Zinnemann Makes Jewel From Pearl Harbor Days
By by ANNE GITTINGER, Managing Arts Editor
You've seen the scene 100 times: a man and a woman smooching in the sand as the waves roll over them.

The man is Burt Lancaster, the woman is Deborah Kerr and the movie is 1953's "From Here to Eternity," Frank Zinnemann's masterpiece about men in the army barracks before the Pearl Harbor attack. The story revolves around a boxer, Robert E. Lee "Prew" Prewitt (Montgomery Clift), who refuses to box on his unit's team because he had blinded someone fighting. Because of his refusal, Prew is sent to a far away unit in Hawaii. Lancaster's character is the second in command of Prew's new units and is in love with the captain's wife (Kerr).

The film won eight Oscars including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Screenplay for writer Daniel Taradash, who adapted the movie from James Jones' novel. The cast includes some of the biggest names of the 1950s such as Frank Sinatra and Donna Reed, who both earned supporting actor awards.

The film, set against a stunning Hawaii backdrop, also won cinematographer Burnett Guffey an Academy Award.

Issue 04, Submitted 2000-09-27 16:18:38