''Windjammer'' is a 1958 documentary film that recorded a voyage of the Norwegian

sail training From its modern interpretations to its antecedents when maritime nations would send young naval officer candidates to sea (e.g., see Outward Bound), sail training provides an unconventional and effective way of building many useful skills on and ...

ship A ship is a large watercraft that travels the world's oceans and other sufficiently deep waterways, carrying cargo or passengers, or in support of specialized missions, such as defense, research, and fishing. Ships are generally distinguished ...

Christian Radich ''Christian Radich'' is a Norwegian full-rigged ship, named after a Norwegian shipowner. The vessel was built at Framnæs shipyard in Sandefjord, Norway, and was delivered on 17 June 1937. The owner was The Christian Radich Sail Training Foundat ...

''. ''Windjammer'' was produced by

Louis de Rochemont Louis Clark de Rochemont (January 13, 1899 – December 23, 1978) was an American film maker known for creating, along with Roy E. Larsen, the monthly theatrically shown newsreels ''The March of Time''. His brother, Richard, was also a pro ...

and directed by Louis de Rochemont III. It was the only film to be shot in the widescreen

Cinemiracle Cinemiracle was a widescreen cinema format competing with Cinerama developed in the 1950s. It was ultimately unsuccessful, with only a single film produced and released in the format. Like Cinerama it used 3 cameras to capture a 2.59:1 image. Cine ...

process, which came with a seven-track stereophonic soundtrack.

Filming

The ''Christian Radich'' and its Norwegian crew were filmed while sailing from

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

, via the island of Madeira, across the Atlantic to the

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean ...

, to New York City,

Portsmouth, New Hampshire Portsmouth is a city in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. At the 2020 census it had a population of 21,956. A historic seaport and popular summer tourist destination on the Piscataqua River bordering the state of Maine, Portsm ...

, and then back home to Bergen in Norway. The film features a score by Morton Gould, with additional musical performances by cellist

Pablo Casals Pau Casals i Defilló (Catalan: ; 29 December 187622 October 1973), usually known in English by his Castilian Spanish name Pablo Casals,

and

Arthur Fiedler Arthur Fiedler (December 17, 1894 – July 10, 1979) was an American conductor known for his association with both the Boston Symphony and Boston Pops orchestras. With a combination of musicianship and showmanship, he made the Boston Pops one ...

conducting the

Boston Pops Orchestra The Boston Pops Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts, specializing in light classical and popular music. The orchestra's current music director is Keith Lockhart. Founded in 1885 as an offshoot of the Boston Symp ...

. A musical highlight through the film is the

Piano Concerto A piano concerto is a type of concerto, a solo composition in the classical music genre which is composed for a piano player, which is typically accompanied by an orchestra or other large ensemble. Piano concertos are typically virtuoso showpie ...

Edvard Grieg Edvard Hagerup Grieg ( , ; 15 June 18434 September 1907) was a Norwegian composer and pianist. He is widely considered one of the foremost Romantic era composers, and his music is part of the standard classical repertoire worldwide. His use of ...

, which accompanies the voyage narrative about one of the sea-cadets who is a piano-student preparing to play the concerto in Boston. The film also features a meeting with the German ship '' Pamir'', which sank in a hurricane in September 1957.

Presentation

The world premiere was on April 8, 1958, at

Grauman's Chinese Theatre Grauman's Chinese Theatre (branded as TCL Chinese Theatre for naming rights reasons) is a movie palace on the historic Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6925 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, United States. The original Chinese ...

, Hollywood, where the movie ran for 36 weeks. The East Coast premiere took place at New York's Roxy Theatre on April 9 where it was shown for 22 weeks on a special curved screen 100 by in size. The film was also exhibited at specially equipped cinemas in America, Canada, and Europe. Later it was shown in wide release in

Cinerama Cinerama is a widescreen process that originally projected images simultaneously from three synchronized 35mm projectors onto a huge, deeply curved screen, subtending 146° of arc. The trademarked process was marketed by the Cinerama corporati ...

theaters worldwide. It was particularly popular in the Scandinavian nations and in its 29-week run in

had more paid admissions (401,320) than the city's population at the time (375,000). The film begins in non-widescreen format (1.33: 1 aspect ratio) as the crew prepares for the voyage. When the ship finally sets out (about fifteen minutes into the picture), the screen expands to Cinemiracle dimensions, virtually the same as those of Cinerama.

Cast

* Niels Arntsen, First officer *

Erik Bye Erik Erikssønn Bye (March 1, 1926 – October 13, 2004) was a versatile Norwegian-American journalist, artist, author, film actor, folk singer and radio and television personality. He was one of the 20th century's most well-known and popular ra ...

, Narrator *

Pablo Casals Pau Casals i Defilló (Catalan: ; 29 December 187622 October 1973), usually known in English by his Castilian Spanish name Pablo Casals,

, Himself *

, Himself * Gunnulv Hauge, Doctor * Nils Hermansen, Chief engineer * Yngvar Kjelstrup, Captain * Sven Erik Libaek, Cadet #35 *

Harald Tusberg Harald Tusberg (born 6 April 1935 in Bergen) is a Norwegian former television personality. He was host of many Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation programs, including the Norwegian version of ''This Is Your Life'' () and the Eurovision Song Conte ...

, Cadet #32

References

Bibliography

External links