The Blu-ray release of Land of the Pharaohs on Blu-ray, on July 18, brings to three the number of Warner Bros. films scored by Dimitri Tiomkin available in the Warner Archive Collection this year.
READ: Warner Archive releases Angel Face and Old Man and the Sea on Blu-ray
Dimitri Tiomkin at the piano with stopwatch in hand, with music timing notes and conductor score for Land of the Pharaohs, Reel 14, Part 1A, circa 1955.
By the time this epic drama went into production in the mid-1950s, the composer had three previous film collaborations with director Howard Hawks: Only Angels Have Wings, Red River, and The Big Sky. For Pharaohs, Tiomkin would need to segue from Western-themed music to ancient instruments. Set in Egypt and filmed on location, the Pharoah is played by Jack Hawkins and the queen is Joan Collins. At 90 years of age, Collins is one of the last living stars from the Golden Age of Hollywood. The film may not age well; however, on the plus side the running time is considerably less than two hours.
At the London Symphony Orchestra 2011 concert, “The Film Music of Dimitri Tiomkin,” the setting of the “Theme” from Land of the Pharaohs by Daniel James Chan resonated with those fortunate enough to be in Barbican Hall. Today, the young and talented composer composes the music for NBC’s Quantum Leap. Previous series credits include scores for Supergirl, DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, ABC’s Emergence and the Warner Bros. Animation series Freedom Fighters: The Ray. Fortunately, the LSO Live release “Dimitri Tiomkin: The Greatest Film Scores” includes the rousing “Theme” and “Pharaoh’s Procession.”
Back in the day, Jack Day, the manager at the State Theater in Altoona, Pennsylvania, proclaimed, “NEVER AGAIN IN YOUR LIFETIME, WILL YOU SEE ON THE SCREEN, A DRAMA SO SPECTACULAR AS “LAND OF THE PHARAOHS!” In spite of the hyperbole, it is true that it is rarely possible to see the film projected* in its original ultra-widescreen format of Cinemascope, with its 2.55:1 ratio and five-channel stereo. Some things haven’t changed, the summer after Pharaohs opened in Altoona, Jack Day presented a mayor-signed proclamation on behalf of theater owners for a monthlong “Go to the Movies” campaign.
Finally, of the new Blu-ray release, reviewer Randy Miller III notes, “Dimitri Tiomkin’s rousing score has never sounded better.”
Sources
“Holiday Hits at Downtown Theatres!,” Altoona Tribune, June 30, 1954. Ad includes Jack Day pull-quote.
“Movies Month Proclaimed,” Altoona Tribune, July 30, 1956.
Land of the Pharaohs sheet music featuring Joan Collins
*READ: October 2011: Land of the Pharaohs to screen at Egyptian Theatre