03 August, 2009

HARRY ALAN TOWERS (1920-2009)


Harry Alan Towers calling Orson Welles... or Jess Franco!


Maria Rohm, the wife of Harry Alan Towers, was featured in what many consider to be Jess Franco's best film. Ironically, Towers didn't write this one...



Few appreciated the Towers-Franco-Christopher Lee Fu Manchu productions...




The Towers produced THE GIRL FROM RIO (1968) was supposed to be a sequel to his 1967 production THE MILLION EYES OF SUMURU. It turned out to be a cut above the Towers-Franco Fu Manchu-Sax Rohmer projects.


Below is the copy from VARIETY, Sunday, August 2:

"Prolific B-movie producer and writer Harry Alan Towers, who made more than 100 films working with cult stalwarts such as Christopher Lee and director Jess Franco, died of heart failure in Toronto on Aug. 2. He was 89.
While Towers generally worked on low-budget fare, he favored literary adaptations by such writers as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Edgar Alan Poe, Agatha Christie and Edgar Wallace.

During the 1960s and 1970s, he wrote and produced dozens of films, sometimes credited as Peter Welbeck. Among the actors he worked with were Orson Welles, Michael York, Michael Caine, Richard Harris, James Earl Jones and Tony Curtis.

Towers often shot in locations such as South Africa, Ireland and Bulgaria on films such as “The Face of Fu Manchu,” Iran-filmed “Ten Little Indians,” South African classic adaptation “Cry the Beloved Country” and “Klondike Fever.”

His association with Italian giallo auteur Franco produced films which have become underground classics including “Venus in Furs,” “Eugenie,” “Marquis de Sade: Justine” and “Night of the Blood Monster.” "

The somewhat amusing description of Franco an an "Italian giallo auteur" indicates the state of confusion which still surrounds his career among the mainstream press. But it must be some kind of coup that the legendary publication now considers VENUS IN FURS and NIGHT OF THE BLOOD MONSTER aks THE BLOODY JUDGE as underground classics!

Towers was a rogue writer-producer who produced many entertaining films, many of which he wrote under the beard Peter Welbeck. His script for Franco's EUGENIE...THE STORY OF HER JOURNEY INTO PERVERSION (1970) qualifies as one of the best things he ever wrote. He also supplied our "Italian giallo auteur" with larger than usual budgets and such international stars as Christopher Lee (EL CONDE DRACULA), Jack Palance (JUSTINE), George Sanders (THE GIRL FROM RIO) and Mercedes McCambridge (99 WOMEN) among others.

Towers also produced the Orson Welles radio program THE LIVES OF HARRY LIME (1951-52) and the 1972 film version of TREASURE ISLAND, featuring Welles. This was a project which Welles attempted as an actor-producer in 1965 with none other than Jess Franco as director! Not surprisingly, it was never completed.

I'm attempting to list favorite Harry Alan Towers produced films. Candidates would include THE FACE OF FU MANCHU (1965), THE MILLION EYES OF SUMURU (1967), among others.

Towers also wrote the Spaghetti Western/adventure WHITE FANG (1975), directed by Lucio Fulci.

The complete adventures of this lovable rogue have yet to be told...






10 comments:

Anonymous said...

There is an interview with Towers included among the extras on the 3 disc Criterion dvd set THE COMPLETE MR ARKADIN. Orson Welles borrowed ideas for the film from 3 episodes of the Harry Lime radio series he did for Towers.

I always enjoy your blog. Keep up the good work.

George Clark

dfordoom said...

I adored The Girl from Rio. I don't think the spirit of comic books has ever been better captured, even though it's not a comic book adaptation as such.

dfordoom said...

I adored The Girl from Rio. I don't think the spirit of comic books has ever been better captured, even though it's not a comic book adaptation as such.

Robert Monell said...

Criterion dvd set THE COMPLETE MR ARKADIN. Orson Welles borrowed ideas for the film from 3 episodes of the Harry Lime radio series he did for Towers.

I always enjoy your blog. Keep up the good work.

That COMPLETE ARKADIN set is probably my most valuable DVD possession. It's the most thorough treatment any film has ever rec... 3 different versions and so many supplements. I listened to the HARRY LIME radio shows after I heard about Towers' death and you can find characters and ideas that made it into ARKADIN. Thanks for the compliment!

Robert Monell said...

spirit of comic books has ever been better captured, even though it's not a comic book adaptation as such.

I agree! It does look like a live action comic, especially the bright colors, framing, costumes and sets. I think Franco deliberately did this, since he likes comics. Also, see the very different German version, which I prefer. It has a completely different opening reel with an elaborate armoured car robbery which is not in THE GIRL FROM RIO and alternate Andy Warhol style credits. It's title DIE SIEBEN MANNER DER SUMURU.

dfordoom said...

I'd love to see the German version! I also love Sax Rohmer's Sumuru books. I'm still hoping eventually to track down a copy of the 1967 movie The Million Eyes of Sumuru (not directed by Franco but it still sounds like fun).

Robert Monell said...

love to see the German version! I also love Sax Rohmer's Sumuru books. I'm still hoping eventually to track down a copy of the 1967 movie The Million Eyes of Sumuru

I'm still looking for copies of the Sax Rohmer Sumuru novels. I've just rec a dvdr of MILLION EYES today. It's a fullscreen, very color faded, blurry print but still watchable. I wish this could be released in 2.35:1 OAR on DVD! I'll be reviewing it here soon.

dfordoom said...

The Sumuru novels are even more high camp than the Fu Manchu books. Who doesn't love a female diabolical criminal mastermind who wants to rid the world of ugliness and violence? It's a crying shame that more Sumuru movies haven't been made.

Robert Monell said...

Who doesn't love a female diabolical criminal mastermind who wants to rid the world of ugliness and violence

I just watched MILLION EYES, thanks to Robert Guest, and that's the exact goal of Sumuru, to create "a world of peace and beauty" without LOVE and MEN. There's a lot of whipping, torture, bondage, humiliation of MEN by Sumuru and her black tight garbed guard. What a fun film! In some ways a better film than Franco's. At least George Nader is more fun than Richard Wyler. You'll love it. Apparently there is an alternate German edit. The print I got is rather poor. I have some comments on my facebook page and will have a full review up asap. Thanks, dfordoom.

dfordoom said...

I'm going to have to start really seriously searching for a copy of The Million Eyes of Sumuru now!