''The Americanization of Emily'' is a 1964 British-American

black-and-white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

romantic

black comedy Black comedy, also known as dark comedy, morbid humor, or gallows humor, is a style of comedy that makes light of subject matter that is generally considered taboo, particularly subjects that are normally considered serious or painful to disc ...

war film War film is a film genre concerned with warfare, typically about navy, naval, air force, air, or army, land battles, with combat scenes central to the drama. It has been strongly associated with the 20th century. The fateful nature of battle s ...

written by

Paddy Chayefsky Sidney Aaron "Paddy" Chayefsky (January 29, 1923 – August 1, 1981) was an American playwright, screenwriter and novelist. He is the only person to have won three solo Academy Awards for writing both adapted and original screenplays. He was ...

, produced by

Martin Ransohoff Martin Nelson Ransohoff (July 7, 1927 – December 13, 2017) was an American film and television producer, and member of the Ransohoff family. Early life and education Ransohoff was born on July 7, 1927 in New Orleans, LouisianaArthur Hiller Arthur Hiller, (November 22, 1923 – August 17, 2016) was a Canadian-American television and film director with over 33 films to his credit during a 50-year career. He began his career directing television in Canada and later in the U.S. By t ...

and starring

James Garner James Garner (born James Scott Bumgarner; April 7, 1928 – July 19, 2014) was an American actor. He played leading roles in more than 50 theatrical films, including ''The Great Escape (film), The Great Escape'' (1963) with Steve McQueen; Paddy ...

Julie Andrews Dame Julie Andrews (born Julia Elizabeth Wells; 1 October 1935) is an English actress, singer, and author. She has garnered numerous accolades throughout her career spanning over seven decades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy F ...

Melvyn Douglas Melvyn Douglas (born Melvyn Edouard Hesselberg, April 5, 1901 – August 4, 1981) was an American actor. Douglas came to prominence in the 1930s as a suave leading man, perhaps best typified by his performance in the romantic comedy ''Ninotchk ...

and

James Coburn James Harrison Coburn III (August 31, 1928 – November 18, 2002) was an American film and television actor who was featured in more than 70 films, largely action roles, and made 100 television appearances during a 45-year career.AllmoviBi ...

. The film also features Joyce Grenfell,

Keenan Wynn Francis Xavier Aloysius James Jeremiah Keenan Wynn (July 27, 1916 – October 14, 1986) was an American character actor. His expressive face was his stock-in-trade; and though he rarely carried the lead role, he had prominent billing in most ...

and

William Windom William Windom (May 10, 1827January 29, 1891) was an American politician from Minnesota. He served as U.S. Representative from 1859 to 1869, and as U.S. Senator from 1870 to January 1871, from March 1871 to March 1881, and from November 1881 ...

. Chayefsky's screenplay was loosely adapted from the 1959 novel of the same name by

William Bradford Huie William Bradford Huie (November 13, 1910 – November 20, 1986) was an American writer, investigative reporter, editor, national lecturer, and television host. His credits include twenty-one books that sold over 30 million copies worldwide. In ad ...

, who had been a

Seabee , colors = , mascot = Bumblebee , battles = Guadalcanal, Bougainville, Cape Gloucester, Los Negros, Guam, Peleliu, Tarawa, Kwajalein, Saipan, Tinian, Iwo Jima, Philippin ...

officer during the

Normandy Invasion Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 (D-Day) with the Norm ...

. The film is set in London during World War II in the weeks leading up to

D-Day The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...

in 1944. Controversial for its stance during the dawn of the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

, the film has since been praised as a "

vanguard The vanguard (also called the advance guard) is the leading part of an advancing military formation. It has a number of functions, including seeking out the enemy and securing ground in advance of the main force. History The vanguard derives f ...

anti-war film." Both James GarnerJames Garner of Charlie Rose, ~6' from beginning
/ref> and Julie Andrews have considered the film their personal favourite of those in which they acted.

Plot

Charlie Madison, a Chef in the United States Navy Reserve, is a cynical and highly efficient adjutant to Rear Admiral William Jessup. Charlie's job as a

batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on March 30, 1939. I ...

is to keep his boss and other high-ranking officers supplied with luxury goods and amiable Englishwomen. He falls in love with a driver from the motor pool, Emily Barham, who has lost her husband, brother, and father in the war. Charlie's pleasure-seeking "American" lifestyle amid wartime rationing both fascinates and disgusts Emily, but she does not want to lose another loved one to war and finds the "practising coward" Charlie irresistible. Profoundly despondent since the death of his wife, Jessup obsesses over the United States Army and its Air Force overshadowing the Navy in the forthcoming D-Day invasion. The admiral decides that "The first dead man on Omaha Beach must be a sailor". A combat film will document the death, and the casualty will be buried in a "Tomb of the Unknown Sailor". He orders Charlie to get the film made. Despite his best efforts to avoid the duty, Charlie and his now gung ho friend, Commander "Bus" Cummings, find themselves and a film crew on board ship with the combat engineers who will be the first sailors ashore. When Charlie tries to retreat from the beach, Cummings shoots him in the leg with a Colt .45 pistol. A German artillery shell lands near the limping-running Charlie, making him the first American casualty on Omaha Beach. Hundreds of newspaper and magazine covers reprint the photograph of Charlie running ashore, alone, making him a war hero. Having recovered from his breakdown, Jessup is horrified by his part in Charlie's apparent death. He plans to use the heroic death in support of the Navy when testifying before a Senate committee. Emily is devastated to have lost another person she loves to the war. Then comes unexpected news: Charlie is not dead but alive at the Allied 6th relocation center in Southampton, England. A relieved Jessup plans to show him off during his Senate testimony as the "first man on Omaha Beach", a ''sailor''. Limping from his injury and angry about his senseless near-death, Charlie plans to act nobly by telling the world the truth about what happened, even if it means being imprisoned for cowardice. By recounting what he had told her previously, Emily persuades Charlie to choose happiness with her instead, and to keep quiet and accept his role as a hero.

Main cast

as Lt. Cmdr. Charles "Charlie" E. Madison *

as Emily Barham *

as Admiral William Jessup *

Paul Newlan Paul Emory Newlan (June 29, 1903 – November 23, 1973) was an American film and TV character actor from Plattsmouth, Nebraska. He was best known for his role as Captain Grey on the NBC police series '' M Squad'' and for his roles in films inc ...

as Gen. William Hallerton *

as Lt. Cmdr. Paul "Bus" Cummings * Joyce Grenfell as Mrs. Barham *

as Old Sailor *

Edward Binns Edward Binns (September 12, 1916 – December 4, 1990) was an American actor. He had a wide-spanning career in film and television, often portraying competent, hard working and purposeful characters in his various roles. He is best known for hi ...

as Admiral Thomas Healy *

Liz Fraser Elizabeth Joan Winch (14 August 1930 – 6 September 2018), known professionally as Liz Fraser, was a British film actress, best known for being cast in provocative comedy roles. Early life Fraser was born in Southwark, London. Her year of bi ...

as Sheila *

as Captain Harry Spaulding * John Crawford as Chief Petty Officer Paul Adams * Douglas Henderson as Captain Marvin Ellender * Edmon Ryan as Admiral Hoyle *

Steve Franken Stephen Robert Franken (May 27, 1932 – August 24, 2012) was an American actor who worked in film and television for over fifty years. Career Franken, the son of a Hollywood press agent, was born in Brooklyn, New York and graduated from Corne ...

as Young Sailor *

Alan Sues Alan Grigsby Sues (March 7, 1926 – December 1, 2011) was an American actor and comedian widely known for his roles on the 1968–1973 television series ''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In''. Sues's on-screen persona was campy and outrageous. Typical o ...

as Petty Officer Enright *

Judy Carne Joyce Audrey Botterill (27 April 1939 – 3 September 2015), known professionally as Judy Carne, was an English actress best remembered for the phrase "Sock it to me!" on ''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In''. Career Carne was born in Northampton, Eng ...

as "2nd Nameless Broad" *

Sharon Tate Sharon Marie Tate Polanski (January 24, 1943 – August 9, 1969) was an American actress and model. During the 1960s, she played small television roles before appearing in films and was regularly featured in fashion magazines as a model and cover ...

as "Beautiful Girl" (uncredited) *

Red West Robert Gene "Red" West (March 8, 1936 – July 18, 2017) was an American actor, film stuntman and songwriter. He was known for being a close confidant and bodyguard for rock and roll singer Elvis Presley. Upon his firing, West wrote the cont ...

as Soldier (uncredited)

Production

Casting

According to

William Holden William Holden (born William Franklin Beedle Jr.; April 17, 1918 – November 12, 1981) was an American actor, and one of the biggest box-office draws of the 1950s. Holden won the Academy Award for Best Actor for the film ''Stalag 17'' (1953) ...

was originally meant to play the lead role of Charlie Madison, with Garner to play Bus Cummings. When Holden backed out of the project, Garner took the lead role and James Coburn was brought in to play Bus.

Lee Marvin Lee Marvin (born Lamont Waltman Marvin Jr.; February 19, 1924August 29, 1987) was an American film and television actor. Known for his bass voice and premature white hair, he is best remembered for playing hardboiled "tough guy" characters. Alt ...

is mentioned as starring in the movie instead of Coburn in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's promotional film ''MGM Is on the Move!'' (1964)

Soundtrack

The film introduced the song "

Emily Emily may refer to: * Emily (given name), including a list of people with the name Music * "Emily" (1964 song), title song by Johnny Mandel and Johnny Mercer to the film ''The Americanization of Emily'' * "Emily" (Dave Koz song), a 1990 song ...

", composed by

Johnny Mandel John Alfred Mandel (November 23, 1925June 29, 2020) was an American composer and arranger of popular songs, film music and jazz. The musicians he worked with include Count Basie, Frank Sinatra, Peggy Lee, Anita O'Day, Barbra Streisand, Tony Benn ...

with lyrics by

Johnny Mercer John Herndon Mercer (November 18, 1909 – June 25, 1976) was an American lyricist, songwriter, and singer, as well as a record label executive who co-founded Capitol Records with music industry businessmen Buddy DeSylva and Glenn E. Wallic ...

. It was recorded by

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the " Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular entertainers of the 1940s, 1950s, and ...

with

Nelson Riddle Nelson Smock Riddle Jr. (June 1, 1921 – October 6, 1985) was an American arranger, composer, bandleader and orchestrator whose career stretched from the late 1940s to the mid-1980s. He worked with many world-famous vocalists at Capitol Recor ...

arranging and conducting on October 3, 1964 and was included on the Reprise LP '' Softly, as I Leave You''. It was later recorded by

Andy Williams Howard Andrew Williams (December 3, 1927 – September 25, 2012) was an American singer. He recorded 43 albums in his career, of which 15 have been gold certified and three platinum certified. He was also nominated for six Grammy Awards. He hos ...

for '' Dear Heart'' (1965) and by

Barbra Streisand Barbara Joan "Barbra" Streisand (; born April 24, 1942) is an American singer, actress and director. With a career spanning over six decades, she has achieved success in multiple fields of entertainment, and is among the few performers awar ...

for '' The Movie Album'' (2003).

Fashion

The women's hairstyles, dress fashions, makeup and shoes are all strictly 1964 not 1944.

Trivia

* The party scene was filmed on the same day as President John F. Kennedy's assassination.

Comparison with the novel

''The Americanization of Emily'' is based on

's 1959 novel of the same name. "'Has Pat been Americanized?' ... 'She carries a diaphragm in her kit-bag'", p. 23; Strawberries "too forbidden, too expensive", p. 31; "this dress... came from Saks Fifth Avenue in the diplomatic pouch", p. 54; "Whoring is a peacetime activity", p. 102; "how can I know whether I love you for yourself or for the strawberries?" p. 104. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' ran a brief news item mentioning Huie's novel prior to its publication, but never reviewed it, although in 1963

's development of the novel into a screenplay was found worthy of note.Weiler, A. H. "Movie Panorama from a Local Vantage Point, ''The New York Times'', April 7, 1963, p. X15 A first draft of the screenplay for the film was written by George Goodman, who previously had a success at MGM with '' The Wheeler Dealers'' (1963), also with James Garner in the male lead and with the same director and producer. In 1964, a

Broadway musical Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is generally the spelling for this common noun in the United States (see American and British English spelling differences), 130 of the 144 extant and extinct Broadway venues use (used) the spelling ''Th ...

with music written by John Barry was announced. Chayefsky's adaptation, while retaining the title, characters, situation, background and many specific plot incidents, told a very different story. He said, "I found the book, which is serious in tone, essentially a funny satire, and that's how I'm treating it." The screenplay's theme of cowardice as a virtue has no parallel in the novel; in fact, the novel does not mention cowardice at all. The screenplay implies, but never explicitly explains, what is meant by the term "Americanization." The novel uses "Americanized" to refer to a woman who accepts, as a normal condition of wartime, the exchange of her sexual favors for gifts of rare wartime commodities. Thus, in reply to the question "Has Pat been Americanized?", a character answers: This theme runs throughout the novel. Another character says, "We operate just like a whorehouse ... except we don't sell it for cash. We swap it for Camels igarettesand nylons tockingsand steak and eggs and lipstick ... this dress ... came from

Saks Fifth Avenue Saks Fifth Avenue (originally Saks & Company; colloquially Saks) is an American luxury department store chain headquartered in New York City and founded by Andrew Saks. The original store opened in the F Street shopping district of Washingt ...

in the

diplomatic pouch A diplomatic bag, also known as a diplomatic pouch, is a container with certain legal protections used for carrying official correspondence or other items between a diplomatic mission and its home government or other diplomatic, consular, or other ...

." Emily asks Jimmy, "Am I behaving like a whore?" Jimmy replies, "Whoring is a peacetime activity." The screenplay uses

Hershey bar The Hershey's Milk Chocolate Bar (commonly called the Hershey's Bar, or more simply the Hershey Bar) is a flagship chocolate bar manufactured by The Hershey Company. Hershey refers to it as "The Great American Chocolate Bar". The Hershey Milk Cho ...

s to symbolize the luxuries enjoyed by Americans and their "Americanized" companions, but the novel uses strawberries. The novel briefly mentions that Emily's mother, Mrs. Barham, has been mentally affected by wartime stress, but she is not a major character. There is no mention of her self-deception or pretense that her husband and son are still alive. The film contains a long scene between Charlie and Mrs. Barham, full of eloquent antiwar rhetoric, in which Charlie breaks down Mrs. Barham's denial and reduces her to tears while insisting that he has performed an act of kindness. The novel has no parallel to this scene. In the film, Charlie is comically unprepared to make the documentary film demanded by Admiral Jessup and is assisted only by bumbling drunken servicemen played by

and

. But in the novel, Charlie has been a

public relations Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization (such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization) to the public in order to influence their perception. ...

professional in civilian life, takes the assignment seriously and leads a team of competent cinematographers.

Reception

Critical

In a contemporary review for ''

'', critic

Bosley Crowther Francis Bosley Crowther Jr. (July 13, 1905 – March 7, 1981) was an American journalist, writer, and film critic for ''The New York Times'' for 27 years. His work helped shape the careers of many actors, directors and screenwriters, though his ...

praised Chayefsky's screenplay as including "some remarkably good writing with some slashing irreverence." ''The Americanization of Emily'' has a 93% rating on

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...

based on fourteen reviews, with an average score of 7.39/10. In ''

Slant Slant can refer to: Bias *Bias or other non-objectivity in journalism, politics, academia or other fields Technical * Slant range, in telecommunications, the line-of-sight distance between two points which are not at the same level * Slant d ...

'' magazine, Nick Schager wrote, "Though a bit overstuffed with long-winded speeches, Chayefsky's scabrously funny script brims with snappy, crackling dialogue." In ''A Journey Through American Literature'', academic Kevin J. Hayes praised Chayefsky's speeches for Garner as "stirring."

Accolades

The film was nominated for Academy Awards in 1965 for Best Art Direction and Best Cinematography, and in 1966 Julie Andrews' portrayal of Emily earned her a nomination for a BAFTA Award for Best British Actress. ''The Americanization of Emily'' was among the films selected for ''The New York Times Guide to the Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made''.

Home media

''The Americanization of Emily'' was released on

Blu-ray The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of st ...

Warner Home Video Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Inc. (formerly known as Warner Home Video and WCI Home Video and sometimes credited as Warner Home Entertainment) is the home video distribution division of Warner Bros. It was founded in 1978 as WCI Home Vide ...

on March 11, 2014 via Warner Archive.

References

External links

* * * * *
James Garner Interview on the ''Charlie Rose Show''

James Garner interview
at

Archive of American Television The Interviews: An Oral History of Television (formerly titled the Archive of American Television) is a project of the nonprofit Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Foundation in North Hollywood, Los Angeles, that records interviews with notable ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Americanization Of Emily, The 1964 films 1964 comedy-drama films 1964 romantic comedy films 1960s English-language films American comedy-drama films American black-and-white films American romantic comedy films American war drama films Anti-war films about World War II Films based on American novels Films based on military novels Films directed by Arthur Hiller Films scored by Johnny Mandel Films with screenplays by Paddy Chayefsky Films shot at MGM-British Studios Films set in 1944 Films set in London Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films Military humor in film Operation Overlord films War romance films Filmways films 1960s American films