''Anne of the Indies'' is a 1951

Technicolor Technicolor is a series of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes, the first version dating back to 1916, and followed by improved versions over several decades. Definitive Technicolor movies using three black and white films ...

adventure film made by

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...

. It was directed by

Jacques Tourneur Jacques Tourneur (; November 12, 1904 – December 19, 1977) was a French film director known for the classic film noir ''Out of the Past'' and a series of low-budget horror films he made for RKO Studios, including ''Cat People (1942 film), Cat ...

and produced by George Jessel. The film stars

Jean Peters Elizabeth Jean Peters (October 15, 1926 – October 13, 2000) was an American film actress. She is known as a star of 20th Century Fox in the late 1940s and early 1950s, and as the second wife of Howard Hughes. Although possibly best remembered f ...

and

Louis Jourdan Louis Jourdan (born Louis Robert Gendre; 19 June 1921 – 14 February 2015) was a French film and television actor. He was known for his suave roles in several Hollywood films, including Alfred Hitchcock's ''The Paradine Case'' (1947), '' Lett ...

, with Debra Paget,

Herbert Marshall Herbert Brough Falcon Marshall (23 May 1890 – 22 January 1966) was an English stage, screen and radio actor who starred in many popular and well-regarded Hollywood films in the 1930s and 1940s. After a successful theatrical career in the Uni ...

Thomas Gomez Thomas Gomez (July 10, 1905 – June 18, 1971) was an American actor. Life and career Born Sabino Tomás Gómez, Jr., in New York City, Gomez began his acting career in theater in 1923, studying under actor Walter Hampden in a production of Cy ...

and

James Robertson Justice James Robertson Justice (15 June 1907 – 2 July 1975) was a British actor. He is best remembered for portraying pompous authority figures in comedies including each of the seven films in the '' Doctor'' series. He also co-starred with Greg ...

Plot

After seizing a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

ship, female pirate captain Anne Providence (

) spares LaRochelle (

), a Frenchman captured by the British, from

walking the plank Walking the plank was a method of execution practiced on special occasion by pirates, mutineers, and other rogue seafarers. For the amusement of the perpetrators and the psychological torture of the victims, captives were bound so they could no ...

. He agrees to join Providence's crew and soon she begins to fall for the handsome officer. They travel to an island where they meet with her pirate mentor Captain

Blackbeard Edward Teach (alternatively spelled Edward Thatch, – 22 November 1718), better known as Blackbeard, was an English pirate who operated around the West Indies and the eastern coast of Britain's North American colonies. Little is known abou ...

(played by

), who takes an instant dislike to LaRochelle although he at first holds back as he can see Anne is attracted to him. Blackbeard eventually realises he has seen LaRochelle before in the French navy when a pirate was hanged. When he reveals this, LaRochelle claims he was dismissed from the French navy. Anne believes him, but when Blackbeard attacks him she defends him and sends Blackbeard and his men away, making an enemy of the notorious pirate. It eventually transpires that LaRochelle is working for the British as they have captured his ship, and he has a wife. He betrays Anne to the British, who attack her ship. She manages to escape and takes his wife hostage. The British do not return LaRochelle’s ship to him, having failed to capture Anne as planned, so he acquires a ship of his own to go after Anne. In the confrontation that follows LaRochelle’s ship is destroyed and he is captured. Taking her revenge Anne maroons him and his wife on a remote island to die. She sails away, but a few days later her conscience compels her to return with provisions and a small boat. As she does so she is attacked by Blackbeard; instead of fleeing she stays and fights to stop Blackbeard from finding LaRochelle, even though her ship is no match. As Anne, the last survivor of her crew, challenges Blackbeard to a final personal duel, she is blown away by a final, deadly salvo from the enemy ship before Blackbeard can stop his cannoneers. Watching the disaster unfold, LaRochelle and his wife pay tribute to Anne's sacrifice.

Cast

as Anne, also known as Capt. Providence *

as Capt. Pierre François LaRochelle * Debra Paget as Molly LaRochelle *

as Dr. Jameson *

as Red Dougal *

Francis Pierlot Francis Pierlot (July 15, 1875 – May 11, 1955) was a stage and film actor with over 90 film credits between 1914 and 1953. The Massachusetts-born actor's first film credit was in 1914, but he did not begin appearing in films full-time until ...

as Herkimer *

Sean McClory Séan Joseph McClory (8 March 1924 – 10 December 2003) was an Irish actor whose career spanned six decades and included well over 100 films and television series. He was sometimes billed as Shawn McGlory or Sean McGlory. Early years M ...

as Hackett *

Holmes Herbert Holmes Herbert (born Horace Edward Jenner; 30 July 1882 – 26 December 1956) was an English character actor who appeared in Hollywood films from 1915 to 1952, often as a British gentleman. Early life Born Horace Edward Jenner, (some sou ...

as British sea captain *

Byron Nelson John Byron Nelson Jr. (February 4, 1912 – September 26, 2006) was an American professional golfer between 1935 and 1946, widely considered one of the greatest golfers of all time. Nelson and two other legendary champions of the time, Ben Hoga ...

as Bear handler *

Mario Siletti Mario Giovanni Siletti (22 July 1903 – 19 April 1964) was an Italian actor. He was born in Turin. He performed in more than 160 films from 1932 to 1964. He began appearing in American films no later than 1946. From 1962 to 1964, he also portra ...

as Auctioneer *

James Dime James Dime (December 19, 1897 – May 11, 1981), nicknamed ''Sheik of Spring Street'', was a Yugoslavian-American professional boxer and actor known for '' The Last Hurrah'' (1958), '' So Big'' (1953), '' Steel Town'' (1952), ''Anne of the In ...

as pirate

Production

The film was based on a short story published in the '' Saturday Evening Post'' in 1947 by Charleston's historical fiction author, Herbert Sass. Sass was asked by New York publishers and Los Angeles studios to write a movie treatment of the story. In 1948 he offered up a fictionalised version of the true story of Anne Bonny, including a 10-page "factual basis" for the story. Studios seemed responsive, but in the end Sass was left out of the loop until the movie came out in 1951. What ended up on the screen was very different from the original story. Without writer credit to Sass, it would be difficult to convince anyone it was the same story. In February 1948

Walter Wanger Walter Wanger (born Walter Feuchtwanger; July 11, 1894 – November 18, 1968) was an American film producer active from the 1910s, his career concluding with the turbulent production of '' Cleopatra,'' his last film, in 1963. He began at Para ...

bought the screen rights to the story as a vehicle for Susan Hayward, whom Wanger had under contract. Hayward reportedly was the one who prompted Wanger to make the purchase. The producer hired Jan Fortune to write a script and announced he intended to make the film later that year for Eagle Lion. The film was also known as ''Queen of the Pirates''. It was to be part of a four-picture deal Wanger had with Eagle Lion, the others being ''Tulsa'', ''The Bastille'' and ''The Blank Wall''. In August 1948 Wanger announced he had decided to shelve the film as he believed it would cost too much (the estimated budget was $1.5 million). In February 1949 it was reported Hayward would make the film at Columbia where Guy Endore was writing a script. Mark Robson was to direct. By July Hayward was reportedly trying to set the project up at

with whom she owned a picture. In May 1950 Fox bought the story, assigned Arthur Caesar to write the script and George Jessel to produce; Hayward was still attached to star.

Susan Hayward Drops Out

Hayward was unable to star in the film. By November 1950

was signed to play the male lead and Valentina Cortesa was going to play a female pirate. Jourdan had recently had his contract with David O. Selznick bought by Fox. He had appeared in ''Bird of Paradise'' for Fox with Debra Paget and she was teamed again with him in ''Anne of the Indies''. Bu January 1951 Cortesa was out as the lead - due to her accent, reportedly - and

Constance Smith Constance Smith (7 February 1929 – 30 June 2003) was an Irish film actress, and contract player of 20th Century Fox in the 1950s. Early life Smith was born into a family as the first of 11 children.'' The Oakland Tribune'', 18 March 1962, O ...

was being tested. Eventually the title role was given to Jean Peters, her first starring role "I would have died if I'd lost the part of Anne," said Peters. "The costumes are delirious, any girl would look good in them.; they have tight-fitting trousers and open throat shirt down to here, and free top boots - I'm in rags, really but so picturesque and flattering. And the character is terrific, she's a complete primitive, a girl raised by Blackbeard, the pirate, who knows no other life than the law of might. Just an animal. I can't wait to begin it. Of course, I'm aware it's a dangerous part, too. You could make an awful fool of yourself if you went overboard."

Shooting

Filming started 26 February 1951.

was signed to a long-term contract at Fox after filming completed.

Darryl F. Zanuck Darryl Francis Zanuck (September 5, 1902December 22, 1979) was an American film producer and studio executive; he earlier contributed stories for films starting in the silent era. He played a major part in the Hollywood studio system as one of ...

later said the studio had developed Peters "for seven years" and she "comes through big" in the film.Drama: Old Stellar System Passe, Says Zanuck Los Angeles Times 11 June 1951: B8.

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Anne of the Indies Pirate films 1951 films 1950s historical adventure films American swashbuckler films 1950s English-language films Romantic period films Films scored by Franz Waxman Films directed by Jacques Tourneur Films set in the 1710s Films with screenplays by Philip Dunne Films set in the Caribbean Cultural depictions of Anne Bonny Cultural depictions of Blackbeard American historical adventure films 1950s American films