He was a likeable bloke on-screen, and he did a fine job as Dr Marvin, the hero of this one; but I can only ever think of him as Tom in The Day The Earth Stood Still, saying "You'll think differently when you see my name in the papers!" as he hands Klaatu over to the military extermination squads.
He made such a good selfish creep.
(p.s. did you know his real name was Hugh Herbert Hipple ??! There's one for Trivial Pursuit !!)
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Don't forget poor Hugh had a leading role in "All About Eve", possibly the finest movie ever made - from every perspective. For a middling character actor, he sure did gift us with some classics, and had quite a career in the process!
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On the contrary, his actions were meant to try and stop the aliens. He believed that they had come for peace and were wrongfully attacked by the military. He thought that, if he could speak to them, he might be able to divert a war between the earth and the flying saucers. Unfortunately for him, their peace talk was merely a explanation that we had a chance to surrender peacefully. I'll agree that he should have answered his wife on the radio however.
The one thing that gets me about the character is where he punched the guy. I doubt a man with such a scientific mind would have such a knock out punch.
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"Attempted murder? Now honestly, what is that? Do they give a Nobel Prize for attempted chemistry?"
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He would have been arrested for it. However, I think it was the right thing to do. Sometimes one has to disregard orders to do the right thing. It's like when the Nazis attacked Europe and a number of American pilots illegally joined the British Airforce while America was officially neutral. They were guilty of treason and yet they were heroes.
Besides, it was because of him that the US government were able to get the information that they did. It's one of those rare occasions in which the outcome really does justify the means.
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"Attempted murder? Now honestly, what is that? Do they give a Nobel Prize for attempted chemistry?"
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Defying orders is still defying orders. He went to contact them to stop an invasion. What stake could he possibly have in seeing America fall to the aliens?
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"Attempted murder? Now honestly, what is that? Do they give a Nobel Prize for attempted chemistry?"
I don't know about Dr. Marvin's alleged act of treason, but it's a darned shame, imo, that the good doctor did NOT have one of those Sharper Image Ear Hair Trimmers to cut off those protruding, fine ear hairs of his, shining in the sunlight as he schmoozed with his lovely wife on the beach.
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I wonder if Mr. Marlowe ever saw Patrick Swayze in "Red Dawn," in which Patrick unfortunately displays an ill-timed "snot bubble" during one of the outdoor winter scenes in John Milius' World War III cinematic "classic"?
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Regardless of whether he was right or wrong, the aliens asked for him and him specifically. As far as he was concerned, Marvin was simply complying with the aliens' request, out of fear of what might happen if that request wasn't met (i.e., what would happen if the aliens got impatient?).
The only bad result of Marvin's decision to rush off was that he was indirectly responsible for the policeman's death. Regrettable, yes, but Marvin didn't "put the entire country in danger." The country was already in danger, only they just didn't know it yet. Aside from the policeman getting "brain drained," the only outcome of Marvin disobeying orders was that he relayed the aliens' demand that the country surrender. Which was the aliens' intention for him all along. So, he didn't cause anything that wouldn't have happened anyway.
Yes he disobeyed orders, but the nonsense about him potentially putting the country in danger by doing so was just the generals using him as a scapegoat because they didn't like the information he brought back. Those guys had a real "shoot the messenger" mentality at first. Not that I blame them.
Aren't you being just a little rough on the guy?
shareYeah, I'm with rwsmith. Reading this thread, we go from a career assessment of HM, to a debate about his disobedience in contacting the aliens (hey, it's a movie!), to the condition and length of his nose and ear hairs. This converation has descended faster than poor Hugh's career, as one has to admit that it's a bit of a drop from Twelve O'Clock High and All About Eve to even our beloved (and we do love it) Earth Vs. the Flying Saucers. And vastly worse lay ahead in Mr. Marlowe's film career: Thirteen Frightened Girls, Castle of Evil...yecch! With only small roles in great films such as Elmer Gantry, Birdman of Alcatraz, Seven Days in May. (Burt Lancaster must have liked him!) I'm glad he finally got a long-running gig on daytime TV, which secured his livelihood for the last 13 years of his life. I know the writer/creator of that soap, Another World, and he liked Hugh very much, though he did think him a somewhat limited actor. But, as this man said, he did have that great voice -- befitting the hugely successful radio actor and announcer he had once been. (Oh, so, doesn't it make sense then that he'd use that great, authoritative voice to contact the aliens on the radio? Huh? Huh?)
BTW, Hugh Marlowe made another great, mid-budget sci-fi film right after EVTFS -- the time-travel epic World Without End, also 1956. One of my faves, and finally out on DVD last year in all its Technicolor, CinemaScope glory -- the first widescreen sci-fi film! Check it out, if you haven't seen it. Really a good movie, and HM does a good job too.
With only small roles in great films such as Elmer Gantry, Birdman of Alcatraz, Seven Days in May. (Burt Lancaster must have liked him!)
Well, I mentioned Lancaster as a joke, but no, I did not mean John Frankenheimer.
In the first place, Frankenheimer didn't direct or have anything to do with Elmer Gantry. Richard Brooks directed (and produced) it.
In the second place, contrary to popular belief, it's the producer, not the director, who makes cast choices, though the director often has some input. Lancaster's company, Hecht-Lancaster, produced Birdman of Alcatraz, so in fact Lancaster did have a say in who was cast in that movie, as he did in all the many movies he produced. Also, as a top star, Lancaster certainly could and did throw his weight around if he didn't like a casting choice, even if he was just an actor and not the producer.
As for Seven Days in May, that film was produced by Kirk Douglas, via his company Joel Productions. Frankenheimer directed this film as well as Birdman. Now it's quite possible that he may have recommended both Hugh Marlowe and Whit Bissell (both featured in Birdman) to Douglas, though I never heard this one way or another. He was instrumental in persuading Lancaster to reconsider making the film, since he had initially rejected the part of General Scott.
Anyway, despite his modest roles in these three major films, from the late 50s on Marlowe was otherwise confined to low-budget, and usually poor, films, which was too bad.
Valid points, hobnob53, and knowledgeably made - thank you.
About Hugh Marlowe, I've only seen him in a couple of films, one not a major film and I can't quite recall which one it was, and the other his unforgettable, though rather negative role as Tom Stevens in Robert Wise's The Day The Earth Stood Still (1951).
Well, first, if you saw the exclamation point, my comment about Burt liking him was obviously facetious.
Second, no, I did not mean John Frankenheimer, who had nothing to do with Elmer Gantry, which was written and directed by Richard Brooks. Frankenheimer directed, but did not produce, the other two films; contrary to myth, the director normally does not hire the actors in a film, the producer does (though the director often has input). So while it's likely Frankenheimer had a say in the casting, he didn't make the decisions or hire anyone.
Third, Lancaster did produce Birdman, as he produced many of his films through his company Hecht-Lancaster (later Hecht-Hill-Lancaster) from the late 40s on (including some films he didn't star in, such as Marty); to say that "all he did was play leading roles" is completely inaccurate (he also directed one movie). So as one of the film's producers, Lancaster certainly did have a hand in hiring the cast of Birdman.
Finally, Seven Days in May was produced by Kirk Douglas. Again, I expect that in both Birdman and Seven Days Frankenheimer was consulted about the casting and it's possible he was the one who recommended both Hugh Marlowe and Whit Bissell from the earlier film. That would have been in keeping with the collaborative process that often occurred between a film's producers and its director in that era. And it's not unusual for a director or producer to work with familiar actors they like.
Of course I have no idea who made each specific casting choice for each of these three films, but their one common thread was that all three had both Burt Lancaster and Hugh Marlowe in them. So perhaps Lancaster did recommend Marlowe for his roles in the last two films, after working with him in Elmer Gantry; for all I know, he may even have recommended Marlowe to Richard Brooks for that film. I don't say any of this is what happened, but it's possible. Even so, my original statement from 2009 was not meant seriously.
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His "bucket head" scene when he wears the alien helmet had to be something he was very proud of. Highly comical. That's why I love old scifi.
shareWell yes, Tom in "The Day the Earth Stood Still" should have said "You'll think different", not "You'll think differently". Because, you see, it's not an adverb, it's a predicate adjective. But that's a common mistake, known as a "genteelism", and I forgive him (actually the writer). I learned this from my wonderful eighth grade English teacher, but most people never do learn it. Today it just doesn't matter anymore. Unfortunately, descriptivism rules.
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