The Great Man (1956)

User Rating:

7.0/10   

Director:

José Ferrer

Writers:

Al Morgan (novel)
Al Morgan (writer) ...

Release Date:

December 1956 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Everybody loved the Great Man except those who hated his guts!

Plot:

Joe Harris, preparing a eulogy for popular radio commentator Herb Fuller, finds that nobody has a good word to say about him.

Plot Keywords:

Radio | Drunk Driving | Secretary | Drunkenness | Car Crash

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 2 nominations

Cast

José Ferrer	...	Joe Harris
Dean Jagger	...	Philip Carleton
Keenan Wynn	...	Sid Moore
Julie London	...	Carol Larson
Joanne Gilbert	...	Ginny, Harris's secretary
Ed Wynn	...	Paul Beaseley
Jim Backus	...	Nick Cellantano
Russ Morgan	...	Eddie Brand
Edward Platt	...	Dr. O'Connor (as Edward C. Platt)
Robert Foulk	...	Mike Jackson, radio engineer
Lyle Talbot	...	Harry Connors
Vinton Hayworth	...	Charley Carruthers
Henny Backus	...	Mrs. Rieber
Janie Alexander	...	Mary Browne
Vikki Dougan	...	Marcia, new receptionist

Runtime:

98 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Company:

Universal International Pictures (UI)

Quotes:

Ginny: Feet of clay, huh?
Joe Harris: Right up to the knees, at least.

Soundtrack:

THE MEANING OF THE BLUES

The Great Man is a thinly disguised Arthur Godfrey

Just as Charlie Kane was based on William Randolph Hearst, great man Herb Fuller was based on TV and radio icon Arthur Godfrey. I believe several of the story lines in Great Man paralleled events in Godfrey's life. The one that stands out involved a `boy singer' that was fired by Herb Fuller. In real life Arthur Godfrey fired `boy singer' Julius LaRosa. I have heard that Godfrey – the `old redhead' was none too pleased with Jose Ferrer's film.

There is a brilliant scene in the film where the hard-boiled, cynical reporter Joe Harris (Jose Ferrer) meets a former employer of great man Herb Fuller, the guy who gave Fuller his start in broadcasting. Harris and his secretary make fun of Paul Beaseley (veteran actor Ed Wynn, who only has this one scene), a doddering old bumpkin who owns a small radio station in New England. Beaseley tells a story that reveals the two sides of Herb Fuller – a folksy, down-to- earth radio personality that people love on the one hand and a mean-spirited, drunken rat bastard on the other. At the end of the scene Beaseley says something like, `I know that some people find me ridiculous' and Harris, no longer mocking Beaseley, replies, `Mr. Beaseley, I don't find you ridiculous at all'. This is one of my favorite movie scenes of all time.