Filming “Help!” in the Bahamas • Day 10

BEATLE MOVIE A BLAST!

Derek Taylor’s Report

The Beatles are fine. They feel fine, they look fine, act brilliantly, sing better than ever. On and off-set they have the air of assured young men who have it made. They may not ever claim to be the greatest act showbiz has ever known, but they certainly look it and certainly are. I hadn’t seen seen them for three months and of course, they hadn’t changed too much. But the feature which struck me most was that they looked more mature. They have more assurance than ever; they are no longer boys.

As Peter Evans, Britain’s most important entertainment columnist wrote in the London Daily Express: “They are man-talking adults beneath those little-boy haircuts.” Evans came away from meeting them in the Bahamas, soured. He wrote a biting attack on their off-stage attitude to the press and described them as “rude and arrogant.“

The Beatles were quite unworried by this. They shrugged their shoulders and forgot about it. But a lot of people around them (who know what the Beatles go through in the way of pressure, strain, travelling, heat and so on, were very annoyed by the article. Said the film’s publicity officer, Tony Howard — a good man and an honest one — “I like Peter Evans and he is entitled to his views.” But Peter’s views are not shared by the other journalists who came here to the Bahamas.

Tony Howard told me: “You know yourself that the Beatles are extremely patient. They are particularly nice to unimportant people from small newspapers or radio stations. The only thing they ask of people is that they should be as honest and direct as them. We had 45 press-men and radio people here in five days. The Beatles met them all. And out of those 45, only Peter Evans attacked them. Maybe he had a difficult time with them. Maybe he didn’t. Whatever happened, it was unusual. The journalists have been thrilled with the Beatles’ co-operation.“

Well, Dave Hull and I were very, very happy with the way things went. The Beatles were great. They gave me a wonderful welcome and it was just like old times. We went out to dinner together under the blue Bahamian skies, visited clubs, laughed about funny things that had happened in the past.

The film should be marvellous. It is full of action. Paul is shrunken to thumb-size for one wild scene. There are four Ringos at one time. Also, there are 11 songs, the Bahamas background: scenes in the Alps and in London. Ringo is nearly murdered for his precious ring. The film is shot in colour and it will be one of the huge events of the cinema in 1965. Release-date USA and UK: around August 1.

Watch out for more film news and some inside news on the Beatles’ lives in next week’s KRLA Beat.

VISITORS TO MOVIE LOCATION TELL OF BEATLEMANIA ANTICS – By Dave Hull

If I wasn’t a complete raving, total Beatlemaniac before, then I certainly am now! What an experience! After spending four days with them in the Bahamas while they filmed portions of the second movie, I feel as wrung out as a piece of laundry.

There is so much to tell I’m sure neither Derek Taylor nor I will be able to do much more than scratch the surface during this edition of the Beat. But we’ll continue it from week to week until you have the whole story… the whole book is more like it, because anyone could write a book after spending a few days with those guys. They are so full of life and mischief that they’re perpetual motion machines. They really wear a person down — even the old Hullabalooer himself.

My previous associations with the Beatles had mostly been in situations where there were crowds all about or near-impossible schedules to meet so that we were unable to really sit down and talk for more than a few minutes at a time. But this trip was completely different. Although they are working about 12 hours a day on the movie, there is a much more relaxed and casual atmosphere.

After inviting Derek and me to visit them, they were great hosts. Completely friendly, relaxed and outgoing. To our surprise, Derek and I found that anyone going to the Bahamas where they’re shooting the film is allowed to see the Beatles. This includes visiting them on the set!

Tourists were constantly snapping pictures of them, and the Beatles actually seemed quite happy about it. They even took the time and trouble to speak to a lot of the visitors.

I’ll pass along a few of the experiences that occurred while we were there. At one point, Ringo, who plays a very unusual role — is painted by a savage. That particular scene had to be shot six times, and each time an expensive suit was ruined.

The script called for a giant idol to rise out of the sea on cue. For some reason, the thing fell over, breaking off two of the arms. With boats, a blimp and helicopter required to set it right again, the arms were finally welded back on at a tremendous cost.

While Malcolm Evans, the Beatles’ road manager, was filming a bit as a channel swimmer, a huge sting ray came in close to shore — evidently to see what was going on (You find Beatlemaniacs in every form). The director quickly ordered Malcolm and the Beatles out of the water. A diver was sent out to scare it off. I didn’t envy the diver a bit, because that thing was about 20 feet in diameter and was so huge that everyone on shore could see him out there.

We had some great times with John, Paul, George and Ringo and other members of the company. We asked them every question we could think of and got replies to almost all of them. Derek is covering some of those points in his report in the Beat this week… and together we’ll take up some of the questions and answers, item by item, next week.

Right now I have to sit back and catch my breath while trying to recuperate from an acute attack of Beatlemania.

From KRBA BEAT – March 17, 1965

HARD WORK, DANGER FOR BEATLES IN ‘HELP’ – Press Officer Tells Of Problems Encountered In Filming Movie

(Editor’s note: Seldom if ever has any movie caused such world-wide excitement as the second Beatles film. Tony Howard was in charge of publicity, and press relations and travelled with the film company from the sunny Bahamas to the frozen Alps. Howard, a friend of KRLA’s Derek Taylor, has written the following account for the KRLA BEAT.)

BY TONY HOWARD

The size of the ten-armed image of the terrible Goddess of Kaili looming above the high walls surrounding London’s Twickenham Film Studios was such that, as each of her giant arms was dismantled by crane one chilly February morning of this year, rumour had it that the Beatles’ second movie had been scrapped.

If it was a bad day for the local fans, for Producer Walter Shenson it was not. After many a hard day’s night — preparations for his second Beatles film — this Sphinx-like idol was merely being “disarmed” for transportation to the Bahamas in order to be “re-armed” on arrival there for the astounding finale.

Producer Shenson chartered a BOAC Boeing 707 to transport the cast, unit and very piece of equipment to the Bahamas, but there was the extra passenger with more room than any first class traveller — it was Kaili, whose dismembered body, adorned in white sheets, was stored in every free corner of the plane. Her torso, however, was too big for any luggage rack or spare seat, so Kaili made the trip along the gangway, much to the chagrin of the stewards carrying their trays through the plane.

Artists and crew, muffled in coats and scarves to combat the wintry February weather in London, landed in Nassau to the temperature of 90 degrees in the shade.

For weeks before, Shenson’s location manager had been battling with the accommodation problem which confronted him in this popular resort.

How were 700-odd extra people going to be housed in Nassau, which was already bulging at the seems with its usual influx of high season tourists? That his efforts met with success was largely due to the enthusiastic co-operation of American Bob Rowley, chief of the Bahamas Tourist Board.

Next day was spent unpacking and getting ready for shooting. Nearly everyone assembled on the magnificent beach outside the Balmoral Club Hotel. Julie Harris, the costume designer, set about giving the Beatles their final costume fittings. The immense generator was moved into position and Director Richard Lester roamed about, deep in thought, picking the best spots for the next day’s filming.

All this activity was accompanied by the cries of fans spotting their favorite Beatle, tourists taking photographs, a 50-strong group of pressmen and photographers from all over the world, plus a small army of extra policemen. It looked like unbelievable chaos. How could anyone hope to make a film under those conditions? But next day’s shooting commenced without a hitch, although the number of fans and spectators had doubled.

During the days that followed, over 40 sequences were filmed in public places in and around Nassau, and — although most of the Island and tourist population were there at one time or another — there were very few interruptions of any consequence. The most notable incident that held up shooting for a while was when her Majesty the Queen Mother came into shot as she and her entourage of cars and outriders passed by on their way to the airport, homeward bound after her Jamaican tour.

At night, most of the unit took advantage of the delights available in this picturesque spot — the calypsos, the steel bands for moonlight dancing, the exotic menus and the inate gaiety of the native population. Most members of the unit had to take their swims at night since there was never time for bathing in the famous blue waters during the day.

The Beatles would dodge the fans congregating outside their luxurious beach bungalow, and race to the capital in their open sports cars to live it up for awhile after the gruelling day’s work under the burning sun. But most of the time they would stay at home and continue working on the musical score for the picture, music and lyrics by Beatles Paul McCartney and John Lennon — seven new numbers in all.

The last sequences to be shot in the Bahamas were to take place on Paradise Island, by kind permission of Huntington Hartford, who owns the island. While Director Lester supervised the crew on the beach, further activity was going on under the sea a few hundred yards out.

Almost very skindiver in the vicinity, whether they were treasure hunters or underwater guides, were operating from the sea bed, trying to stage the dramatic rising out of the water of the great Image of the Goddess of Kaili — now complete again. Richard Lester was in constant touch by radio with the divers handling the air tanks and pressure bombs needed to make the slow appearance of the 40-foot high idol.

Mr. Huntington Hartford, with his entourage, watched the scene with great interst. His beautiful wife, Diane, was even persuaded to play a small part in the movie.

It took three whole weary days to get Kaili to come out of the water at the right time, at exactly the right place, and by that time the entire unit was glad to see the back of her as she was towed away by a specially hired Navy salvage vessel.

But with the disappearance of the Goddess, an airborne, monster-shaped object became an equally startling sight to the islands. It was the famous Goodyear blimp which was transported from Florida for a spectacular scene in the film.

By now most of the unit was in various stages of sun tan and sun burn, except for the Beatles who had to keep out of the sun throughout the location. Since the Bahamas sequences were actually the last scenes in the completed film, audiences would find it rather odd to watch the boys in varying skin colours without explanation. However, the run on sun tan products and the sale of soft drinks was formidable. It was estimated that some 700 bottles of soft iced drinks were consumed by the unit each day.

When artists and crew finally said goodbye to the Bahamas, unwillingly sweltering in their London clothes, they were given a rousing sendoff by the Bahamanians, for these islands are new ground for film producers and it may well be that Walter Shenson has started up a new profit sideline for them. Indeed, shorter afterwards a 150-strong film unit arrived in Nassau to film exteriors for United Artists’ fourth James Bond film, “Thunderball.”

London was cold but the unit hadn’t much time to notice it because, before two days had passed, they were on their way once again by chartered plane to another extreme of climate — the Austrian Alps!

(In next week’s KRLA BEAT, Tony Howard tells of the complications and dangers of filming in the avalanche-threatened Austrian Alps, of the night the Beatles surprised everyone with a performance and of the assault by Beatle fans upon their return to London.)

From KRLA Beat – June 2, 1965