On this date in 1965 The Sound of Music starring Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer premièred in New York.
The movie is based on Maria Von Trapp's 1949 memoir, The Story of the Von Trapp Family Singers.
Christopher Plummer hated the film while he was working on it. He would refer to it as "The Sound of Mucus" or "S&M" and likened working with Dame Julie Andrews to "being hit over the head with a big Valentine's Day card”. He also hated the song Eidelweiss as he thought it was trite and schmaltzy. That said, he and Andrews remained close friends until his death.
Dame Julie Andrews was always Robert Wise's first choice to play Maria, even though she was primarily a stage actress at the time. Some of his colleagues would have preferred Audrey Hepburn, but they were convinced once they’d seen the rushes for Mary Poppins. Andrews herself wasn’t so sure at first, and almost turned the role down, fearing typecasting as the role seemed similar to that of Mary Poppins.
Other roles were not so cut and dried. Bing Crosby, Yul Brynner, Sean Connery, and Richard Burton were all considered for the role of the Captain. Grace Kelly was considered for the Baroness, but she had retired by then. A number of famous faces auditioned to play the children, including Mia Farrow, Teri Garr, Richard Dreyfuss, Kurt Russell, and the four oldest performing Osmond Brothers.
The gazebo saw plenty of action that never made the cut. During the shooting of Sixteen Going On Seventeen Charmian Carr (Liesl) slipped while leaping across a bench, and injured her ankle. The rest of the scene was shot with her leg wrapped and make-up covering the bandages. When Maria and Captain von Trapp declared their love in the gazebo, and sing the song Something Good, the lights above them would make rude noises, making Julie Andrews giggle. That’s why the scene is in silhouette as the director eventually turned the lights off. Incidentally, the gazebo could be likened to a tardis as it was bigger on the inside. The gazebo at the house where filming took place was too small to stage dance scenes, so a larger interior was built at a studio.
The film isn’t anything like as famous in Austria as elsewhere in the world. It was released there, under the title Meine Lieder – Meine Träume (My Songs – My Dreams) and the ending was cut. The song Edelweiss was written for the film, so people in Austria don’t really know that, either. However, international visitors can take a tour of the filming locations.
The opening scenes were shot from a helicopter. Dame Julie Andrews was knocked over by the powerful Helicopter downdraft several times.
Although Christopher Plummer's own vocals were recorded, it was decided that he should be dubbed by Bill Lee of the singing group The Mellomen. Peggy Wood (Mother Abbess) was dubbed as well, because she declared that she was too old to handle the vocals.
Both Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer learned to play the Guitar especially for the film.
According to The Sun, this movie was selected by BBC executives as one to be broadcast after a nuclear strike, to improve the morale of survivors. The BBC did not confirm or deny the story, saying, "This is a security issue so we cannot comment."
Beta
(Combat Team Series #2)
Steff was abducted by an evil alien race, the Orbs, at fourteen. Used as a weapon for years, he eventually escapes, but his problems are just beginning. How does a man support himself when his only work experience is a paper round and using an Orb bio-integrated gun?
Warlord is an alien soldier who knows little but war. When the centuries-old conflict which ravaged his planet ends, he seeks out another world where his skills are still relevant. There are always wars on Earth, it seems. However, none of Earth's powerful armies want him.
Natalie has always wanted to visit England and sees a chance to do so while using her martial arts skills, but there are sacrifices she must make in order to fulfil her dream.
Maggie resorted to crime to fund her sister's medical care. She uses her genetic variant abilities to gain access to the rooms of wealthy hotel guests. The Ballards look like rich pickings, but they are not what they seem. When Maggie targets them, little does she know that she is walking into a trap.
Hotel owner Hamilton Lonsdale puts together a combat team to pit against those of other multi-millionaires. He recruits Warlord, Natalie, Maggie and Steff along with a trained gorilla, a probability-altering alien, a stockbroker whose work of art proved to be much more than he'd bargained for, a marketing officer who can create psionic forcefields, a teleporting member of the landed gentry, and a socially awkward fixer. This is Combat Team Beta.
Steff never talks about his time with the Orbs, until he finds a woman who lived through it, too. Steff believes he has finally found happiness, but it is destined to be short-lived. He is left with an unusual legacy which he and Team Beta struggle to comprehend; including why something out there seems determined to destroy it.
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