Act One ** (1963, George Hamilton, Jason Robards Jnr, Jack Klugman, Sam Levene, George Segal, Ruth Ford, Eli Wallach) – Classic Movie Review 12,210

George Hamilton complained: ‘Dore Schary de-ethnicised the 1963 film biopic Act One and took out the brilliance for good measure.’ Moss Hart’s actress widow Kitty Carlisle said ‘we draw a veil’ over the film.

Writer-producer-director Dore Schary’s 1963 American film Act One is based on the 1959 autobiographical book Act One: An Autobiography by playwright Moss Hart, and stars George Hamilton, Jason Robards Jnr, Jack Klugman, Sam Levene, George Segal, Ruth Ford, and Eli Wallach.

Unfortunately, Moss Hart’s engrossing autobiography about his metamorphosis from Brooklyn boy from the wrong side of the tracks to toast of Broadway with his writing partner George S Kaufman (You Can’t Take it with You) has become a plodding, uninvolving, and unbelievable film.

George S Kaufman and Moss Hart in 1937.

It is curious that, when Schary must have been fond of the material, he neglected to give it oomph for the box-office. On the plus side, Hamilton is entirely OK as Hart, Jason Robards Jnr is perfect as Kaufman, and there are some good scenes and support performances to look out for.

George Hamilton complained: ‘Schary de-ethnicised the entire production and took out the brilliance for good measure.’ Hart’s actress widow Kitty Carlisle said ‘we draw a veil’ over the film.

Dore Schary, who knew Hart several years, said: ‘I’ve tried to deal with Moss as I knew him. The film is more about character than the theatrical world. But I think his story represents more than just a guy trying to success in a tough, creative field. It’s about his frustrations in trying to reach a dream, and then it isn’t what he expected when he gets there. You might call it a typical American theme.’

Dore Schary appears in the film as the character David Starr, played by Sam Groom. The character of producer Warren Stone, played by Eli Wallach, is a fictional version of Jed Harris.

The cast are George Hamilton as Moss Hart, Jason Robards as George S Kaufman, Jack Klugman as Joe Hyman, Sam Levene as Richard Maxwell, Ruth Ford as Beatrice Kaufman, Eli Wallach as Warren Stone (Jed Harris), George Segal as Lester Sweyd, Joseph Leon as Max Siegel, Martin Wolfson as Mr Hart, Sam Groom as David Starr (Dore Schary), Sammy Smith as Sam H Harris, Louise Larabee as Clara Baum, David Doyle as Oliver Fisher, Jonathan Lippe as Teddy Manson, Bert Convy as Archie Leach, Sylvie Straus as Mrs. Hart, Arno Selco as Bernie Hart, Allen Leaf as Harry, Lulu B King as Maid, Earl Montgomery as Alexander Woollcott, Bill Desmond as George Jean Nathan, Joe Demar as Heywood Broun, Drummond Erskine as Franklin P. Adams, and Kenneth Moss as Robert E Sherwood.

Nevertheless, the material continues to fascinate. A play based on Moss Hart’s book premiered on Broadway in 2014, writtten and directed by James Lapine.

George Hamilton knew the family of Moss Hart, who wanted him for the role.

Awkwardly, it was released on 26 December 1963, just two years after Hart’s early death on 20 December 1961 of a heart attack at the age of 57.

Hart’s widow Kitty Carlisle was unhappy with the film. When Schary showed it to her she said: ‘Well, you did it.’ Later she said ‘we draw a veil’ over the film. In 1997, she said she tried to buy the film ‘to get it off the market.’ So Dore Schary’s tribute turned sour.

American playwright, librettist, and theatre director Moss Hart (October 24, 1904 – December 20, 1961). Hart married Kitty Carlisle on 10 August 1946 and they had two children.

Kitty Carlisle Hart (born Catherine Conn; September 3, 1910 – April 17, 2007). She is best remembered as the leading lady of the Marx Brothers movie A Night at the Opera (1935).

Moss Hart’s screenplays: 1944 Winged Victory, 1947 Gentleman’s Agreement, 1952 Hans Christian Andersen, and 1954 A Star Is Born.

Moss Hart’s plays: 1930 Once In A Lifetime (Kaufman and Hart), 1934 Merrily We Roll Along (Kaufman and Hart), 1936 You Can’t Take It with You (Kaufman and Hart; Pulitzer Prize winner), 1937 I’d Rather Be Right (Kaufman and Hart), 1938 The Fabulous Invalid (Kaufman and Hart), 1939 The American Way (Kaufman and Hart), 1939 The Man Who Came to Dinner (Kaufman and Hart), 1940 George Washington Slept Here (Kaufman and Hart), 1941 Lady in the Dark, with Kurt Weill and Ira Gershwin, 1943 Winged Victory, and 1948 Light Up the Sky.The boring designs of the book cover and film poster can’t have helped much.

© Derek Winnert 2022 Classic Movie Review 12,210

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