A look at the movie "Frankie and Johnny"
Elvis's twentieth movie was "Frankie and Johnny" a remake of a 1936 Republic
Pictures film starring Helen Morgan as St. Louis casino singer Frankie and
Chester Morris as Johnny the gambler. The story of Frankie and Johnny is a
blend of fact and fiction.
The story goes that in 1899 in St. Louis, Missouri a Frankie Baker shot her man
Al "Johnny" Britt when she found him in a bar with another woman. Missouri
artist Thomas Hart Benton was commissioned in 1934 to paint a series of murals
in the state capitol and he chose to depict what he called a "Social History of
the State of Missouri." One of the murals is the barroom scene of Frankie
shooting Johnny. Elvis's movie, although an United Artists film, was shot on
the MGM lot and for inspiration MGM had a reproduction of the Missouri mural
displayed during filming.
It isn't clear how the name Nellie Bly got attached to this triangle of lovers,
but there was a real Nellie Bly in history. This was the pen name of a
Pittsburgh woman journalist named Elizabeth Jane Cochrane. In 1885 it was
considered improper for a women writer to use her real name so Ms. Cochrane took
her pseudonym from a popular song written by Stephen Foster. She was a pioneer
of investigative journalism often going undercover to expose poverty, crime,
housing and labor conditions of the day. An adventurer, she set a much
publicized record for traveling around the world in 72 days, 6 hours, 11 minutes
and 14 seconds a la Jules Verne's "Around the World In Eighty Days."
Frankie and Johnny were perhaps the inspiration for "He Done Me Wrong", a 1904
song written by Hughie Cannon and sung by Mae West in her 1933 movie as "She
Done Him Wrong." It has been recorded in various forms over the years with the
title "Frankie and Johnny" by such artists as Gene Autry, Johnny Cash, Brook
Benton, and Sam Cooke. Elvis's version was arranged by Alex Gottlieb, Fred
Karger and Ben Weisman for this movie.
Donna Douglas played Frankie opposite Elvis's Johnny in the movie. She was from
Louisiana and did grow up a critter lovin' tomboy much like her character Elly
May Clampett on the long running TV series "The Beverly Hillbillies." The 1957
"Miss New Orleans" was known for personally answering her fan mail. While
shooting this movie, she and Elvis discovered they both shared a deep interest
in spiritual studies and they would read and meditate together. Although her
singing in this film was dubbed by vocalist Eileen Wilson, she has since
recorded gospel albums. She also has authored Christian children's books.
A mixture of beauty and brains, actress Nancy Kovack played Nellie Bly. She
began college at the University of Michigan at age 15 and was graduated by 19.
She had won numerous beauty titles by the age of 20 and began acting in New York
on various TV shows. She received an Emmy Award nomination for an appearance in
1969 on "Mannix." Today she is the long-time wife of maestro Zubin Mehta.
Golden Globe Award winner Sue Ane Langdon played Mitzi. A child actress, she
was also a singer at Radio City Music Hall in New York as well as a Broadway
performer before becoming a TV and film actress. She also had a role in the
Elvis movie "Roustabout."
Actress Audrey Christie played Peg. Her long career included numerous TV roles
as well as roles in such films as "Carousel," "Splendor In The Grass," "The
Unsinkable Molly Brown," "Harlow" and "Mame."
Frederick De Cordova was the director for "Frankie and Johnny." The
long-time producer/director had many TV credits including "The George Burns and
Gracie Allen Show," "December Bride," "Leave It To Beaver," "My Three Sons",
"Burke's Law," "The Smothers Brothers Show" and "Mr. Belvedere." He is best
known for "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson" for which he received four
Emmy Awards.
Elvis played Johnny in "Frakie and Johnny." Johnny's sidekick Cully was played
by Harry Morgan, who has had many roles in film and TV since 1942, including his
recurring roles on "December Bride, "Pete and Gladys," "Dragnet" and "Hec
Ramsey." However, he is best known for his portrayal of Colonel Sherman T.
Potter on the TV series "M*A*S*H," for which he received eight Emmy Award
nominations, winning one. He also received a nomination for the series
"December Bride."
Anthony Eisley played Clint Braden. The former stage actor had become a
household name in the very popular 1959 TV series "Hawaiian Eye."
Gravelly voiced Robert Strauss played Blackie. Earlier, he played Sam, the
owner of the Pirate's Den in the Elvis movie "Girls! Girls! Girls!" The son of
a theatrical costume designer, he worked as a singing waiter before becoming a
successful actor on Broadway. He portrayed "Animal" in the play "Stalag 17"
and his reprisal of that role in the movie version earned him a 1954 Academy
Award nomination.
Naomi Stevens was Princess Zolita the gypsy fortune teller. Among her credits
are many roles on TV series including "The Flying Nun," "The Doris Day Show,"
"The Streets of San Francisco," "The Montefuscos" and "Vega$." She also played
Queen Liliuokalani in the movie "The Hawaiians."
Stevens's fellow gypsy was played by veteran actor Henry Corden, who has had
numerous TV and movie roles. However, you might want to close your eyes and
listen to his voice and see if you recognize it - he has been the voice of Fred
Flintstone for over thirty years and has other animated characters.
Earl Barton was the choreographer for "Frankie and Johnny" as he had been for
the Elvis movies "Roustabout" and "Harum Scarum." Joining him were a number of
the Earl Barton dancers including Wilda Taylor, who had played both Little Egypt
in "Roustabout" and Amethyst in "Harum Scarum." Another of his dancers, Judith
Chapman, has since gone on to numerous roles on TV that include recurring roles
on "Ryan's Hope," "General Hospital," "One Life To Live" and "Days of Our
Lives" among others.
Elvis reported for pre-production on May 11, 1965 and he was released on June
24, 1965. The film premiered in Baton Rouge, Lousiana on March 31, 1966.
Co-stars Donna Douglas, Sue Ane Langdon and Nancy Kovack attended. It was the
#48 movie for the year of 1966, grossing over $2,000,000. The single "Frankie
and Johnny" peaked at #25 in an 8-week run on the chart. The soundtrack album
spent 19 weeks on the chart and peaked at #20.