Band of Angels (1957)

Director:

Raoul Walsh

Writers:

Robert Penn Warren (novel)
John Twist (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

3 August 1957 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

You're no blue blood any more, honey. The master bought you...and now he's waitin'!

Plot:

Living in Kentucky prior to the Civil War, Amantha Starr is a privileged young woman. Her widower father...

Plot Keywords:

Plantation | Plantation Owner | Slave | Civil War | Slave Trader

Cast

Clark Gable	...	Hamish Bond
Yvonne De Carlo	...	Amantha Starr
Sidney Poitier	...	Rau-Ru
Efrem Zimbalist Jr.	...	Lt. Ethan Sears
Rex Reason	...	Capt. Seth Parton (Union officer)
Patric Knowles	...	Charles de Marigny
Torin Thatcher	...	Capt. Canavan
Andrea King	...	Miss Idell
Ray Teal	...	Mr. Calloway
Russell Evans	...	Jimmee (Bond's steward)
Carolle Drake	...	Michele (Bond's housekeeper)
Raymond Bailey	...	Mr. Stuart (plantation owner)
Tommie Moore	...	Dollie (Bond's house servant)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Roy Barcroft	...	Gillespie - Starrwood Plantation Overseer (uncredited)
Larry J. Blake	...	Auctioneer (uncredited)
Marshall Bradford	...	Maj. Gen. Benjamin Butler (uncredited)
X Brands	...	Officer (uncredited)
Robert Carson	...	Bidder (uncredited)
Robert Clarke	...	Auction Participant (uncredited)
Miles Clark	...	Black Child (uncredited)
Zelda Cleaver	...	Sukie (uncredited)
Myron Cook	...	Officer (uncredited)
Noreen Corcoran	...	Young Manty (uncredited)
Giselle D'Arc	...	Salesgirl (uncredited)
Ann Doran	...	Mrs. Morton (uncredited)
Pete Dunn	...	Officer (uncredited)
William Fawcett	...	Mourner (uncredited)
Harry Fleer	...	Aide (uncredited)
William Forrest	...	Aaron Starr (uncredited)
Anthony Ghazlo Jr.	...	Driver (uncredited)
Joe Gilbert	...	Bidder (uncredited)
Janine Grandel	...	Proprietor (uncredited)
Carl Harbaugh	...	Seaman (uncredited)
Jean Harvey	...	Mourner (uncredited)
Jim Hayward	...	Sheriff (uncredited)
Charles Heard	...	Helper (uncredited)
Charles Horvath	...	Soldier (uncredited)
William Hudson	...	Officer (uncredited)
Mayo Loiseaux	...	Girl (uncredited)
Maurice Marsac	...	Auction Participant (uncredited)
Paul McGuire	...	Officer (uncredited)
Carla Merey	...	Girl (uncredited)
Ewing Mitchell	...	Old Gentleman (uncredited)
Juanita Moore	...	Budge (uncredited)
Forbes Murray	...	Younger Man (uncredited)
Zon Murray	...	Union Corporal (uncredited)
Joseph C. Narcisse	...	Chad (uncredited)
Riza Royce	...	Mrs. Hopewell (uncredited)
William Schallert	...	Union Lieutenant (uncredited)
Morgan Shaan	...	Corporal (uncredited)
Martin Smith	...	Officer (uncredited)
Walter Smith	...	Black Soldier (uncredited)
Ann Staunton	...	Mother (uncredited)
Bob Steele	...	Union Private (uncredited)
Madame Sul-Te-Wan	...	Flower Vendor (uncredited)
Charles Victor	...	Officer (uncredited)
Dan White	...	Trader (uncredited)
Guy Wilkerson	...	Minister (uncredited)
Jack Williams	...	Runaway (uncredited)

Directed by
Raoul Walsh

Writing credits
Robert Penn Warren		(novel "Band of Angels")
John Twist		(screenplay) and
Ivan Goff		(screenplay) and
Ben Roberts		(screenplay)

Original Music by
Max Steiner
Carl Sigman		(uncredited)

Cinematography by
Lucien Ballard

Film Editing by
Folmar Blangsted

Art Direction by
Franz Bachelin

Set Decoration by
William Wallace

Costume Design by
Marjorie Best

Makeup Department
Gordon Bau	....	makeup supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Al Alleborn	....	assistant director
Russell Saunders	....	assistant director (as Russ Saunders)

Sound Department
Eugene Marks	....	sound editor
George Reid	....	sound editor
Francis E. Stahl	....	sound (as Francis Stahl)
Finn Ulback	....	sound editor

Stunts
Fred Carson	....	stunts (uncredited)
Charles Horvath	....	stunts (uncredited)
Bob Morgan	....	stunts (uncredited)

Music Department
Murray Cutter	....	orchestrator
Jester Hairston	....	choral director (uncredited)

Other crew
Lewis Smith	....	dialogue supervisor

Production Companies

• Warner Bros. Pictures

Distributors

• Warner Bros. Pictures (1957) (USA) (theatrical)
• Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (1973) (USA) (TV) (network premiere)
• AFEX (1957) (Austria) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (1957) (West Germany) (theatrical)

Runtime:

125 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Warnercolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Certification:

West Germany:12 (f) (re-rating) | West Germany:16 (f) (original rating) | Finland:K-12

Filming Locations:

Ashland-Belle Helene Plantation - State Highway 75, Geismer, Louisiana, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

The movie was derisively nicknamed "The Ghost of Gone with the Wind".

Movie Connections:

Edited into La classe américaine (1993) (TV)

The best Gable film ever

Gone with the Wind is fantastic, but Band of Angels stands alone as the great work of Clark Gable. With Stunning support from other cast members, this civil war drama plays with an unbridled sense of pure adventure. The first time I saw this film I was awe struck, the second clinched the deal. Its a great story with even better performances by Gable and Poitier and Yvonne De Carlo, together they really bring this film into the heart. Its too bad that film has been overlooked through history, I truly feel that if you watch this film, you too will have a new appreciation for Civil War drama. Not saying that one would not already, but Mr. Hammish Bond (Gable), is truly a southern rouge with a unique past who brings the genre into a new light.