''Amelia Earhart'' is a 1976 American

biographical drama A biographical film or biopic () is a film that dramatizes the life of a non-fictional or historically-based person or people. Such films show the life of a historical person and the central character's real name is used. They differ from docudr ...

television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

directed by George Schaefer and written by Carol Sobieski. It stars

Susan Clark Susan Clark (born Nora Golding; March 8, 1943) is a Canadian actress, known for her movie roles such as ''Coogan's Bluff'' and '' Colossus: The Forbin Project'', and for her role as Katherine Papadopolis on the American television sitcom ''Web ...

as Amelia Earhart, and

John Forsythe John Forsythe (January 29, 1918 – April 1, 2010) was an American stage, film/television actor, producer, narrator, drama teacher and philanthropist whose career spanned six decades. He also appeared as a guest on several talk and variety s ...

as her husband, George P. Putnam. Unlike more recent depictions of Earhart's life, this film makes an attempt to cover her entire life from her childhood on a Kansas farm, her nursing during World War I, an early boyfriend, employment at a Boston children's orphanage, her interest and exploits in aviation, her marriage to Putnam, and her famous disappearance in 1937. The film was the first dramatization of Earhart's life and co-starred a parade of well-known actors of the time and originally premiered on '' NBC Monday Night at the Movies'' on October 25, 1976.

Plot

In 1907, when Amelia Earhart was nine years old growing up on a Kansas farm, she was an intelligent, precocious child and builds a play aircraft with her sister "Pidge". Later, as America enters

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

in 1917, Amelia is a college student, working in a doctor's office. She decides to join the war effort and become a nurse. One night on the roof of her building, while on break with a coworker, she sees an aircraft which re-sparks her childhood interest in aviation. In 1921, young Earhart has her first training flight, with female flight instructor,

Neta Snook Mary Anita "Neta" Snook Southern (February 14, 1896 – March 23, 1991) was a pioneer aviator who achieved a long list of firsts. She was the first woman aviator in Iowa, first woman student accepted at the Curtiss Flying School in Virginia, first ...

. That same year she buys her first aircraft, a Kinner "Canary" with the blessing of her father who has become a chronic alcoholic. In 1924, she and her mother drive from coast to coast, Los Angeles to Boston, in an open roadster, arguing some of the way. In Boston Earhart has an off-and-on relationship with a young man and later goes to work in a children's orphanage. What little money she saves subsidizes her flying. In 1928, while in employ at the orphanage, Earhart is invited to become the first woman ever to fly the Atlantic in a fixed-wing aircraft, the Fokker "Friendship", albeit as a passenger, while pilot Wilmer Stultz and copilot Lou Gordon ( Steve Kanaly) are at the controls. That same year she flies her

Avro Avian The Avro Avian was a series of British light aircraft designed and built by Avro in the 1920s and 1930s. While the various versions of the Avian were sound aircraft, they were comprehensively outsold by the de Havilland Moth and its descendant ...

biplane in a coast-to-coast, stop-and-go flight where some southern locals recognize her from the transatlantic Friendship flight. Her marriage to media tycoon

George Palmer Putnam George Palmer Putnam (February 7, 1814 – December 20, 1872) was an American publisher and author. He founded the firm G. P. Putnam's Sons and '' Putnam's Magazine''. He was an advocate of international copyright reform, secretary for many yea ...

and a series of record-breaking flights, propel her to international fame as a long-distance flyer. Despite her open and frequently strained relationship with Putnam, she develops a close relationship with his son David. With help from a close friend and adviser,

Paul Mantz Albert Paul Mantz (August 2, 1903 – July 8, 1965) was a noted air racing pilot, movie stunt pilot and consultant from the late 1930s until his death in the mid-1960s. He gained fame on two stages: Hollywood and in air races. Early years Ma ...

, Earhart plans her longest flight ever, a round-the-world attempt in 1937. The disappearance of Earhart and her navigator

Fred Noonan Frederick Joseph "Fred" Noonan (born April 4, 1893 – disappeared July 2, 1937, declared dead June 20, 1938) was an American flight navigator, sea captain and aviation pioneer, who first charted many commercial airline routes across the Pacif ...

during the last stage of the flight, leads to a massive search effort that eventually proves fruitless, but solidifies Earhart as an aviation icon.

Cast

as Amelia Earhart *

as George P. Putnam * Stephen Macht as

* Susan Oliver as

/''Snookie'' *

Catherine Burns Catherine Burns (September 25, 1945 – February 2, 2019) was an American actress of stage, film, radio and television. She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in ''Last Summer'' (1969). Early ...

as Pidge Earhart *

Jane Wyatt Jane Waddington Wyatt ( ; August 12, 1910 – October 20, 2006) was an American actress. She starred in a number of Hollywood films, such as Frank Capra's ''Lost Horizon'', but is likely best known for her role as the housewife and mother Marga ...

as Amy Earhart *

Charles Aidman Charles Leonard Aidman (January 21, 1925 – November 7, 1993) was an American actor of stage, film, and television. Early life Aidman was born in Frankfort, Indiana, the son of George E. and Etta (Kwitny) Aidman. Aidman graduated from Frank ...

as Mr. Earhart *Eddie Barth as Sid Isaacs *Bill Vint as

(inaccurately written as "Fred Norman") *

Jack Colvin Jack Colvin (October 13, 1934 – December 1, 2005) was an American character actor of theatre, film and TV. He is best known for the role of the tabloid reporter Jack McGee in ''The Incredible Hulk'' television franchise (1977–82). Ear ...

as Wilmer Stultz * Steve Kanaly as Lou Gordon * John Archer as Dr. Paterson *Florida Friebus as Miss Perkins *

Lance Kerwin Lance Kerwin (born November 6, 1960) is an American actor, known primarily for roles in television and film during his childhood and teen years in the 1970s. He played lead roles in the TV series '' James at 15'', and the made-for-TV films ''T ...

as David Putnam *Kim Diamond as Young Amelia Earhart * Lowell Thomas as Broadcaster *

Colleen Camp Colleen Celeste Camp (born June 7, 1953) is an American character actress and producer. After appearing in several bit parts, she had a lead role in the comedy ''The Swinging Cheerleaders'' (1974), followed by roles in two installments of the '' ...

as Starlet *

David Huffman David Oliver Huffman (May 10, 1945 – February 27, 1985) was an American actor and producer. Personal life Huffman was born on May 10, 1945, in Berwyn, Illinois, to Clarence and Opal Huffman (née Dippel). Huffman married casting director P ...

as Itasca Radio Operator *Kip Niven as Allen Bradford(her boyfriend) *

Kathleen O'Malley Mary Kathleen O'Malley (March 31, 1924 – February 25, 2019) was an American film and television actress, who was the daughter of vaudevillian and actor Pat O'Malley. Her screen debut came during the silent film era as a thirteen month old bab ...

as Mrs Gallagher

Production

The film dramatized Earhart's life, but "refuses to speculate on the cause of Ms. Earhart's disappearance during a round-the-world trip in 1937"; however despite the lack of speculation "the clues that do exist are presented in full". Mainly staying close to the historical record, one departure is portraying stunt pilot Paul Mantz as her "purported lover", a long-standing rumor that has never been substantiated. Sobieski's screenplay drew on "her own experiences as a licensed pilot". Principal photography took place at Camarillo Airport, California, with aerial sequences flown by well-known aerobatic pilot

Art Scholl Arthur Everett Scholl (December 24, 1931 – September 16, 1985) was an American aerobatic pilot, aerial cameraman, flight instructor and educator based in Riverside, Southern California. He died during the filming of '' Top Gun'' when his Pitts ...

and

Frank Tallman Frank Gifford Tallman III (April 17, 1919 in East Orange, New Jersey – April 15, 1978 in Santiago Peak, Trabuco Canyon, California) was a stunt pilot who worked in Hollywood during the 1960s and 1970s. He was the son of Frank Gifford Tallman ...

, owner of Tallmantz Aviation, a company primarily involved in flying for film and television production. A

de Havilland Moth The de Havilland Moths were a series of light aircraft, sports planes, and military trainers designed by Geoffrey de Havilland. In the late 1920s and 1930s, they were the most common civilian aircraft flying in Britain, and during that time ever ...

appeared in place of the Avro Avian that Earhart had purchased in England. A Lockheed 12A (S/N 1204), was featured as Earhart's famed

Lockheed Model 10 Electra The Lockheed Model 10 Electra is an American twin-engined, all-metal monoplane airliner developed by the Lockheed Aircraft Corporation in the 1930s to compete with the Boeing 247 and Douglas DC-2. The type gained considerable fame as one was f ...

, used in the

circumnavigation Circumnavigation is the complete navigation around an entire island, continent, or astronomical body (e.g. a planet or moon). This article focuses on the circumnavigation of Earth. The first recorded circumnavigation of the Earth was the Mage ...

al flight of the globe in 1937.

Reception

Interest in the story of Amelia Earhart, especially with the release of '' Amelia'' (2009) led film reviewers to recall the earlier Earhart portrayals."About Susan Clark."
''yahoo.com.'' Retrieved: May 3, 2012.

Rosalind Russell Catherine Rosalind Russell (June 4, 1907November 28, 1976) was an American actress, comedienne, screenwriter, and singer,Obituary '' Variety'', December 1, 1976, p. 79. known for her role as fast-talking newspaper reporter Hildy Johnson in the H ...

had played "an Earhart-esque flier in 1943's '' Flight for Freedom''" and

Diane Keaton Diane Keaton (''née'' Hall, born January 5, 1946) is an American actress and director. She has received various accolades throughout her career spanning over six decades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Glo ...

starred in the 1994 TNT movie '' Amelia Earhart: The Final Flight''. Susan Clark's performance compared favorably among the Earhart movies. ''Amelia Earhart'' was nominated for a 1977 Emmy awards with William H. Tuntke (art director) and Richard Friedman (set decorator) nominated for Outstanding Art Direction or Scenic Design for a Dramatic Special; both Susan Clark and Susan Oliver were nominated for their work in the category of Actress in a Drama or Comedy Special, Clark for Outstanding Lead Actress and Oliver for Outstanding Performance by a Supporting Actress. The production was also nominated for the 1977 Golden Globe award for Best Motion Picture Made for TV. ''Amelia Earhart'' was screened at the AFI/Los Angeles International Film Festival (AFI FEST salutes the television movie), June 18–July 2, 1992."Amelia Earhart (1976): Miscellaneous Notes."
'' Turner Classic Movies.'' Retrieved: May 3, 2012.

References

;Notes ;Bibliography * Butler, Susan. ''East to the Dawn: The Life of Amelia Earhart''. Reading, Massachusetts: Addison-Wesley, 1997. . * Goldstein, Donald M. and Katherine V. Dillon. ''Amelia: The Centennial Biography of an Aviation Pioneer''. Washington, DC: Brassey's, 1997. . * Lovell, Mary S. ''The Sound of Wings: The Life of Amelia Earhart''. New York: St. Martin's Press, 2009, First edition 1989. . * Rich, Doris L. ''Amelia Earhart: A Biography''. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1989. .

External links

*
allMovie/synopsis

''Amelia Earhart'' (1976) on Turner Classic Movies
{{DEFAULTSORT:Amelia Earhart 1976 television films 1976 films 1976 drama films 1970s American films 1970s biographical drama films 1970s English-language films American aviation films American biographical drama films American drama television films Biographical films about aviators Biographical television films Cultural depictions of Amelia Earhart Films directed by George Schaefer Films scored by David Shire Films set in the 1930s Films shot in Ventura County, California NBC network original films