The African Queen

The African Queen is a 1951 movie. The film was adapted by James Agee, John Huston and Peter Viertel from the 1935 novel by C.S. Forester. It was directed by Huston and photographed in Technicolor by Jack Cardiff. It starred Humphrey Bogart (who won the Academy Award for Best Actor - his only Oscar), Katharine Hepburn, Robert Morley and Theodore Bikel.

Related Topics:
1951 - Movie - James Agee - John Huston - Peter Viertel - 1935 - C.S. Forester - Technicolor - Jack Cardiff - Humphrey Bogart - Academy Award for Best Actor - Katharine Hepburn - Robert Morley - Theodore Bikel

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Scenes in which Bogart and Hepburn are seen in the water were all shot in studio tanks in England because of health concerns. Almost all of the other scenes were filmed in central Africa, causing considerable hardship for the cast and crew, but the result was a critical and commercial success.

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Most of the action takes place aboard a boat - the African Queen of the title - and scenes on board the boat were filmed using a large raft with a mockup of the boat on top. Sections of the boat set could be removed to make room for the large Technicolor camera. This proved hazardous on one occasion when the boat's boiler - a heavy copper replica - almost fell over onto Hepburn. It was not bolted down since it also had to be moved to accommodate the camera.

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