Where's Jack?

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Directed byJames Clavell
Written byRafe Newhouse
David Newhouse
Produced byStanley Baker
StarringStanley Baker
Tommy Steele
Where's Jack?
Directed byJames Clavell
Written byRafe Newhouse
David Newhouse
Produced byStanley Baker
StarringStanley Baker
Tommy Steele
CinematographyJohn Wilcox
Edited byPeter Thornton
Music byElmer Bernstein
Production
company
Distributed byParamount British Pictures
Release date
  • 1 April 1969 (1969-04-01)
Running time
120 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Budget$3 million[1]

Where's Jack? (also known as Run, Rebel, Run) is a 1969 British adventure film directed by James Clavell and starring Stanley Baker and Tommy Steele.[2] It was written by Rafe Newhouse and David Newhouse and produced by Baker for his company Oakhurst Productions.

Mary Hopkin sings the title song.

The film recounts the exploits of notorious 18th-century criminal Jack Sheppard and London "Thief-Taker General" Jonathan Wild. The ending of the film is ambiguous, and suggests that Sheppard may have survived his execution and escaped to the Americas.

Cast

Production

Financing was provided by Paramount. According to producer Michael Deeley, this was obtained after a pitch made by Martin Baum, Stanley Baker's agent, to Charles Bludhorn, owner of Paramount. Baum described the film as being written by the writers of Point Blank (1967), produced by the maker of Zulu (1963) and directed by the man who made To Sir, with Love (1967) which, combined, made a profit of $45 million. Divided by four, that would have meant a profit of over $10 million after the $3 million cost was deducted. The pitch was successful, and Deeley says it remains one of his happiest memories in getting a film funded.[3]

Peter Bart, an executive at Paramount at the time, says Stanley Baker did the presentation with Deeley and Baum. Bart says Bludhorn believed that expensive films made the most money and was attracted to Where's Jack? in part by its cost, agreeing to finance without reading a script. He also claims that Deeley presented him with the relatively inexpensive The Italian Job and that Bart arranged for it to be financed without telling Bludhorn; Italian Job would go on to be a far more successful film.[4]

Peter Yates said at the time that Stanley Baker was "rescuing" Tommy Steele from Hollywood musicals "to do some acting again".[5] The film was announced in February 1968.[6]

Filming took place in Ireland in June 1968. It finished by September.[7]

Reception

References

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