British postcard by London Postcard Company, no YS 5314 (Series 2 set of 9). Photo: Subafilms Ltd. Film image of The Yellow Submarine (George Dunning, 1968). Caption: Up on the hill.
Yellow Submarine (1968) is an animated full-length film based on the music of The Beatles. It is also the title of the film's album of music, which is part of the Beatles' musical oeuvre. The film was directed by Canadian-born animation producer George Dunning, and produced by United Artists and King Features Syndicate. With over 200 employees, chief designer Heinz Edelmann and director Charles Dunning worked on the film for eleven months. The animators came from England, but also from the USA and other countries in Europe. The real Beatles themselves do not appear until the final scene of the film.
In 1963, the American film studio United Artists approached The Beatles' manager Brian Epstein for a contract to make a number of films around the group. Epstein saw the deal as a good way to promote The Beatles and sell their music. United Artists was particularly interested in the money that would come in from selling the music albums. The Beatles were under contract to Capitol Records in the US, but that agreement excluded music albums. The studio knew that album sales would always make money even if the film flopped, so they saw the film deal with The Beatles as one in which they could not lose. On the other hand, the deal United Artists made with Epstein was not very favourable to The Beatles. Epstein was not a good negotiator and was an amateur in many financial matters. Admittedly, The Beatles were not at their peak of popularity at the time (certainly not in the US), but even in that context it was a disappointing contract. He had no idea of the normal profit percentages that could be negotiated, so he proposed a 7.5 % share. The United Artists studio bosses couldn't believe their luck; they had been afraid of tough negotiations and perhaps a higher percentage than 25%, and now Epstein came up with the ludicrous 7.5%. They immediately made a deal for three films. Not long after, the Beatles' popularity shot through the roof (also in the US), and Richard Lester made the first Beatles film A Hard Day's Night one of the most successful films of all time. This did not only deprive The Beatles of millions in earnings. They were also stuck with a financially disappointing film contract that would hang around their necks like a millstone.
The second film that The Beatles made for United Artists was Help, also directed by Lester. Although the film was as successful as its predecessor, the Beatles were not very enthusiastic about the end result. They were afraid of getting stuck in the format of "the happy adventures of the Beatles". But Brian Epstein had signed a contract with United Artists in 1963, and the film production company demanded a third film. All sorts of ideas were floated, such as a film adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings with Ringo as Frodo and John as Gandalf, but the third film did not materialise. In 1967, the four Beatles thought they could direct themselves and made the television production "Magical Mystery Tour". The TV movie was broadcast by the BBC in black and white and was received by viewers and critics with dismay. After this, The Beatles' interest in films dropped to a low point. Their manager Brian Epstein came up with the solution. He was approached by Al Brodax, the head of King Features Syndicate, with the idea of making a full-length animated film based on a number of Beatles songs. The idea was based on the animated series about The Beatles that had been broadcast since 1965. TVC produced this series, in which an animated adventure was always made around a Beatles song. The Beatles were excited because they did not have to contribute to the film. But for this very reason, United Artists rejected Yellow Submarine as the third film. It was only with the documentary Let it Be that the Beatles fulfilled their contractual obligations. However, Yellow Submarine was a hit in cinemas and the critics were also enthusiastic. They especially praised the innovations in animation. The drawn appearance of The Beatles was based on the appearance of the real Beatles at the time of the recording of the film that accompanied the single Strawberry Fields Forever. Only, Paul McCartney's moustache had disappeared from his alter ego in the film. The Beatles themselves, who had expected some kind of Disney film, were pleasantly surprised by the result of Yellow Submarine and decided to appear in the final scene themselves.
The starting point for the film was the song "Yellow Submarine". Paul McCartney wrote it as one of the songs that drummer Ringo Starr could sing with his limited singing voice. It was intended as a children's song with simple lyrics and melody. Subsequent accusations that "yellow submarines" were a code name for yellow pills, namely Nembutol capsules, so-called "downers" (hence "submarine": submarine) were dismissed by McCartney. Producer Lee Minoff based himself on the idea of a children's song and wrote the first draft of the story. Soon, several scriptwriters were working on the scenario. It was decided to include a number of recent Beatles songs alongside 'Yellow Submarine'. Some of these songs were taken from the album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. This Beatles album, released in 1967, caused a sensation in the music world. The idea behind the album was that The Beatles were transformed into the fictional pop group Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Heart Club Band. On the cover, they can be seen in satin military uniforms in bright colours. This was the impetus for the idea of including in the film a Sgt. Pepper who lives in Pepperland with his band. At one point, there were about twenty versions of the screenplay circulating. One of the writers was Roger McCough, a poet from Liverpool, who contributed much to the dialogues with their typical ambiguities, expressions from Liverpool, and private jokes from The Beatles. McCough received 500 pounds for his contribution, but no mention in the credits. Mention was made of Jack Mendelsohn and Erich Segal. Mendelsohn had worked on the Beatles' animated series, but Segal was unfamiliar with the film business in 1967. He was working at Yale as an assistant to the professor of Classics. He was brought to London by Brodax to put together a coherent script from the large amount of material, some of which consisted only of fragments. Segal worked on the script continuously for several weeks under the threat of a deadline. He was barely allowed to leave his hotel room to jog. However, Segal was able to take advantage of a brilliant suggestion by lead designer Heinz Edelmann. During a production meeting, the collaborators came to a disturbing conclusion: the screenplay lacked an enemy. Pepperland was a paradise without a snake. Edelmann came up with the concept of the Blue Meanies and their attack on everything that smelt of music. (Incidentally, the meanies were originally red, entirely in keeping with the Cold War. An error by Edelmann's assistant caused the colours to be switched and the meanies became blue). Despite all the creative contributions, Yellow Submarine's screenplay also suffered from the fact that the music overshadowed the story and the story was adapted to the songs. It did result in a modern fairy tale about the 1967 hippy generation.
Source: Wikipedia (Dutch), and IMDb.
And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.
Tags: The Beatles Beatles John Lennon Paul Mc Cartney George Harrison Ringo Starr Pop Stars Actor Film Star Cinema Movies Film Kino Music Postcard Carte Postale Cartolina Tarjet Postal Postkarte Postkaart Briefkarte Briefkaart Ansichtskarte Ansichtkaart 1960s Sixties British European The Yellow Submarine 1968 Animation London Postcard Company Subafilms Yellow Submarine
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German postcard by Filmbilder-Verrieb Ernst Freihoff, Essen, no. 835. Retail price: 10 Pfg. Photo: Elektrola.
Were The Beatles European Film Stars? Definitively!
For more postcards, a bio and clips check out our blog European Film Star Postcards or follow us at Tumblr or Pinterest.
Tags: The Beatles Beatles John Lennon Paul Mc Cartney George Harrison Ringo Starr Pop Stars Actor Film Star Cinema Movies Film Kino Music Postcard Carte Postale Cartolina Tarjet Postal Postkarte Postkaart Briefkarte Briefkaart Ansichtskarte Ansichtkaart 1960s Sixties British European Ernst Freihoff Elektrola Freihoff
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Italian postcard by Gruppo Editoriale Lo Vecchio, Genova. Picture: cover for the album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967). Producer George Martin's innovative recording of the album included the liberal application of sound shaping signal processing and the use of a 40-piece orchestra performing aleatoric crescendos.
Yesterday, 8 March, record producer George Martin (1926-2016) passed away. Martin helped the Beatles achieve unparalleled global success after hearing one of their demo tapes in 1962, when a number of other labels had previously turned them down. The ‘fifth Beatle’ was a talented musician and producer who oversaw landmark albums and helped the band to stretch the boundaries of sound recording.
George Henry Martin was a carpenter's son from North London. Having taught himself to play the piano, he was running his own dance band at school by the time he was 16. He attended The Guildhall School of Music after five years in the British Fleet Air Army. In 1950, he started producing records for EMI’s Parlophone label and was noted for his comedy recordings with the likes of Peter Sellers, Spike Milligan and a young Peter Cook and Jonathan Miller. The Goons connection quickly endeared him to the Beatles. While Martin was initially sceptical about their ability as musicians and songwriters, he took to their humour and personalities immediately. Memorably George Harrison told him: “I don’t like your tie for a start” when Martin asked him if they disliked anything about the set up. So, Martin was willing to take a chance on The Beatles's innovative version of American R&B. In November 1962, the band recorded Please Please Me, with Martin suggesting they speed the song up. As they finished, Martin told them from the control room: “Gentleman you have just made your first No 1 record” – which became true in the New Musical Express chart (although it was No 2 in the Record Retailer chart which became the official UK chart).
After his groundbreaking work with the Beatles, Martin had earned his ticket to ride, and he worked with a spectrum of luminaries including Jeff Beck, the Mahavishnu Orchestra, America, Jimmy Webb, Kenny Rogers, Ultravox and Elton John. He produced Shirley Bassey’s theme song for the Bond movie Goldfinger (1964), and composed the score for a further Bond, Live and Let Die (1973), as well as producing its title song, which was performed by Paul McCartney and Wings. The Beatles were always quick to credit Sir George’s central role in the creation of the band’s sound. Before his death at the hands of Marc Chapman in 1980, Lennon said: “George had done little or no rock 'n' roll when we met him and we'd never been in a studio so we did a lot of learning together." Sir Paul McCartney paid tribute to a “great man”, saying : “He was a true gentleman and like a second father to me. He guided the career of The Beatles with such skill and good humour that he became a true friend to me and my family. If anyone earned the title of the fifth Beatle it was George.”
Sources: The Telegraph and The Guardian.
Tags: George Martin The Beatles Beatles John Lennon Paul Mc Cartney George Harrison Ringo Starr Pop Stars Actor Film Star Cinema Movies Film Kino Music Postcard Carte Postale Cartolina Tarjet Postal Postkarte Postkaart Briefkarte Briefkaart Ansichtskarte Ansichtkaart 1960s Sixties British European Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band 1967 RIP
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British postcard by London Postcard Company, no YS 5314 (Series 2 set of 9). Photo: Subafilms Ltd. Film image of The Yellow Submarine (George Dunning, 1968). Caption: Up on the hill.
Yellow Submarine (1968) is an animated full-length film based on the music of The Beatles. It is also the title of the film's album of music, which is part of the Beatles' musical oeuvre. The film was directed by Canadian-born animation producer George Dunning, and produced by United Artists and King Features Syndicate. With over 200 employees, chief designer Heinz Edelmann and director Charles Dunning worked on the film for eleven months. The animators came from England, but also from the USA and other countries in Europe. The real Beatles themselves do not appear until the final scene of the film.
In 1963, the American film studio United Artists approached The Beatles' manager Brian Epstein for a contract to make a number of films around the group. Epstein saw the deal as a good way to promote The Beatles and sell their music. United Artists was particularly interested in the money that would come in from selling the music albums. The Beatles were under contract to Capitol Records in the US, but that agreement excluded music albums. The studio knew that album sales would always make money even if the film flopped, so they saw the film deal with The Beatles as one in which they could not lose. On the other hand, the deal United Artists made with Epstein was not very favourable to The Beatles. Epstein was not a good negotiator and was an amateur in many financial matters. Admittedly, The Beatles were not at their peak of popularity at the time (certainly not in the US), but even in that context it was a disappointing contract. He had no idea of the normal profit percentages that could be negotiated, so he proposed a 7.5 % share. The United Artists studio bosses couldn't believe their luck; they had been afraid of tough negotiations and perhaps a higher percentage than 25%, and now Epstein came up with the ludicrous 7.5%. They immediately made a deal for three films. Not long after, the Beatles' popularity shot through the roof (also in the US), and Richard Lester made the first Beatles film A Hard Day's Night one of the most successful films of all time. This did not only deprive The Beatles of millions in earnings. They were also stuck with a financially disappointing film contract that would hang around their necks like a millstone.
The second film that The Beatles made for United Artists was Help, also directed by Lester. Although the film was as successful as its predecessor, the Beatles were not very enthusiastic about the end result. They were afraid of getting stuck in the format of "the happy adventures of the Beatles". But Brian Epstein had signed a contract with United Artists in 1963, and the film production company demanded a third film. All sorts of ideas were floated, such as a film adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings with Ringo as Frodo and John as Gandalf, but the third film did not materialise. In 1967, the four Beatles thought they could direct themselves and made the television production "Magical Mystery Tour". The TV movie was broadcast by the BBC in black and white and was received by viewers and critics with dismay. After this, The Beatles' interest in films dropped to a low point. Their manager Brian Epstein came up with the solution. He was approached by Al Brodax, the head of King Features Syndicate, with the idea of making a full-length animated film based on a number of Beatles songs. The idea was based on the animated series about The Beatles that had been broadcast since 1965. TVC produced this series, in which an animated adventure was always made around a Beatles song. The Beatles were excited because they did not have to contribute to the film. But for this very reason, United Artists rejected Yellow Submarine as the third film. It was only with the documentary Let it Be that the Beatles fulfilled their contractual obligations. However, Yellow Submarine was a hit in cinemas and the critics were also enthusiastic. They especially praised the innovations in animation. The drawn appearance of The Beatles was based on the appearance of the real Beatles at the time of the recording of the film that accompanied the single Strawberry Fields Forever. Only, Paul McCartney's moustache had disappeared from his alter ego in the film. The Beatles themselves, who had expected some kind of Disney film, were pleasantly surprised by the result of Yellow Submarine and decided to appear in the final scene themselves.
The starting point for the film was the song "Yellow Submarine". Paul McCartney wrote it as one of the songs that drummer Ringo Starr could sing with his limited singing voice. It was intended as a children's song with simple lyrics and melody. Subsequent accusations that "yellow submarines" were a code name for yellow pills, namely Nembutol capsules, so-called "downers" (hence "submarine": submarine) were dismissed by McCartney. Producer Lee Minoff based himself on the idea of a children's song and wrote the first draft of the story. Soon, several scriptwriters were working on the scenario. It was decided to include a number of recent Beatles songs alongside 'Yellow Submarine'. Some of these songs were taken from the album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. This Beatles album, released in 1967, caused a sensation in the music world. The idea behind the album was that The Beatles were transformed into the fictional pop group Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Heart Club Band. On the cover, they can be seen in satin military uniforms in bright colours. This was the impetus for the idea of including in the film a Sgt. Pepper who lives in Pepperland with his band. At one point, there were about twenty versions of the screenplay circulating. One of the writers was Roger McCough, a poet from Liverpool, who contributed much to the dialogues with their typical ambiguities, expressions from Liverpool, and private jokes from The Beatles. McCough received 500 pounds for his contribution, but no mention in the credits. Mention was made of Jack Mendelsohn and Erich Segal. Mendelsohn had worked on the Beatles' animated series, but Segal was unfamiliar with the film business in 1967. He was working at Yale as an assistant to the professor of Classics. He was brought to London by Brodax to put together a coherent script from the large amount of material, some of which consisted only of fragments. Segal worked on the script continuously for several weeks under the threat of a deadline. He was barely allowed to leave his hotel room to jog. However, Segal was able to take advantage of a brilliant suggestion by lead designer Heinz Edelmann. During a production meeting, the collaborators came to a disturbing conclusion: the screenplay lacked an enemy. Pepperland was a paradise without a snake. Edelmann came up with the concept of the Blue Meanies and their attack on everything that smelt of music. (Incidentally, the meanies were originally red, entirely in keeping with the Cold War. An error by Edelmann's assistant caused the colours to be switched and the meanies became blue). Despite all the creative contributions, Yellow Submarine's screenplay also suffered from the fact that the music overshadowed the story and the story was adapted to the songs. It did result in a modern fairy tale about the 1967 hippy generation.
Source: Wikipedia (Dutch), and IMDb.
And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.
Tags: The Beatles Beatles John Lennon Paul Mc Cartney George Harrison Ringo Starr Pop Stars Actor Film Star Cinema Movies Film Kino Music Postcard Carte Postale Cartolina Tarjet Postal Postkarte Postkaart Briefkarte Briefkaart Ansichtskarte Ansichtkaart 1960s Sixties British European The Yellow Submarine 1968 Animation London Postcard Company Subafilms Yellow Submarine
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Dutch postcard by 't Sticht, Utrecht, no. AX 6334.
Were The Beatles European Film Stars? Definitively!
For more postcards, a bio and clips check out our blog European Film Star Postcards or follow us at Tumblr or Pinterest.
Tags: The Beatles Beatles John Lennon Paul Mc Cartney George Harrison Ringo Starr Pop Stars Actor Film Star Cinema Movies Film Kino Music Postcard Carte Postale Cartolina Tarjet Postal Postkarte Postkaart Briefkarte Briefkaart Ansichtskarte Ansichtkaart 1960s Sixties British European 't Sticht
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