Vivien Leigh
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Arabella’s Notes
Fire Over England 1937 |
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Vivien was doing the Regent’s Park open air production of “Henry VIII” where wily producer Alexander Korda could keep his eye on her while he rushed this film into production. The original script opened with a sea battle but the shooting script focused on the little lady-in-waiting (Vivien) searching for a pearl that had fallen from the Queen’s gown.
All the love scenes were so visually emphasized that Grahame Greene of the Spectator wrote that Elizabeth Tudor would never have allowed “so much cuddling and kissing in her presence.” When Vivien and Olivier went to Korda’s office with the news of their love affair, he chuckled “Everyone knows that already.
Also in the cast:
Flora Robson as Queen Elizabeth I of England
Raymond Massey as King Philip II of Spain
Laurence Olivier as Michael Ingolby
Vivien Leigh as Cynthia
Robert Newton as Don Pedro
James Mason as Hillary Zane
Dark Journey 1937 |
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Korda had a refugee from Nazi Germany on his hands and wanted to showcase him in an English-speaking film. Conrad Veidt was an accomplished actor and fit the role of a German agent perfectly. Vivien played a British couturier-turned-spy who falls in love with him, monocle and all.
There were a few other perks for Vivien in this picture. She was blessed with Georges Pernal’s luminous photography for the long shots and great close-ups thanks to Harry Stradley. Stradley was on the set next door doing the same things for Marlene Dietrich who was filming “Knight without Armor”.
Also in the cast:
Joan Gardner as Lupita
Anthony Bushell as Bob Carter
Storm in a Teacup 1937 |
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This was Vivien’s third film for Alexander Korda. The comedy was adapted from a German play “Sturm im Wasserglas” and transplanted to Scotland. Rex Harrison played the plain-spoken newsman (with just a tinge of Henry Higgins), Vivien was the high-class dame with an attitude and Cecil Parker was her father with a dictator complex. Saville wanted Vivien to do a pratfall for comedic effect but she refused. He assured her that some of Hollywood’s biggest stars did it…Hepburn, Crawford, Rosalind Russell to name a few. Vivien replied “I am an English actress” in a tone that dropped the temperature on the set about 20 degrees.
Critics liked the chemistry between Rex and Vivien and even suggested that they might become another William Powell and Myrna Loy.
Also in the cast:
Sara Allgood as Honoria
Lee Strasberg as Willy
Ursula Jeans as Lisbet
21 Days Together 1937 (1940)
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This film was on the shelf for almost 3 years. It was shot at Denham Studio in London during May and June of 1937 just after the coronation of King George VI. The story involves a man (Olivier) who accidentally kills his lover’s husband and lets someone else take the blame for it while he enjoys her favors and wrestles with his conscience. Vivien plays his mistress Wanda.
However, the two stars had other things on their minds as well. Olivier wanted more time off to spend with Vivien (and got it). Vivien was excited about the upcoming Old Vic stage production of “Hamlet” where she was promised the role of Ophelia. Larry was coaching her on it everyday in the car on the way to the studio.
But both agreed that doing “21 Days….” seemed more like 21 years.
Also in the cast….
Leslie Banks as Keith Durrant
Francis L. Sullivan as Mander
Robert Newton as Tolly
Note: In June 1937 Vivien told her husband she was leaving him. They say Leigh Holman handled it like a perfect gentleman. He viewed her decision as just “artistic temperament” and expected her to calm down and come back home. He was wrong .
A Yank at Oxford 1938 |
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Vivien takes a secondary role in this story about a brash young American Lee Sheridan (Robert Taylor) who is taught a lesson in love, manners and sportsmanship at this prestigious British university. The seductive role of Elsa Craddock who first uses her wiles on Taylor and then on the dean to help him out gives Vivien new dimension.
But she wasn’t a happy camper on the set. Producer Michael Balcon was in charge and, unlike the charming and obliging Korda, didn’t cater to the actors ( Balcon later left the set after a fight with Louis B. Mayer, who was visiting the studio’s project). To make matters worse, former school chum Maureen O’Sullivan (who played Molly) was looking very pleased with herself now that she was happily married to screenwriter John Farrow and the mother of several children. She unknowingly presented an image that made Vivien squirm over her “illicit” affair with Olivier and her abandonment of her own child. But the final straw was an argument with the studio over a pair of shoes and it brought on a preview of Vivien’s later manic episodes.
Also in the cast:
Edmund Gwenn as the Dean
Lionel Barrymore as Taylor’s father.
Sidewalks of London 1938 |
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This was Vivien’s 9th picture and the fifth with Alexander Korda. Titled “St. Martin’s Lane” in England, it was based on a 1905 novel by Heinrich Mann called “Small Town Tyrant”. Co-producer Charles Laughton and his wife Elsa Lanchester had the leading roles but Charles dropped Elsa like a hot potato when Korda offered to finance the project if Vivien was his co-star. That annoyed both ladies because Vivien disliked Laughton and the role. And, to further vex her, onscreen scenes with Rex Harrison were cut severely before they even began shooting. The only saving grace for others on the set was Olivier’s visits which seemed to calm Vivien.
Laughton plays Charlie Staggers, one of a group of buskers (sidewalk performers) in the theater district. Vivien is Libby whose talent for dancing is only matched by her expert sleight-of-hand as she picks up the wallets of her unsuspecting onlookers. Rex Harrison is Harley, the theater patron who likes everything about Libby and never suspects she has his gold cigarette case.
Also in the cast:
Larry Adler as Constantine
Tyrone Guthrie as Gentry
Maire O’Neill as Mrs. Such
Note: Cecil Tennant took over as Vivien’s American agent so she could pursue the role of Scarlett O’Hara in “Gone With the Wind”.
“Gone With The Wind” 1939
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When Vivien ducked play rehearsals to travel 6,000 miles across the ocean to see love-sick Laurence Olivier, she had Margaret Mitchell’s book with her. And, while he was waiting, Olivier was setting up meetings with the Selznick brothers. Myron Selznick took them to the backlot where they were already burning Atlanta and called out to his brother “Hey, genius, meet your Scarlett O’Hara”. David looked up to find Vivien’s face framed in the fire’s light. She was indeed Scarlett O’Hara. Then his jaw unlocked and his brain took over. David O. Selznick made 3 tests before he really believed his eyes.
When director George Cukor left, replaced by Victor Fleming, both Olivia De Havilland (Melanie) and Vivien stormed David’s office threatening to quit. They got nowhere. It seems it was Cukor or Gable. Clark regarded Cukor as a “woman’s director” and didn’t want to work with him. He asked for Fleming and got him. But privately both Olivia and Vivien were getting private direction from Cukor….without one ever knowing about the other!
Also in the cast….
Thomas Mitchell as Gerald O’Hara
Leslie Howard as Ashley
Hattie McDaniel as Mammy
Ona Munson as Belle Watling
Notes: Victor Fleming, pulled off “The Wizard of Oz”, hadn’t read either the book or the script. When Vivien protested that a scene wasn’t true to the book, Fleming barked “Miss Leigh, you take this script and stick it up your royal British ass.”
.Tired after a long day’s work, Vivien refused to do all the things needed to do the “getting sick to her stomach” scene so Olivia de Havilland dubbed in the retching sounds.
Waterloo Bridge 1940 |
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Vivien had lost the title role in “Rebecca” and the chance to work with Olivier. It was her first rebuff from Korda and she resented it for a long time. But she owed him this picture. A remake of the 1931 James Whale film, it was the story of Myra Lester,a ballerina who loses her lover Roy Cronin (Robert Taylor) during WWI and, in her grief, loses her faith as well. She ends up a prostitute, Then one day she finds out he is alive and, ashamed of what she has become, must make a final decision on Waterloo Bridge.
In deference to her success in “Gone With The Wind”, Vivien’s name precedes Taylor’s above the title. But because Olivier was supposed to play that role, Vivien considered Taylor as “miscasting”. However, both Leigh and Taylor considered this film their favorite.
Also in the cast….
Lucile Watson as Roy’s mother
Maria Ouspenskaya as Madame Olga
Virginia Field as Kitty
C. Aubrey Smith as the Duke.
Note: Bolstered by their divorces and now unfettered to pursue their romance in the light of day (as if they hadn’t already done that) Vivien and Larry decided to appear in their own stage production of “Romeo and Juliet”. But the theater they rented was too large for such an intimate production. They lost their shirts.
. An actor in the play’s cast was 23 year-old Jack Merivale.
That Hamilton Woman 1941
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Korda wanted Vivien and Olivier for this picture because it tied in with their personal love story and also arouse sentiment in America to come to Britain’s aid. He had been asked by Winston Churchill to make just such a propaganda film. He also knew his stars needed to make up their losses from the “Romeo and Juliet” fiasco.
A short shooting schedule made it necessary to shoot in sequence allowing the stars to build on every scene. It is the story of the prostitute who married Sir William Hamilton and then pursued an affair with England’s hero Horatio Nelson (Olivier). She was spurned by the nation after Nelson’s death and ended up an alcoholic in a jail cell. The script sometimes bent history to it’s own interpretation but Vivien and Olivier were at their best.
Also in the cast:
Alan Mowbray as Sir William
Sara Allgood as Mrs. Cadogan-Lyon
Gladys Cooper as Lady Frances Nelson
Henry Wilcoxon as Captain Hardy
Note: While audiences today regard this film (titled “Lady Hamilton” in Britain) in a better light, reviewers at the time weren’t feeling that way. In the Observer, C.A. Lejeune said “It is my impression that (the film) would have been better if it had stuck to this man Nelson and bothered less about that woman Hamilton. These are not the days when we have much patience for looking at history through the eyes of a trollop.”
Caesar and Cleopatra 1945 |
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Vivien wanted the role of Cleopatra so much she could taste it but she first had to ‘get’ George Bernard Shaw. Shaw managed every detail when it came to the production of one of his plays. When it was Vivien’s turn to be interviewed by the grand old man, she put all her wiles to work…and won. Shaw was completely hooked but that feeling didn’t last through the filming. He complained that Vivien “gabbled tonelessly”, lacking enunciation. “Should I have had her here to drill her in the diction of the part?”
It didn’t help when Vivien found out she was pregnant. A fall during a scene ended the pregnancy but initiated fits of hysteria and uncontrolled anger. It took six weeks before she could face the cameras again and six years before she could even look at the film. The next time she did Cleopatra she had Olivier as her Caesar and no Shaw to interfere.
Also in the cast….
Claude Rains as Caesar
Stewart Granger as Apollodorus
Flora Robson as Ftatateeta
Francis L. Sullivan as Pothinus
Michael Rennie as the Quayside Centurion.
Anna Karenina 1948 |
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Korda knew Vivien wanted desperately to get back to work. It was almost four years since she had done a film and three since she had been on stage. The role of a woman who had left a home, husband and child seemed to mirror something of her own life. But her vision of Anna conflicted with the director’s view and the battle between them began even before the cameras rolled. Vivien was in one of her depression episodes and played Anna much too darkly while Duvivier wanted the lighter, more loving side of Anna.
The lady never looked lovelier, her beauty enhanced by the costumes she wore, all made in Paris by Cecil Beaton. He was the victim of Vivien’s wrath, however, from the gloves she found too small to the photos he took (possibly catching her manic-depressive mood for all to see). A portrait of her made by another photographer at the time and presented to John Gielgud showed her disturbed condition very clearly.
Also in the cast:
Ralph Richardson as Alexei Karenina
Kieron Moore as Count Vronsky
Hugh Dempster as Stefan
Mary Kerridge as Dolly
Note: It was about this time that Vivien’s affair with Peter Finch began although it was covert and sporadic…what she later referred to as one of the “quicksands” in her life.
A Streetcar Named Desire 1951
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Under Olivier’s direction, Vivien played the role of Blanche DuBois on the London stage and even dyed her hair. Larry’s conception of Blanche was more realistic than the New York stage production and, while the British press praised Vivien’s performance, they were very upset that lady Hamilton accepted such a scandalous role.
While Elia Kazan favored either Jessica Tandy (who played Blanche in New York) or Olivia De Havilland, Vivian finally landed the part. She got $100,000 for her work and became the highest paid British actress of her day (Brando got only $75,000).
Lucinda Ballard was chosen to do the costumes (including Brando’s torn shirt) and she was the one on the set that Vivien turned to as a close friend. The strain this role put on Vivien did not show on the screen because it fit in with the character perfectly. Many believe the movie was much better than the stage production.
Also in the cast….
Kim Hunter as Stella
Karl Malden as Mitch Mitchell
Rudy Bond as Steve.
The Deep Blue Sea 1955
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Olivier was finishing up “Richard III” back in London not 50 yards from where Vivien was shooting this film but they met only at lunch served out of a portable refrigerator in Olivier’s office. The role of “Hester Collyer” was considered a “rescue vehicle” for Vivien. It was the story of a menopausal woman who leaves her husband for another man to revive her sexuality. But Vivien couldn’t bring herself to play “middle-aged’ thus losing the reality of the character. She also didn’t like Kenneth More who played her lover and the feeling was mutual.
At the same time Vivien was planning to regain her husband by playing opposite him during the Stratford-upon-Avon season as Lady MacBeth. But his performance stole the show. As one reviewer wrote: “Sir Laurence shook hands with greatness …Vivien Leigh’s Lady MacBeth was more niminy-piminy than thundery-blundery, more viper than anaconda but still quite competent in its small way”.
Also in the cast…
Eric Portman as Miller
Emlyn Williams as Sir William Collyer
Arthur Hill as Jackie Jackson
Note: The new year brought sad news....on January 23, 1956 Alexander Korda died from a massive heart attack.
The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone 1961
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Another long interval between pictures punctuated by two plays (“Duel of Angels’ and “Look After Lulu”), a miscarriage, becoming a grandmother and a divorce. Vivien also had a new man in her life, Jack Merivale, but still suffered from debilitating manic depressive episodes.
This was her first picture for Warner Bros since “Streetcar…” , a Tennessee Williams story about a middle-aged American widow in Rome to get a new start, and who gets picked up by a handsome gigolo (Warren Beatty). This time Vivien let it all hang out allowing the character to rule instead of her own insecurities. Balmain did the costumes at her insistence and all reflected a new maturity. Finally “Scarlett” was gone and “Karen Stone” took over.
Rome was still reeling under the impact of Fellini’s “La Dolce Vita” and suddenly the permit to film another “immoral show” there was withdrawn and the Rome of William's story had to be created in Britain.
Also in the cast….
Coral Browne as Meg
Jill St. John as Barbara
Bessie Love as Bunny
Note: On December 2, 1961 Vivien, dressed in a close-fitting red and black checked suit, sat in the London Divorce Court to hear the judge grant her a divorce from Sir Laurence Olivier.
Ship of Fools 1965 (pic#15)
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Vivien had recovered from one of her longest periods of depression and the grief over the death of her doctor (fortunately his successor knew all about her case). Then this film was offered by Stanley Kramer. It was based on Katherine Ann Porter’s book, an allegory of pre-war Europe. Vivien hated the book but loved the screenplay.
Simone Signoret had already been signed to play the Countess and Vivien was offered the part of Mary Treadwell, a waspish, middle-aged American divorcee very fond of the bottle. She was assured that while Simone would get top billing in non-English-speaking countries, Vivien would get it in all the rest. Things went well at first but as the role deepened and darkened, so did Vivien’s moods and behavior. It was one of those times only ECT sessions could help.
This would be Vivien’s last picture. But she followed it up with a visit to India. It was her last sight of the majestic Himalayas and the land of her birth.
Also in the cast….
Jose Ferrer as Rieber
Oskar Werner as Dr. Schumann
Elizabeth Ashley as Jenny
George Segal as David
Michael Dunne as Glocken
