by Simon Callow
PREFACE
1 ‘By enlarging the field of causal explanation beyond the studio career of Orson Welles …’ from Persistence of Vision.
2 ‘what matters is the homage Welles rendered to Flaherty …’ ibid.
3 ‘incomparable bravura personality’. Kenneth Tynan, Profiles.
CHAPTER ONE
Orson Ascendant
1 ‘like a Prussian riding master …’ Betty Lasky, RKO: The Biggest Little Major of Them All.
2 ‘big, robust bulldog …’ ibid.
3 ‘Your triumph is one of the greatest accomplishments …’ Hollywood Reporter.
4 ‘I just had a hot tip …’ Betty Lasky, op. cit.
5 ‘the Wizard of RKO …’ Joseph V. Breen Press Conference, March 1941.
6 ‘projectitis …’ Dusan Makavejev in Simon Callow, Shooting the Actor.
7 ‘I hereby sell …’ Agreement between Orson Welles and Charles Chaplin, 24 July 1941.
8 ‘All the stories we do for Welles …’ Letter from John Fante, n.d., quoted in Stephen Cooper, Full of Life.
9 ‘part of the whole Broadway–Browder axis …’ Quoted in Michael Denning, The Cultural Front.
10 ‘a modern form of education …’ Speech by Orson Welles, 6 March 1943.
11 ‘I’ve never been anywhere else on time …’ Duke Ellington, Music is my Mistress.
12 ‘my own conception of the picture …’ Memorandum to Joseph Breen, 10 July 1941.
13 ‘MY FACE FILLS THE FRAME …’ From draft for The Way to Santiago.
14 ‘I took the right-wing …’ Eric Ambler, quoted in Michael Denning, Cover Stories.
15 ‘an unnamed picture has taken precedence …’ RKO report, 17 July 1941.
CHAPTER TWO
Pampered Youth
1 ‘The RKO lawyers did shudder …’ Frank Brady, Citizen Welles.
2 ‘extraordinary … one of the most interesting actors …’ Peter Bogdanovich, This is Orson Welles.
3 ‘I’d been such a breathless fan of his in the theatre …’ ibid.
4 ‘You have made me – happy …’ Letter from Richard Bennett to Orson Welles, 8 March 1942.
5 ‘I can think of nothing …’ Orson Welles lecture to motion picture students of New York University, 20 October 1942.
6 ‘It can be chalked up as another …’ Letter from Robert Gessner to Richard Wilson, 24 October 1941.
7 ‘I LOVE YOU.’ Telegram from Orson Welles to Norman Foster, 27 September 1941.
8 ‘Personally, I shall never …’ Telegram from Norman Foster to Orson Welles, 2 October 1941.
9 ‘WE ALL MISS YOU TERRIBLY …’ Telegram from Orson Welles to Norman Foster, 3 October 1941.
10 ‘the tremendous investment …’ Richard Wilson account of telephone conversation with Reg Armour, 8 October 1941.
11 ‘YOU ASKED ME TO BE BRUTALLY FRANK …’ Telegram from Orson Welles to Norman Foster, 18 October 1941.
12 ‘YOU REALLY ARE A SWEET GUY …’ Telegram from Norman Foster to Orson Welles, 19 October 1941.
13 ‘Charles Higham reports …’ Charles Higham, Orson Welles: The Rise and Fall of an American Genius.
14 ‘He had eight sets upstairs and downstairs …’ Stanley Cortez in Charles Higham, Sources of Light.
15 ‘This is the second case of the Welles company …’ Memorandum from Bill Eglinston.
16 ‘Immediately, said Cortez …’ Sources of Light.
17 ‘People said I was much too arty …’ ibid.
18 ‘she was quite unfocused …’ Peter Bogdanovich, op. cit.
19 ‘There I was to meet him …’ Daily Telegraph, 15 March 1943.
20 ‘Jim, it’s too static …’ Interview with James Stewart, The RKO Story, BBC Television, 1987.
21 ‘CROSBY IS INDULGING IN TOO MUCH REFLECTOR …’ Telegram from Orson Welles to José Noriega, 30 October 1941.
22 ‘RETAKE HEAD-ON CLOSE SHOT …’ Telegram from Orson Welles to Norman Foster, 8 November 1941.
23 ‘SENOR ORSON WELLES DEAR PATRON …’ Telegram from Norman Foster to Orson Welles, 9 November 1941.
24 ‘Several times we were afraid …’ Telegram from Norman Foster to Orson Welles, 2 December 1941.
25 ‘how really and truly important and beautiful …’ Telegram from Orson Welles to Norman Foster, 10 December 1941.
26 ‘the greatest tour-de-force of my career …’ Barbara Leaming, Orson Welles.
27 ‘Orson must have overheard …’ Sources of Light.
28 ‘while poor Tim Holt …’ Interview with Agnes Moorehead, Kurtain Kall, 1 July 1973.
29 ‘AGNES MOORHEAD DOES …’ Telegram from George Schaefer to Orson Welles, 3 December 1941.
30 ‘hastened to thank you …’ Memorandum from Joe Breen to Orson Welles, 2 December 1941.
31 ‘This film will be one of the outstanding pictures …’ Memorandum from Phil Reismann to Orson Welles, 2 December 1941.
32 ‘It is extraordinarily dramatic and beautiful to look at …’ Letter from Herb Drake to Arnold Weissberger, 5 December 1941.
CHAPTER THREE
The Best Man in Hollywood
1 ‘an imperialistic war for world markets …’ FBI report, 16 April 1943.
2 ‘the eager beaver to end all eager beavers …’ Quoted in Culver and Hyde, American Dreamer.
3 ‘Rockefeller may also …’ Frank Brady, Citizen Welles.
4 ‘They [the Brazilians] feel …’ Letter from Phil Reismann to Joseph Breen, 11 December 1941.
5 ‘Here is sensational news …’ A Noite, 12 December 1941.
6 ‘GIVE ASSURANCES TO ALL CONCERNED …’ Telegram from Norman Foster to José Noriega, 24 December 1941.
7 ‘That is good publicity for the school …’ Letter from Richard Wilson to Roger Hill, 17 December 1941.
8 ‘PLEASE SHUT UP FOR A FEW DAYS …’ Telegram from Roger Hill to Orson Welles, 20 December 1941.
9 ‘Everybody talks about it …’ Letter from Roger Hill to Orson Welles, 23 December 1941.
10 ‘It is probably difficult for you to realise …’ Letter from Ellen Cole Fetter to Orson Welles, 16 December 1941.
11 … ‘this goes to you as an expression of our government’s …’ Letter from George Schaefer to Orson Welles, 22 December 1941 (drafted by Joseph Breen).
12 ‘there should be nothing sex-suggestive in the line …’ Memorandum from Hays Office to RKO, 8 January 1942.
13 ‘For your information and guidance …’ Memorandum from William Gordon to Norman Foster, 3 January 1942.
14 ‘There was a Mercury style of acting …’ Peter Bogdanovich, This is Orson Welles.
15 ‘I’m pretty awful in it …’ ibid.
16 ‘whoever was nearest the camera …’ ibid.
17 ‘Who’s he?’ Minute of meeting at RKO, 12 January 1942.
18 ‘These jangadeiros are almost legendary figures …’ OI-AA Memorandum to John Hay Whitney, 19 January 1941.
CHAPTER FOUR
Carnival
1 ‘He has left the country furious with yours truly …’ Letter from Herb Drake to Tom Pettey, 4 February 1942.
2 ‘colder than a producer’s heart …’ Letter from Tom Pettey to Herb Drake, 22 January 1942.
3 ‘The first thing on arrival …’ Letter from Lynn Shores to Walter Daniels, 3 February 1942.
4 ‘would like for Orson Welles to film some of the daring exploits …’ Press Release by Tom Pettey, 29 January 1942.
5 ‘I’ll go nuts with another inactive week …’ Letter from Ned Scott to Herb Drake, 7 February 1942.
6 ‘We were on our own …’ Joe Biroc interviewed in The RKO Story, BBC Television, 1987.
7 ‘BECAUSE OF THE ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF WORK …’ Telegram from Orson Welles to Jack Moss, 6 March 1942.
8 ‘RECEPTION OF ORSON WELLES …’ Telegram from Phil Reismann to George Schaefer, 12 February 1942.
9 ‘this enormously sympathetic big boy …’ A Noite, 11 February 1942.
10 ‘The moment the Producer-D
irector-Writer arrived …’ Press Release by Herb Drake, 12 February 1942.
11 ‘Welles and Phil Reismann …’ Memorandum from Tom Pettey to Herb Drake, 17 February 1942.
12 ‘It must be remembered …’ Memorandum from Orson Welles to RKO front office, 25 May 1942.
13 ‘The human element in particular …’ ibid.
14 ‘Carnival isn’t a religious observance …’ Orson Welles Alamanac, 4 November 1944.
15 ‘for 1942 the order is FORGET THE WAR!’ Life, 18 March 1942.
16 ‘a director of the movie production …’ Press release by Tom Pettey, 18 February 1942.
17 ‘a combination of crinolines …’ Life, op. cit.
18 ‘I am enclosing a sort of day-to-day report …’ Letter from Lynn Shores to Walter Daniels, 16 February 1942.
19 ‘The problem of shooting carnival …’ Memorandum from Orson Welles to RKO front office, op. cit.
20 ‘What made carnival what it was? …’ Letter from Orson Welles to Bob Meltzer, 23 June 1942.
21 ‘he was like a lighthouse …’ Interview with Geraldine Fitzgerald, quoted in The Road to Xanadu.
22 ‘The humiliated, the timid, the unsatisfied …’ Rui Costa in research document, n.d.
23 ‘ideas he might wish to look into …’ Tom Pettey to Herb Drake, 22 February 1942.
24 ‘no other personality from the United States …’ A Noite, 23 February 1942.
25 ‘We’re working too hard down here …’ Letter from Orson Welles to George Schaefer, 25 February 1942.
26 ‘You may have heard …’ Letter from Orson Welles to John Hay Whitney, 25 February 1942.
27 ‘positively Brazilian …’ Letter from Phil Reismann to John Hay Whitney, 25 February 1942.
28 ‘PLEASE ORSON …’ Telegram from George Schaefer to Orson Welles, 27 February 1942.
CHAPTER FIVE
Only Orson and God
1 ‘GET IN NORMAN JO DOLORES …’ Telegram from Orson Welles to Jack Moss, 28 February 1942.
2 ‘RESULTANT INTERNATIONAL PUBLICITY …’ Telegram from Orson Welles to George Schaefer 2 March 1942.
3 ‘With respect to Orson Welles …’ Memorandum from Charles Koerner, 12 March 1942.
4 ‘EVERYTHING HERE PROCEEDING BEAUTIFULLY …’ Telegram from Orson Welles to George Schaefer, op. cit.
5 ‘AS FAVOR TO ME …’ ibid.
6 ‘I have a lot of things on my mind …’ Letter from Lynn Shores to Walter Daniels, 9 March 1942.
7 ‘everyone … will forget about us …’ Letter from Tom Pettey to Herb Drake, 3 March 1942.
8 ‘The glimpse into the future …’ Press release by Tom Pettey, 4 March 1942.
9 ‘a night of relaxation …’ Letter from Tom Pettey to Herb Drake, op. cit.
10 ‘I believe Welles’s intentions …’ Letter from Lynn Shores to Walter Daniels, 3 March 1942.
11 ‘MOST IMPORTANT THIS BE THOROUGHLY UNDERSTOOD …’ Telegram from George Schaefer to Phil Reismann, 4 March 1942.
12 ‘It is all very grand and exciting …’ Letter from Lynn Shores to Walter Daniels, op. cit.
13 ‘The weather remains cloudy …’ Letter from Tom Pettey to Herb Drake, 10 March 1942.
14 ‘LOST JUNGLES …’ Telegram from Tom Pettey to Herb Drake, 11 March 1942.
15 ‘MOST COLORFUL ADVENTUROUS …’ ibid.
16 ‘Beautiful shots Rio …’ Memorandum dictated by Orson Welles, 11 March 1942.
17 ‘THAT THERE IS NOTHING IN THE WORLD I WON’T DO …’ Telegram from Orson Welles to Phil Reismann, 15 March 1942.
18 ‘THAT HE IS NOT TO MAKE ANY PICTURE …’ Telegram from Phil Reismann to George Schaefer, op. cit.
19 ‘Line up translators …’ Memorandum from Orson Welles to Richard Wilson, 14 March 1942.
20 ‘SURE YOU REALISE IMPORTANCE …’ Telegram from George Schaefer to Orson Welles, 16 March 1942.
21 ‘EAGER HEAR REACTIONS …’ Telegram from Orson Welles to George Schaefer, 18 March 1942.
CHAPTER SIX
Pomona
1 ‘PROBABLY EASTERN EXECUTIVES …’ Telegram from Robert Wise to Orson Welles, 16 March 1942.
2 ‘He ordered me to prepare picture …’ ibid.
3 ‘It should be shelved …’ Report cards from Pomona showing 17 March 1942.
4 ‘Much better than Citizen Kane …’ Report cards from Pasadena showing ibid.
5 ‘I did not want to cable you …’ Letter from George Schaefer to Orson Welles, 21 March 1942.
6 ‘UNSATISFACTORY REACTION …’ Telegram from Jack Moss to Orson Welles, 23 March 1942.
7 ‘You asked for a more detailed report …’ Letter from Robert Wise to Orson Welles, 31 March 1942.
8 ‘doubtless the most faithful adaptation any book …’ Letter from Joseph Cotten to Orson Welles, 28 March 1942.
9 ‘SURE I MUST BE AT LEAST PARTLY WRONG …’ Telegram from Orson Welles to Jack Moss, 25 March 1942.
10 ‘It is a lazy land and I’m afraid …’ Letter from Tom Pettey to Herb Drake, 20 March 1942.
11 ‘Once a year in December …’ Letter from Lynn Shores to Walter Daniels, 21 March 1942.
12 ‘We still haven’t done any of the script stuff …’ Letter from Tom Pettey to Herb Drake, 31 March 1942.
13 ‘no assurance that our trek …’ Memorandum from Walter Daniels to Reg Armour, 24 March 1942.
14 ‘Just why I cannot seem to find out …’ Letter from Lynn Shores to Walter Daniels, 28 March 1942.
15 ‘it looks like Orson is going to make …’ Letter from Tom Pettey to Herb Drake, op. cit.
16 ‘BE SURE AND LEAVE HIM A REASONABLE …’ Telegram from Phil Reismann to Orson Welles, 28 March 1942.
17 ‘TELL JACK IT’S MORE IMPORTANT …’ Telegram from Orson Welles to Norman Foster, 31 March 1942.
18 ‘ALL EXPECTATIONS SURPASSED …’ Telegram from Orson Welles to Phil Reismann, 30 March 1942.
19 ‘I WANT YOU TO BELIEVE THAT I AM PERSONALLY ON THE HOOK …’ Telegram from George Schaefer to Orson Welles, 31 March 1942.
20 ‘he neither wished to go to jail …’ Letter from Richard Wilson to Orson Welles, 9 April 1942.
21 ‘THESE COMMITMENTS VALID …’ Telegram from Orson Welles to George Schaefer, 12 April 1942.
22 ‘On the Lynn Shores matter …’ Memorandum from Richard Wilson to RKO front office, 27 April 1942.
23 ‘the negro and low class element …’ Letter from Lynn Shores to Alberto Pessao, 11 April 1942.
24 ‘Mr Welles knows what to do with his own picture …’ Memorandum from Richard Wilson to Orson Welles 14 April 1942.
25 ‘CARIOCA CARNIVAL IS GOING TO BE VERY DARK …’ A Noite, 2 April 1942.
26 ‘Fact and fiction are served forth in unusual combination …’ Memorandum from Mercury group to RKO front office, 28 May 1942.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Turning a Bad Koerner
1 ‘a 100% natural …’ Letter from Herb Drake to Orson Welles, 5 March 1942.
2 ‘THERE ISN’T A BETTER DIRECTOR ON EARTH …’ Telegram from Orson Welles to Norman Foster, 13 March 1942.
3 ‘COMPLETELY AGREE WITH CABLED…’ Telegram from Norman Foster to Orson Welles, 14 March 1942.
4 ‘Everything I have seen of Journey into Fear …’ Letter from Orson Welles to Joseph Cotten, 4 April 1942.
5 ‘The dialogue, you will immediately note …’ Letter from Orson Welles to Norman Foster, 4 April 1942.
6 ‘THEY LOVED EVERYBODY …’ Telegram from Jack Moss to Orson Welles, 18 April 1942.
7 ‘Jo to turn into Dick Tracey …’ Letter from Norman Foster to Orson Welles, 21 April 1942.
8 ‘I can’t be very intelligent about Journey …’ Letter from Orson Welles to Norman Foster, 3 May 1942.
9 ‘I love you, more than I even realised …’ Letter from Norman Foster to Orson Welles, 21 April 1942.
10 ‘At dinner tonight I complained …’ Letter from Orson Welles to Norman Foster, 3 May 1942.
11 ‘I think constantly of b
eing with you …’ Letter to Orson Welles from John Berry, 30 April 1942.
12 ‘NEVER REALISED I WOULD MISS ANY MALE COMPANION …’ Telegram from Phil Reismann to Orson Welles, 28 March 1942.
13 ‘We have now finally decided …’ Memorandum from Reg Armour to Jack Moss, 24 April 1942.
14 ‘HAVE VERY SWELL NEW FAST CHEAP JOURNEY FINISH.’ Telegram from Orson Welles to Jack Moss, 31 May 1942.
15 ‘Did you find [Welles] easy to get on with? …’ Quoted in Stephen Smith, A Fire at Heart’s Center.
16 ‘Use Toujours ou jamais as directed …’ Memorandum from Orson Welles to Constantin Bakaleinikoff, quoted in ibid.
17 ‘absence of melody …’ Kathryn Kalinak, ‘Text of Music: The Magnificent Ambersons’, Cinema Journal, Summer 1988.
18 ‘Am convinced … in view of man’s temperament …’ Memorandum from Gordon Youngman, 23 June 1942.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Four Men on a Raft
1 ‘Each time the robust and handsome fiancé …’ Rio Cine-Radio Jornal, 20 May 1942.
2 ‘rehearsal: shooting Urca …’ Activities report, 5 May 1942
3 ‘our period of wholehearted co-operation was over …’ Report by Richard Wilson to Orson Welles, 12 April 1942.
4 ‘No threats, bribes, or payments …’ ibid.
5 ‘I HAVE NEVER READ ANYTHING …’ Telegram from Phil Reismann to Orson Welles, 27 April 1942.
6 ‘PR: [Welles] is a tough baby …’ Minutes of conversation, 27 April 1942.
7 ‘Here I am in New York …’ Letter from George Schaefer to Orson Welles, 29 April 1942, delivered personally by Phil Reismann on arrival, 8 May 1942.
8 ‘Did you get my birthday cable? …’ Letter from Maurice Bernstein to Orson Welles, 14 May 1942.
9 ‘A three-fold attack …’ Letter from Arnold Weissberger to Orson Welles, 14 May 1942.
10 ‘OUT OF FILM …’ Telegram from Lynn Shores to Walter Daniels, 15 May 1942.
11 ‘LEADING BRAZIL RAFTMAN DIES …’ New York Times, 20 May 1942.
12 ‘They got drunk with the fame …’ Aino Da Noite, 20 May 1942.
