the historic asolo theatre, http://www.ringling.org/historicasolotheater.aspx, is the

8/14/2019 The Historic Asolo Theatre, Http://Www.ringling.org/HistoricAsoloTheater.aspx, Is The

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The Historic Asolo Theatre, http://www.ringling.org/HistoricAsoloTheater.aspx,is the only recreated 18th century theatre in the United States. Its yet another ofthe wonderful, many faceted aspects of The John and Mable Ringling Museum,http://www.ringling.org/which sits at the end of University Parkway in Sarasota.The current cinema program is We Could Make Beautiful Music Together: Six

Decades of Academy Award Winning Film Scores:

Film Score by Year Chariots of Fire Vangelis 1981Sunset Boulevard Franz Waxman 1950 The Red Violin John Corigliano 1998 Summer of 42 Michael Legrand 1971The Heiress Aaron Copland 1949Tom Jones Jon Addison 1963

The HeiressThis is a movie about which I knew NOTHING. Hadnt seen it on tvlate on a Saturday night. Hadnt heard anyone talk about it. Didntknow who was in it, or why it was so good.

Its a pretty simple story: boy meets girl. However, boy may be aftergirl solely for her money. The boy is dashingly handsome, andseemingly smitten. The girl is plain, a nervous conversationalist, and

can never live up to her fathers idolization of her dead mother.

Costume DramaI probably never heard of this movie, or I ignored it if I had heardabout it because its a costume drama. You know this kind of movie:everyone speaks properly and practices good social graces. Its set in19th century New York City, and is based on the play The Heiress,which is itself based on the Henry James novel Washington Square.

Yawn, right?

Wrong.

Its in black and white and its gorgeous. Its set design, costumes,
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music (of course), and cast work in perfect harmony. Its theme oflove innocent, optimistic, pure taken advantage of (possibly) istimeless, universal. Like Sunset Boulevard, this films emotionalintensity remains undiluted, even after all these years.

Olivia de Havilland is the most beautiful plain woman Ive ever seen.Montgomery Clift is the PERFECT handsome-dude-come-a-calling-to-seduce. And Ralph Richardson is the stern Dad who knows betterand yet wants to see his daughter married.

I so wanted Clifts love for de Havilland to be true. I did NOT want herheart to be broken. I wanted her Dad to be wrong.

Is Clift genuinely in love with de Havilland? Or is he after her money?

Rent the movie and find out. Or better yet, see it on the big screen.And bring a hanky. I didnt cry, and Ive no idea if anyone in theaudience cried, but they were vocal in their hope, their skepticism,and their hurt.

Awards and Biographies

Heres the list ofThe HeiressAcademy nominations, and awards,and biographies of the films winners:

Nominated: Best PictureWhat Won that Year: All The Kings Men

Nominated: Best Director, William WylerWho Won That Year: Robert Rossen,All the Kings Men

Nominated: Best Supporting Actor, Ralph RichardsonWho Won That Year: John Ireland,All the Kings Men

Nominated: Best Cinematography, Black and White, Leo ToverWho Won That Year: Paul C. Vogel, Battleground


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Won: Original Music Score - Aaron CoplandWon: Best Actress Olivia de HavillandWon: Best Art Direction/Set Decoration, Black and White

- John Meehan, Harry Horner, and Emile KuriWon: Best Costume Design, Black and White

- Edith Head, and Gile Steele

BiographiesWikipedia is the source for the following biographies

Won: Original Music Score - Aaron CoplandAaron Copland (November 14, 1900 December 2, 1990) was anAmerican nationalist composer[1] of concert and film music, as well

as an accomplished pianist. Instrumental in forging a distinctlyAmerican style of composition, he was widely known as "the dean ofAmerican composers".[2] Copland's music achieved a balancebetween modern music and American folk styles.

Film Scores1930s: Of Mice and Men; Our Town1940s: The North Star (nominated); The Red Pony; The Heiress(won)

1960s: Something WildCopland also scored a couple of documentaries.

Won: Best Actress Olivia de HavillandOlivia Mary de Havilland (born July 1, 1916) is an American film andstage actress. She is the elder sister of actress Joan Fontaine. Alongwith her sister, de Havilland is one of the last surviving female starsfrom 1930s Hollywood. She is also the last living lead from Gone withthe Wind.

She won Best Actress Academy Awards forTo Each His Own (1946)and The Heiress (1949), and was also widely praised for herAcademy Awardnominated performance in The Snake Pit(1948).This was one of the earliest films to attempt a realistic portrayal of


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mental illness, and de Havilland was lauded for her willingness to playa role that was completely devoid of glamor and that confronted suchcontroversial subject matter. She won the New York Film CriticsAward for both The Snake Pitand The Heiress.

Won: Best Art Direction/Set Decoration, Black and White- John Meehan, Harry Horner, and Emile Kuri

John Meehan (June 13, 1902 May 15, 1963) was an American artdirector and production designer.

He was born in Tehachapi, California and attended the University ofSouthern California. Meehan won three Academy Awards for his art

direction: William Wyler's 1949 The Heiress, Billy Wilder's 1950Sunset Boulevardand Richard Fleischer's 1954 adaptation of theJules Verne classic for Walt Disney, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.He also worked on The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (one of his firstfilms in 1946), and It Should Happen to Youin 1956.

Harry Horner (July 24, 1910 - December 5, 1994) was an Austrian artdirector who made a successful career in Hollywood. He was born in

the town of Holitz, which now belongs to the Czech Republic, toparents of the German-speaking minority in Austria-Hungarys crownland Bohemia.

He began his career working with Max Reinhardt in Vienna. WhenReinhardt moved to the United States in the early 30s, Horner wentalong with him

He won an Oscar in 1949 for his work on William Wyler's The Heiressand another in 1961 for Robert Rossen's drama The Hustler.

One of his first notable successes was George Cukor'sA Double Life(1947) and he soon found himself up on the Oscar podium in 1949 forhis work on William Wyler's The Heiress. He worked with Cukor again


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in 1950 on Born Yesterdayand then tried his hand at directing onseveral TV series, including Gunsmoke. He was nominated for a thirdtime in 1969 for Sydney Pollack's 30s drama They Shoot Horses,Don't They?.

Horner directed a few films beginning with Red Planet Mars andBeware, My Lovelyboth in 1952.

He retired after completing the Neil Diamond remake ofThe JazzSingerin 1980. He died of pneumonia in 1994 in Pacific Palisades,Los Angeles. His son is the Oscar-winning composer James Horner.His other son, Christopher Horner, is also working in several positionsin the film business.

Emile Kuri (11 June 1907 10 October 2000) was a Mexican-bornAmerican set decorator. He won two Academy Awards and wasnominated for six more in the category Best Art Direction.[1]

He was born in Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico, and died in LosAngeles, California, United States.

[edit] Selected filmography: Kuri won two Academy Awards for BestArt Direction and was nominated for six more:

Won* 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954)* The Heiress (1949)

Nominated* Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971)* Mary Poppins (1964)* The Absent-Minded Professor(1961)* Executive Suite (1954)* Carrie (1952)* Silver Queen (1942)


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Won: Best Costume Design, Black and White- Edith Head, and Gile Steele

Edith Head (October 28, 1897 October 24, 1981) was an Americancostume designer who had a long career in Hollywood that garneredeight Academy Awardsmore than any other woman in history.

In 1924, despite lacking art design or costume design experience,Head was hired as a costume sketch artist at Paramount Pictures inthe costume department. Later Head admitted to borrowing another

student's sketches for her job interview. She began designingcostumes for silent films commencing with The Wanderer in 1925,and by the 1930s had established herself as one of Hollywood'sleading costume designers. She worked at Paramount for 44 yearsuntil she went to Universal Pictures on March 27, 1967, possiblyprompted by her extensive work for director Alfred Hitchcock, whohad moved to Universal in 1960.

During her long career she was nominated for 35 Academy Awards,including every year from 1948 through 1966, and won eight times more Oscars than any other woman. She was responsible for some ofthe best-known Hollywood fashion images of her day, with hercostumes being worn by the most glamorous and famous actresses infilms. Head's influence on world fashion was far reaching, especiallyin the 1950s when she began appearing on Art Linkletter's televisionprogram and writing books on fashion.

Gile Steele (1908 - 1952) was a Hollywood costume designer. Hiscareer began at MGM in 1938 with one of his first assignments beingthe Norma Shearer film Marie Antoinette. He also worked on many ofthe company's prestige pictures including Pride and Prejudice andBoom Town (both 1940), Blossoms in the Dust and Dr. Jekyll and Mr.


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Hyde (both 1941), Mrs. Miniver (1942) and Madame Curie (1943). Hewas one of the first nominees when the category for Best CostumeDesign was introduced at the Academy Awards in 1948 for his workon The Emperor Waltz. He won the Oscar for The Heiress in 1949and Samson and Delilah in 1950. He died abruptly in 1952 at the ageof 43.

the historic asolo theatre, http://www.ringling.org/historicasolotheater.aspx, is the

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