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A HATFUL OF RAIN – Bernard Herrmann
GREATEST SCORES OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY
Original Review by Craig Lysy
The success of the controversial film The Man with the Golden Arm in 1955, which dealt with drug addiction, catalyzed a transformative change in the Motion Picture Production Code. The code was relaxed to allow films to address the reality of drug addiction in society. 20th Century Fox immediately sought to capitalize on this shift and decided to adapt the Broadway play A Hatful of Rain by Michael V. Gazzo. The original stage production opened on November 9, 1955, at the Lyceum Theatre in New York and ran for 398 performances. The film rights were purchased, Buddy Adler was placed in charge of production with a $1.5 million budget, Fred Zinnemann was tasked with directing, and Gazzo adapted his play into a screenplay with Alfred Hayes and Carl Foreman. The cast featured Don Murray as Johnny Pope, Eva Marie Saint as Celia Pope, and Anthony Franciosa as Polo Pope. Read more…
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