''Christopher Columbus'' is a 1949

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

biographical film A biographical film or biopic () is a film that dramatizes the life of an actual person or group of people. Such films show the life of a historical person and the central character's real name is used. They differ from Docudrama, docudrama films ...

starring

Fredric March Fredric March (born Ernest Frederick McIntyre Bickel; August 31, 1897 – April 14, 1975) was an American actor, regarded as one of Hollywood's most celebrated stars of the 1930s and 1940s.Obituary '' Variety'', April 16, 1975, page 95. As ...

Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus (; between 25 August and 31 October 1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italians, Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed Voyages of Christopher Columbus, four Spanish-based voyages across the At ...

and

Florence Eldridge Florence Eldridge (born Florence McKechnie, September 5, 1901 – August 1, 1988) was an American actress. She was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play in 1957 for her performance in '' Long Day's Journey into Night''. E ...

as Queen Isabella. It is loosely based on the 1941 novel '' Columbus'' by

Rafael Sabatini Rafael Sabatini (29 April 1875 – 13 February 1950) was an Italian people, Italian-born British writer of novels, writer of romance novel, romance and adventure novel, adventure novels. He is best known for his worldwide bestsellers: ''The Sea ...

with much of the screenplay rewritten by

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

and

Muriel Box Violette Muriel Box, Baroness Gardiner, (22 September 1905 – 18 May 1991) was an English screenwriter and director, Britain's most prolific female director, having directed 12 feature films and one featurette. Her screenplay for '' The Sevent ...

Plot

Christopher Columbus, an explorer from Genoa, Italy, arrives in Spain with his son seeking funds for a trip to India. He obtains an introduction at court from Father Perez, the former confessor for Queens Isabella. Columbus is opposed by Francisco de Bobadilla, who uses Beatriz to distract Columbus, However eventually the Queen agrees to finance Columbus's ships, the Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria, on its journey. On the trip over, the crew threaten mutiny. Columbus promises to turn back if no land is found in three days. On the third night, Columbus sees a light and they reach the New World. Columbus returns to Spain a hero but continues to face opposition at court, even as his discoveries help turn Spain into a rich country.

Cast

as Queen Isabella * Francis L. Sullivan as

Francisco de Bobadilla Francisco de Bobadilla (c. 1448 – 11 July 1502) was an official under the Crown of Castile and a knight of the Order of Calatrava. He was also the nephew of Beatriz de Bobadilla, marchioness and of Peñalosa, a patron of Christopher Columbus ...

* Kathleen Ryan as Beatriz * Derek Bond as Diego de Arana *

Nora Swinburne Leonora Mary Johnson (24 July 1902 – 1 May 2000), known professionally as Nora Swinburne, was an English actress who appeared in many British films. Early years Swinburne was born in Bath, Somerset, the daughter of Henry Swinburne Johnson ...

as Joanna de Torres *

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 Sofaer was born in R ...

Luis de Santángel Luis de Santángel (died 1498) was a third-generation ''converso'' in Spain during the late fifteenth century. Santángel worked as ''escribano de ración'' to King Ferdinand II and Queen Isabella I of Spain which left him in charge of the Roya ...

* Linden Travers as Beatriz de Peraza *

James Robertson Justice James Robertson Justice (15 June 1907 – 2 July 1975) was a British actor. He often portrayed pompous authority figures in comedies, including each of the seven films in the ''Doctor'' series. He also co-starred with Gregory Peck in seve ...

Martín Pinzón Martin may refer to: Places Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Europe * Martin, Croatia, a village * Martin, Slovakia, a city * Martín del Río, Aragón, Spain * Mart ...

* Dennis Vance as Francisco Pinzón * Richard Aherne as Vicente Pinzón *

Felix Aylmer Sir Felix Edward Aylmer Jones (21 February 1889 – 2 September 1979) was an English stage actor who also appeared in the cinema and on television. Aylmer made appearances in films with comedians such as Will Hay and George Formby. Early life ...

as Father Pérez *

Francis Lister Francis Lister (2 April 1899 – 28 October 1951) was a British actor. He was married to the actresses Nora Swinburne (1924–32) and Margot Grahame (1934-36). Filmography References External links * * *ThFrancis Lister Collectionis held ...

as King Ferdinand *

Edward Rigby Edward Coke MC (5 February 1879 – 5 April 1951), known professionally as Edward Rigby, was a British character actor. Early life Rigby was born at Ashford, Kent, England, the second son of Dr William Harriott Coke and his wife, Mary Elizabe ...

as Pedro *

Niall MacGinnis Patrick Niall MacGinnis (29 March 1913 – 6 January 1977) was an Irish actor and physician. On screen, he was well-known for his character roles with a "poetic timbre", though he occasionally played leading parts like the title character in ...

as Juan de la Costa * Ralph Truman as Captain * Ronald Adam as Talavera * Guy Le Feuvre as Admiral * Lyn Evans as Lope * David Cole as Columbus' Son * Hugh Pryse as Almoner *

Stuart Lindsell Reginald Stuart Lindsell (18 July 1892, Biggleswade, Bedfordshire – 9 July 1969, London) was a British actor, often seen in upper-class roles. He was sometimes credited as R. Stuart Lindsell. He also served as an officer in the Middlesex R ...

as Prior

Development

The film was a passion project for producer

Sydney Box Frank Sydney Box (29 April 1907 – 25 May 1983) was a British film producer and screenwriter, and brother of British film producer Betty Box. In 1940, he founded the documentary film company Verity Films with Jay Lewis. He produced and co- ...

who in 1945 had a huge success with '' The Seventh Veil''. In September 1946, Box announced he would make the film from Sabatini's novel for the United Kingdom Moving Picture Company. Finance would come from the Rank Organisation. The film was part of a deliberate attempt by Rank to break into the American market, following the path blazed with films like ''

Henry V Henry V may refer to: People * Henry V, Duke of Bavaria (died 1026) * Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor (1081/86–1125) * Henry V, Duke of Carinthia (died 1161) * Henry V, Count Palatine of the Rhine (–1227) * Henry V, Count of Luxembourg (1216–1281 ...

'' (1944) and '' Caesar and Cleopatra'' (1945). John Woolf, head of international distribution for Rank, said in October 1946 that:

Before we smacked ''Henry V'' and ''Caesar and Cleopatra'' into the American Markets, we were getting a poor showing in the United States. Although the most optimistic figures have been put out in London about the achievements of ''Henry'' and ''Caesar'', in fact they have had to fight hard to make their way. The important thing to remember is this— that these big films enabled us to break through the highly controlled theatre circuits in America. We are using them as a spearhead to get a showing of British films.

For a time it seemed there would be a rival movie on the same subject produced by

Edward Small Edward Small (born Edward Schmalheiser, February 1, 1891 – January 25, 1977) was an American film producer from the late 1920s through 1970, who was enormously prolific over a 50-year career. He is best known for the movies ''The Count of Mon ...

from a biography by David Lawrence. The other film was not made. When Box became head of

Gainsborough Pictures Gainsborough Pictures was a British film studio based on the south bank of the Regent's Canal, in Poole Street, Hoxton in the former Metropolitan Borough of Shoreditch, east London. Gainsborough Studios was active between 1924 and 1951. The co ...

he immediately put the project in development at that studio. In January 1947, Sabatini was reportedly working on the script.

Casting

In October 1946, Box said he wanted a young, virile actor to play the lead.

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 ...

was originally mentioned. In January 1947,

Arturo de Córdova Arturo García Rodríguez (8 May 1908 – 3 November 1973), known professionally as Arturo de Córdova, was a Mexican actor who appeared in over a hundred films. Biography Career Arturo García Rodríguez was born in Mérida, Yucatán on 8 May ...

was announced as star. In August 1947, Sydney Box arrived in Hollywood to sign a star. He met with

James Mason James Neville Mason (; 15 May 190927 July 1984) was an English actor. He achieved considerable success in British cinema before becoming a star in Hollywood. He was nominated for three Academy Awards, three Golden Globes (winning once) and two ...

. Then in September he announced he had signed Fredric March and Florence Eldridge to play the leads. "It's a great part", said March.

Shooting

March arrived in England in April 1948 for what was meant to be a five-month shoot. Studio filming took place at Pinewood and there was location filming in Barbados. March had recently had an operation and suffered a relapse while in London. Two ships, replicas of the ''Nina'' and ''Santa Maria'' were built especially for the film and in April 1948 they were shipped from Spain to London. Shooting was often difficult. The replica of the ''Santa Maria'' broke its moorings during a squall in the West Indies and drifted for two nights and a day with people on board before it was rescued. Then a fire broke out and the ship was burnt. It had to be rebuilt at a cost of £100,000 because scenes set on it had yet to be shot. March collapsed one day due to heatstroke.

Reshoots

A new subplot was added towards the end of shooting involving the romance between Columbus and the sister (Kathleen Ryan) of his lieutenant (Derek Bond). March was reportedly very disappointed with the final film. The

Francoist Francoist Spain (), also known as the Francoist dictatorship (), or Nationalist Spain () was the period of Spanish history between 1936 and 1975, when Francisco Franco ruled Spain after the Spanish Civil War with the title . After his death i ...

Spanish government considered the portrait of Columbus to be unflattering. In response the leading Spanish studio CIFESA produced '' Dawn of America'' (1951), which portrayed Columbus as a more daring figure. Muriel Box later called the film "a calamity but we couldn’t avoid it happening." She added:

We were pressed into making it, didn’t want to do it at all. The script had been paid for by Gainsborough Pictures, and when we got there in 1945 they asked us to make it. I got in one or two other authors to help us work on it, but it was doomed from the start. The whole unit went out to the Caribbean with the Santa Maria and they were sailing the ship around, and they lost it! Later it caught fire!.. There was trouble with the artistes, everything. The first rehearsal we called was for a preliminary run-through of the script, to give the artistes an idea of the film as a whole. We called the whole cast to the Dorchester but Fredric March... didn’t turn up... We waited an hour or more, then I sent off the first assistant to find them. Freddie was very apologetic but said he couldn’t possibly come until their contract was signed. Of course people in England knew that, if Arthur Rank was financing the film, he would never break his word, that was enough. But it wasn’t the same for Freddie; he had too much experience of broken words in Hollywood.

Reception

Critical

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' called it "largely an uninspired succession of legendary but lifeless episodes."

Box-office

In April 1949 J. Arthur Rank told

Hedda Hopper Elda Furry (May 2, 1885February 1, 1966), known professionally as Hedda Hopper, was an American gossip columnist and actress. At the height of her influence in the 1940s, more than 35 million people read her columns. A strong supporter of the Hous ...

he thought the film would be his most successful of 1949. However, the film failed to recoup its enormous cost at the box office. By 1953, it only grossed in theatrical rentals around the world, leading to a loss of more than US$2 million.

References

Bibliography

* Spicer, Andrew. ''British Film Makers: Sydney Box''. Manchester University Press, 2006.

External links

*
''Christopher Columbus''
at

TCMDB Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie-oriented pay-TV network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasting campus in the Midtown business district of ...

*
Review of film
at ''

''
''Christopher Columbus''
at BFI
Original text of novel ''Columbus'' by Rafael Sabatini
at

Project Gutenberg Project Gutenberg (PG) is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, as well as to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks." It was founded in 1971 by American writer Michael S. Hart and is the oldest digital li ...

{{Authority control 1949 films Adventure films based on actual events British biographical drama films British historical drama films 1940s historical drama films Films directed by David MacDonald (director) Depictions of Isabella I of Castile in film Gainsborough Pictures films Films set in Spain Films set in pre-Columbian America Films set in the 1490s Fiction about Christopher Columbus' first voyage Films with screenplays by Sydney Box Films produced by Sydney Box 1940s biographical drama films Age of Discovery films Sea adventure films Films based on British novels 1949 drama films 1940s British films Films scored by Arthur Bliss