Tap Roots
Tap Roots is a 1948 Technicolor Western war film set during the American Civil War. It is very loosely based on the true life story of Newton Knight, a farm owner who attempted to secede Jones County from Mississippi.[3]
| Tap Roots | |
|---|---|
 Original lobby card | |
| Directed by | George Marshall |
| Produced by | Walter Wanger |
| Written by | Alan Le May Lionel Wiggam |
| Based on | Tap Roots by James H. Street |
| Starring | Van Heflin Susan Hayward Boris Karloff Julie London |
| Music by | Frank Skinner |
| Cinematography | Winton C. Hoch Lionel Lindon |
| Edited by | Milton Carruth |
Production company | Walter Wanger Productions |
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 109 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $2,118,688[1][2] |
| Box office | $3,293,658[1] |
Made by Walter Wanger Productions and Universal Pictures, it was directed by George Marshall and produced by Walter Wanger from a screenplay by Alan Le May, based on the 1942 novel Tap Roots by James H. Street, with additional dialogue by Lionel Wiggam. The original music was by Frank Skinner and the cinematography by Winton C. Hoch and Lionel Lindon.
The film stars Van Heflin and Susan Hayward with Boris Karloff, Julie London, Whitfield Connor, Ward Bond and Richard Long. Karloff plays a Choctaw Indian.[4][5]
A radio version of Tap Roots, with Van Heflin, Susan Hayward and Richard Long reprising their film roles, was broadcast by the Lux Radio Theatre on September 27, 1948.
Cast
- Van Heflin as Keith Alexander
- Susan Hayward as Morna Dabney
- Boris Karloff as Tishomingo
- Julie London as Aven Dabney
- Whitfield Connor as Clay McIvor
- Ward Bond as Hoab Dabney
- Richard Long as Bruce Dabney
- Arthur Shields as Reverend Kirkland
- Griff Barnett as Dr. McIntosh
- Sondra Rodgers as Shellie Dabney
- Ruby Dandridge as Dabby
- Russell Simpson as Big Sam Dabney
Reception
Variety wrote that the film earned $2.5 million in rentals in the US.[6]
The film recorded a loss of $380,385.[1]
References
- Matthew Bernstein, Walter Wagner: Hollywood Independent, Minnesota Press, 2000 p444
- Or $.5 million – see Variety, 18 February 1948, p. 14
- Stephen Jacobs, Boris Karloff: More Than a Monster, Tomahawk Press 2011 p 324
- "'Tap Roots,' story of Civil War, at Loew's Criterion--Two other films arrive". The New York Times. August 26, 1948.
- "'Tap Roots' now at the Regent". The Battle Creek Enquirer and News. October 24, 1948.
- "Top Grossers of 1948", Variety, 5 January 1949, p. 46