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PICNIC – George Duning
GREATEST SCORES OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY
Original Review by Craig Lysy
Columbia Pictures took notice of the enormous success of the Broadway play “Picnic” by William Inge, which opened on February 19, 1953 at the Music Box Theater, ran for 477 performances, and won the Pulitzer Prize in Drama in 1953. The studio purchased the film rights in 1953 for $350,000, Fred Kohlmar was placed in charge of production with a budget of $3 million, Joshua Logan, the director of the Broadway stage production was tasked with directing, and Daniel Taradash joined William Inge in writing the screenplay. For the cast, the studio made the controversial decision to cast 37 year old William Holden, their marquee star, as 21 year old Hal Carter, joining him would be Kim Novak as Madge Owens, Rosalind Russel as Rosemary Sydney, Betty Field as Flo Owens, Cliff Robertson as Alan Benson, Nick Adams as Bomber, and Susan Strasberg as Millie Owens. Read more…
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