Release CalendarTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV News
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsABFFPride MonthOutfest OutfrontsSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • All
  • Titles
  • TV Episodes
  • Celebs
  • Companies
  • Keywords
  • Advanced Search
Watchlist
Sign In
Sign In
New Customer? Create account
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
IMDbPro

Porgy and Bess

  • 1959
  • Not Rated
  • 2h 18m
IMDb RATING
7.0/10
1.8K
YOUR RATING
Sidney Poitier, Sammy Davis Jr., and Dorothy Dandridge in Porgy and Bess (1959)
DramaMusicalRomance

A woman whose past is scorned by nearly everyone around her meets a man who'd love her regardlessly- if only everyone else would allow them to.A woman whose past is scorned by nearly everyone around her meets a man who'd love her regardlessly- if only everyone else would allow them to.A woman whose past is scorned by nearly everyone around her meets a man who'd love her regardlessly- if only everyone else would allow them to.

  • Directors
    • Otto Preminger
    • Rouben Mamoulian
  • Writers
    • Dorothy Heyward
    • DuBose Heyward
    • N. Richard Nash
  • Stars
    • Sidney Poitier
    • Dorothy Dandridge
    • Sammy Davis Jr.
  • See production, box office & company info
  • IMDb RATING
    7.0/10
    1.8K
    YOUR RATING
    • Directors
      • Otto Preminger
      • Rouben Mamoulian
    • Writers
      • Dorothy Heyward
      • DuBose Heyward
      • N. Richard Nash
    • Stars
      • Sidney Poitier
      • Dorothy Dandridge
      • Sammy Davis Jr.
    • 67User reviews
    • 13Critic reviews
    • 77Metascore
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Won 1 Oscar
      • 4 wins & 10 nominations total

    Photos18

    Sidney Poitier in Porgy and Bess (1959)
    Sidney Poitier, Ruth Attaway, Pearl Bailey, Diahann Carroll, and Dorothy Dandridge in Porgy and Bess (1959)
    Sidney Poitier and Dorothy Dandridge in Porgy and Bess (1959)
    Sidney Poitier and Dorothy Dandridge in Porgy and Bess (1959)
    Sidney Poitier and Samuel Goldwyn in Porgy and Bess (1959)
    Sidney Poitier in Porgy and Bess (1959)
    Louis Armstrong in Porgy and Bess (1959)
    Sidney Poitier, Sammy Davis Jr., Dorothy Dandridge, and Otto Preminger in Porgy and Bess (1959)
    Sidney Poitier and Dorothy Dandridge in Porgy and Bess (1959)
    Dorothy Dandridge in Porgy and Bess (1959)
    Sammy Davis Jr. and Dorothy Dandridge in Porgy and Bess (1959)
    Sidney Poitier and Dorothy Dandridge in Porgy and Bess (1959)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Sidney Poitier
    Sidney Poitier
    • Porgy
    Dorothy Dandridge
    Dorothy Dandridge
    • Bess
    Sammy Davis Jr.
    Sammy Davis Jr.
    • Sportin' Life
    Pearl Bailey
    Pearl Bailey
    • Maria
    Brock Peters
    Brock Peters
    • Crown
    Leslie Scott
    • Jake
    Diahann Carroll
    Diahann Carroll
    • Clara
    Ruth Attaway
    Ruth Attaway
    • Serena Robbins
    Claude Akins
    Claude Akins
    • Detective
    Clarence Muse
    Clarence Muse
    • Peter
    Everdinne Wilson
    • Annie
    Joel Fluellen
    Joel Fluellen
    • Robbins
    Earl Jackson
    • Mingo
    Moses LaMarr
    • Nelson
    Margaret Hairston
    • Lily
    Ivan Dixon
    Ivan Dixon
    • Jim
    Antoine Durousseau
    • Scipio
    Helen Thigpen
    • Strawberry woman
    • Directors
      • Otto Preminger
      • Rouben Mamoulian(uncredited)
    • Writers
      • Dorothy Heyward
      • DuBose Heyward
      • N. Richard Nash
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    More like this

    Carmen Jones
    6.8
    Carmen Jones
    A Raisin in the Sun
    8.0
    A Raisin in the Sun
    The Gershwin's 'Porgy and Bess'
    8.2
    The Gershwin's 'Porgy and Bess'
    Lilies of the Field
    7.5
    Lilies of the Field
    For Love of Ivy
    6.2
    For Love of Ivy
    A Patch of Blue
    8.0
    A Patch of Blue
    Nothing But a Man
    8.0
    Nothing But a Man
    High Time
    6.1
    High Time
    Paris Blues
    6.7
    Paris Blues
    Bright Road
    6.6
    Bright Road
    The Lives of a Bengal Lancer
    7.0
    The Lives of a Bengal Lancer
    Midnight Lace
    6.7
    Midnight Lace

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Sidney Poitier's singing voice was dubbed by opera singer Robert McFerrin (father of pop singer, classical conductor, and composer Bobby McFerrin).
    • Quotes

      Porgy: Thank god. Thank god.

      Bess: I've been sick, ain't I?

      Porgy: You've been very sick. Now, I've got you back.

    • Alternate versions
      Although this film has never been officially released on any home media format, numerous bootleg copies, running 115 minutes, are available on VHS and DVD-R. The full-length original version runs 138 minutes, not including overture and entr'acte music.
    • Connections
      Featured in Biography: Dorothy Dandridge: Little Girl Lost (1999)
    • Soundtracks
      Summertime
      Music by George Gershwin

      Lyrics by DuBose Heyward

      Sung by Loulie Jean Norman and Women's Chorus

    User reviews67

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    10/10
    A lost treasure
    I have always been a fan of this largely unseen filming of the Gershwin opera, since I last saw it in 1959. As many of you know, it has been unavailable on video or DVD; in fact, the Gershwin family sought to destroy all existing prints.

    Yet, for some reason--hopefully signaling an end to its opposition, the Gershwin family recently approved the showing of a collector's print at the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria, Queens. .

    Well, the wide-screen, Technicolor print was excellent! (Not perfect, but excellent.) The sound was outstanding, in road-show quality stereo. The folks who saw this in its original release wouldn't have seen a much better copy. (The program notes include the original Variety review, which cautions that people might balk at the steep limited-release ticket price of $3.50!)

    And, as much as I loved it originally, PORGY AND BESS was better than I remembered it. It's just wonderful. Sidney Poitier as Porgy was at the point where his career was just beginning to catch fire, and his charisma shines through. Dorothy Dandridge as Bess is spectacularly beautiful. Brock Peters as Crown is aggressively masculine. Pearl Bailey as Maria provides a few comic moments, although her role is small. And Sammy Davis, Jr., as Sporting Life, steals every scene he's in; he's especially riveting in his two big numbers: "It Ain't Necessarily So" and "There's a Boat that's Leavin' Soon for New York." (That last one won applause in the screening I saw.)

    PORGY AND BESS is set-bound, but it really doesn't matter when the set is as gorgeous as this one. The costumes are also outstanding.

    Sidney and Dorothy's singing voices are dubbed in, but they are dubbed in extremely well. The exquisite "Summertime" is sung by Clara, played by a young Diahann Carroll; her singing also is dubbed. (Actually, only Pearl and Sammy do their own vocalizing.)

    The music is sublime, of course, but what really struck me this time was how much emotion Preminger got out of the story. People were actually sniffling in the audience a number of times--once when Bess sings that beautiful "I Loves You Porgy." And I got a kick out of the audience actually laughing out loud at the lines in "It Ain't Necessarily So." Could it be they had never heard this song before-- or never really listened to it? I believe that much of the emotional impact of this film is due to Poiter and Dandridge's performances--you root for their love to win out.

    A minor quibble with the 136 minute running time--one or two slow spot, and a stereotypical, Amos-n-Andy kind of scene about Bess seeing a shyster lawyer to get a divorce from Crown, even though she's not even married to him. (I would have cut that.) And the beginning is a little confusing--both title characters are introduced awkwardly--they're part of the movie before you realize who they are.

    And I don't think Preminger used a single close-up in the entire movie. It all seems to be shot in 3/4, which I'm guessing was his way of working with the wide screen.

    PORGY AND BESS has always been a cult film for those of us who saw it, for those of us who loved the soundtrack, and for some of us who have only heard about it. Let's hope they find a way to re-release this, and put it out on DVD. It deserves the widest audience possible.
    helpful•41
    3
    • safado
    • May 15, 2005

    Top picks

    Sign in to rate and Watchlist for personalized recommendations
    Sign in

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • October 14, 1959 (France)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Porgy und Bess
    • Filming locations
      • Samuel Goldwyn Studios - 7200 Santa Monica Boulevard, West Hollywood, California, USA(Studio)
    • Production company
      • Samuel Goldwyn Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $7,000,000 (estimated)
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      2 hours 18 minutes

    Related news

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    Sidney Poitier, Sammy Davis Jr., and Dorothy Dandridge in Porgy and Bess (1959)
    Top Gap
    What is the French language plot outline for Porgy and Bess (1959)?
    Answer
    • See more gaps
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
    • Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • IMDb Developer
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Your Ads Privacy Choices
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2023 by IMDb.com, Inc.