Ace Eli and Rodger of the Skies
Encyclopedia
Ace Eli and Rodger of the Skies is a 1973 adventure-comedy film, with a story by Steven Spielberg. The film centers on a stunt pilot (Cliff Robertson) and his son (Eric Shea) as they fly around the United States in the 1920s, and their adventures along the way.
stunt pilot, whose wife was killed in an airplane crash. He and his 11 year old son, Rodger set off to fly around the country on a series of adventures. Wherever he lands Eli finds a new girlefriend, but likes one in particular, Shelby. He, however, does not form any permanent relationships. Rodger, who misses his deceased mother, continually helps out his father, even paying a prostitute (Allison). When Shelby leaves Eli, Rodger is saddened.
s several years after it was filmed.
The film's scenes that take place in the town of "Monument" were actually filmed in Mount Hope, Kansas. At the time of the filming in 1972, there was an article in The Hutchinson News about Pamela Franklin, the English actress who played the character of Shelby. In this article, she talked about her experience of filming in a small Kansas town.
In his New York Times review, Vincent Canby
wrote: "...the movie is ... a mess of unexplored moods and loose ends..."
Background
Steven Spielberg had developed the story of a flyer with a young son, containing themes that interested him: planes and flying and a parents' responsibility. Spielberg expected to be the screenwriter and director. However, the studio executives who had bought the story left the studio and the new executive turned the story over to another writer with a separate director.Plot
In the early 1920s in Kansas, Eli is a barnstormingBarnstorming
Barnstorming was a popular form of entertainment in the 1920s in which stunt pilots would perform tricks with airplanes, either individually or in groups called a flying circus. Barnstorming was the first major form of civil aviation in the history of flight...
stunt pilot, whose wife was killed in an airplane crash. He and his 11 year old son, Rodger set off to fly around the country on a series of adventures. Wherever he lands Eli finds a new girlefriend, but likes one in particular, Shelby. He, however, does not form any permanent relationships. Rodger, who misses his deceased mother, continually helps out his father, even paying a prostitute (Allison). When Shelby leaves Eli, Rodger is saddened.
Cast
- Ace Eli Walford -- Cliff RobertsonCliff RobertsonClifford Parker "Cliff" Robertson III was an American actor with a film and television career that spanned half of a century. Robertson portrayed a young John F. Kennedy in the 1963 film PT 109, and won the 1968 Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in the movie Charly...
- Shelby -- Pamela FranklinPamela FranklinPamela Franklin is a British actress who appeared in feature films from 1961 until 1976, and on American television throughout the 1970s.-Early life and career as a child actress:...
- Rodger Walford -- Eric SheaEric SheaEric Shea , is an American actor. A professional child actor since the age of six, he is best known for his roles in the feature films Yours, Mine and Ours, The Poseidon Adventure, Ace Eli and Rodger of the Skies, and The Castaway Cowboy, as well as for his numerous guest-starring appearances...
- Allison -- Bernadette PetersBernadette PetersBernadette Peters is an American actress, singer and children's book author from Ozone Park, Queens, New York. Over the course of a career that has spanned five decades, she has starred in musical theatre, films and television, as well as performing in solo concerts and recordings...
(motion picture debut) - Hannah -- Rosemary MurphyRosemary MurphyRosemary Murphy is an American actress of stage, film, and television.Murphy was born in Munich, Germany, the daughter of American parents Mildred and Robert D. Murphy, a diplomat...
- Sister Lite -- Alice GhostleyAlice GhostleyAlice Margaret Ghostley was an American actress. She was best known for her roles as housekeeper Esmeralda on Bewitched, as Cousin Alice on Mayberry R.F.D., and as Bernice Clifton on Designing Women, for which she received an Emmy Nomination for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series in 1992...
- Jake -- Royal DanoRoyal DanoRoyal Edward Dano was an American film and television character actor.-Early life:Dano was born in New York City to Mary Josephine , an Irish immigrant, and Caleb Edward Dano, a printer for newspapers. He reportedly left home at the age of twelve and at various intervals, lived in Florida, Texas...
Production and response
The original producers, writer and director disapproved of the film, which was extensvely re-cut, and had their names removed. The film was shown with pseudonymPseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
s several years after it was filmed.
The film's scenes that take place in the town of "Monument" were actually filmed in Mount Hope, Kansas. At the time of the filming in 1972, there was an article in The Hutchinson News about Pamela Franklin, the English actress who played the character of Shelby. In this article, she talked about her experience of filming in a small Kansas town.
In his New York Times review, Vincent Canby
Vincent Canby
Vincent Canby was an American film critic who became the chief film critic for The New York Times in 1969 and reviewed more than 1000 films during his tenure there.-Life and career:...
wrote: "...the movie is ... a mess of unexplored moods and loose ends..."