Filming “Help!” at Twickenham • Day 2

Beatles In Austria – DANGEROUS FILMING IN AUSTRIAN ALPS

(The second and concluding portion of an eyewitness account of the problems, pleasures, thrills and dangers involved in filming the Beatles’ second movie, “Help!” Publicist Tony Howard tells of the drastic change when they left tropical Nassau and moved to the snow-bound Austrian Alps.)

[…] Back in London it was spring and the day after the chartered plane landed at London Airport, welcomed by several thousand fans, filming was resumed at Wickenham Studios. By now a lot of things had happened. George Harrison had had his 22nd birthday, Ringo’s wife had announced a forthcoming baby, and brilliant British comedian Frankie Howard, star of London’s long-running stage hit “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum,” had joined the cast. His portrayal of an eccentric drama coach promises to be one of the film’s comedy highlights. But no one had thought of a perfect title.

Ringo’s “Eight Arms to Hold You” had been announced but was soon voted out again. Time passed and still no title. Then one day someone realized that the word most used in the script was “help!” So a title was born and John Lennon and Paul McCartney started, belatedly, to work out the title song. The boys often compose fast, and in no time the song was written and recorded.

A few problems arose — one was the inevitable fan trouble which the Beatles experience wherever they go. Twickenham’s teenagers were regularly breaking into the studio or storming the gates, and it was necessary to reinforce not only the police but the very bricks and motar of the studio.

Several street sequences were on the agenda, but the London police warned the film company that they would not receive much cooperation from the overworked constabulary if the fans caused traffic obstructions. So Shenson’s unit was obliged to shoot further afield and away from the crowded areas of central London.

A four-day location on Salisbury Plains was announced and with the cooperation of the war office — which supplied troops, tanks and equipment for the occasion — a near full-scale military maneuver was filmed in spite of unpredictable spring weather.

These scenes are to remain top secret — and many others in the film — until release time. Both Richard Lester and Walter Shenson feel that the plot and situations are so explosive that to give out even an inkling of their content might spoil the impact when the film is shown.

On more than one occasion during the making of “Help!” notoriously blase film technicians had to leave the set because their vainly suppressed laughter during the shooting was coming through on the sound track.

“Help!” is essentially a holiday picture,” says Producer Shenson. “It was made in two totally contrasting holiday resorts. We travelled from calypso to yodel with a lot of yeah-yeah thrown in besides. It will be released in August both in England and the States — holiday time for most people — and we hope the movie itself will be something of a holiday for everyone who sees it.“

Dick Lester describes “Help!” as an adventure comedy. “The boys will play themselves again but in a completely fictional situation, unlike ‘A Hard Day’s Night’ which could be described best as cinema journalism.“

Filmed in Eastman’s Colour, Walter Shenson’s and Dick Lester’s second movie starring the Beatles will once again be released throughout the world by United Artists.

From KRLA BEAT – June 9, 1965