On the Beach (1959)
| Release Date | 17 December 1959 |
| Genre | Drama, Sci-Fi |
| Country | USA |
| Filming Locations | Canadian Bay, Port Phillip, Victoria, Australia |
| Language | English |
| Sound Mix | Mono |
| Color | Black and White |
| Film Type | Feature |
| Film Class | Message Movie, Sci-Fi Disaster Film |
| Mood | Food for Thought |
| Themes | End of the World, Post-Apocalypse |
| Tones | Matter-of-Fact, Reflective, Somber, Bleak, Disturbing, Downbeat, Grim, Cautionary |
| Tags | Australia, Destruction, Morals, Nuclear Holocaust, Post Nuclear Holocaust, Radioactive, Romance, Submarine, Survivor |
On the Beach (1959) is a post-apocalyptic drama film based on Nevil Shute's 1957 novel of the same name. The film features Gregory Peck (USS Sawfish captain Dwight Lionel Towers), Ava Gardner (Moira Davidson), Fred Astaire (scientist Julian—John in the novel—Osborne) and Anthony Perkins (Royal Australian Navy lieutenant Peter Holmes). It was directed by Stanley Kramer, who won the 1960 BAFTA for best director. Ernest Gold won the 1960 Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture Score. It was remade as an Australian television film by Southern Star Productions in 2000.
Cast and Crew
Cast
Donna Anderson
Mary Holmes
John Tate
Adm. Bridie
Harp McGuire
Lt. Sunderstrom
Lola Brooks
Lt. Hosgood
Ken Wayne
Lt. Benson
Richard Meikle
Davis
Joe McCormick
Ackerman
Lou Vernon
Bill Davidson
Kevin Brennan
Dr. King
Basil Buller-Murphy
Sir Douglas Froude
John Casson
Salvation Army captain
Paddy Moran
Stevens
Grant Taylor
Morgan
Harvey Adams
Sykes
Peter Ashton
Bit Part
Jim Barrett
Chrysler
Ken Baumgartner
Bit Part
Jack Boyer
Bit Part
C. Harding Brown
Dykers
Norman Cook
Bit Part
Colin Crane
Bit Part
Gerry Duggan
Bit Part
Keith Eden
Dr. Fletcher
Lucian Endicott
Bit Part
Stuart Finch
Jones
Paddy Fitzallen
Bit Part
Ronald Fortt
Bit Part
Cyril Gardner
Bit Part
Frank Gatliff
Radio officer
Katherine Hill
Jennifer Holmes
Collins Hilton
Bit Part
Brian James
Bit Part
Joseph Jenkins
Bit Part
Audine Leith
Betty
Paul Maloney
Bit Part
Ray Marshall
Bit Part
John Morgan
Bit Part
Peter O'Shaughnessy
Jorgensen associate
Rita Pauncefort
Elderly woman
Carey Paul Peck
Boy
Elwyn Peers
Bit Part
John Royle
Senior officer
Jerry Ian Seals
Fogarty
Al Thomas
Bit Part
Mario Vecchi
Bit Part
Peter Williams
Prof. Jorgensen, scientist
Hugh Wills
Bit Part
Director
Writer
John Paxton
James Lee Barrett
uncredited
Producer
Original Music
Ernest Gold
-
Cinematographer
Giuseppe Rotunno
Editor
Frederic Knudtson
-
Production Designer
Rudolph Sternad
-
Art Director
Fernando Carrere
-
Makeup Department
John O'Gorman
makeup artist
Franz Prehoda
makeup artist
Jane Shugrue
hair stylist
Production Manager
Clem Beauchamp
production manager
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Ivan Volkman
assistant director
Art Department
Art Cole
property master
Sound Department
Walter Elliott
sound effects
Hans Wetzel
sound engineer
Special Effects
Lee Zavitz
special effects
Stunts
Carey Loftin
stunts
Harvey Parry
stunts
Dale Van Sickel
stunts
Camera and Electrical Department
Daniel L. Fapp
photographer: auto race
Allen Grice
chief gaffer
Martin Kashuk
assistant company grip
Morris Rosen
company grip
Ross Wood
camera operator
Robert Wright
camera operator
Costume and Wardrobe Department
Joe King
wardrobe
Eva Friend
wardrobe assistant
Other Crew
Sam Freedle
script supervisor
A.A. Norris-Smith
liaison: Royal Australian Navy
Production Company
Stanley Kramer Productions
-
Distributor
United Artists
American Broadcasting Company (ABC)
Image Entertainment
MGM/UA Home Entertainment
,
MGM Home Entertainment
Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment
Special Effects
Film Effects of Hollywood
-
Miscellaneous
Atelier Fontana
wardrobe: Miss Gardner
Royal Australian Navy
acknowledgement
Officers and Men of H.M.A.S. Melbourne, The
acknowledgement
Officers and Men of H.M.S. Andrew, The
acknowledgement
Related Lists
Navigation Boxes
Films directed by Stanley Kramer
Bless the Beasts & Children (1971)
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967)
Inherit the Wind (1960)
Judgment at Nuremberg (1961)
Not as a Stranger (1955)
Oklahoma Crude (1973)
On the Beach
Ship of Fools (1965)
The Defiant Ones (1958)
The Domino Principle (1977)
The Pride and the Passion (1957)
The Runner Stumbles (1979)
The Secret of Santa Vittoria (1969)
Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score (1947–1969)
On the Beach
Sunset Blvd. (1950)
