The Barefoot Mailman
The Barefoot Mailman is a comedy-adventure film starring Robert Cummings and distributed by Columbia Pictures in 1951. The film was based on the 1943 novel The Barefoot Mailman by Theodore Pratt. Filmed in Super Cinecolor on location in Florida where the events take place, it features many elements of the Western.[1]
| The Barefoot Mailman | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Earl McEvoy |
| Produced by | Robert Cohn |
| Written by | James Gunn Alfred Lewis Levitt Francis Swann |
| Based on | novel by Theodore Pratt |
| Starring | Bob Cummings Terry Moore Jerome Courtland |
| Music by | George Duning |
| Cinematography | Ellis W. Carter |
| Edited by | Aaron Stell |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 83 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Plot
Set in 1895, Robert Cummings plays a con man, Sylvanus Hurley, who is trying to raise the selling price of land he owns by convincing the residents of Miami that a railroad is coming to town. Jerome Courtland plays the barefoot mailman, Steven Pierton, who leads Sylvanus along the beach from Palm Beach to Miami, and who is skeptical of Sylvanus's scheme. Terry Moore is a run-away teenager, Adie Titus, who joins Sylvanus and Steven on their walk by impersonating a child. John Russell plays Theron, a swamp gang leader who tries to carry Adie away.
Cast
- Robert Cummings as Sylvanus Hurley
- Terry Moore as Adie Titus
- Jerome Courtland as Steven Pierton
- John Russell as Theron
- Will Geer as Dan Paget
- Arthur Shields as Ben Titus
- Trevor Bardette as Oat McCarty
- Arthur Space as Piggott
- Frank Ferguson as Doc Bethune
- Percy Helton as Dewey Durgan
- Ellen Corby as Miss Della
- Renie Riano as Miss Emily
Production
The film was based on a novel by Theodore Pratt published in 1943. The New York Times called it "salty and colorful."[2]
In April 1950 Columbia reported that Alfred Lewis Levitt was writing a screenplay based on the book for the studio.[3] In September Columbia said they would film the bulk of the movie in Florida starting October 3.[4]
Cummings was cast in November 1950.[5]
References
- BAREFOOT MAILMAN, The Monthly Film Bulletin; London Vol. 19, Iss. 216, (Jan 1, 1952): 49.
- Special Delivery: THE BAREFOOT MAILMAN. By Theodore Pratt. 215 pp. New York: Duell, Sloan & Pearce Company. $2.50. By WILLIAM DU BOIS. New York Times 25 July 1943: BR6.
- WARNERS FEUDING WITH TALENT UNIT New York Times 27 Apr 1950: 47.
- UNIVERSAL TO FILM CALIFORNIA DRAMA New York Times 11 Sep 1950: 27.
- U.I. STUDIOS LIST TWO NEW MOVIES New York Times 9 Nov 1950: 43.