Lord of the Ring Movie Late 1950's Casting

unclepatrick

unclepatrick

For my Step By Step timeline, I planning to have a film adaption of the three Lord of the Rings novels made into a long Three hour movie.

For those who don't know Tolkien received a film proposal in 1957 from Forrest J Ackerman, Morton Grady Zimmerman, and Al Brodax for a three hour film using Models , Stop Motion Animation and Live action. Tolkien like the Artwork but hated the Script in OTL.

In the Step by Step Timeline, the only studio that would consider a film like would be RKO. They did Stop Motion films in the 30's 40's and 50's with Willis O Brian and Ray Harryhausen.

George Pal as Producer.

So the First thing to do is get a better script. I planning Ray Bradbury and Phillip Yordan as the screen writers. Yordan was a two time Academy Award winner for scripts as well the writer of two of my favorite westerns, Day of the Outlaw and the Bravados.
They should be able to get a workable script that keep the feel of the books.
'
For director , How about Anthony Mann? In addition to the great films he did in OTL, I also having him do a Stand of the 300 Film for RKO in the TL.

Stop motion by Willis O'Brian and Ray Harryhausen.

Who would be cast for the film.? Figure filming in 1958 for release in 1959.

How about Richard Todd as Aaragon?
Sean Connery as Boromir?
Christopher Lee as Gandolf?
Boris Karloff as Denethor?

Who would be cast for the Film.
Please make suggestion.
 
Stolengood

Stolengood

Banned
Sean Connery as Boromir; Laurence Harvey as Faramir.

Ralph Richardson as Gandalf?

Peter Cushing as Saruman?

Richard Harris as Aragorn?
 

Nytram01

If your going for Christoper Lee as Gandalf then I'd suggest Peter Cushing as Saruman - because they're established as opposites/rivals anyway - and Vincent Price would have made a very interesting Denethor.

Edit: also Peter Sallis would be good in a Barliman Butterbur role. He'd of been playing Samuel Peypes in 1958 so it's possible that he could get a bit part like that.
 
unclepatrick

unclepatrick

Mike Stearns said:
I could see Gregory Peck as Theoden...

Who would play Elrond, Galadriel, Legolas and Gimli, I wonder?
Click to expand...

I went with Todd Armstrong as Legolas. If you read the timeline, you find that Theoden was removed for time reason.
I had Karloff as Denethor Stewart of Gondor.
Also Peck was doing The Brovados, one of my favorite Westerns at the time.

Elrond is a minor part in the movie because of Time factors. He will appear at Riverdale but the rest of his part is cut do to time. (hey you try to do three books in Three hours.) I figure some minor actor.

I did not decide on Galadriel. Small Part. Most likely a minor actress. There a number of young attractive actress working the late 1950's. I sure RKO had a few under contract. They pick one of them.

I was think maybe Broderick Crawford as Gimli. Force perspective photography to make him look shorter. Disney did it with Darby O'Gill and the Little People.

For the Hobbits, I went with a group of unknown short, around 5 feet in height actors. I could not come up with any name but I sure RKO casting could have found them. Again Force perspective photography to make them look shorter.

Please check out the Time line

https://www.alternatehistory.com/discussion/showthread.php?t=254952&page=10

I welcome any comments, you wish to make.
 

Fox Eating Bamboo

Alright then, one small comment - I don't think Tolkien would've called Gandalf Gandolf, since Gandalf is an actual name taken from the Poetic Edda. He is in a list of the Dwarves, alongside pretty much every single dwarf in The Hobbit's thirteen and several others like Durin.

It does sound like the sort of thing Tolkien'd get worked up about if they tried to change the name for the movie for some reason. Since he doesn't seem to like it anyway (of course, since it can't match his head), perhaps this was a last minute change that ticked him off alongside every other little thing?

Great timeline, by the way!
 
unclepatrick

unclepatrick

Fox Eating Bamboo said:
Alright then, one small comment - I don't think Tolkien would've called Gandalf Gandolf, since Gandalf is an actual name taken from the Poetic Edda. He is in a list of the Dwarves, alongside pretty much every single dwarf in The Hobbit's thirteen and several others like Durin.

It does sound like the sort of thing Tolkien'd get worked up about if they tried to change the name for the movie for some reason. Since he doesn't seem to like it anyway (of course, since it can't match his head), perhaps this was a last minute change that ticked him off alongside every other little thing?

Great timeline, by the way!
Click to expand...

I mess up on the Spelling. As I joke with a friend, if necessary I will post a long and involved document on why Tolkien spell the name differently in the step by step timeline, but the truth is I messed up. Sorry.

Glad you enjoy the timeline. please feel free to post comments. I will be posting at least two more parts over the next couple of days on other adaptions of Tolkien in the timeline. Please check them out and let me know what you think. Thanks
 

thekingsguard

I plotted one for the early 1960s that had the following cast of Kirk Douglas as Aragorn, Charlton Heston as Boromir, Roddy McDowall as Frodo, Vincent Price as Saruman, Peter O'Toole as Gandalf, Sean Connery as Legolas, Ernest Borgnine as Gimli, Elizabeth Taylor as Arwen and Peter Lorre as Gollum.
 
unclepatrick

unclepatrick

thekingsguard said:
I plotted one for the early 1960s that had the following cast of Kirk Douglas as Aragorn, Charlton Heston as Boromir, Roddy McDowall as Frodo, Vincent Price as Saruman, Peter O'Toole as Gandalf, Sean Connery as Legolas, Ernest Borgnine as Gimli, Elizabeth Taylor as Arwen and Peter Lorre as Gollum.
Click to expand...

Interesting cast. I going to take one of your choices Roddy Mcdowall and cast him not as Frodo, but instead cast him as Gollum.
 

thekingsguard

unclepatrick said:
Interesting cast. I going to take one of your choices Roddy Mcdowall and cast him not as Frodo, but instead cast him as Gollum.
Click to expand...

Feel free! If you're in the 50s, one thing worth considering - why not cast some Western stars as the various members of Rohan? Capitalize on the Western fad and provide one hell of a shoutout in hindsight :D
 

Mike Stearns

thekingsguard said:
I plotted one for the early 1960s that had the following cast of Kirk Douglas as Aragorn, Charlton Heston as Boromir, Roddy McDowall as Frodo, Vincent Price as Saruman, Peter O'Toole as Gandalf, Sean Connery as Legolas, Ernest Borgnine as Gimli, Elizabeth Taylor as Arwen and Peter Lorre as Gollum.
Click to expand...

If its a 1960s cast, I think you totally have to cast Richard Burton as Aragorn, if Elizabeth Taylor is playing Arwen.
 
unclepatrick

unclepatrick

thekingsguard said:
Feel free! If you're in the 50s, one thing worth considering - why not cast some Western stars as the various members of Rohan? Capitalize on the Western fad and provide one hell of a shoutout in hindsight :D
Click to expand...

If you check the Timeline, I have both Randolf Scott and Gregory Peck busy doing some of the best of the Late 1950's Westerns. So the western actors
are busy doing Westerns.

Rohan would play less of a role in the Movie than you would think. Arwen has to appear to kill the Stop Motion Nazguls and I figure that Aragorn meet her and the riders of Rohan on the road to Gondor. Helmes Deep is cut so we lose most of the Characters of Rohan.
 

GiantMonkeyMan

Banned
Alec Guinness as Denethor or Theoden? He'd just recently have won best actor for The Bridge on the River Kwai and I think he'd be perfect for either such troubled characters. Maybe it's too small a role for him. Make the movie a few years later and he could play Gandalf instead of Obi-Wan. :D
 

thekingsguard

Mike Stearns said:
If its a 1960s cast, I think you totally have to cast Richard Burton as Aragorn, if Elizabeth Taylor is playing Arwen.
Click to expand...

I thought about that, but I'm admitedly a huge fan of Kirk Douglas - plus, I wanted either him or John Hunt playing the ranger King Aragorn. I do agree that Richard Burton would be another great pick though.

unclepatrick said:
If you check the Timeline, I have both Randolf Scott and Gregory Peck busy doing some of the best of the Late 1950's Westerns. So the western actors
are busy doing Westerns.

Rohan would play less of a role in the Movie than you would think. Arwen has to appear to kill the Stop Motion Nazguls and I figure that Aragorn meet her and the riders of Rohan on the road to Gondor. Helmes Deep is cut so we lose most of the Characters of Rohan.
Click to expand...

What about Steve McQueen, Yul Brener, Charles Bronson, Audie Murphey, or dare I say, John Wayne? There are dozens of great Western actors - surely you aren't using all fo them?

So I take it you making it a single film, as opposed to a trilogy?

Also, another recommended casting - John Hunt as anyone.
 
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