	...	Ezekial
Aharon Ipalé	...	Sheftel (as Aharon Ipale)
Roger Lloyd-Pack	...	Sexton (as Roger Lloyd Pack)
Vladimir Medar	...	Priest
Sammy Bayes	...	Russian Dancer
Larry Bianco	...	Russian Dancer
Walter Cartier	...	Russian Dancer
Peter Johnston	...	Russian Dancer
Guy Lutman	...	Russian Dancer
Donald Maclennan	...	Russian Dancer
René Sartoris	...	Russian Dancer (as Rene Sartoris)
Roy Durbin	...	Bottle Dancer
Ken Robson	...	Bottle Dancer
Robert Stevenson	...	Bottle Dancer (as Bob Stevenson)
Lou Zamprogna	...	Bottle Dancer
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Susan Claire	...	Dancer (uncredited)
Harry Fielder	...	Russian (uncredited)
Nigel Kingsley	...	(uncredited)
Joel Rudnick	...	Marcus (uncredited)
Petra Siniawski	...	Dancer (uncredited)
Susan Sloman	...	Peasant girl (uncredited)
Kenneth Waller	...	(uncredited)

Directed by
Norman Jewison

Writing credits
Sholom Aleichem		(book "Tevye's Daughters and play "Tevye der Milkhiker"") (as Sholem Aleichem)
Joseph Stein		(play)
Joseph Stein		(screenplay)

Produced by
Norman Jewison	....	producer
Patrick J. Palmer	....	associate producer (as Patrick Palmer)

Original Music by
Jerry Bock

Cinematography by
Oswald Morris

Film Editing by
Antony Gibbs
Robert Lawrence

Casting by
Lynn Stalmaster

Production Design by
Robert F. Boyle		(as Robert Boyle)

Art Direction by
Michael Stringer
Veljko Despotovic		(uncredited)

Set Decoration by
Peter Lamont

Costume Design by
Joan Bridge
Elizabeth Haffenden

Makeup Department
Del Armstrong	....	makeup artist
Gordon Bond	....	hairdresser
Wally Schneiderman	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Richard Carruth	....	post-production supervisor
Larry DeWaay	....	production supervisor (as Larry De Waay)
Ted Lloyd	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Terence Churcher	....	assistant director
Paul Ibbetson	....	second assistant director
Terence Nelson	....	first assistant director (as Terry Nelson)
Vladimir Spindler	....	second assistant director
Stevan Petrovic	....	assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
Sam Gordon	....	property master
William Maldonado	....	construction manager
Mentor Huebner	....	designer and primary production illustrator (uncredited)
Harold Michelson	....	illustrator (uncredited)

Sound Department
David Hildyard	....	sound mixer
Gordon K. McCallum	....	sound re-recordist
Les Wiggins	....	sound editor
John Hayward	....	sound re-recording mixer (uncredited)
Patrick Heigham	....	sound recordist (uncredited)
Doug Smith	....	assistant sound engineer (uncredited)
John Stevenson	....	boom operator (uncredited)
Jim Willis	....	development engineer (uncredited)

Stunts
Milan Mitic	....	stunt coordinator: horse work (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Dennis Fraser	....	key grip
Jimmy Turrell	....	camera operator (as Jim Turrell)
Len Crowe	....	gaffer (uncredited)

Casting Department
Richard Altman	....	casting consultant

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Jackie Cummins	....	wardrobe supervisor

Editorial Department
Lois La Salle	....	post-production secretary
Brian Mann	....	assistant film editor
Wally Nelson	....	assistant film editor

Music Department
Alexander Courage	....	orchestrations
Sheldon Harnick	....	composer: lyrics
Isaac Stern	....	musician: solo violin
Eric Tomlinson	....	music mixer (as Eric A. Tomlinson)
John Williams	....	conductor
John Williams	....	music adaptor
John Williams	....	orchestrations
Ray Holder	....	music arranger (uncredited)
David Lindup	....	additional orchestrator (uncredited)

Other crew
Tommy Abbott	....	choreographer: adapting Jerome Robbins' choreography (as Tom Abbott)
Sammy Bayes	....	assistant choreographer
Jerry Bock	....	music for the stage play by
Charles Cannon	....	production accountant
Jerry Howard	....	assistant to producer
Branko Lustig	....	location manager
Golda Offenheim	....	production secretary
Harold Prince	....	producer: stage
Jerome Robbins	....	choreographer: stage version
Jerome Robbins	....	original stage production director
Elaine Schreyeck	....	script supervisor

Production Companies

• Cartier Productions (as A Mirisch - Cartier Production)
• Mirisch Corporation, The (as A Mirisch - Cartier Production)

Distributors

• United Artists (1971) (USA) (theatrical)
• United Artists Films (1971) (Finland) (theatrical) (1978)
• American Broadcasting Company (ABC) (1974) (USA) (TV)
• United Artists (1979) (USA) (theatrical) (reissue)
• Mainostelevisio (MTV3) (1993) (Finland) (TV)
• Egmont Entertainment (2000) (Finland) (DVD)
• Yleisradio (YLE) (2002) (Finland) (TV) (TV1)
• FS Film Oy (2003) (Finland) (DVD)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment España S.A. (2003) (Spain) (DVD)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Chapel Distribution (1997) (Australia) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (Brazil) (DVD) (special edition)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (Brazil) (VHS) (special edition)
• CBS/Fox (19??) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Fazer Musiikki Oy/Fazer Video (????) (Finland) (video)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (DVD)
• Warner Home Vídeo (Brazil) (video)

Other Companies

• Chapman/Leonard Studio Equipment  cranes and dollies
• International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE)  this picture made under the jurisdiction of (as I.A.T.S.E.)
• Jadran Film  technical facilities
• Lee Lighting  grip and lighting equipment
• Pinewood Studios  technical facilities furnished by (as Pinewood Studios, London, England)
• Selway Baker  casting (as Selway - Baker)

Runtime:

181 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Hebrew

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (Westrex Recording System) (70 mm prints) | Mono (35 mm prints) | Stereo (35 mm mag-optical prints)

Certification:

Canada:G (Canadian Home Video rating) | Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | Chile:TE | Finland:K-8 | Ireland:G | Spain:T | Sweden:11 | UK:U | USA:G | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Gorica, Croatia

Company:

Cartier Productions

Trivia:

Director Cameo: [Norman Jewison]the voice of the Rabbi who sings "Mazel tov, mazel tov" in Tevye's dream sequence.

Goofs:

Factual errors: In the movie, the fact that Tevye wants to dance with his wife, as well as Motel and Tzeitel in their wedding, is portrayed in the movie as a scandal. As a matter of fact it is common for Orthodox Jews to dance with their brides on their wedding, this dance is called in Yiddish the Kosher-Tants. It is not prohibited for married men and women to dance with each other, although this does not apply to singles.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Tevye: A fiddler on the roof. Sounds crazy, no? But here, in our little village of Anatevka, you might say every one of us is a fiddler on the roof trying to scratch out a pleasant, simple tune without breaking his neck. It isn't easy. You may ask 'Why do we stay up there if it's so dangerous?' Well, we stay because Anatevka is our home. And how do we keep our balance? That I can tell you in one word: tradition!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Love and Other Disasters (2006)

Soundtrack:

To Life

To life, to life, la chayim!

I love "Fiddler on the Roof" so much it's difficult for me to comment on it in a detached way. I just think about it and I'm filled with emotion. (And I'm not the sentimental type!) It honestly depicts what it means to be human. It contains love, faith, family, friendship, humour, violence, hate, prejudice, change, vulnerability, joy, community, anger...everything. This film is a tribute to the Jewish people, but you don't have to be Jewish to enjoy it. It's so rich that everyone can identify with it, and learn from it.

As for the music, all the songs fit in naturally and stand on their own as classics. "Matchmaker, Matchmaker," "Sunrise, Sunset," "If I Were A Rich Man" - need I say more? When Hodel sings "Far From the Home I Love" it's tissue time. They're all so beautiful! If you usually find it hard to take when characters in musicals suddenly burst into song, don't worry, in this film it's so seamless you can't imagine them communicating any other way. The music makes it easier for them to say things they normally wouldn't in conversation.

The characters are so real and down-to-earth. They're strong, hard-working people, who have their priorities straight. I can't write about FOTR without mentioning Tevye - the centre of this whirling story, and a man who, like all of us, struggles with the pace with which his world is changing. He clings to the past, yet accepts what the future may bring. I don't think there is another film out there that addresses how insecure we feel with change. But hey, that's life. "To life, to life, la chayim!!"