Bright Leaf
Encyclopedia
Bright Leaf is a 1950 film drama based on a 1949 novel by Foster Fitzsimmons
. It stars Gary Cooper
, Patricia Neal
and Lauren Bacall
, directed by Michael Curtiz
.
The works derive their name from the type of tobacco
grown in North Carolina
after the American Civil War
.
tycoons Washington Duke
and George McElwee, Bright Leaf follows tenant farmer Brant Royle, who returns home after his family is driven from its farm by tobacco baron Major Singleton and becomes a rich and ruthless tyrant himself.
Royle and Singleton battle for their respective empires while Royle becomes obsessed with the Major's beautiful but devious daughter, Margaret. In the process he betrays Sonia, a business partner who loves him.
Thanks to the creation of a revolutionary cigarette manufacturing machine by inventor John Barton, the Royle tobacco business grows internationally by leaps and bounds. Singleton, who abhors cigarettes and has made his fortune with pipe tobacco and cigars, fails to heed the signs of progress. His debts mount until Royle buys up control of Singleton stock.
Rejecting an offer by Royle to save face, Singleton challenges his rival to a duel. Royle resists, but Singleton shoots the unarmed man. The public disgrace and loss of honor leads to his suicide.
Margaret agrees to marry Royle and they honeymoon abroad. But their disagreements grow in intensity. In time, Royle's business associate, Chris Malley, reveals that Margaret has been selling millions of dollars worth of stock in her husband's company to outside interests. She still resents the way Royle ruined her father.
In his arrogance, Royle turns against Sonia, then Barton, then finally Malley, his only allies. By the time he sees the error of his ways, it is too late.
by filmmaker Ross McElwee
, a descendant of the man whose life was reflected in both the novel and film.
as Brant Royle
Lauren Bacall
as Sonia Kovac
Patricia Neal
as Margaret Jane Singleton
Jack Carson
as Chris Malley
Donald Crisp
as Major Singleton
Gladys George
as Rose
Elizabeth Patterson
as Tabitha Singleton
Jeff Corey
as John Barton
Cleo Moore
as Cousin Louise
Foster Fitzsimmons
Foster Fitz-Simons was an American dancer, novelist, and teacher. He was a member of the first all-male dance company in the US, Ted Shawn's Male Dancers...
. It stars Gary Cooper
Gary Cooper
Frank James Cooper, known professionally as Gary Cooper, was an American film actor. He was renowned for his quiet, understated acting style and his stoic, but at times intense screen persona, which was particularly well suited to the many Westerns he made...
, Patricia Neal
Patricia Neal
Patricia Neal was an American actress of stage and screen. She was best known for her film roles as World War II widow Helen Benson in The Day the Earth Stood Still , wealthy matron Emily Eustace Failenson in Breakfast at Tiffany's , middle-aged housekeeper Alma Brown in Hud , for which she won...
and Lauren Bacall
Lauren Bacall
Lauren Bacall is an American film and stage actress and model, known for her distinctive husky voice and sultry looks.She first emerged as leading lady in the Humphrey Bogart film To Have And Have Not and continued on in the film noir genre, with appearances in The Big Sleep and Dark Passage ,...
, directed by Michael Curtiz
Michael Curtiz
Michael Curtiz was an Academy award winning Hungarian-American film director. He had early creditsas Mihály Kertész and Michael Kertész...
.
The works derive their name from the type of tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
grown in North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
after the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
.
Plot
Loosely based on the rivalry of tobaccoTobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
tycoons Washington Duke
Washington Duke
George Washington Duke was an American tobacco industrialist and philanthropist.-Biography:Duke was born in Orange County, North Carolina , to Taylor Duke and Dicey Jones...
and George McElwee, Bright Leaf follows tenant farmer Brant Royle, who returns home after his family is driven from its farm by tobacco baron Major Singleton and becomes a rich and ruthless tyrant himself.
Royle and Singleton battle for their respective empires while Royle becomes obsessed with the Major's beautiful but devious daughter, Margaret. In the process he betrays Sonia, a business partner who loves him.
Thanks to the creation of a revolutionary cigarette manufacturing machine by inventor John Barton, the Royle tobacco business grows internationally by leaps and bounds. Singleton, who abhors cigarettes and has made his fortune with pipe tobacco and cigars, fails to heed the signs of progress. His debts mount until Royle buys up control of Singleton stock.
Rejecting an offer by Royle to save face, Singleton challenges his rival to a duel. Royle resists, but Singleton shoots the unarmed man. The public disgrace and loss of honor leads to his suicide.
Margaret agrees to marry Royle and they honeymoon abroad. But their disagreements grow in intensity. In time, Royle's business associate, Chris Malley, reveals that Margaret has been selling millions of dollars worth of stock in her husband's company to outside interests. She still resents the way Royle ruined her father.
In his arrogance, Royle turns against Sonia, then Barton, then finally Malley, his only allies. By the time he sees the error of his ways, it is too late.
Legacy
The film, one of many epic melodramas produced by Hollywood at the time, was widely forgotten after its first theatrical release in 1950. Bright Leaf gained new attention in 2003, when it played prominently in the documentary Bright LeavesBright Leaves (film)
Bright Leaves is a 2003 documentary film by independent filmmaker Ross McElwee about the association his family had with the tobacco industry....
by filmmaker Ross McElwee
Ross McElwee
Ross McElwee is an American documentary filmmaker and cinematographer, and Harvard professor, known for his autobiographical films about his family and personal life, usually interwoven with an episodic journey of some sort. Many cultural aspects of his southern upbringing are present in his...
, a descendant of the man whose life was reflected in both the novel and film.
Cast
Gary CooperGary Cooper
Frank James Cooper, known professionally as Gary Cooper, was an American film actor. He was renowned for his quiet, understated acting style and his stoic, but at times intense screen persona, which was particularly well suited to the many Westerns he made...
as Brant Royle
Lauren Bacall
Lauren Bacall
Lauren Bacall is an American film and stage actress and model, known for her distinctive husky voice and sultry looks.She first emerged as leading lady in the Humphrey Bogart film To Have And Have Not and continued on in the film noir genre, with appearances in The Big Sleep and Dark Passage ,...
as Sonia Kovac
Patricia Neal
Patricia Neal
Patricia Neal was an American actress of stage and screen. She was best known for her film roles as World War II widow Helen Benson in The Day the Earth Stood Still , wealthy matron Emily Eustace Failenson in Breakfast at Tiffany's , middle-aged housekeeper Alma Brown in Hud , for which she won...
as Margaret Jane Singleton
Jack Carson
Jack Carson
John Elmer "Jack" Carson was a Canadian-born U.S.-based film actor.Jack Carson was one of the most popular character actors during the 'golden age of Hollywood', with a film career spanning the 1930s, '40s and '50s...
as Chris Malley
Donald Crisp
Donald Crisp
Donald Crisp was an English film actor. He was also an early motion picture producer, director and screenwriter...
as Major Singleton
Gladys George
Gladys George
Gladys George was an American actress.-Early life:She was born as Gladys Clare Evans on September 13, 1904 in Patten, Maine to English parents.-Career:...
as Rose
Elizabeth Patterson
Elizabeth Patterson (actress)
Elizabeth Patterson was an American film and television character actress remembered for her portrayal of elderly neighbor Matilda Trumbull on I Love Lucy.-Career:...
as Tabitha Singleton
Jeff Corey
Jeff Corey
Jeff Corey was an American stage and screen actor and director who became a well-respected acting teacher after being blacklisted in the 1950s.-Biography:...
as John Barton
Cleo Moore
Cleo Moore
Cleouna "Cleo" Moore was an American actress, usually seen in the role of a blonde bombshell, in 1950s Hollywood films. She was known as Columbia Pictures's clone of 20th Century Fox's, Marilyn Monroe...
as Cousin Louise
External links
- Bright Leaf at Turner Classic MoviesTurner Classic MoviesTurner Classic Movies is a movie-oriented cable television channel, owned by the Turner Broadcasting System subsidiary of Time Warner, featuring commercial-free classic movies, mostly from the Turner Entertainment and MGM, United Artists, RKO and Warner Bros. film libraries...
-- link shows upcoming air dates for film.