CLEOPATRA: Great to Be Nominated
by Andre Soares
It’s really not as bad as it’s cracked up to be. . .
Press Release:
Beverly Hills, CA — The 1963 Best Picture nominee Cleopatra will be screened, in a newly restored 70mm print, as the next feature in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences‘ "Great To Be Nominated" series. The historical epic, famous for being the most expensive film made up to that time, will be shown on Monday, May 15, at 7:30 p.m. in the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater.
Directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, Cleopatra stars Elizabeth Taylor as the Egyptian queen who first seduces Julius Caesar (Rex Harrison), then Marc Antony (Richard Burton). The feature earned a total of nine Academy Award® nominations and took home four Oscars® for Color Art Direction (Art Direction: John DeCuir, Jack Martin Smith, Hilyard Brown, Herman Blumenthal, Elven Webb, Maurice Pelling, Boris Juraga; Set Decoration: Walter M. Scott, Paul S. Fox, Ray Moyer), Color Cinematography (Leon Shamroy), Color Costume Design (Irene Sharaff, Vittorio Nino Novarese and Renie) and Special Effects (Emil Kosa, Jr.).
Other nominations for Cleopatra include Best Picture (Walter Wanger, Producer), Actor (Harrison), Film Editing (Dorothy Spencer), Music Score — substantially original (Alex North) and Sound (20th Century-Fox Studio Sound Department, James P. Corcoran, Sound Director; and Todd-AO Sound Department, Fred Hynes, Sound Director).
Passes for "Great To Be Nominated" are still available at a cost of $30 for film buffs wishing to see the rest of the series. A $5 discount is available for those who wish to renew their passes from Parts One and/or Two of the series. Inclusive of Cleopatra there are 15 screening dates remaining in Part Three.
Tickets for each individual screening may be purchased at a cost of $5 for the general public and $3 for Academy members and students with a valid I.D. Tickets may be purchased by mail, in person at the Academy during regular business hours or, depending on availability, on the night of the screening when the doors open at 6:30 p.m. Curtain time for all features is 7:30 p.m., and pre-show elements will begin at 7 p.m. The Academy is located at 8949 Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills. For more information, call 310-247-3600.
Photo: © A.M.P.A.S.
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