Ace Eli and Rodger of the Skies (1973)
The story of Ace Eli Walford, a 1920s stunt flyer who barnstorms around the country, taking his eleven-year-old son Rodger with him as he goes from town to town. The place is rural Kansas, and the time is midsummer in the early nineteen-twenties, not long after World War I. Eli (Cliff Robertson), a barn storming pilot who has the emotional make-up of an 11-year-old, and Rodger (Eric Shea), his 11-year-old son who possesses the wisdom of the ancients, set off to see the world, which means flying all the way to San Willow. To Eli, San Willow seems to be as fabled as Xanadu and quite as remote. In essence, "Ace Eli and Rodger of the Skies" is about the adventures of Rodger and Eli getting from nowhere to nowhere. Eli, a killer with the ladies at first, always leaves them unsatisfied. He seems to have a sex problem. Rodger spends a lot of his time getting his dad out of scrapes. He also drinks, smokes and goes to sleep at night crying for his deceased mom.
Director:
John Erman
Writer:
Claudia Salter
Cliff Robertson Ace Eli Walford |
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Eric Shea Roger Walford |
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Pamela Franklin Shelby |
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Rosemary Murphy Hannah |
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Bernadette Peters Allison |
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Alice Ghostley Sister Lite |
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Kelly Jean Peters Rachel |
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Don Keefer Mr. Parsons |
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Patricia Smith Mrs. Wilma Walford |
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Royal Dano Jake |
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Robert Hamm Dumb Dickie |
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Herb Gatlin Frank Savage |
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Arthur Malet Brother Watson |
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Ariana Munker Betty Jo |
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Hope Summers Laura |
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Jim Boles Abraham |
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Lew Brown Harrison |
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Brent Hurst Mrs. Parsons |
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Jan Simms Mrs. Parsons |
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Rodger Peck Leroy |
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Claudia Bryar Ann |
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Jerry Ayres Gambler |
Writing | Steven Spielberg | Story |
Sound | Jerry Goldsmith | Original Music Composer |
Costume & Make-Up | Theadora Van Runkle | Costume Design |
Editing | Lou Lombardo | Editor |
Art | Jack Martin Smith | Art Direction |
Art | Walter M. Scott | Set Decoration |
Art | Joel Schiller | Art Direction |
Costume & Make-Up | Edwin Butterworth | Makeup Artist |
Costume & Make-Up | Daniel C. Striepeke | Makeup Supervisor |
Art | Robert De Vestel | Set Decoration |
Camera | David M. Walsh | Director of Photography |
Editing | Robert Belcher | Editor |
Directing | John Erman | Director |
Production | Robert Fryer | Producer |
Production | Edward R. Morse | Casting |
Production | James Cresson | Producer |
Writing | Claudia Salter | Screenplay |
Costume & Make-Up | Kathleen McCandless | Costumer |
Costume & Make-Up | Janice Brunson | Hairstylist |