The Cool World (film)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article is about the 1963 film. For the 1992 film, see Cool World.
The Cool World
The Cool World (1963 poster).jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed byShirley Clarke
Written byWarren Miller (novel)
Robert Rossen (play)
Shirley Clarke (screenplay)
Produced byFrederick Wiseman
StarringHampton Clanton
Yolanda Rodríguez
Antonio Fargas
Carl Lee
Clarence Williams III
Music byMal Waldron (composer)
The Dizzy Gillespie quintet (performer)
Production
company
Wiseman Film Productions
Distributed by[Cinema V]
Release date
  • September 2, 1963 (1963-09-02)
Running time
125 min.
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

The Cool World is a 1963 feature film directed by Shirley Clarke about African-American life in the Royal Pythons, a youth gang in Harlem.[1] In 1994, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".[2][3] The film is considered by some critics to be the first film within the Blaxploitation genre.

Plot[]

When Duke (Hampton Clanton), a 15-year-old member of the gang Royal Pythons, decides he needs a gun to survive on the streets of Harlem, he visits a local thug named Priest (Carl Lee). Utilizing first-time actors and true-life ghettos for scenery, Shirley Clarke's devastating semi-documentary dramatizes the life of young gang bangers in 1960s Harlem and transcends its narrative to deliver a vivid picture of inner city life. Based on the novel by Warren Miller.

Cast and crew[]

The Cool World stars real Harlem youth, and some real gang members:

  • Rony Clanton (as Hampton Clanton) (Duke, a fifteen-year-old)
  • Carl Lee (Priest, a neighborhood gangster, is killed by the Mob)
  • Yolanda Rodríguez (LuAnne, a prostitute used by the Royal Pythons)
  • Clarence Williams III (Blood, the gang's president)
  • Gary Bolling (Littleman, killed by a rival gang, the Wolves)
  • Bostic Felton (Rod)
  • Joe Oliver (Angel, leader of the Wolves, is killed by the Royal Pythons)
  • Gloria Foster (Duke's Mom)
  • Ted Butler (Mom's lover)
  • Marilyn Cox (Priest's woman, a prostitute)
  • Antonio Fargas
  • The Dizzy Gillespie quintet

Production[]

This semi-documentary style movie was produced by soon-to-be documentary filmmaker Frederick Wiseman, directed by Shirley Clarke, and adapted by Clarke and Carl Lee from the 1959 novel The Cool World by Warren Miller. Original music was by Mal Waldron and cinematography by Baird Bryant

A play, written by Miller and Robert Rossen based on the novel, was first shown in Philadelphia and then twice at Broadway's Eugene O'Neill Theatre on February 22 and 23, 1960, featuring Raymond St. Jacques, James Earl Jones, Calvin Lockhart, Hilda Simms, and others.[4] The film helped launch Antonio Fargas, Clarence Williams III, Carl Lee, and Gloria Foster, who married Williams three years later.

Soundtrack[]

The soundtrack to the film was recorded by Dizzy Gillespie and his quintet, and was released as an album of the same name in 1964.

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ New York Times
  2. ^ "25 Films Added to National Registry". The New York Times. 1994-11-15. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-09-21.
  3. ^ "Complete National Film Registry Listing | Film Registry | National Film Preservation Board | Programs at the Library of Congress | Library of Congress". Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA. Retrieved 2020-09-21.
  4. ^ IBDB; Internet Broadway Database

Further reading[]

External links[]


Stub icon

This exploitation film–related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by .

  • v
  • t
Retrieved from ""