The Ghost Ship

Infobox Film
name = The Ghost Ship


image_size = 215px
caption = theatrical poster
director = Mark Robson
producer = Val Lewton
writer = Leo Mittler "(story)"
Donald Henderson Clarke
starring = Richard Dix
Russell Wade
Edith Barrett
music = Roy Webb
cinematography = Nicholas Musuraca
editing = John Lockert
distributor = RKO Radio Pictures
released = 24 December fy|1943 "(US)"
runtime = 69 minutes
country = FilmUS
language = English
budget =
gross =
imdb_id = 0035937

"The Ghost Ship" (fy|1943) is a black-and-white film starring Richard Dix. The film was directed by Mark Robson and produced by Val Lewton for RKO Radio Pictures.

ynopsis

Tom Merriam, a young officer (Wade) joins the crew of a ship, the "Altair". At first all seems well and Merriam bonds with the Captain, Will Stone (Dix). However, as the cruise continues, several crewmen die mysteriously. Merriam comes to believe that Captain Stone, who is obsessed with authority, is responsible. When they dock at the first port, Merriam attempts to expose the Captain's madness but is discredited and subsequently fired. Soon after this, Merriam is involved in a fight and knocked out. One of his former shipmates (unaware that he was dismissed from the ship) finds him and returns the unconscious man to the "Altair" before she steams from port. Merriam wakes up on the ship and fears that the insane Captain Stone may now attempt to kill him for vengeance.

Production notes

*RKO tasked producer Lewton to make a sea-based film because the studio had a ship set already built for the film "Pacific Liner" in 1938. [ [http://imdb.com/title/tt0035937/trivia imdb.com] ]

*The film's producer Lewton was sued for plagiarism by playwrights Samuel R. Golding and Norbert Faulkner who claimed that the script was based on a play that was submitted to Lewton for a possible film. Lewton disputed the claim, but the court ruled against Lewton. "The Ghost Ship" was withdrawn from circulation and the film was unavailable for viewing for fifty years. [ [http://www.allmovie.com/cg/avg.dll?p=avg&sql=1:92935 AllMovieGuide] ]

*The fictional Caribbean island of "San Sebastian" also appears in RKO's "I Walked With a Zombie" (another Lewton production) and "Zombies on Broadway".

*The film was released as part of the "Val Lewton Horror Collection" DVD set in 2005.

Cast

*Richard Dix as Captain Will Stone
*Russell Wade as Tom Merriam, 3rd Officer
*Edith Barrett as Ellen Roberts
*Ben Bard as First Officer Bowns
*Edmund Glover as Jacob "Sparks" Winslow, radioman
*Skelton Barnaby Knaggs as Finn the Mute

ee also

*"Ghost Ship" is an unrelated 2002 horror film.

Notes

External links

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* [http://www.missinglinkclassichorror.co.uk/index.htm The Missing Link review]
* [http://www.whiskeyloosetongue.com/ghost.html Val Lewton screenplays - The Ghost Ship]