''Monte Carlo'' is a 1986 American two-part, four-hour television
miniseries
A miniseries or mini-series is a television series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. "Limited series" is another more recent US term which is sometimes used interchangeably. , the popularity of miniseries format ...
starring
Joan Collins
Dame Joan Henrietta Collins (born 23 May 1933) is an English actress, author and columnist. Collins is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Award, a People's Choice Award, two Soap Opera Digest Awards and a Primetime ...
and
George Hamilton. An adaptation of the 1983 novel of the same name by Stephen Sheppard, it is a
spy thriller
Spy fiction is a genre of literature involving espionage as an important context or plot device. It emerged in the early twentieth century, inspired by rivalries and intrigues between the major powers, and the establishment of modern intelligen ...
set in
Monaco
Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign
''Sovereign'' is a title which can be applied to the highest leader in various categories. The word ...
during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
. The miniseries was produced by
Gerald W. Abrams
Gerald William Abrams (born September 26, 1939) is an American television producer who has produced many TV movies starting in the mid-1970s.(May 4, 2006)Director's Cut: No love lost on Abrams, ''Vox Magazine'' (''Columbia Missourian'')
Early ...
, Collins and her then-husband
Peter Holm
Peter Holm (born Peter Sjöholm; 16 June 1947) is a former pop singer and Swedish playboy who was married to actress Joan Collins between November 1985 and August 1987. He became her manager and co-produced two of her television mini-series wit ...
.
Cast
*
Joan Collins
Dame Joan Henrietta Collins (born 23 May 1933) is an English actress, author and columnist. Collins is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Award, a People's Choice Award, two Soap Opera Digest Awards and a Primetime ...
as Katrina Petrovna
*
George Hamilton as Harry Price
*
Lisa Eilbacher
Lisa Marie Eilbacher (born May 5, 1956) is a retired American actress.
Early life
Lisa Marie Eilbacher was born in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, the daughter of an American oil company executive. She was raised in France. Her two siblings are also acto ...
as Maggie Egan
*
Lauren Hutton
Lauren Hutton (born Mary Laurence Hutton; November 17, 1943) is an American model and actress. Born and raised in the southern United States, Hutton relocated to New York City in her early adulthood to begin a modeling career. Though she was ini ...
as Evelyn MacIntyre
*
Robert Carradine
Robert Reed Carradine ( ; born March 24, 1954) is an American actor. A member of the Carradine family, he made his first appearances on television Western series such as ''Bonanza'' and his brother David's TV series, '' Kung Fu''. Carradine's f ...
as Bobby Morgan
*
Malcolm McDowell
Malcolm McDowell (born Malcolm John Taylor; 13 June 1943) is a British actor, producer, and television presenter. He is best known for portraying Alex DeLarge in '' A Clockwork Orange.'' He was born in the Horsforth suburb of Leeds and raised i ...
as Christopher Quinn
*
Peter Vaughan
Peter Vaughan (born Peter Ewart Ohm; 4 April 1923 – 6 December 2016) was an English character actor known for many supporting roles in British film and television productions. He also acted extensively on the stage.
He is perhaps best known ...
as Pabst
Production
Adapted from the 1983 novel ''Monte Carlo'' by Stephen Sheppard (
Summit Books
Simon & Schuster () is an American publishing company and a subsidiary of Paramount Global. It was founded in New York City on January 2, 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. As of 2016, Simon & Schuster was the third largest publ ...
, ), the teleplay was written by
Peter Lefcourt
Peter Lefcourt (born 1946) is an American television producer, a film and television screenwriter, and a novelist.
Lefcourt's early career involved writing teleplays for primetime series such as ''Cagney and Lacey'', '' Scarecrow and Mrs. King'' ...
. The miniseries was produced by
Gerald W. Abrams
Gerald William Abrams (born September 26, 1939) is an American television producer who has produced many TV movies starting in the mid-1970s.(May 4, 2006)Director's Cut: No love lost on Abrams, ''Vox Magazine'' (''Columbia Missourian'')
Early ...
, Collins and her then-husband
Peter Holm
Peter Holm (born Peter Sjöholm; 16 June 1947) is a former pop singer and Swedish playboy who was married to actress Joan Collins between November 1985 and August 1987. He became her manager and co-produced two of her television mini-series wit ...
. Directed by
Anthony Page
Anthony Page (21 September 1935 in Bangalore, Karnataka, India) is a British stage and film director. Biography
When Page was 19, he went to Canada on a free passage with the Royal Canadian Air Force and hitchhiked to New York where he studied ...
, it was reported to have cost $9 million.
Broadcast and reception
The four-hour miniseries was broadcast in two parts on
CBS starting on November 9, 1986.
John J. O'Connor of ''
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 ...
'' wrote that "''Monte Carlo'' gives us the beginnings of World War II as they might have been conceived and executed by a couturier." He noted that Collins has "more than three dozen costume changes", and that she "is convinced that her fans want only romantic adventures and beautiful people in gorgeous clothes".
Collins also produced and starred in the CBS miniseries ''
Sins
In a religious context, sin is a transgression against divine law. Each culture has its own interpretation of what it means to commit a sin. While sins are generally considered actions, any thought, word, or act considered immoral, selfish, s ...
'' earlier the same year.
References
External links
{{Anthony Page
1986 television films
1986 films
1980s American television miniseries
Television shows based on British novels
World War II television series
Espionage television series
Television shows set in Monaco
CBS network films
Films directed by Anthony Page
Films scored by Stanley Myers