''Carnival Rock'' is a 1957 film directed by
Roger Corman
Roger William Corman (born April 5, 1926) is an American film director, producer, and actor. He has been called "The Pope of Pop Cinema" and is known as a trailblazer in the world of independent film. Many of Corman's films are based on works t ...
with musical performances by
The Platters
The Platters was an American vocal group formed in 1952. They are one of the most successful vocal groups of the early rock and roll era. Their distinctive sound bridges the pre-rock Tin Pan Alley tradition and the new burgeoning genre. The ac ...
,
David Houston,
Bob Luman
Robert Glynn Luman (April 15, 1937 – December 27, 1978) was an American country and rockabilly singer-songwriter.
Early life and career
Luman was born in Blackjack, Texas, United States, though was raised in Nacogdoches, Texas. His early i ...
and His Shadows, and the Blockbusters.
Plot
A nightclub owner, Christopher 'Christy' Cristakos, falls in love with the club's singer, Natalie Cook. However, the singer is in love with Stanley, a local businessman/gangster. After the gangster wins control of the club, Cristakos, the previous owner, begins to perform comic routines between the acts at the night club as part of his (Cristakos) plan to win Natalie back. Eventually, the gangster and the singer marry, which causes the previous owner to leave alone.
[Frank, A. The Films of Roger Corman. Batsford Publishing (1996)]
Cast
*
Brian Hutton as Stanley
*
Susan Cabot
Susan Cabot (born Harriet Pearl Shapiro; July 9, 1927 – December 10, 1986) was an American film, stage, and television actress. She rose to prominence for her roles in a variety of Western films, including ''Tomahawk'' (1951), ''The Duel at Sil ...
as Natalie
*
David J. Stewart
David J. Stewart (January 8, 1915 – December 23, 1966) was an American Broadway, film, and television actor.
Born Abe J. Siegel in Omaha, Nebraska, Stewart was known primarily as a New York stage actor. However, he also made several appearanc ...
as Christopher 'Christy' Cristakos
*
Dick Miller
Richard Miller (December 25, 1928 – January 30, 2019) was an American character actor who appeared in more than 180 films, including many produced by Roger Corman. He later appeared in the films of directors who began their careers with Corm ...
as Ben
*
Jonathan Haze
Jonathan Haze (born Jack Schachter; April 1, 1929) is an American actor, producer and screenwriter. He is best known for his work in Roger Corman films, especially the 1960 black comedy cult classic, ''The Little Shop of Horrors'', in which he p ...
as Max
*
Ed Nelson
Edwin Stafford Nelson (December 21, 1928 – August 9, 2014) was an American actor, best known for his role as Dr. Michael Rossi in the television series '' Peyton Place''.
Nelson appeared in episodes of many TV programs, more than 50 mov ...
as Cannon
*
Chris Alcaide
John Thomas Berger (October 22, 1923 – June 30, 2004) was an American film and television actor. He mostly appeared on western television shows including, '' Gunsmoke'', '' Bonanza'', '' Rawhide'', '' Wanted: Dead or Alive'', '' Trackdown ...
as Slug
Original TV play
The film was based on a one-hour TV play written by Leo Lieberman, called ''Carnival at Midnight''. It was an episode of ''
Climax!
''Climax!'' (later known as ''Climax Mystery Theater'') is an American television anthology series that aired on CBS from 1954 to 1958. The series was hosted by William Lundigan and later co-hosted by Mary Costa. It was one of the few CBS programs ...
'' and aired on 3 January 1957.
Jack Smight
John Ronald Smight (March 9, 1925 – September 1, 2003) was an American theatre and film director. His film credits include ''Harper'' (1966), '' No Way to Treat a Lady'' (1968), ''Airport 1975'' (1974), '' Midway'' (1976), and ''Fast Break'' ...
directed.
Original cast
*
Buddy Ebsen
Buddy Ebsen (born Christian Ludolf Ebsen Jr., April 2, 1908 – July 6, 2003), also known as Frank "Buddy" Ebsen, was an American actor and dancer, whose career spanned seven decades. One of his most famous roles was as Jed Clampett in the CBS ...
as Ben
*
Peter Graves
Peter Graves (born Peter Duesler Aurness; March 18, 1926 – March 14, 2010) was an American actor. He was best known for his role as Jim Phelps in the CBS television series '' Mission: Impossible'' from 1967 to 1973 (original) and from 1988 to ...
as Stanley
*
Oskar Homolka
Oskar Homolka (August 12, 1898 – January 27, 1978) was an Austrian film and theatre actor, who went on to work in Germany, Britain and America. Both his voice and his appearance fitted him for roles as communist spies or Soviet officials, for w ...
as Christy Christakos
*
Debra Paget
Debra Paget (born Debralee Griffin; August 19, 1933) is an American actress and entertainer. She is perhaps best known for her performances in Cecil B. DeMille's epic ''The Ten Commandments'' (1956) and in Elvis Presley's film debut, '' Love Me ...
as Natalie
Production
Roger Corman had previously made ''
Rock All Night
''Rock All Night'' is a 1957 crime drama film produced and directed by Roger Corman. Distributed by American International Pictures, it is based on a 25-minute television episode of '' The Jane Wyman Show'' from 1955 called "The Little Guy." It s ...
'' (1956), an earlier low budget film based on a TV play which featured musical acts. It was successful relative to its budget and Corman made this similar film for a syndicate of theatre owners.
[Ed. J. Philip di Franco, ''The Movie World of Roger Corman'', Chelsea House Publishers, 1979 p 84]
Filming started in May 1957 at Ziv Studios. Susan Cabot was borrowed from Universal, whom she was under contract to at the time.
Music in the film was from
The Platters
The Platters was an American vocal group formed in 1952. They are one of the most successful vocal groups of the early rock and roll era. Their distinctive sound bridges the pre-rock Tin Pan Alley tradition and the new burgeoning genre. The ac ...
,
David Houston,
Bob Luman
Robert Glynn Luman (April 15, 1937 – December 27, 1978) was an American country and rockabilly singer-songwriter.
Early life and career
Luman was born in Blackjack, Texas, United States, though was raised in Nacogdoches, Texas. His early i ...
,
The Shadows
The Shadows (originally known as the Drifters) were an English instrumental rock group, who dominated the British popular music charts in the late 1950s and early 1960s, in the pre- Beatles era. They served as the backing band for Cliff Richard ...
and
The Blockbusters
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
, most of whom appear in the movie as themselves.
Songs
*The Platters and the Blockbusters – "Remember When"
*David Houston – "One and Only", "Teenage Frankie and Johnny"
*Susan Cabot and the Blockbusters – "Ou Shoo Bla De" and "There's No Place Without You"
*Bob Luman and the Shadows – "This Is the Night", "All Night Long"
*The Blockbusters – "Rock a Boogie"
*The Shadows – "The Creep"
Reception
''
Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' found that Miller and Cabot turned in good performances, stated Corman did a fair job as producer and a better job as director and found the movie had overtones of
Pagliacci
''Pagliacci'' (; literal translation, "Clowns") is an Italian opera in a prologue and two acts, with music and libretto by Ruggero Leoncavallo. The opera tells the tale of Canio, actor and leader of a commedia dell'arte theatrical company, who m ...
mixed with Rock and Roll.
Frank found the included music in the film the high point of the movie.
Cabot would go on to make a number of films for Corman.
References
External links
*
*
*
*
''Carnival Rock''at Letterbox DVD
Complete filmat
Internet Archive
The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...
Complete press book{{Roger Corman
1957 films
1957 drama films
American drama films
Films directed by Roger Corman
1950s English-language films
Films produced by Roger Corman
1950s American films