SCENE TWO: London 1963/64.

I like films that play around with time eg: an all-time favourite,

PROVIDENCE by Alain Resnais.

Clive (John Gielgud), a frequently drunk author in declining health, is busy working on a new book at his Rhode Island home. The characters in his new story are based on his actual family, which includes his wife, Sonia (Ellen Burstyn); his illegitimate son, Kevin (David Warner) ; and his son, Claude (Dirk Bogarde). Clive embellishes their personalities, adding heavy symbolism to create a dark, surreal tale. When they all show up for a family meal, we learn about their true natures.

and DUNKIRK by Christopher Nolan,

so this Blog follows that style with a lot of a film rattling through the Moviola

as we jump cut from Preston in 1944 to London of the Swinging Sixties.

I arrived at Victoria Station surrounded by hordes of Indians all intent on opening corner shops and selling Pink Paraffin. A Horde is described as 'a small loosely knit social group typically consisting of about five families' so I think my use of the plural term is applicable. A friend who greeted me at Victoria claimed, “My dear, it's just like Bhowani Junction!"

I arrived also at the peak of the Profumo scandal,

The Beatles, Rolling Stones,

Carnaby Street.

By now I was a fully-fledged Film Editor (more anon) and was fortunate enough to find employment with a documentary producer, Stanley Schofield. The cutting rooms were at 6-8 Old Bond Street around the corner from Burlington Arcade

https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryMagazine/DestinationsUK/Burlington-Arcade-the-Burlington-Beadles/

and across the road from Asprey,

https://www.asprey.com/by-royal-appointment

so, as I was sharing a flat in Kensington, I wasn't exactly slumming it.

Number 6 Old Bond Street

As you can see it now reeks of Dolce & Gabbana but originally had in the basement, The Embassy.

One of the first London night clubs 1924.

1954: ‘One of the oldest-established clubs of its type in London…food and service excellent and usually a very high standard of cabaret. Cheque-book. Subscription: 1 guinea. Band: Billy Sproud.’

While there I was introduced by Mr Schofield to Jane, a young woman who had come from Africa with some film footage of chimpanzee.

Little did I know the woman was Dame Jane Morris Goodall, DBE, formerly Baroness Jane van Lawick-Goodall, an English primatologist and anthropologist.

https://www.grunge.com/93256/untold-truth-dr-jane-goodall/

I recently discovered that Jane Goodall had previously worked at Stanley Schofield productions as an assistant and as an editor, so it seems logical that she would have returned to Mr Scofield to produce her documentaries on the chimpz.  Sadly, I never got to work on those doco’s as I was about to return to Australia.

But before I did, I left my mark on English cinema.

1964. the year of THE PILL

https://yesterday.uktv.co.uk/history/article/pill/

Coming (?), as it did by colliding with Swinging London, it gave way to the sexual freedom that we now see on display in the Daily Mail and are left to ponder the wonders or follies of past experimentation with human reproductivity.

Stanley Schofield’s had been commissioned to make a documentary by the makers of the pill, to explain it merits and usage. I was assigned to edit the film. All went well until the final stages. A closing shot was required of a large group of women, presumably to show that the pill was acceptable for all women. 

The film was complete except for that last shot. A call went out for some stock footage showing the required action. Eventually one was received. 

The film had been shot on reversal Extachrome which was a positive film treated as a master from which negatives could be made. I had no way to view the stock footage without damaging it, save with a quick examination by hand. 

Yes, it was a large group of women. 

Looked ideal for our requirements. 

The shot was spliced in, and went off to the laboratory for an Answer Print to be made (that is the first print struck to ensure everything is OK). On viewing the film, everything was indeed OK – until the last shot - the stock footage.

The women were shown standing around in groups – so far so good -  but the camera tracked back to reveal the women were all standing in St Peter’s Square, Rome.

What today, would be known as FAIL

The film, PEACE OF MIND 1964 Stanley Schofield. Supervising editor. Robert Eaves. (He took all the credits for Editing). Tee Hee. I doubt Robert had any peace of mind.

But too late, for now I was hot-footing it across the Atlantic to New York to see if Betty Comden and Adolph Green’s claims were true...I knew the Bronx  was up...but? 

CUT TO the next scene...

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