Duel in the Sun (film)

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Duel in the Sun
Directed by	King Vidor
Produced by	David O. Selznick
Starring	Jennifer Jones Joseph Cotten Gregory Peck Lionel Barrymore
Music by	Dimitri Tiomkin
Distributed by	Selznick Releasing Organization
Release date(s)	December 31, 1946 (U.S. release)
Running time	138 min.
Country	United States
Language	English
IMDb profile

Duel in the Sun is a 1946 Western film, produced by David O. Selznick, which tells the story of a half-Native American girl who goes to live with her Anglo relatives, becoming involved in prejudice and forbidden love.

Contents 1 Production 2 Cast 3 Legacy 4 See also 5 External links

[edit] Production

The film was adapted by Oliver H.P. Garrett, Ben Hecht (uncredited) and David O. Selznick from the novel by Niven Busch. It was directed by King Vidor, Otto Brower (uncredited), William Dieterle (uncredited), Sidney Franklin (uncredited), William Cameron Menzies (uncredited), David O. Selznick (uncredited) and Josef von Sternberg (uncredited).

It was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Actress in a Leading Role (Jennifer Jones) and Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Lillian Gish).

The film received the nickname "Lust in the Dust", which eventually became the name of a real movie. A scene in which Jones does a seductive dance for Gregory Peck was cut from the film before it was released. The film as shot could not make it past the Hays Code censors or religious review boards, and so was heavily edited and rearranged. This reportedly included the changing of rape scenes to love scenes and downplaying the original story's more overt sexuality.

David O. Selznick had high hopes for Duel in the Sun and hoped that it would surpass his success with Gone with the Wind. The film received poor reviews, however, and was highly controversial. Despite the bad press, it was a goldmine for Selznick. It earned USD$11,300,000 in rentals during its initial release, and much more overseas and in the 1954 re-release. But, because of the film's huge production costs (rumored to be over $6,000,000), its $2,000,000 advertising campaign (unheard of at the time), and costly distribution tactics, the film really only broke even.

[edit] Cast

• Jennifer Jones as Pearl Chavez
• Joseph Cotten as Jesse McCanles
• Gregory Peck as Lewton 'Lewt' McCanles
• Lionel Barrymore as Sen. Jackson McCanles
• Herbert Marshall as Scott Chavez
• Lillian Gish as Laura Belle McCanles
• Walter Huston as The Sinkiller
• Charles Bickford as Sam Pierce
• Harry Carey as Lem Smoot
• Charles Dingle as Sheriff Hardy
• Sidney Blackmer as The Lover
• Butterfly McQueen as Vashti
• Otto Kruger as Mr. Langford
• Orson Welles as the narrator (uncredited)

[edit] Legacy

The film was one of the first to be honored by a record album, featuring selections from Dimitri Tiomkin's musical score. Rather than use excerpts from the soundtrack, RCA Victor recorded some of the music with the Boston Pops Orchestra conducted by Arthur Fiedler. The music was split into approximately three-minute sections and released on 10-inch 78-rpm discs in 1946.

The film was first shown on television during a special ABC Sunday evening showing. It has since been featured on classic movie channels. It was released on DVD in 2004.

Although its critical reputation is mixed at best, Martin Scorsese has stated that this was the first film he ever saw and holds it in high regard and even mentioned it in his documentary of American movies.

[edit] See also

• Lillian Gish filmography

[edit] External links

• Duel in the Sun at the Internet Movie Database

v • d • e Films directed by King Vidor 1910s Hurricane in Galveston • The Grand Military Parade • The Lost Lie • Bud's Recruit • The Chocolate of the Gang • Tad's Swimming Hole • The Accusing Toe • I'm a Man • The Turn in the Road • Better Times • The Other Half • Poor Relations 1920s The Family Honor • The Jack-Knife Man • The Sky Pilot • Love Never Dies • Real Adventure • Dusk to Dawn • Conquering the Woman • Peg o' My Heart • The Woman of Bronze • Three Wise Fools • Wild Oranges • Happiness • Wine of Youth • His Hour • The Wife of the Centaur • Proud Flesh • The Big Parade • La Bohème • Bardelys the Magnificent • The Crowd • The Patsy • Show People • Hallelujah! 1930s Not So Dumb • Billy the Kid • Street Scene • The Champ • Bird of Paradise • Cynara • The Stranger's Return • Our Daily Bread • The Wedding Night • So Red the Rose • The Texas Rangers • Stella Dallas • The Wizard of Oz 1940s Northwest Passage • Comrade X • H. M. Pulham, Esq. • An American Romance • Duel in the Sun • On Our Merry Way • The Fountainhead • Beyond the Forest 1950s Lightning Strikes Twice • Japanese War Bride • Ruby Gentry • Man Without a Star • War and Peace • Solomon and Sheba 1960s The Metaphor