The Crimson Pirate (1952)

Director:

Robert Siodmak

Writer:

Roland Kibbee (written by)

Release Date:

27 September 1952 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Comedy

Tagline:

MAN OF NINE LIVES AND 1000 SURPRISES! (original print ad - all caps)

Plot:

Burt Lancaster plays a pirate with a taste for intrigue and acrobatics who involves himself in the goings...

Plot Keywords:

Scientist | Pirate | Caribbean | Rum | Man Disguised As Woman

Cast

Burt Lancaster	...	Capt. Vallo (The Crimson Pirate)
Nick Cravat	...	Ojo
Eva Bartok	...	Consuelo
Torin Thatcher	...	Humble Bellows
James Hayter	...	Prof. Prudence
Leslie Bradley	...	Baron Jose Gruda
Margot Grahame	...	Bianca
Noel Purcell	...	Pablo Murphy
Frederick Leister	...	Sebastian
Eliot Makeham	...	Governor
Frank Pettingell	...	Colonel
Dana Wynter	...	La Signorita (as Dagmar Wynter)
Christopher Lee	...	Joseph (attache)
Ewan Roberts	...	Claw Paw
John Chandos	...	Stub Ear
Derek Tansley	...	Patch Eye
Charles Farrell	...	Poison Paul
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Charles Horvath	...	(unconfirmed)
Enzo Giobbe	...	Bit part (uncredited)
Harry Lane	...	Bit part (uncredited)
Vittorio Martinelli	...	Cameo appearance (uncredited)
Dennis Wyndham	...	Rebel in Wine Cellar (uncredited)

Directed by
Robert Siodmak

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Roland Kibbee		written by

Produced by
Norman Deming	....	associate producer (uncredited)
Harold Hecht	....	producer (uncredited)
Burt Lancaster	....	producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
William Alwyn

Cinematography by
Otto Heller		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Jack Harris

Art Direction by
Paul Sheriff

Costume Design by
Margaret Furse

Makeup Department
Gladys Atkinson	....	hair stylist
Tony Sforzini	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Terry Hunter	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Gus Agosti	....	assistant director
Vernon Sewell	....	second unit director

Art Department
Ken Adam	....	associate art director

Sound Department
Cecil Mason	....	sound recordist (as C. Mason)
A.E. Rudolph	....	recording director

Special Effects by
Russell Shearman	....	special effects (uncredited)

Stunts
Paul Baxley	....	stunts (uncredited)
Jack Cooper	....	stunts (uncredited)
Charles Horvath	....	stunts (uncredited)
Allen Pomeroy	....	stunt coordinator (uncredited)
Joe Powell	....	stunts (uncredited)
John Sullivan	....	stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Gus Drisse	....	camera operator
H.J. Hodges	....	underwater photographer
George Pink	....	focus puller (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Marjorie Best	....	costumes: Burt Lancaster and Nick Cravat

Music Department
Muir Mathieson	....	musical director

Other crew
Joan Bridge	....	technicolor colour consultant
Maisie Kelly	....	continuity

Production Companies

• Warner Bros. Pictures (presents)

Distributors

• Warner Bros. Pictures (1952) (USA) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (1952) (UK) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (1952) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (1972) (USA) (TV) (network premiere)
• Office YK Pictures (????) (Japan) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (USA) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (USA) (laserdisc)

Also Known As:

Der rote Korsar (Austria) (West Germany) [de]
Le corsaire rouge (Belgium: French title) (TV title) (France) [fr]
De rode zeeschuimer (Belgium: Flemish title) [un]
Den knaldrøde pirat (Denmark) [da]
El pirata hidalgo (Chile) [es]
El temible burlón (Spain) [es]
Ha-Pirat Ha-Adom (Israel: Hebrew title) [iw]
Il corsaro dell'isola verde (Italy) [it]
Karmiininpunainen merirosvo (Finland) [fi]
Le pirate rouge (France) [fr]
O Pirata Sangrento (Brazil) [pt]
O Pirata Vermelho (Portugal) [pt]
O kokkinos koursaros (Greece) [el]
Röde piraten (Sweden) [sv]

Runtime:

105 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (certificate #15427) | West Germany:12 (nf) | Australia:G | Finland:K-16 | Norway:12 | Sweden:Btl | UK:U

Filming Locations:

Bay of Naples, Naples, Campania, Italy

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

In his autobiography, Christopher Lee claimed that Robert Siodmak changed the original screenplay: "The script started life as serious, nay solemn, but Robert Siodmak, the director, with all the sure touch of real tension behind him in The Killers and The Spiral Staircase, took stock of the material in forty-eight hours and turned it into a comedy."

Goofs:

Continuity: When Vallo is giving orders to fire "port side battery" while in his guise as an "unmarried girl of the island" you can clearly see that he is wearing a bra. Later, when he and Ojo "strip for action" they're only wearing blouses.

Quotes:

Humble Bellows: Thou hast a generous choice: the gallows, or the sea.
Prof. Prudence: [walks to Vallo] If it won't crowd you?
Vallo: I'd rather you weren't coming, but I don't want to seem inhospitable.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Heavy Traffic (1973)

Include "Crimson Pirate" in your kids' memories of Home

I finally got around to watching "The Crimson Pirate". What a blast! Burt Lancaster is the Pirate. His schemes and brainstorms are unconventional and funny.

It's a kinda goofy story, so you have to be in the mood for fun. (For example, the pirate's enemies are silly nitwits, like Keystone Kops or Hogan's Heroes.) Don't expect historical accuracy-- this is total Hollywood pirate caricature. But it's very creative, and everyone on the set, stars and stuntmen, looked like they had a blast filming it.

Burt Lancaster outdoes Douglas Fairbanks. He shows off his great acrobatic training and even paired-up his stuntwork with his old acrobat partner, Nick Cravat (btw, Nick happened to be the airplane-assaulting gremlin on the original Twilight Zone "Terror at 20,000 Feet".)

I feel like I missed out as a kid by not seeing it. Everyone has their own traditional FamilyTime movies ("Wizard of Oz" being a universal example). I wish I'd seen this one as a kid. My parents would've liked it too-- it's very enjoyable for all ages.