"Circus World" Home Movie

Below is a home movie taken during the filming of Circus World (1964) with John Wayne, Rita Hayworth and Claudia Cardinale. 

R.I.P. Claudia Cardinale.

Claudia Cardinale Dies At 87

Above, John Wayne and Claudia Cardinale in Circus World.

Italian actress Claudia Cardinale has died at the age of 87.

According to the BBC:

Claudia Cardinale, the Tunisian-born Italian star of The Leopard, 8 1/2 and Pink Panther, has died at the age of 87.

She had a six-decade long career, rising to fame during the golden age of Italian cinema, and was directed by greats such as Federico Fellini and Luchino Visconti.

The actress died at Nemours in France in the company of her children, according to her agent Laurent Savry.

"She leaves us the legacy of a free and inspired woman both as a woman and as an artiste," Savry told AFP news agency.

Born in Tunisia to Sicilian parents in April 1938, Cardinale won a beauty contest at 16 that saw her declared "the most beautiful Italian woman in Tunis". 

Last year, I visited the John Wayne Birthplace and Museum in Winterset, Iowa and picked up a DVD copy of Circus World (1964) starring Wayne, Rita Hayworth and Claudia Cardinale. 

To read more, go here.

Rita Hayworth

Above, the iconic Life magazine photo of Rita Hayworth of 1941.

After watching Circus World (1964) with John Wayne, Claudia Cardinale and Rita Hayworth last night, I did some checking up on Hayworth this morning. I don't recall seeing any of her films, but I am familiar with the iconic Life magazine photo of her taken in the 1940s during her heyday.

According to Wikipedia:

Margarita Carmen Hayworth (née Cansino; October 17, 1918 – May 14, 1987) was an American actress and dancer. She achieved fame during the 1940s as one of the era's top stars, appearing in 61 films over 37 years. The press coined the term "The Love Goddess" to describe Hayworth after she had become the most glamorous screen idol of the 1940s. She was the top pin-up girl for GIs during World War II.

Hayworth is perhaps best known for her performance in the 1946 film noir Gilda, opposite Glenn Ford, in which she played the femme fatale in her first major dramatic role. She is also known for her performances in Only Angels Have Wings (1939), The Lady from Shanghai (1947), Pal Joey (1957), and Separate Tables (1958). Fred Astaire, with whom she made two films, You'll Never Get Rich (1941) and You Were Never Lovelier (1942), once called her his favorite dance partner. She also starred in the Technicolor musical Cover Girl (1944), with Gene Kelly. She is listed as one of the top 25 female motion picture stars of all time in the American Film Institute's survey, AFI's 100 Years...100 Stars.

In 1980, Hayworth was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, which contributed to her death at age 68. The public disclosure and discussion of her illness drew attention to Alzheimer's, which was largely unknown by most people at the time, and helped to increase public and private funding for Alzheimer's research.

President Ronald Reagan, who had been one of Hayworth's contemporaries in Hollywood, issued a statement:

Rita Hayworth was one of our country's most beloved stars. Glamorous and talented, she gave us many wonderful moments on stage and screen and delighted audiences from the time she was a young girl. In her later years, Rita became known for her struggle with Alzheimer's disease. Her courage and candor, and that of her family, were a great public service in bringing worldwide attention to a disease which we all hope will soon be cured. Nancy and I are saddened by Rita's death. She was a friend who we will miss. We extend our deep sympathy to her family.

"Circus World" (1964) With John Wayne

Last night, I went to bed a bit later than usual. Curiosity got to me after Carl Glass posted his review of Circus World (1964) starring John Wayne, Claudia Cardinale and Rita Hayworth. It was directed by Henry Hathaway.

Up until last night, I hadn't seen Circus World since I was a kid, so I didn't remember it except for the fire sequence. Carl told me that the whole movie can be seen on YouTube. That's what I did.

As far as cinematography goes, Circus World is quite a colorful movie.

Here's Carl's review (which is also my assessment):

I am not the worlds greatest movie critic. When it comes to John Wayne films I am a huge fan. However, not every film he made is in the category of great. For years I avoided watching the 1964 film, 'Circus World' with John Wayne, Claudia Cardinale, Rita Hayworth, Lloyd Nolan, John Smith and Richard Conte. Mostly due to its bad ratings by critics. I decided I was going to watch it this evening with an open mind. 

It wasn't the greatest of productions but the acting was there. You had Rita Hayworth who was a long lost love interest of Wayne that had left him with a daughter of another father. Who protected her for years and a part of the circus. Hayworth didn't show much later into the film. She was on the downslide of her career at that time as was one of my all time favorites, Richard Conte who I felt was miscast in this film. Claudia Cardinale was a youngster in this film whose performance was magnificent an played the adopted daughter of Wayne and the love child of Rita Hayworth of another circus performer who she murdered. The brother of Richard Conte. It is quite a twisted plot. I love Lloyd Nolan in just about anything he did in film and TV. I thought John Smith was a great cast member in this film. Kudo's to his  performance. 

If anyone is familiar with Smith, he starred in the TV series in the early 60s on, 'Laramie' with Robert Fuller. It's a film about the times and trials of a circus owner who seemed to have lost it all, who again found success in Europe gathering many of the most talented performers in the genre. And I can find good in a film where there is redemption between a daughter and a mother. I thought the film was a little bit better than the critics gave it.

Circus World was a good diversion for John Wayne fans. Claudia Cardinale is always good eye candy and especially so in this movie.