Marco Polo (1982– )

The life and experiences of the 13th-century explorer, who sought to connect the civilizations of China and Europe through trade.

Stars:

Ken Marshall, Denholm Elliott, Tony Vogel

Won 2 Primetime Emmys. Another 7 nominations.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Ken Marshall	...	Marco Polo (8 episodes, 1982-1983)
Denholm Elliott	...	Niccolò Polo (8 episodes, 1982-1983)
Tony Vogel	...	Matteo Polo (8 episodes, 1982-1983)
David Warner	...	Rustichello (7 episodes, 1982-1983)
F. Murray Abraham	...	Jacopo (6 episodes, 1982-1983)
Mario Adorf	...	Giovanni (6 episodes, 1982-1983)
Patrick Mower	...	Brother Damian (6 episodes, 1982-1983)
Ruocheng Ying	...	Kublai Khan (5 episodes, 1982-1983)
Beulah Quo	...	Empress Chabi (4 episodes, 1982-1983)
Junichi Ishida	...	Prince Chinkin (4 episodes, 1982-1983)
James Hong	...	Phags-pa (4 episodes, 1982-1983)
Gordon Mitchell	...	Arnolfo (4 episodes, 1982-1983)
Leonard Nimoy	...	Achmet (3 episodes, 1983)
Bruno Zanin	...	Giulio (3 episodes, 1982)
Lin Lao	...	Bayan (3 episodes, 1983)
Ian McShane	...	Ali Ben Yussouf (2 episodes, 1982)
Sada Thompson	...	Aunt Flora (2 episodes, 1982)
Tony Lo Bianco	...	Brother Nicholas (2 episodes, 1982)
Soon-Tek Oh	...	Wang Zhu (2 episodes, 1983)
Zaibao Yang	...	Yang Ku (2 episodes, 1983)
Shaokang Yu	...	Caidu Khan (2 episodes, 1982-1983)
Riccardo Cucciolla	...	Uncle Zane (2 episodes, 1982)
Erkang Zhao	...	Nayan (2 episodes, 1983)
Hesen En	...	Bektor Khan (2 episodes, 1982-1983)
Hal Buckley	...	Brother William (2 episodes, 1982)
Georgia Slowe	...	Caterina (2 episodes, 1982)
Kathryn Dowling	...	Monica (2 episodes, 1983)
Agnes Chan	...	Mai Li (2 episodes, 1983)
Tetsurô Tanba	...	Saiamon (2 episodes, 1983)
Bruno Corazzari	...	Agostino (2 episodes, 1982)
Gino Santercole	...	Giuseppe (2 episodes, 1982)
Zhengyin Cao	...	Governor (2 episodes, 1983)
Terry Raven	...	Talib (2 episodes, 1983)
Xiaolei Huang	...	Chen Pao (2 episodes, 1982-1983)
Renato Miracco	...	Bartolomeo (2 episodes, 1982)
Vernon Dobtcheff	...	Pietro d'Abano (2 episodes, 1983)
John Dicks	...	Brother Philip (2 episodes, 1982-1983)
Nanni Massa	...	Messer Paolo (2 episodes, 1982)
Sun Shulin	...	Argan (2 episodes, 1983)
Salvatore Puntillo	...	Messer Andrea (2 episodes, 1982)
Renhua Na	...	Princess Kokachin (2 episodes, 1983)
Giulio Gaslini	...	Messer Lorenzo (2 episodes, 1982)
Maria Pia Colonnello	...	Caterina's Nurse-Maid (2 episodes, 1982)
Ma Qiang	...	Yeli Shue (2 episodes, 1983)

Storyline

The life and experiences of the 13th-century explorer, who sought to connect the civilizations of China and Europe through trade.

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Plot Keywords:

explorer | china | 13th century | power play | mongolian | 

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Genres:

Adventure | Biography | Drama | History | War

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Details

Country:

Italy USA Japan China

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

16 May 1982 (USA)

Also Known As:

Marco Polo - Viagens E Descobertas

Filming Locations:

Beijing, China

Company Credits

Production Co:

Vides Cinematografica, Radiotelevisione Italiana (RAI), National Broadcasting Company (NBC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

504 min 270 min (edited) 600 min 480 min (TV)

Sound Mix:

Mono Dolby Digital (2.0 Stereo)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

4:3 full frame

Did You Know?

Trivia

Peter Firth, Michael Ontkean and Mandy Patinkin all turned down the lead role.

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Connections

Referenced in Biography: Leonard Nimoy: Spock and Beyond (1996)

User Reviews

Absolutely loved it

This movie kept my interest throughout every single last minute, from the opening credits the night of the first episode, to the closing credits the night of the final episode. One might think that somewhere in there, your attention would wander, but not with this movie. It was absolutely wonderful and the way it combined all aspects of the story and the characters - love, adventure, compassion, greed, war, in-fighting, etc. - was marvellous. It seems that nearly all of the TV mini-series are available on video, but I can't find this. The highest compliment a movie can get from the viewer is their time and I will say that I would watch this over and over and over again. I give it a 10!!!