''His Majesty O'Keefe'' is a 1954 American

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, ani ...

directed by

Byron Haskin Byron Conrad Haskin (April 22, 1899 – April 16, 1984) was an American film and television director, special effects creator and cinematographer. He is best known for directing '' The War of the Worlds'' (1953), one of many films where he ...

and starring

Burt Lancaster Burton Stephen Lancaster (November 2, 1913 – October 20, 1994) was an American actor and producer. Initially known for playing tough guys with a tender heart, he went on to achieve success with more complex and challenging roles over a 45-yea ...

. The cast also included Joan Rice,

André Morell Cecil André Mesritz (20 August 1909 – 28 November 1978), known professionally as André Morell, was an English actor. He appeared frequently in theatre, film and on television from the 1930s to the 1970s. His best known screen roles were as ...

Abraham Sofaer Abraham Isaac Sofaer (1 October 1896 – 21 January 1988) was a Burmese-born British actor who began his career on stage and became a familiar supporting player in film and on television in his later years. Life and career Although Sofaer was b ...

, Archie Savage, and

Benson Fong Benson Fong ( Chinese: ; October 10, 1916 – August 1, 1987) was an American character actor. Born in Sacramento, California, Fong was from a mercantile family of Chinese extraction. After graduating from high school in Sacramento, he studied ...

. The screenplay by

Borden Chase Borden Chase (January 11, 1900 – March 8, 1971) was an American writer. Career Early jobs Born Frank Fowler, he left school at fourteen went through an assortment of jobs, including driving for gangster Frankie Yale and working as a sandhog ...

and James Hill was based on the novel of the same name by Laurence Klingman and

Gerald Green Gerald Green (born January 26, 1986) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers of the NBA G League. He was drafted by the Boston Celtics with the 18th overall pick in the 2005 NBA draft. Know ...

(1952).

Plot summary

Captain David O'Keefe, seeking his fortune in the 19th century

South Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

, decides to enlist island natives to harvest

copra Copra (from ) is the dried, white flesh of the coconut from which coconut oil is extracted. Traditionally, the coconuts are sun-dried, especially for export, before the oil, also known as copra oil, is pressed out. The oil extracted from co ...

, but runs into a wall of cultural problems. Backed by a Chinese dentist, he obtains a ship and sets about harvesting copra while fending off cantankerous native chieftains and ambitious German empire-builders. The natives, happy with their existence, see no reason to work hard to obtain copra, either for a German trading company or for O'Keefe. He finally motivates them by showing them how to produce large quantities of

Rai stones A rai stone ( yap, raay), or fei stone, is one of many large artifacts that were manufactured and treasured by the native inhabitants of the Yap islands in Micronesia. They are also known as Yapese stone money or similar names. The typical r ...

, the stone money of Yap, their valued coinage.

Cast

Historical basis

The story is based on the life of a sailor named David O'Keefe who in 1871 was shipwrecked on Yap in the

Caroline Islands The Caroline Islands (or the Carolines) are a widely scattered archipelago of tiny islands in the western Pacific Ocean, to the north of New Guinea. Politically, they are divided between the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) in the ce ...

, where he found the natives highly prized

quarried at great effort and danger on the island of

Palau Palau,, officially the Republic of Palau and historically ''Belau'', ''Palaos'' or ''Pelew'', is an island country and microstate in the western Pacific. The nation has approximately 340 islands and connects the western chain of the ...

. He organized the natives to produce the large stone disks by employing modern methods and then used them to buy copra for coconut oil. The stones he produced were not valued as highly as those obtained by traditional methods due to the lack of personal sacrifice in their production, and the effect of an inflationary over-production.

Production

Original book

O'Keefe's life was turned into a 1950 book by Lawrence Klingman and Gerard Green. The ''Los Angeles Times'' said the writers did "a magnificent job". The ''Chicago Tribune'' called it a "well told story". The ''New York Times'' called it "interesting" and "curious".

Development

Film rights were optioned in December 1950 by

Norma Productions Norma may refer to: * Norma (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) Astronomy *Norma (constellation) *555 Norma, a minor asteroid * Cygnus Arm or Norma Arm, a spiral arm in the Milky Way galaxy Geography *Norma, Lazi ...

, the company of Harold Hecht and Burt Lancaster. In April 1951 Lancater announced

Fred Zinnemann Alfred ''Fred'' Zinnemann (April 29, 1907 – March 14, 1997) was an Austrian Empire-born American film director. He won four Academy Awards for directing and producing films in various genres, including thrillers, westerns, film noir and pla ...

would direct. Lancaster was very busy at this time in his career and the film was not made immediately. In January 1952 Frank Nugent was reported as working on the script. In May 1952

signed to direct. The film would be the last in a six-picture deal between Hecht, Lancaster and Warner Bros. The others had been ''

Kiss the Blood Off My Hands ''Kiss the Blood Off My Hands'' is a 1948 American noir-thriller film directed by Norman Foster. Based on the best-selling novel of the same name by Gerald Butler, it stars Joan Fontaine, Burt Lancaster and Robert Newton. The film faced minor ...

'', '' The First Time'', '' Ten Tall Men'', ''

The Flame and the Arrow ''The Flame and the Arrow'' is a 1950 American Technicolor swashbuckler film made by Warner Bros. and starring Burt Lancaster, Virginia Mayo and Nick Cravat. It was directed by Jacques Tourneur and produced by Harold Hecht and Frank Ross from ...

'', and '' The Crimson Pirate''.

Preproduction

Haskin arrived in

Sydney, Australia Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and List of cities in Oceania by population, Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metro ...

in June 1952 and five Australian actors had roles in the supporting cast, including Lloyd Berrell, Guy Doleman, Muriel Steinbeck, Grant Taylor and Harvey Adams.

Max Osbiston Maxwell Hamilton Osbiston (7 August 1914 – 12 March 1981) was an Australian actor, active in radio, stage, film and television. Biography Osbiston was born in Sydney, the son of Frank and Iolanthe Osbiston (née Margoliouth) of Cremorne, New So ...

was offered a role but turned it down due to his film commitments. Later in June Haskin moved to Fiji where the bulk of the movie was shot. The film was made with "frozen" English funds, so many English technicians and cast were used and it was decided to shoot on location in Fiji, a British colony at the time. Joan Rice was cast in July 1952.

Shooting

Fiming took four months, mostly on location in the South Pacific in Fiji – not Yap. Also, indigenous people and customs/dances portrayed in the movie were Fijian. The choreographer was

Daniel Nagrin Daniel Nagrin (May 22, 1917 – December 29, 2008) was an American modern dancer, choreographer, teacher, and author. He was born in New York City. Nagrin studied with Martha Graham, Anna Sokolow, Hanya Holm, Bill Matons and Helen Tamiris whom ...

. The unit was based at the Beachcomber Hotel at Deuba Beach in

Viti Levu Viti Levu (pronounced ) is the largest island in the Republic of Fiji. It is the site of the nation's capital, Suva, and home to a large majority of Fiji's population. Geology Fiji lies in a tectonically complex area between the Australian ...

. The entire village of Goloa five miles west of the hotel was rented. Two miles east of Deuba the unit built a temporary sound stage as well as a darkroom and lab. The village was handed over to the locals after the unit leftWitness of Cannibal Feast Helps in Production of Fiji Island Film: Natives Aid Stars Doing Film in Fijis Scott, John L. Los Angeles Times November 23, 1952: D1. "I can't say that we'd ever want to remake ''O'Keefe''," said Lancaster later. "It was so tough working in the humidity that one day I actually watched fungus grow on my clothes. Every day blazing sun or tropical rain beat down upon us and at night there were always mosquitos."LEAVES FROM LANCASTER'S LOGBOOK By WILLIAM H. BROWNELL Jr.HOLLYWOOD. New York Times January 18, 1953: X5. Haskin spoke highly of Australian actors saying:

American actors are hothouse plants by comparison because they don't have such an exacting apprenticeship as Australian radio and repertory give. Few of the unknowns we try out can pick up any script and do any kind of part with out rehearsal. But your boys can. And they don't mess about. Put them up in front of a camera and they get on with what's required of them.

Filming finished in November 1952.

Reception

The film was popular. However Warner Bros were unhappy by the fact it went over budget. Hecht and Lancaster brought in screenwriter James Hill to form Hecht-Hill-Lancaster and they signed with

United Artists United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American digital production company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the stu ...

Legacy

The film prompted

Guy Doleman Guy Doleman (22 November 1923 – 30 January 1996) was a New Zealand born actor, active in Australia, Britain and the United States. Early life Doleman was born in Hamilton, Waikato, New Zealand, later moving to Australia. Career During the 1 ...

to go to Hollywood. Director

later returned to Australia to make ''

Long John Silver Long John Silver is a Character (arts), fictional character and the main antagonist in the novel ''Treasure Island'' (1883) by Robert Louis Stevenson. The most colourful and complex character in the book, he continues to appear in popular cult ...

'' (1954).

References

*Chujoy, Anatole. ''The Dance Encyclopedia''. (Simon and Schuster, 1967)

External links

* * *
Review of film
at New York Times
Review of film
at Variety {{Authority control 1950s historical adventure films 1954 films American historical adventure films Films based on American novels Films directed by Byron Haskin Films produced by Burt Lancaster Films produced by Harold Hecht Films scored by Dimitri Tiomkin Films set in the 19th century Films set in the Federated States of Micronesia Films shot in Fiji Norma Productions films Pirate films Seafaring films Warner Bros. films 1950s English-language films 1950s American films