Breakfast at Tiffany's

Breakfast at Tiffany's is a novella by Truman Capote, published in 1958. The story documents the life of a young woman, Holly Golightly, who is trying to find her place in the world when she meets "Fred" (who is without a name in the book, but christened "Paul Varjak" in the film). In 1961, Breakfast at Tiffany's was adapted as a film that follows some aspects of Capote's original story quite closely.

Primary cast:

• Audrey Hepburn : Holly Golightly
• George Peppard : Paul 'Fred' Varjak
• Patricia Neal : Tooley
• Buddy Ebsen : Doc Golightly
• Martin Balsam : O. J. Berman
• José Luis de Villalonga : José da Silva Pereira
• John McGiver : Tiffany's salesman
• Alan Reed : Sally Tomato
• Dorothy Whitney : Mag Wildwood
• Mickey Rooney : Mr. Yunioshi
• Stanley Adams : Rusty Trawler
• Claude Stroud : Sid Arbuck
• Orangey : Cat

A number of changes had to be made to make the storyline acceptable to a film audience and fans of Audrey Hepburn. For example, in the novella, Holly is more explicitly described as being a prostitute, something only hinted at in the film. There was also no love story between the narrator (played by George Peppard in the film) and Holly, because he was a closet homosexual. Capote's novel also included language that was toned down as well as a more complex ending which became a conventional romantic happy ending for the film.

Related Topics:
Prostitute - Homosexual

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According to Hollywood rumor, Capote wanted Marilyn Monroe to play Holly and may have written the original story with her in mind. Another rumor exists regarding the difficulty in filming the film's opening sequence, in which Holly gazes into a Tiffany's shop window. Although simple in concept, crowd control, Hepburn's dislike for pastries (something she was required to eat for the scene), and an accident that nearly resulted in the electrocution of a crew member made capturing the scene a challenge for director Blake Edwards.

Related Topics:
Hollywood - Marilyn Monroe - Tiffany's - Electrocution - Blake Edwards

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Audrey Hepburn introduced the film's signature song, "Moon River", by Henry Mancini, with lyrics by Johnny Mercer. Sung by Hepburn herself, it was written to her singing range as she was not an experienced singer. However, her definitive version of the song was not released on an album until after her death. Instead, "Moon River" became a major hit for Andy Williams, who made it his theme song. According to Mancini, a studio executive hated the song and demanded it be cut from the film; Hepburn, who was present when this proclamation was made, responded to the suggestion with very unexpected language.

Related Topics:
Moon River - Henry Mancini - Johnny Mercer - Andy Williams

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Wisp-thin Audrey Hepburn as Holly, carrying a cigarette holder almost as long as she is tall, is considered one of the iconic images of 20th century American cinema, and the film marked a major comeback for the actress after several years of unsuccessful films. The film also rejuvenated the career of 1930s movie song-and-dance man Buddy Ebsen, who had a small but effective role in this film as Doc Golightly, Holly's ex-husband. His success here led directly to him being cast in his best-known role as Jed Clampett on The Beverly Hillbillies. Among the film's negative notes, Mickey Rooney's racially stereotyped performance as Holly's Japanese landlord remains controversial nearly 45 years after the film's release, because that stereotype was absent from the novella and was added to enlarge the physical attractiveness of the leading white couple by contrast.

Related Topics:
Cigarette holder - 20th century - American - Cinema - 1930s - Buddy Ebsen - The Beverly Hillbillies - Mickey Rooney - Racially stereotyped - Japanese - Landlord

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Award wins

• Academy Award for Original Music Score – (Henry Mancini)
• – (Johnny Mercer & Henry Mancini)
• Grammy Award for Best Soundtrack Album or Recording or Score – (John Addison)
• WGA for Best Written American Drama – (George Axelrod)

Award nominations

• DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures – (Blake Edwards)
• Academy Award for Best Actress – (Audrey Hepburn)
• Academy Award for Best Art Direction – (Hal Pereira, Roland Anderson, Sam Comer, Ray Moyer)
• Academy Award for Writing Adapted Screenplay – (George Axelrod)