North to Alaska *** (1960, John Wayne, Stewart Granger, Fabian Forte, Capucine, Ernie Kovacs) – Classic Movie Review 5957

Director Henry Hathaway’s 1960 Northern Western blockbuster North to Alaska is bright, brisk and breezy old-style comedic action adventure with John Wayne and Stewart Granger well cast as turn-of-the-last-century gold-miner prospectors, Sam McCord and George Pratt, who find gold in Nome, Alaska, in 1901.

Fabiano Anthony Forte.

The rambunctious plotline sees them sorting out Granger’s cute young brother Billy (Fabian Forte), getting mixed up with conman Frankie Canon (Ernie Kovacs) and fighting over Granger’s statuesque fiancée Michelle (Capucine). It is perhaps hard to accept Fabian as Granger’s brother, but, anyway, this is the movies. Swinging teen idol Fabiano Anthony Forte was just 17 at the time. Fabian liked working with Wayne: ‘What you saw is what you got. He was incredible. He was very nice to me.’

This feisty movie may be on the long side at 122 minutes, but it is action packed throughout, and the pace is taken at a good lick and the mood in fine spirits by director Hathaway.

Despite the difficulties of the shoot and troubled production, the appealing stars are utterly in their element and give some of their most attractive performances.

Ernie Kovacs.

The cinematic screenplay by John Lee Mahin, Martin Rackin, Claude Binyon, Ben Hecht (uncredited) and Wendell Mayes (uncredited) is based on Ladislas Fodor’s 1939 play, The Birthday Gift. Despite all the writers, shooting started with no complete script so the film was heavily improvised. Wayne said: ‘Henry is a fine director, but he shouldn’t have to be making up scenes.  I’d go broke if I tried this in an independent production.’ Kovacs said: ‘I didn’t do anything during the actors’ strike and now I’m back at work and I’m still not doing anything. It’s a great way to make a living.’

Also in the cast are Mickey Shaughnessy, Karl Swenson, Joe Sawyer, Kathleen Freeman, John Qualen, Stanley Adams, Douglas Dick, Oscar Beregi Jr, Richard Collier, Esther Dale, Frank Faylen, Max Hellinger, Roy Jenson, Tudor Owen, Kermit Maynard, Paul Maxey and Charles Seal.

North to Alaska is made and released by 20th Century Fox, is written by John Lee Mahin, Martin Rackin, Claude Binyon, Ben Hecht (uncredited) and Wendell Mayes (uncredited) is based on Ladislas Fodor’s play The Birthday Gift, is shot in widescreen and colour by Leon Shamroy, is produced by Henry Hathaway, Charles Feldman (uncredited) and John Lee Mahin (uncredited), is scored by Lionel Newman, and is designed by Jack Martin Smith and Duncan Cramer.

Johnny Horton’s hit title song ‘North to Alaska’ (lyrics by Mike Phillips), sung during the opening titles, sets up the story. But Horton died in a traffic accident on 5 November 1960, eight days before the film’s release.

It was mainly shot in Point Mugu, California.

John Wayne.

The main cast are John Wayne as Sam McCord, Stewart Granger as George Pratt, Ernie Kovacs as Frankie Canon, Fabian as Billy Pratt, Capucine as Michelle ‘Angel’ Bonet, Mickey Shaughnessy as Peter Boggs, Karl Swenson as Lars Nordquist, Kathleen Freeman as Lena Nordquist, John Qualen as Logger, Stanley Adams as Breezy, Stephen Courtleigh as Duggan, Lilyan Chauvin as Jenny Lamont, and Douglas Dick as Lieutenant.

The film was topical at the time as Alaska was admitted to the Union as the 49th state in 1959.

The movie spent a long time in pre-production, and the shoot was delayed by the writers strike and Wayne’s involvement in making The Alamo (1960), but filming began in May 1960 under the title Go North.

It was popular, costing $3.8 million, and taking $5 million in US/ Canada rentals, and eventually earning $10 million overall at worldwide cinema box offices, making Fox a handsome profit.

© Derek Winnert 2017 Classic Movie Review 5957

Check out more reviews on http://derekwinnert.com

Swinging teen idol Fabiano Anthony Forte.