In Search of Historic Jesus (1979)

Director:

Henning Schellerup

Writers:

Jack Jacobs (writer)
Lee Roddy (writer)

Release Date:

25 January 1980 (USA)

Genre:

Documentary | Drama

Plot Keywords:

Crucifixion | Narration | Biblical | Jesus Christ | Christianity

Cast

John Rubinstein	...	Jesus
John Anderson	...	Caiaphas
Nehemiah Persoff	...	Herod Antipas
Brad Crandall	...	Narrator
Andrew Bloch	...	Apostle John
Morgan Brittany	...	Mary
Walter Brooke	...	Joseph of Arimathea
Annette Charles	...	Mary Magdalene
Royal Dano	...	Prophet
Anthony De Longis	...	Peter
Lawrence Dobkin	...	Pontius Pilate
David Opatoshu	...	Herod
Richard Carlyle	...	Astrologer
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Richard Alfieri	...	Blind Man
Robert Bonvento	...	Roman Legionnaire
Travis DeCastro	...	Siloam Pool Man
Steve DeFrance	...	Thief #2
Jeffrey Druce	...	Thomas
John Hansen	...	Baptised Man
John Hoyt	...	Synagogue man #1
James Ingersoll	...	Centurion #1
Richard Jury	...	Court Member
Stanley Kamel	...	James
Al Ruscio	...	Priest #1
Harvey Solin	...	Priest #2

Runtime:

91 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:G

Company:

Sunn Classic Pictures

Movie Connections:

Features In Search of Noah's Ark (1976)

Long live Brad Crandall!

This comment, even though it is about "In Search of Historic Jesus," is a rather short one. However, it does have a point, and I'll get to it in a moment. First, my brief memories of "Historic Jesus." Only Schick Sunn Classic Pictures would bring together John Rubenstein, Nehemiah Persoff and Brad Crandall together in the same documentary. My particular --- and, frankly, my only real --- memory of the film occurs as follows: During the Crucifixion sequence recreation, Rubenstein, starring as Jesus, utters: "Why hast Thou forsaken me?" At that point, the unseen voice of Peter Mark Richman kicks in, saying: "Do not despair, my Son. You have fulfilled Your mission well. And soon, You shall take Your rightful place at My side." Apparently emboldened (hard to believe that Jesus would experience feelings of boldness while still nailed to the Cross!), Rubenstein utters, "Into Thy hands, my Father, I commend my spirit." It signifies his very last seconds of life. So much for my memories of seeing "In Search of Historic Jesus." What I really want to concentrate on, as I comment here, is Brad Crandall, a veteran television announcer and narrator. Brad Crandall was the one element without whom the Schick Sunn Classic documentaries would not have been granted their apparent 'credibility,' or lack thereof. Yet when NBC first premiered each of these documentaries for the first time on TV, or whenever they were rerun on NBC, I always looked forward to watching them, if only for the purpose of checking out Brad Crandall, and hearing what he had to say. As a matter of fact, I remember attempting to write a documentary of my own. I was going to call it "In Search of Uncle Jimmy Thompson," because it would have told the story of the hard-livin', hard-drinkin' old coot of a fiddler whose music helped launch the Grand Ole Opry. My plan was that I was going to have Brad Crandall host and narrate the documentary, because I had become such a fan of his. Alas, Brad passed away before I could even contact him about the idea. So I just thought how nice it would be here to say a few words about Brad Crandall, and to find out if there were other people in cyberspace who were just as hooked on Brad as I was. If you're out there, and if you ever read this, please e-mail me. 'Nuff said.