''Two for the Seesaw'' is a 1962 American romantic-

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

directed by

Robert Wise Robert Earl Wise (September 10, 1914 – September 14, 2005) was an American filmmaker. He won the Academy Awards for Best Director and Best Picture for his musical films ''West Side Story'' (1961) and ''The Sound of Music'' (1965). He was als ...

and starring

Robert Mitchum Robert Charles Durman Mitchum (August 6, 1917 – July 1, 1997) was an American actor. He is known for his antihero roles and film noir appearances. He received nominations for an Academy Award and a BAFTA Award. He received a star on the Holl ...

and

Shirley MacLaine Shirley MacLaine (born Shirley MacLean Beaty; April 24, 1934) is an American actress and author. With a career spanning over 70 years, she has received List of awards and nominations received by Shirley MacLaine, numerous accolades, including a ...

. It was adapted from the 1958 Broadway play written by

William Gibson William Ford Gibson (born March 17, 1948) is an American-Canadian speculative fiction writer and essayist widely credited with pioneering the science fiction subgenre known as cyberpunk. Beginning his writing career in the late 1970s, his ear ...

with

Henry Fonda Henry Jaynes Fonda (May 16, 1905 – August 12, 1982) was an American actor whose career spanned five decades on Broadway theatre, Broadway and in Hollywood. On screen and stage, he often portrayed characters who embodied an everyman image. Bo ...

and

Anne Bancroft Anne Bancroft (born Anna Maria Louisa Italiano; September 17, 1931 – June 6, 2005) was an American actress. Respected for her acting prowess and versatility, Bancroft received an Academy Award, three BAFTA Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, tw ...

(who was awarded the 1958

Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play The Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play is an honor presented at the Tony Awards, a ceremony established in 1947 as the Antoinette Perry Awards for Excellence in Theatre, to actresses for quality supporting roles in a Broadway theatre, ...

) in the lead roles.

Plot

Jerry Ryan (Mitchum) is a lawyer from Nebraska who has recently separated from his wife Tess and has moved to a shabby apartment in New York. He is struggling with the divorce, which is still being finalized, and takes long walks at night. At a party, he meets Gittel Mosca (MacLaine), a struggling dancer. They instantly get along, and begin to fall in love. But the relationship is hampered by their differences in background and temperament, and Jerry has difficulty separating himself emotionally from his wife. Jerry gets a job with a New York law firm and prepares to take the bar examination. He helps Gittel rent a loft for a dance studio, which she rents out to other dancers, and they prepare to move in together. Gittel becomes upset when she learns that Jerry's divorce from Tess has been finalized and he did not tell her about it. Jerry explains that even though he is divorced from his ex-wife on paper, they remain bonded in many ways. Jerry and Gittel break up, and Jerry decides to return to Nebraska to make up with Tess. Later, Jerry calls Gittel to say goodbye and they admit that they love each other.

Cast

as Jerry Ryan *

as Gittel Mosca *

Edmon Ryan Edmon Ryan (born Edmon Ryan Mossbarger; June 5, 1905 – August 4, 1984) was an American theater, film, and television actor. Early years A native of Cecilia, Kentucky, he was the son of Isham Edward Mossbarger and Pearl Shelton Mossbarger ...

as Frank Taubman *

Elisabeth Fraser Elisabeth Fraser (born Elisabeth Fraser Jonker, January 8, 1920 – May 5, 2005) was an American actress, best known for playing brassy blondes. Life and career Born Elisabeth Fraser Jonker on January 8, 1920, in Brooklyn, New York, she was ...

as Sophie *

Eddie Firestone Eddie Firestone (December 11, 1920 – March 1, 2007), sometimes known as Eddie Firestone Jr., was an American radio, television, and film actor who accumulated over 200 total credits during his performing career. He played the wino who was k ...

as Oscar * Billy Gray as Mister Jacoby

Production

The play was acquired by

Seven Arts Productions Seven Arts Productions was a production company which made films for release by other studios. It was founded in 1957 by Eliot Hyman, Ray Stark, and Norman Katz. Formation The company was formed in 1957. It came out of the company, Associa ...

for $350,000 plus a percentage of its earning. Another account said the purchase price was $600,000.

Elizabeth Taylor Dame Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor (February 27, 1932 – March 23, 2011) was an English and American actress. She began her career as a child actress in the early 1940s and was one of the most popular stars of classical Hollywood cinema in the 19 ...

was signed to star with the possibility of

Gregory Peck Eldred Gregory Peck (April 5, 1916 – June 12, 2003) was an American actor and one of the most popular film stars from the 1940s to the 1970s. In 1999, the American Film Institute named Peck the AFI's 100 Years...100 Stars, 12th-greatest male ...

co-starring. Later,

Paul Newman Paul Leonard Newman (January 26, 1925 – September 26, 2008) was an American actor, film director, race car driver, philanthropist, and activist. He was the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Paul Newman, numerous awards ...

was slated to star opposite Taylor in the film but when Taylor was forced to drop out because of shooting overruns on ''

Cleopatra Cleopatra VII Thea Philopator (; The name Cleopatra is pronounced , or sometimes in both British and American English, see and respectively. Her name was pronounced in the Greek dialect of Egypt (see Koine Greek phonology). She was ...

'', Newman was free to take the role of 'Fast Eddie' Felson in ''

The Hustler ''The Hustler'' is a 1961 American sports drama film, directed by Robert Rossen. It tells the story of small-time pool hustler "Fast Eddie" Felson, who challenges legendary pool player " Minnesota Fats". The film, which was based on the 195 ...

''. "Second Chance", the title tune, became a pop music and jazz standard, recorded by

Ella Fitzgerald Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April25, 1917June15, 1996) was an American singer, songwriter and composer, sometimes referred to as the "First Lady of Song", "Queen of Jazz", and "Lady Ella". She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phra ...

and other artists. At the

35th Academy Awards The 35th Academy Awards, honoring the best in film for 1962, were held on April 8, 1963, at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium in Santa Monica, California, hosted by Frank Sinatra. The year's most successful film was David Lean's '' Lawrence ...

, the "Song From Two for the Seesaw (Second Chance)" from ''Two for the Seesaw'' – Music by

André Previn André George Previn (; born Andreas Ludwig Priwin; April 6, 1929 – February 28, 2019) was a German-American pianist, composer, and conductor. His career had three major genres: Hollywood films, jazz, and classical music. In each he achieved ...

; Lyric by

Dory Langdon Dorothy Veronica "Dory" Previn (née Langan; October 22, 1925 – February 14, 2012) was an American lyricist, singer-songwriter and poet. During the late 1950s and 1960s, Previn was a lyricist on songs intended for motion pictures and, with h ...

was nominated for

Best Original Song The following is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various films, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best ...

but lost to '' Days of Wine and Roses''. The movie was also nominated for Best Cinematography, Black and White ( Ted D. McCord). However, '' The Longest Day'' ( Jean Bourgoin and Walter Wottitz) triumphed over it. MacLaine later claimed that she and Mitchum began a relationship during the filming of this film that lasted three years. The film was due to be shot over 60 days at the

Samuel Goldwyn Studio Samuel Goldwyn Studio was the name that Samuel Goldwyn used to refer to the lot located on the corner of Formosa Avenue and Santa Monica Boulevard in West Hollywood, California, as well as the offices and stages that his company, Samuel Goldw ...

West Hollywood, California West Hollywood is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Incorporated in 1984, it is home to the Sunset Strip. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. Census, its population was 35,757. History Most historical writing ...

plus location shooting in New York.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Two For The Seesaw 1962 films 1962 romantic drama films American romantic drama films American black-and-white films 1960s English-language films Films scored by André Previn American films based on plays Films directed by Robert Wise Films produced by Walter Mirisch Films set in New York City Films shot in New York City United Artists films Two-handers 1960s American films Films produced by Robert Wise English-language romantic drama films

Plot

Cast

Production

See also

References

External links