''The King's Thief'' is a 1955

swashbuckling A swashbuckler is a genre of European adventure literature that focuses on a heroic protagonist stock character who is skilled in swordsmanship, acrobatics, guile and possesses chivalrous ideals. A "swashbuckler" protagonist is heroic, daring, ...

CinemaScope CinemaScope is an anamorphic lens series used, from 1953 to 1967, and less often later, for shooting widescreen films that, crucially, could be screened in theatres using existing equipment, albeit with a lens adapter. Its creation in 1953 by ...

adventure film An adventure film is a form of adventure fiction, and is a genre of film. Subgenres of adventure films include swashbuckler films, pirate films, and survival films. Adventure films may also be combined with other film genres such as action, an ...

directed by

Robert Z. Leonard Robert Zigler Leonard (October 7, 1889 – August 27, 1968) was an American film director, actor, producer, and screenwriter. Biography He was born in Chicago, Illinois. At one time, he was married to silent star Mae Murray with the two formin ...

, who replaced

Hugo Fregonese Hugo Geronimo Fregonese (April 8, 1908 in Mendoza – January 11, 1987 in Tigre) was an Argentine film director and screenwriter who worked both in Hollywood and his home country.''Cine Nacional''Hugo Fregonese filmographyCinenacional.com ...

during filming. Released on August 5, 1955, the film takes place 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 ...

at the time of Charles II and stars

Ann Blyth Ann Marie Blyth (born August 16, 1928) is an American retired actress and singer. For her performance as Veda in the 1945 Michael Curtiz film ''Mildred Pierce'', Blyth was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. She is one of ...

Edmund Purdom Edmund Anthony Cutlar Purdom (19 December 19241 January 2009) was an English actor, voice artist, and director. He worked first on stage in Britain, performing various works by Shakespeare, then in America on Broadway and in Hollywood, and event ...

David Niven James David Graham Niven (; 1 March 1910 – 29 July 1983) was a British actor, soldier, memoirist, and novelist. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance as Major Pollock in ''Separate Tables'' (1958). Niven's other roles ...

George Sanders George Henry Sanders (3 July 1906 – 25 April 1972) was a British actor and singer whose career spanned over 40 years. His heavy, upper-class English accent and smooth, bass voice often led him to be cast as sophisticated but villainous chara ...

and

Roger Moore Sir Roger George Moore (14 October 192723 May 2017) was an English actor. He was the third actor to portray fictional British secret agent James Bond in the Eon Productions film series, playing the character in seven feature films between 19 ...

Plot

James (Niven), the Duke of Brampton and the richest man in England, is so trusted by King Charles II (Sanders), he is able to have two of the King's loyal friends executed for

treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...

. The second is the father of Lady Mary (Blyth). She travels from France to London to seek justice. While there, she meets Michael Dermott (Purdom), a soldier who fought to restore Charles to the throne. He and many others were never paid for their services, unbeknownst to the King. He therefore turned

highwayman A highwayman was a robber who stole from travellers. This type of thief usually travelled and robbed by horse as compared to a footpad who travelled and robbed on foot; mounted highwaymen were widely considered to be socially superior to footp ...

. He and his comrades rob the Duke and come into possession of the Duke's notebook. In it are listed twelve rich and powerful people, as well as details of their possessions. Two names are crossed out; it does not take long for Michael to realize that the other ten are in peril for their lives. Michael first tries to blackmail the Duke, but without much success. A fence named Simon betrays his hiding place. Michael and his comrade Jack (Moore) escape from the Duke's soldiers, though Michael is wounded in the shoulder. Adventure abounds as the Duke tries to retrieve his property before it can be used against him.

Cast

as Lady Mary *

as Michael Dermott *

as James - Duke of Brampton *

as Charles II *

as Jack *

John Dehner John Dehner (DAY-ner) (born John Dehner Forkum, also credited Dehner Forkum; November 23, 1915February 4, 1992) was an American stage, radio, film, and television actor. From the late 1930s to the late 1980s, he amassed a long list of performan ...

as Captain Herrick *

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 Sheldon *Tudor Owen as Simon *

Melville Cooper George Melville Cooper (15 October 1896 – 13 March 1973) was an English actor. His many notable screen roles include the High Sheriff of Nottingham in ''The Adventures of Robin Hood'' (1938), Mr. Collins in ''Pride and Prejudice'' (1940) and ...

... Henry Wynch *

Alan Mowbray Alan Mowbray (born Alfred Ernest Allen; 18 August 1896 – 25 March 1969) was an English stage and film actor who found success in Hollywood. Early life Mowbray was born in London, England. He served with distinction in the British Army in W ...

... Sir Gilbert Talbot * Rhys Williams ...

Turnkey A turnkey, a turnkey project, or a turnkey operation (also spelled turn-key) is a type of project that is constructed so that it can be sold to any buyer as a completed product. This is contrasted with build to order, where the constructor builds ...

Joan Elan Joan Elan (July 24, 1928 – January 7, 1981)US Social Security Applications and Claim Index 1936–2007, retrieved froAncestry.com/ref> was an English actress, whose film, stage, and television career occurred mainly in the United States. She i ...

... Charity Fell * Charles Davis ...

Apothecary ''Apothecary'' () is a mostly archaic term for a medical professional who formulates and dispenses '' materia medica'' (medicine) to physicians, surgeons, and patients. The modern chemist (British English) or pharmacist (British and North Ameri ...

*Ashley Cowan ... Skene *

Ian Wolfe Ian Marcus Wolfe (November 4, 1896 – January 23, 1992) was an American character actor with around 400 film and television credits. Until 1934, he worked in the theatre. That year, he appeared in his first film role and later television, as ...

... Fell *

Paul Cavanagh William Grigs Atkinson (8 December 1888 – 15 March 1964), known professionally as Paul Cavanagh, was an English film and stage actor. He appeared in more than 100 films between 1928 and 1959. Life and career Cavanagh was born in Felling, ...

... Sir Edward Scott *

Lillian Kemble-Cooper Lillian Kemble-Cooper (March 21, 1892 – May 4, 1977) was an English-American actress who had a successful career on Broadway and in Hollywood film. Biography Early life Lillian Kemble-Cooper was a member of the Kemble family, a family of ...

... Mrs. Fell *

Isobel Elsom Isobel Elsom (born Isabelle Reed; 16 March 1893 – 12 January 1981) was an English film, theatre, and television actress. She was often cast as aristocrats or upper-class women. Early years Born in Chesterton, Cambridge, Chesterton, C ...

... Mrs. Bennett *Milton Parsons ... Adam Urich *Jacob Hall ... Lord Layton *

Queenie Leonard Queenie Leonard (born Pearl Walker; 18 February 1905 – 17 January 2002) was a British actress. She was the last surviving cast member of ''And Then There Were None'' (1945) until her death in 2002. Biography She was born as Pearl Walk ...

... Apothecary's Wife *Owen McGiveney ... Hoskins *Robert Dix ... Husky *Michael Dugan ... Husky *James Logan ... Guard *

Jimmy Aubrey Jimmy Aubrey (23 October 1887 – 2 September 1983) was an English actor who worked with both Charlie Chaplin and Laurel and Hardy, having gone with Fred Karno's theatrical company to America in 1908. However he left to start on his own in v ...

... Little Man (uncredited) *

Leonard Carey Leonard Carey (25 February 1887 – 11 September 1977) was an English character actor who very often played butlers in Hollywood films of the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. He was also active in television during the 1950s. He is perhaps best known ...

... Servant (uncredited) *Leslie Denison ... Beadle (voice) (uncredited) *Ronald Green ... Hired Swordsman (uncredited) * Peter Hansen ... Isaac Newton (uncredited) *Ramsay Hill ... Lord (uncredited) *Charles Keane ... Guard (uncredited) *Keith McConnell ... Usher (uncredited) *John Monaghan ... Shaddy (uncredited) * Matt Moore ... Gentleman (uncredited) *Clive Morgan ... Captain of Guards (uncredited) *Vesey O'Davoren ... Courier (uncredited) * Gordon Richards ... Courier (uncredited) *

Lewis L. Russell Lewis Lord Russell (born George Lewis Lord, September 10, 1889 – November 12, 1961) was an American actor of the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s who starred in a number of vaudeville shows, Broadway dramas and Hollywood films, including the Academy Aw ...

... Gentleman (uncredited) *Gilchrist Stuart ... Clerk (uncredited) *Trevor Ward ... Perspiring Man (uncredited) *Trude Wyler ... Celestine (uncredited)

Production notes

MGM had a big hit at the box office with ''

Ivanhoe ''Ivanhoe: A Romance'' () by Walter Scott is a historical novel published in three volumes, in 1819, as one of the Waverley novels. Set in England in the Middle Ages, this novel marked a shift away from Scott’s prior practice of setting st ...

'' (1952), a swashbuckling adventure film, leading to them making a cycle of such films. In October 1952 they announced they would make ''The King's Thief'' based on an original story by Robert Hardy Andrews about an Irish patriot during the reign of Charles II (likely based on

Thomas Blood Colonel Thomas Blood (1618 – 24 August 1680) was an Anglo-Irish officer and self-styled colonel best known for his attempt to steal the Crown Jewels of England from the Tower of London in 1671. Described in an American source as a "no ...

). Edwin Knopf was to produce and Knopf's son Christopher wrote the script. It was originally envisioned as a vehicle for

Stewart Granger Stewart Granger (born James Lablache Stewart; 6 May 1913 – 16 August 1993) was a British film actor, mainly associated with heroic and romantic leading roles. He was a popular leading man from the 1940s to the early 1960s, rising to fame thr ...

, who had recently made a swashbuckler for the studio, ''

The Prisoner of Zenda ''The Prisoner of Zenda'' is an 1894 adventure novel by Anthony Hope, in which the King of Ruritania is drugged on the eve of his coronation and thus is unable to attend the ceremony. Political forces within the realm are such that, in order ...

'' 1952). MGM then announced Robert Taylor would play the lead. Then by April 1953 Granger was back as star. Eventually the lead was given to

who MGM were building into a star at the time. In February 1954 MGM announced the film would be part of its schedule for the following year and would be directed by

Gottfried Reinhardt Gottfried Reinhardt (20 March 1913 – 19 July 1994) was an Austrian-born American film director and producer. Biography Reinhardt was born in Berlin, the son of the Austrian theater director Max Reinhardt (until 1904: Max Goldmann), manag ...

. The female lead went to Ann Blyth. Michael Wilding was going to play the villain before being replaced by David Niven in early December. It was a rare villain part for Niven. Filming started 15 December 1954 under the direction of

. By early January, Fregonese had been replaced by MGM veteran

who had been in semi-retirement since completing ''

Her Twelve Men ''Her Twelve Men'' is a 1954 American comedy drama film made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It stars Oscar-winning Greer Garson, and was directed by Robert Z. Leonard, and written by William Roberts and Laura Z. Hobson. It was based on the best-selling ...

'' (1954) about twelve months previously. The ''Los Angeles Times'' reported that Fregonese and Edward Knopf "did not see eye to eye during production." The cast included wrestler Lord Layton who played guard Jacob Hall who fought Edmund Purdom.

Reception

Box Office

According to MGM records the film earned only $478,000 in the US and Canada and $1,071,000 elsewhere, resulting in a loss to the studio of $707,000.

Critical

The ''Los Angeles Times'' called it "glittering and excellently made."Dog's Life Dramatically Told in 'Bar Sinister' Schallert, Edwin. Los Angeles Times 6 Oct 1955: A6.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:King's Thief, The 1955 films 1950s historical adventure films American historical adventure films Films set in London Films set in the 1670s Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films CinemaScope films American swashbuckler films Films scored by Miklós Rózsa Films directed by Robert Z. Leonard Films directed by Hugo Fregonese Cultural depictions of Charles II of England Films about highwaymen 1950s English-language films 1950s American films