''Johnny Tremain'' is a 1957 American

adventure An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme spo ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

made by

Walt Disney Productions The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

, released by

Buena Vista Distribution Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, formerly known as Buena Vista Pictures Distribution, Inc. until 2007, is an American film distribution studio within the Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution division of The Walt Disney Company. It ha ...

, and based on the 1944

Newbery Medal The John Newbery Medal, frequently shortened to the Newbery, is a literary award given by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), to the author of "the most distinguished contr ...

-winning children's novel of the same name by

Esther Forbes Esther Louise Forbes (; June 28, 1891 – August 12, 1967) was an American novelist, historian and children's writer who received the Pulitzer Prize and the Newbery Medal. She was the first woman elected to membership in the American Antiqu ...

, retelling the story of the years in Boston, Massachusetts prior to the outbreak of the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...

. ''Johnny Tremain'' was the first Disney live-action film to be directed by

Robert Stevenson Robert Stevenson may refer to: * Robert Stevenson (actor and politician) (1915–1975), American actor and politician * Robert Stevenson (civil engineer) (1772–1850), Scottish lighthouse engineer * Robert Stevenson (director) (1905–1986), Engl ...

. It was made for television, but first released to theatres.

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...

understood the new technology of

color television Color television or Colour television is a television transmission technology that includes color information for the picture, so the video image can be displayed in color on the television set. It improves on the monochrome or black-and-white t ...

and filmed his

Walt Disney anthology television series The Walt Disney Company has produced an anthology television series since 1954 under several titles and formats. The program's current title, ''The Wonderful World of Disney'', was used from 1969 to 1979 and again from 1991 to the present. The p ...

in color. But the show, known as ''Disneyland'' at that time, was broadcast in black and white. After its theater run in 1957, the film was shown in its entirety on television in two episodes (in color, then known as ''The Wonderful World of Disney''), rather than as a complete film on a single evening, on November 21 and 28, 1958. The film stars Hal Stalmaster,

Luana Patten Luana Patten (July 6, 1938 – May 1, 1996) was an American actress who appeared in films produced by Walt Disney Pictures, such as ''Song of the South'' (1946), ''Fun and Fancy Free'' (1947), and ''Melody Time'' (1948). Later in life, she pla ...

Jeff York Jeff York (March 23, 1912 – October 11, 1995) was an American film and television actor who began his career in the late 1930s using his given name, Granville Owen Scofield. He was also sometimes credited as Jeff Yorke. Career York served in ...

, Sebastian Cabot (in his second film role for Disney),

Richard Beymer George Richard Beymer Jr. (born February 20, 1938) is an American actor, filmmaker and artist who played the roles of Tony in the film version of ''West Side Story'' (1961), Peter in ''The Diary of Anne Frank'' (1959), and Ben Horne on the telev ...

Walter Coy Walter Darwin Coy (January 31, 1909 – December 11, 1974) was an American stage, radio, film, and, principally, television actor, arguably most well known as John Wayne's character's brother in ''The Searchers'' (1956). Early years Originally ...

and

Ralph Clanton Ralph Woodward Clanton (September 11, 1914 – December 29, 2002) was an American character actor of film, stage, and television. His most seen performance was Comte De Guiche in the 1950 film ''Cyrano de Bergerac'', the first sound versio ...

Plot

Johnny Tremain is apprenticed to a

silversmith A silversmith is a metalworker who crafts objects from silver. The terms ''silversmith'' and ''goldsmith'' are not exactly synonyms as the techniques, training, history, and guilds are or were largely the same but the end product may vary great ...

, Mr. Lapham. One day, wealthy Jonathan Lyte asks Mr. Lapham to make a sugar basin to match his grand set of silverware. Lapham refuses because he believes he is too old for such jobs. Tremain believes he is skilled enough to do the job, and accepts. After trying several times but failing, he asks fellow silversmith,

Paul Revere Paul Revere (; December 21, 1734 O.S. (January 1, 1735 N.S.)May 10, 1818) was an American silversmith, engraver, early industrialist, Sons of Liberty member, and Patriot and Founding Father. He is best known for his midnight ride to ale ...

, for help designing a new handle. Revere tells him to make the handle deeper and larger. Eager to try the new design, Johnny breaks the

Sabbath In Abrahamic religions, the Sabbath () or Shabbat (from Hebrew ) is a day set aside for rest and worship. According to the Book of Exodus, the Sabbath is a day of rest on the seventh day, commanded by God to be kept as a holy day of rest, as G ...

and accidentally burns his hand. The damage is so severe that he will never have full use of the hand again, and cannot continue as a silversmith apprentice. No one will hire him with only one usable hand. The

Sons of Liberty The Sons of Liberty was a loosely organized, clandestine, sometimes violent, political organization active in the Thirteen American Colonies founded to advance the rights of the colonists and to fight taxation by the British government. It pl ...

recruit him as a messenger, to secretly inform members of the times and locations of meetings. Johnny confides to Priscilla Lapham, Mr. Lapham's daughter, that he is secretly related to Mr. Lyte. He shows her a christening cup bearing the Lyte

family crest A crest is a component of a heraldic display, consisting of the device borne on top of the helm. Originating in the decorative sculptures worn by knights in tournaments and, to a lesser extent, battles, crests became solely pictorial after t ...

as evidence. Desperate for money, he approaches Lyte and shows him the christening cup. Lyte assumes that Johnny stole the cup, and files charges against him. Josiah Quincy defends Johnny in court. Introducing Priscilla as a witness, Quincy proves Johnny's innocence. Afterward, Tremain and the Sons of Liberty become active in several notable events leading to the

, including the

Boston Tea Party The Boston Tea Party was an American political and mercantile protest by the Sons of Liberty in Boston, Massachusetts, on December 16, 1773. The target was the Tea Act of May 10, 1773, which allowed the British East India Company to sell tea ...

Paul Revere's Ride "Paul Revere's Ride" is an 1860 poem by American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow that commemorates the actions of American patriot Paul Revere on April 18, 1775, although with significant inaccuracies. It was first published in the January 186 ...

, and the

Battles of Lexington and Concord The Battles of Lexington and Concord were the first military engagements of the American Revolutionary War. The battles were fought on April 19, 1775, in Middlesex County, Province of Massachusetts Bay, within the towns of Lexington, Concord ...

. During the Boston Tea Party, Dr.

Joseph Warren Joseph Warren (June 11, 1741 – June 17, 1775), a Founding Father of the United States, was an American physician who was one of the most important figures in the Patriot movement in Boston during the early days of the American Revolution, ...

offers to restore Tremain's hand, allowing him to return to his profession.

Cast

* Hal Stalmaster as Johnny Tremain *

as Priscilla Lapham *

as James Otis * Sebastian Cabot as Jonathan Lyte *

as Rab Silsbee * Rusty Lane as

Samuel Adams Samuel Adams ( – October 2, 1803) was an American statesman, political philosopher, and a Founding Father of the United States. He was a politician in colonial Massachusetts, a leader of the movement that became the American Revolution, and ...

Walter Sande Walter Sande (July 9, 1906 – November 22, 1971) was an American character actor, known for numerous supporting film and television roles. Films Born in Denver, Colorado, he was one of those stern, heavyset character actors in Hollywood no p ...

Whit Bissell Whitner Nutting Bissell (October 25, 1909 – March 5, 1996) was an American character actor. Early life Born in New York City, Bissell was the son of surgeon Dr. J. Dougal Bissell and Helen Nutting Bissell. He was educated at the Allen-S ...

as Josiah Quincy *

as Dr. Joseph Warren * Will Wright as Mr. Lapham *

Virginia Christine Virginia Christine (born Virginia Christine Ricketts; March 5, 1920 – July 24, 1996) was an American stage, radio, film, television, and voice actress. Though Christine had a long career as a character actress in film and television, she i ...

as Mrs. Lapham *

as General

Gage Gage may refer to: Measurement * Gage is a variant spelling of the word ''gauge'' *Stream gauge, aka Stream gage, a site along a stream where flow measurements are made People * Gage (surname) *Gage Golightly (born 1993), American actress Plac ...

Lumsden Hare Francis Lumsden Hare (17 October 1874 – 28 August 1964) was an Irish-born film and theatre actor. He was also a theatre director and theatrical producer. Early years Hare studied at St. Dunstan's College in London. Career Hare appeared ...

as Admiral Montagu * Gavin Gordon as Colonel

Smith Smith may refer to: People * Metalsmith, or simply smith, a craftsman fashioning tools or works of art out of various metals * Smith (given name) * Smith (surname), a family name originating in England, Scotland and Ireland ** List of people wi ...

Geoffrey Toone Geoffrey Toone (15 November 1910 – 1 June 2005) was an English character actor and former matinee idol, born in Ireland. Most of his film roles after the 1930s were in supporting parts, usually as authority figures, though he did play the lead ...

as Major

Pitcairn The Pitcairn Islands (; Pitkern: '), officially the Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands, is a group of four volcanic islands in the southern Pacific Ocean that form the sole British Overseas Territory in the Pacific Ocean. The four isl ...

's daughter Sharon Mae Disney also had a small uncredited role as Dorcas, a young friend of Johnny and Priscilla (who in the novel was one of Priscilla's sisters).

Music

The musical score for ''Johnny Tremain'' was composed by

George Bruns George Edward Bruns (July 3, 1914 – May 23, 1983) was an American composer of music for film and television. His accolades include four Academy Award nominations, and three Grammy Award nominations. He is mainly known for his compositions for ...

with lyrics by Tom Blackburn. The film is notable for the song "Liberty Tree", which was later included on the 1964 Disneyland Records album entitled ''Happy Birthday and Songs for Every Holiday''.

Release

The film's theatrical release was accompanied by two Disney short subjects: the live-action nature story '' The Wetback Hound'', and the cartoon special '' The Story of Anyburg U.S.A.''.

Louis Marx and Company Louis Marx and Company was an American toy manufacturer in business from 1919 to 1980. They made many types of toys including tin toys, toy soldiers, toy guns, action figures, dolls, toy cars and model trains. Some of their notable toys are Rock' ...

released an American War of Independence

playset Playsets, or play sets, are themed collections of similar toys designed to work together to enact some action or event. The most common toy playsets involve plastic figures, accessories, and possibly buildings or scenery, purchased together in a co ...

featuring character figures of the actors in the show as a film

tie-in A tie-in work is a work of fiction or other product based on a media property such as a film, video game, television series, board game, web site, role-playing game or literary property. Tie-ins are authorized by the owners of the original prope ...

. The film opened in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

but was not successful and Disney initially decided not to release the film in Europe. Portions of ''Johnny Tremain'' were released individually in 1968 for educational purposes. Two distinct sequences of the film were re-issued under the titles ''The Boston Tea Party '' and ''The Shot Heard ‘Round the World''. Both were originally shown on Disney´s anthology TV series in 1958.

Legacy

Around the time of the film's production, Walt Disney intended to build Liberty Street in

Disneyland Disneyland is a amusement park, theme park in Anaheim, California. Opened in 1955, it was the first theme park opened by The Walt Disney Company and the only one designed and constructed under the direct supervision of Walt Disney. Disney in ...

as an annex to

Main Street USA Main Street, U.S.A. is the first "themed land" inside the main entrance of the many theme parks operated or licensed by The Walt Disney Company around the world. Main Street, U.S.A. is themed to resemble American small towns during the early 20t ...

. The project never materialized. After Walt's death, the concept was revived and turned into the much more expansive Liberty Square in

Walt Disney World The Walt Disney World Resort, also called Walt Disney World or Disney World, is an entertainment resort complex in Bay Lake and Lake Buena Vista, Florida, United States, near the cities of Orlando and Kissimmee. Opened on October 1, 1971, th ...

, which opened as a part of the park's grand opening on October 1, 1971. A

Southern live oak ''Quercus virginiana'', also known as the southern live oak, is an evergreen oak tree endemic to the Southeastern United States. Though many other species are loosely called live oak, the southern live oak is particularly iconic of the Old South. ...

tree found growing on the Walt Disney World property (originally six miles from the Magic Kingdom) was transplanted by Disney engineers and now serves as the square's Liberty Tree. Adorning it are 13 lanterns, representing the original 13 American colonies.

References

External links

* * * {{Robert Stevenson 1957 films American Revolutionary War films Walt Disney Pictures films Films based on children's books Films directed by Robert Stevenson Films produced by Walt Disney Films set in Boston Films set in Massachusetts 1957 drama films American war drama films Films based on American novels Films set in the 1770s Films scored by George Bruns Cultural depictions of Samuel Adams Cultural depictions of Paul Revere 1950s English-language films 1950s American films