Background Information on "Mutiny on the Bounty" |
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| Written by: MGM, 1962. Text cleaned up from a vintage MGM Exhibitors Campaign Book by Anders M Olsson, Sweden | Date: 25.03.2026 |
 The dramatic story of H. M. S. Bounty and her men, with its incredible
amalgam of adventure, romance, violence and mystery, has long fascinated the
world.Over the past 174 years, or almost since the day she seemed to vanish from the earth following the historic mutiny that occurred aboard her in the South Pacific on April 28, 1789, writers have made the ship and her story the basis of literally hundreds of books. One of these, "Mutiny on the Bounty," by Charles Nordhoff and James Norman Hall has become a classic in the field of romantic adventure novels. And now, in one of the most elaborate motion picture projects ever undertaken, this incredible story has been brought to the screen in Technicolor and the revolutionary new Ultra Panavison camera technique, with filming taking place almost entirely in and around Tahiti amid the actual locales where it happened. "Mutiny on the Bounty" is a subject containing the same basic elements of drama, suspense, romance, spectacle and intimate characterization that helped make “Ben-Hur” so successful. Only through the medium of the modern motion picture screen could these elements be blended into spectacular and stirring entertainment. Joseph R. Vogel, President of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, implemented his decision to make the new project on the same grand scale as "Ben-Hur" by entrusting the producing reins to Aaron Rosenberg, one of the most highly respected producers in the film industry. He produced it as an Arcola Picture, with Lewis Milestone directing and Charles Lederer writing the screen play. Marlon Brando, Trevor Howard, Richard Harris, Hugh Griffith, Richard Haydn, a lovely Polynesian beauty named Tarita and an outstanding group of colorful British, Irish and Australian actors head one of the largest and most exciting casts assembled in years. Immediately after the decision had been made to produce the film, and a full two years before a camera would turn, the large staff of the research department at the MGM studio in Culver City, California, began gathering the vast assortment of data needed by set and costume designers, and by others who would be concerned with its production. Research at British Admiralty At the library of the British Admiralty in London, other researchers began poring over records of the court martial and trial that followed the mutiny. They also made copies of the original blueprints of H. M. S. Bounty, still preserved in England. In Hollywood, these plans were transmitted to the drawing boards, where details were worked out for construction of a duplicate of the Bounty. For the first time in the history of motion pictures, it was decided to build a ship from the keel up, rather than purchase a vessel and remake it to fit the needs of the drama. At a cost of more than $750,000, this ship was constructed in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, where some of the finest sailing vessels of the past have been built. Above decks the new Bounty is a faithful copy of the original, from rope davits to 10,000 square feet of canvas on the square rigged masts. Bligh's vessel was 85 feet long and carried a crew of 62. The new Bounty is 118 feet in length, an increase made necessary because of space required for movement of cameras. Her beam is 30 feet, six inches with a 14-foot draft. Her tonnage is 480 gross and 128 net. Under the command of Captain Ellsworth Coggins, a retired commander of the Royal Canadian Navy, a crew of 22 sailed her the 7,327 miles to Tahiti via the Panama Canal in 33 days. James Havens, for many years Hollywood's foremost director of sea sequences for motion pictures, supervised construction of the ship, went along on the long voyage and then took over direction of the exciting sea scenes. From the start it was determined that most of the picture would be filmed in and around Tahiti and the neighboring islands of Bora-Bora and Moorea. This necessitated the movement of tons of equipment and some 125 men and women to a remote area of the South Pacific, and the maintenance of this small army for almost a year. Robert Surtees, whose camera work on "Ben-Hur" won him his third Academy Award, was named head cinematographer. Bronislau Kaper, whose imaginative musical scores have enriched more than a dozen of the most successful films of recent years, was chosen to write the music. To help insure authenticity of the scenes to be filmed in the islands, Aurora Natua and Leo Langomazino, both recognized experts on the subject of customs and cultures of the Polynesian islands, were engaged to assist in the production. At the same time, Captain Donald MacIntyre, who retired recently from the British Navy after 33 years as a naval aviator and destroyer commander, was brought from England to serve as advisor on the nautical sequences. |
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 CAPTAIN BLIGH DANCES AT FEAST CELEBRATING ARRIVAL OF BOUNTY AT TAHITIIn this scene from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's presentation of "Mutiny on the Bounty" Trevor Howard, in order not to offend the native chieftain, is forced to dance with the latter's daughter during the feast held to celebrate the arrival of H.M.S. Bounty at Tahiti. It is one of the many colorful sequences in the spectacular picture, starring Marlon Brando, Howard, Richard Harris, Hugh Griffith, Richard Haydn and the lovely Polynesian discovery, Tarita. The Aaron Rosenberg Production was filmed in Ultra Panavision and Technicolor in Bora-Bora, Moorea and fabled Tahiti. It was directed by Lewis Milestone. Still 1769-52 Mutiny on the Bounty Mat 4-C Picture Has Wealth of Talent In selecting the talent to bring "Mutiny on the Bounty" to screen life, everyone concerned was guided by one consideration - to find the absolute tops in every department. Aaron Rosenberg was considered the perfect choice to produce. As the creator of such famed outdoor action films as "Bend of the River," "World in His Arms," and "Winchester 73" and one of the all-time top grossing pictures, "The Glenn Miller Story" (among many other box-office successes), he was, it was felt, ideally suited by temperament and experience for the almost herculean task of guiding the film safely past the hundreds of production shoals through which it would necessarily pass. As the director, Lewis Milestone brought to the project an inventive and resourceful talent that has been sharpened through his years of directing a number of the great motion pictures of the past, including such classic films as "All Quiet on the Western Front," "A Walk in the Sun" and "Of Mice and Men." In casting the picture everyone concerned was determined to settle for nothing less than the perfect performer for every role. Marlon Brando, acknowledged by many to be the finest actor in the world, has in Fletcher Christian what unquestionably is the most colorful role of his brilliant career. The part of the idealistic leader of the mutiny provides the most exciting acting opportunity in years for this performer. For the celebrated role of Captain Bligh, the distinguished British actor, Trevor Howard, traveled from London to make his Hollywood debut. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his brilliant portrayal in "Sons and Lovers." Richard Harris, the young Irish actor who has scored a series of successes on the London stage and in British films, was selected to portray John Mills, one of the mutineers who eventually opposes Christian. To portray Maimiti, young native girl who wins the heart of Fletcher Christian and accompanies him to Pitcairn Island, it was felt from the start that a pure Polynesian should be selected. After an exhaustive search that covered several South Pacific islands and saw more than 200 girls screened, Tarita, a slim, dark-haired 19-year-old dancer from the island of Bora-Bora was selected. Until she won the part in the film, she knew of Hollywood only vaguely and had never heard of her leading man, Brando. To play the other colorful roles, a cast of expert performers was literally gathered from the far corners of every part of the world. |
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Credits |
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 Produced by Aaron Rosenberg. Directed by Lewis Milestone. Screen Play by
Charles Lederer. Based on the novel by Charles Nordhoff and James Norman
Hall. Music by Bronislau Kaper. Orchestra Conducted by Robert Armbruster.
Filmed in Ultra Panavision 70® Technicolor®. Director of Photography: Robert L. Surtees, A.S.C. Additional Photography: Harold E. Wellman, A.S.C. Art Direction: George W. Davis and J. McMillan Johnson. Set Decoration: Henry Grace, Hugh Hunt. Special Visual Effects: A. Arnold Gillespie, Lee LeBlanc, Robert R. Hoag, A.S.C. Film Editor: John McSweeney, Jr., A.C.E. Second Unit Direction: James Havens. Assistant Director: Ridgeway Callow. Color Consultant: Charles K. Hagedon. Costumes: Moss Mabry. Hair Styles by Mary Keats. Make-Up Created by William Tuttle. Recording Supervisor: Franklin Milton. Choreographer: Hamil Petroff. Technical Advisors: Captain Donald Macintyre, R.N., Bengt Danielsson, Aurora Natua, Leo Langomazino. An Arcola Picture. An Aaron Rosenberg Production. Presented by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The Players FLETCHER CHRISTIAN...MARLON BRANDO CAPTAIN BLIGH...TREVOR HOWARD JOHN MILLS...RICHARD HARRIS SMITH...HUGH GRIFFITH BROWN...RICHARD HAYDN MAIMITI...TARITA QUINTAL...PERCY HERBERT WILLIAMS...DUNCAN LAMONT BIRKETT...GORDON JACKSON BYRNE...CHIPS RAFFERTY McCOY...NOEL PURCELL MACK...ASHLEY COWAN FRYER...EDDIE BYRNE MINARII...FRANK SILVERA YOUNG...TIM SEELY MORRISON...KEITH McCONNELL |
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Writing Screen Play Entailed Months Of Intensive Research |
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 THE START OF THE CELEBRATED MUTINY ABOARD H.M.S. BOUNTYTrevor Howard, as Captain Bligh, is held captive as Marlon Brando (center), portraying Fletcher Christian, leads the famous mutiny aboard H.M.S. Bounty in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's presentation of "Mutiny on the Bounty." The spectacular picture was filmed in Ultra Panavision and Technicolor in Bora-Bora, Moorea and fabled Tahiti with a cast of thousands. Still 1769-157 Mutiny on the Bounty Mat 3-B Charles Lederer, one of Hollywood's most successful writers, says he found Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's "Mutiny on the Bounty" the most rewarding creative experience of his life. Always intrigued by the historic mutiny, which took place aboard His Majesty's Ship Bounty, in the South Seas on April 28, 1789, he confesses that not until he began writing the script for the Aaron Rosenberg Production did he realize that no fiction writer, in the wildest flights of fancy, could create such complex characters as Fletcher Christian, William Bligh and the [illegible] who played out the drama of the mutiny in real life. Nor, he declares, could any author, no matter how vivid his imagination, conceive a plot so filled with conflict, mystery, romance and excitement as is the story these men lived 174 years ago. Before he began the actual writing of his screen play, Lederer devoted months of research to it. He searched the files of the British Admiralty for records and reports, including the journal kept by James Morrison, boatswain on the ill-fated voyage, and the account written by Captain Bligh himself. He digested the transcript of Bligh's court martial, read the official report of the event, long hidden in the Admiralty's archives, and examined many of the letters written by members of the crew who returned to England, either of their own free will or in chains. "The more I read," he says, "the more I realized that the Bounty story is one of the great real-life dramas of all time." When Fletcher Christian decided to seize the Bounty off the volcanic island of Torfua and set Captain Bligh adrift in an open boat, he started a fantastic chain of events that excites the imagination today as much as it has over the years since it happened. Lederer was surprised to discover that more than 100 books dealing with the mutiny have been published. Most have been factual accounts but there also have been novels based upon the event. Three of these, "Men Against the Sea," "Mutiny on the Bounty" and "Pitcairn Island," were written by James Norman Hall and Charles Nordhoff. "Mutiny on the Bounty" became the basis for Lederer's screen play. Descendants of Mutineers Still Living on Pitcairn 153 descendants of the men who mutinied against Captain Bligh in 1789, as depicted in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's spectacular presentation of "Mutiny on the Bounty," are still living on Pitcairn Island. Parkin Christian, great, great grandson of Fletcher Christian, the officer who led the famous mutiny, heads the number of descendants who make their present-day home on Pitcairn. There are also three Fletcher Christians there, as well as great, great, great grandchildren of the other mutineers. In the film, Fletcher is portrayed by Marlon Brando, with Trevor Howard in the role of the ruthless and tyrannical Captain Bligh. |
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If There Were No Breadfruit, There Would Have Been No "Bounty" Mutiny |
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 Botanist Richard Haydn reveals to Captain Bligh (Trevor Howard), right, and
Fletcher Christian (Marlon Brando) that they have arrived in Tahiti during
the dormant season of the breadfruit in this scene from "Mutiny on the
Bounty." The spectacular Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer presentation was filmed in
Ultra Panavision and Technicolor in Bora-Bora, Moorea and fabled Tahiti.Still 1769-131-E Mutiny on the Bounty Mat 2-D Recently a large Hollywood motion picture unit, headed by Marlon Brando, spent several months in Tahiti filming scenes for "Mutiny on the Bounty." Yet, if nature had not seen fit to make this most famous of all South Pacific islands the home of a strange looking tree known as the breadfruit (which in reality is neither bread nor fruit), Brando and the others in the large company Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer assembled for the film would not have been there at all. In fact, if there were no such thing as breadfruit, the celebrated mutiny aboard the Bounty, upon which the film is based, would not have occurred. But as long ago as 1595, Europeans were hearing about this unusual tree which, according to rumor, had loaves of bread growing from its branches that had only to be gathered and baked. Explorers who visited the Marquesas in that year brought back tales of a "vastly superior fruit" which appeared to be the principal staple of diet for the vigorous people who lived there. Queiros, who visited Tahiti in 1606, and early 18th century explorers like William Dampier, Anson and Captain James Cook, also sang its praises. It was the planters of the British West Indies, however, who made the breadfruit famous. They saw in these romantic tales from the South Pacific something that might be turned to their advantage. If this extraordinary tree could be acclimatized in their country, its fruits would provide a cheap and nourishing food for their African slaves. They petitioned King George III to have this valuable tree introduced into the colonies. The British Admiralty chose Lieutenant William Bligh (who had previously been sailing master with Cook on the Resolution) to be commander of a small vessel that was especially converted for the assignment and christened H.M.S. Bounty. His orders were to proceed to Tahiti, collect plants of this "desirable vegetable" and carry them to the West Indies. |
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  CAPTAIN BLIGHTrevor Howard, as Captain Bligh, pivotal figure of the historic mutiny led by Fletcher Christian (Marlon Brando) in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's presentation of "Mutiny on the Bounty." The spectacular picture was filmed in Ultra Panavision and Technicolor in Bora-Bora, Moorea and fabled Tahiti with a cast of thousands. Mutiny on the Bounty Still 1769-221 Mat 1-D PLAYS MAIMITI Tarita, the beautiful Polynesian girl who plays the romantic lead opposite Marlon Brando in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's presentation of "Mutiny on the Bounty." The drama of mutiny, adventure and romance in the South Seas was filmed in Ultra Panavision and Technicolor in Bora-Bora, Moorea and fabled Tahiti with a cast of thousands. Mutiny on the Bounty Still 6458-E Mat 1-E Thus began the incredible adventure which has excited the imagination of men for generations. Bligh sailed from England in December, 1787, and proceeded to Tahiti. There, after a period of 23 weeks, he sailed away with 1,015 breadfruit plants growing in tubs. It was on this return voyage in 1789 that the famous mutiny occurred, with Bligh and 18 of his men being turned adrift by the mutineers in a small boat, with scarcely enough rations for a week. Ironically, they carried no breadfruit with them in this small boat for the plants aboard the Bounty had not begun to bear fruit. In any case, the mutineers lost no time in throwing all of the precious plants into the sea. The tale of how Bligh guided his small craft through unbelievable hardships to safety in Timor is one of the great epics of naval history. On his arrival in England, he was warmly welcomed by the nation and highly praised by King George who, after promoting him to Captain, assigned him the command of the Providence and the Assistant and instructed him to go a second time to Tahiti and carry out the task previously assigned him to take the breadfruit to the West Indies. Two skilled botanists were appointed to accompany the expedition, which sailed from England on August 3, 1791, and arrived in Tahiti the following April. Bligh established his working base at Matavi Bay and personally supervised the collection of 2,126 breadfruit plants. They were placed on the quarter deck of the Providence, which had been canvassed in to protect the plants from salt air. After an uneventful voyage, this strange floating garden was delivered safely to the waiting planters in the West Indies. Today, breadfruit remains an important part of the diet of every Polynesian. But what exactly is this wonder food which is scarcely known outside the equatorial areas in which it grows so profusely? Actually, it is a tall, stately tree, large and umbrageous, which often reaches a height of 60 feet and which needs a hot, humid climate and rich soil in which to take root. A young tree begins to bear fruit when five to seven years old and continues to bear for more than 50 years. A tree in its prime produces from 75 to 150 fruits a year. These fruits weigh up to ten pounds, are ovoid or spherical in shape, and have a surface as rough as sandpaper. When very young they are light pea green in color; when mature they are yellowish green. When a milky sap oozes to the surface, the breadfruit is ready for picking. It contains a firm, yellow pulp which is quite sweet. It has fine texture, is free from fibers and is moist. The favorite Tahitian way of cooking breadfruits is to roast them whole on an open fire for more than half an hour. Experts agree it is a food of strong nutritional value and through the centuries the breadfruit has helped the Polynesian stave off famine. Most westerners, however, find its taste not to their liking, protesting its sweetness and mushy quality. As for the slaves of those British planters in the West Indies who were indirectly the cause of the breadfruit's fame, they provided the final irony in an incredible story. For, after Bligh delivered the plants and had them transplanted in the rich soil of the West Indies, the slaves proved to have their own ideas about what is and isn't palatable. They turned up their collective noses at the breadfruit and refused to eat it! |
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Separating fact from fiction: Marlon Brando the actor as controversial as his role in "Mutiny on the Bounty" |
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 Marlon Brando, as Fletcher Christian, who leads the mutiny against Captain
Bligh in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's presentation of "Mutiny on the Bounty."Mutiny on the Bounty Still 1769-C 123 Mat 1-C Marion Brando, one of the most controversial actors of his time, has recently brought to the motion picture screen a portrayal of one of the most controversial figures in British naval history. In Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's presentation of "Mutiny on the Bounty" Brando has the role of Fletcher Christian, the gentleman turned sailor who seized command of His Majesty's Ship Bounty from Captain Bligh in 1789 and thus made certain his name would thereafter be synonymous with mutineer. This celebrated man of the sea, who came from a wealthy family of British landowners, has confounded the many historians who, through the years, have tried to understand him - his conduct, his motives, even his eventual fate. And Brando, like Christian, appears always to have been an intriguing subject for speculation among writers, especially those interested in trying to separate fact from fiction. Captain Bligh pictured Christian, his First Officer, as a "jealous man of ungovernable temper, selfish and vain." The Bounty's Master's Mate, John Fryer, on the other hand, complimented him in his Journal as a "fine, upstanding gentleman." Descriptions of him made after the mutiny by other members of the Bounty crew are equally at odds. There is similar controversy as to what really happened to Fletcher Christian following the mutiny. Most students of the Bounty's history are agreed he died on Pitcairn Island shortly after landing there with his fellow mutineers in 1790. Alexander Smith, also known as John Adams, the last survivor among them, told seamen who visited the island in 1808 (they were aboard the Topaz, first ship to stop at Pitcairn since the arrival of the mutineers) that his leader's death had taken place some years before. But, oddly enough, three different accounts of how this death occurred were given by the captain and two of the officers aboard the Topaz. And all were based on their conversations with Smith. One version had it that Christian had been shot by one of the Tahitians who had accompanied the group to the island. Another reported he had died a natural death; and still another that he threw himself from the high cliffs and was dashed to death on the rocks below. Historians have wondered why Smith should have told two or three different versions of Christian's end. Could it be, they asked, he did it to conceal the fact that Christian had escaped from Pitcairn and returned to England? It is true that in the years 1808 and 1809 rumors were current in the Lake district of England, Christian's birthplace, that the famous mutineer had returned to that part of the country. A sum of gold ducats Captain Bligh had aboard the Bounty has never been accounted for. Could Fletcher Christian have used this money to buy passage back to England or possibly to South America, where he was also rumored to have been seen? The question is an intriguing one and adds one more facet to the many-sided adventure of the Bounty. The mystery surrounding the character of Christian is one of the reasons Marlon Brando has always been interested in bringing the story of the mutiny to the screen. Perhaps, also, he has felt a strange kinship with a man who obviously has been greatly misunderstood in some quarters. For there are those who feel that Brando, like Christian, is a person who, more often than not has been misjudged by his peers. Brando, the actor, has won praise and awards in all quarters, some critics going so far as to call him the "finest actor in the world." Brando, the man, is another story. There are those who have criticized his ofttimes unorthodox behavior. There are others, and the list includes most of the people who have worked with him and are thus in a position to know him intimately, who contradict his detractors by praising his generosity, his kindness, his gentle nature. Elia Kazan, who has directed some of Brando's most memorable performances, both on stage and screen, not only calls him the greatest actor in films today but has said of him: "Brando is one of the most gentle - very possibly the gentlest — persons I have known." Says another of his directors, Joseph Mankiewicz: "I think he is a bright, serious man, infinitely superior to most of those who comment on him." Academy Award-winning Cameraman Robert Surtees, who photographed "Mutiny on the Bounty," has said: "It seems people prefer to read the worst about a person. In Brando's case, they're more interested to hear that he might have stayed up all night dancing barefoot with the Tahitians than in the fact that when he returned to California, he carried with him his Tahitian cook's two-year-old grandson who had a badly deformed foot. He kept the child in his home and had his own surgeon correct the defect." There are other stories of his loyalty to old friends, his attempts to find jobs for unemployed actors with whom he has worked. There's the documented account of his rehabilitation of a juvenile delinquent, whom he met through a lawyer friend and whom he has helped establish in a business and settle down to a life of respectability in Los Angeles. But despite these accounts, some of the public tends to picture Marlon Brando as a real-life Stanley Kowalski, the brutish character he portrayed so brilliantly in "Streetcar Named Desire." Yet, those who know him well say that in temperament, intellect and conduct, the real Brando is as far removed from Kowalski as it is possible to get. The only person, it appears, who remains undisturbed by the controversy raging about his personality is Brando himself. "As long as I'm true to myself and my ideals," he has said, "I am satisfied. I do not like to be misjudged. No one does. But you are lost if you go through life being sensitive to criticism." Perhaps, Marlon Brando has learned from the case of Fletcher Christian that, no matter what your motives or your own conduct may be, there are those who will judge you one way and those who will see you in another light. This, he might reasonably philosophize, is the fate of all men. |
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Made the Grade! |
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 RUBBING NOSES IS A KISS IN TAHITIMarlon Brando and the beautiful Polynesian girl, Tarita, share a South Sea romance in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's presentation of "Mutiny on the Bounty". The spectacular picture was filmed in Ultra Panavision and Technicolor in Bora-Bora, Moorea and fabled Tahiti with a cast of thousands. Still 1769-88 Mutiny on the Bounty Mat 2-AAaron Rosenberg, one of Hollywood's ace producers, began his motion picture career at the bottom of the ladder, following his graduation from the University of Southern California in 1933. Working as a property man, he took directions from James Havens, a second unit director. On his next assignment, Rosenberg was associated with John Schmitz, a camera operator. On his third, he served as second assistant director with cameraman Robert Surtees. All four were reunited during the filming of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's spectacular presentation of "Mutiny on the Bounty," but this time the man who had started at the bottom of the ladder was on the top rung. Rosenberg produced the picture, with Marlon Brando heading the impressive international cast. Marlon Brando Really Went Back to Nature on Tahiti Marlon Brando joined other members of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's "Mutiny on the Bounty" company in sleeping on the beach during filming of scenes for the spectacular picture on primitive Bora-Bora island. The tiny island, approximately 125 miles from Tahiti, boasts only one ramshackle inn. The company took over the inn's seven rooms but Brando preferred to spend four nights in a sleeping bag on the edge of the Pacific Ocean. Bora-Bora, considered to be one of the most beautiful islands in the world, has remained untouched by civilization. Scenes for "Mutiny on the Bounty" were filmed in the picturesque island's one village. |
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THREE MUTINEERS |
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  Richard Harris as he appears in the role of John Mills, member of the crew
of H.M.S. Bounty, in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's spectacular presentation of
"Mutiny on the Bounty." Harris co-stars in a cast headed by Marlon Brando,
Trevor Howard, Hugh Griffith, Richard Haydn and the beautiful Polynesian
girl, Tarita.Mutiny on the Bounty Still 1769-65 Mat 1-H Richard Haydn as he appears in the role of Brown, member of the crew of H.M.S. Bounty, in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's spectacular presentation of "Mutiny on the Bounty." Haydn co-stars in a cast headed by Marlon Brando, Trevor Howard, Richard Harris, Hugh Griffith and the beautiful Polynesian girl, Tarita. Mutiny on the Bounty Still 1769-64 Mat 1-G |
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 Hugh Griffith as he appears in the role of Smith, one of the members of the
crew of H.M.S. Bounty, in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's presentation of "Mutiny on
the Bounty." Griffith co-stars in a cast including Marlon Brando, Trevor
Howard, Richard Harris, Richard Haydn and the beautiful Polynesian girl,
Tarita.Mutiny on the Bounty Still 1769-60 Mat 1-F Set Adrift, Too, But What a Difference! On April 28, 1789, a group of British seamen, led by Fletcher Christian, began the most famous mutiny in the history of the sea when they seized H.M.S. Bounty in the South Pacific. Exactly 172 years later — to the day — Marlon Brando, Trevor Howard and other actors in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's large company filming "Mutiny on the Bounty" in Tahiti re-enacted the dramatic scene aboard a duplicate of the Bounty in waters off the beautiful Pacific island. Just as it happened in real life, Captain Bligh and eighteen of his loyal followers were set adrift on the high seas in an open boat. Only this time they were assured of spending only a few hours in the small craft instead of the 47 days it took Bligh to sail to safety. "Bounty" Marks Versatile Brando's First Sea Drama In his versatile film career, Marlon Brando has run the gamut from Napoleon to Marc Antony, from a New Jersey dock hand to an Okinawan finagler. However, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's spectacular presentation of "Mutiny on the Bounty" marks Brando's first sea-drama. His is the role of Fletcher Christian, First Officer on H.M.S. Bounty, who leads the fateful mutiny against Captain Bligh. Brando portrayed Napoleon in "Desiree," Marc Anthony in "Julius Caesar," the Okinawan in "Teahouse of the August Moon," and the deck hand in "On the Waterfront," the role which won him a motion picture Academy Award. This Is a Good Way To Solve Language Barrier When the beautiful Tahitian girl, Tarita, was selected to play the feminine lead opposite Marlon Brando in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's presentation of "Mutiny on the Bounty," she knew only two words in English - "yes" and "no." Brando, on the other hand, did not know even that number of words in Tahitian. So they made a pact. Brando would teach Tarita English if the latter would teach him Tahitian. Both proved apt pupils. Today, Tarita can make herself easily understood in the English language, and Brando is able to pass the time of the day with anyone on Tahiti! Tarita Taught By Mentor Of Stars Tarita, the 19-year-old Tahitian girl who is Marlon Brando's leading lady in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's presentation of "Mutiny on the Bounty," was taught to speak English by the same Los Angeles teacher who guided Lana Turner, Judy Garland, Mickey Rooney and other famous stars through their school days. When Tarita came to Hollywood for interior sequences of "Mutiny," MGM assigned Miss Mary MacDonald, for many years one of the city's leading educators, to teach her the language, of which she knew almost nothing. Teacher and pupil spent two hours daily in the little brick schoolhouse on the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer lot. |
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No Dating, Driving Or Dressing-Up Problems For Tahitian Teen-Agers |
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 This is the action which precipitates the famous mutiny aboard H.M.S. Bounty
in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's presentation of "Mutiny on the Bounty." Trevor
Howard, as Captain Bligh, kicks a ladle of water from the hand of Fletcher
Christian (Marlon Brando) when the latter attempts to aid ill seaman Duncan
Lamont. Chips Rafferty is holding the sick man. The spectacular picture was
filmed in Ultra Panavision and Technicolor in Bora-Bora, Moorea and fabled
Tahiti.Still 1769-135 E Mutiny on the Bounty Mat 3-D Can you imagine a place where teenagers don't date? Where the boys don't drive hot rods and the girls don't use make-up? Where young people have never heard of Elvis Presley or Connie Francis or Marlon Brando? Sounds far out... like cold, black, empty far-outer space, maybe? Well, it isn't very close but such a place does exist as near as the South Pacific. And it isn't outer space, but the warm, green and lush islands of Tahiti and Bora-Bora which for 150 years have been described by travelers as "a paradise on earth." For an American teen-ager, however, life there would probably be about as familiar as living on Mars. Conversely, the life of young people in the United States seemed far out to the dozen island teen-agers who spent six months in Hollywood while working in "Mutiny on the Bounty." Nineteen-year-old Tarita, for example, the Tahitian girl chosen to star as Marlon Brando's leading lady in the picture, had never heard of Hollywood or even Brando until the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer unit arrived on the island. The ordinary, everyday problems of American teen-agers simply don't exist in Tahiti. When boys and girls in the U.S. complain about finding a new place to go on a date, what a tough time they'd have in Tahiti where there are no school social affairs, no TV, few movies, no hamburger or coke hangouts, no jazz clubs or skating rinks or coffee-houses. Likewise in the islands, the many problems of dating, volcanic in most American families, have never appeared. There are no questions such as: "How old before starting to date?" "How late to stay out?" "Where to go?" "How to get there?" In the evenings after the family meal, the whole village gathers for singing and dancing. Young people for the most part stay in their own group and if a boy and girl like each other, their "date" would be dancing together or walking home in the moonlight. |
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 If things begin to get more serious between the young couple, there are no
problems of "going steady" or "being pinned" or becoming "engaged."
Courtship is as easy and natural as dating. The boy and girl spend their
days together in work or sports. They go fishing or diving for pearls, or
swimming or surfing, and in the evenings they join the others at the village
gatherings.Teen-age marriages are quite common in this simple society because there are practically no class, religious or financial restrictions to interfere. Parents happily bless their children's marriage though the boy may be only fourteen or fifteen and the girl twelve or thirteen. Making a living is of little concern for the young couple. Food comes from the sea and trees. The newlyweds live with the boy's family for the first few years until he, with the help of his father and brothers, has built a home for his wife and fast-growing family. Teen-age girls in Tahiti have no problems about wearing make-up. Cosmetics are virtually unknown and women of all ages use the native coconut oil on their hair and skin. The only jewelry or ornaments they use are shell necklaces or fresh flowers which are available to anyone for the looking. Boys and girls alike have no concern about the latest fashions or fads in clothes. There are no styles because dress is purely for comfort. The light, loose-fitting native clothing is the same for children as for adults and has been handed down through the generations with almost no change. With life so natural and simple, it's easy to see why there would be few frustrations to growing up in Tahiti and why island youth would be amazed at the hectic existence of American teen-agers. But according to Marlon Brando and others who spent so much time in the South Seas on "Mutiny on the Bounty," it may not always be the same in the "island paradise." The jet airplane has arrived and civilization with its attendant problems is slowly discovering the remotest hideaways - even Tahiti. |
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Descendants Of "Bounty" Mutineers Created New Anglo-Polynesian Race |
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 Trevor Howard, Marlon Brando and Richard Harris in a scene from MGM's presentation of "Mutiny on the Bounty." Still 1769-138-E Mutiny on the Bounty 2-E In the long history of the sea and the ships that sail upon it, it is doubtful if many men have committed such a heinous crime as mutiny and lived very long to tell about it. This would seem to be especially true if the mutiny were directed against a ship of the British Navy. However, history does record that one group, led by the legendary Fletcher Christian, did mutiny against Captain William Bligh aboard His Majesty's Ship Bounty and not only were able to escape to a remote South Pacific island but lived there long enough to create a new Anglo-Polynesian race of people. The hardy descendants of the Bounty Mutineers, 153 of them, still inhabit the lonely rock, known as Pitcairn, to which their ancestors came seeking refuge following the historic mutiny in 1789. The story of the fight for survival on this tiny island, which was uninhabited until the mutineers arrived, is quite as fascinating as the events of the mutiny itself. It recently has been immortalized by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in the spectacular motion picture, "Mutiny on the Bounty," starring Marlon Brando, Trevor Howard and Richard Harris. Until the year 1808, when the American ship, Topaz, happened to put into the island, the world was unaware of the fate of Christian, his mates and the handful of Tahitian men and women who had accompanied him following the mutiny. Captain Matthew Folger, of the Topaz, reported finding only one of the mutineers still living. A series of quarrels over women and land had resulted in the death of all the other men. But the lone survivor had banded the women and the several dozen children of the mutineers into a tight, God fearing little community. Almost all of today's residents of Pitcairn trace their ancestry directly back to the people whom Folger and the Topaz found there in 1808. And the ancestors of these Pitcairners actually migrated to the island and settled there not once - but three times. Following the settlement by Christian and the mutineers, the island of Pitcairn seemed to flourish. In 1831, however, the growing community made it appear the island's resources would not be sufficient to support them. A British Navy vessel evacuated 70 people to Tahiti, which had been their mothers' home. |
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 VIOLENT
STORM LASHES THE BOUNTY IN THRILLING SEA SEQUENCEMarlon Brando, as First Officer Fletcher Christian, gives orders to members of the crew of H.M.S. Bounty as the ship is lashed by a violent storm in one of the spectacular scenes of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's presentation of "Mutiny on the Bounty." The adventure-romance was filmed in Ultra Panavision and Technicolor in Bora-Bora, Moorea and fabled Tahiti with a cast of thousands. Still 1769-176 Mutiny on the Bounty Mat 3-C However, the Pitcairn refugees were deeply shocked by the behavior of the Tahitian people and hastened to return to their native island after a stay of only a few months. Here they lived in quiet contentment, especially after 1838, the year in which Pitcairn became a British protectorate, as it remains today. By 1856, the island's population had risen to 187, and the British Colonial Office decided once again that food resources were being taxed to the limit. Under official order from London, every resident was taken aboard the transport, "Morayshire," and transplanted to Norfolk Island, more than 4,000 miles away. The Pitcairners made the trip willingly since they had suffered severely from drought, famine and disease the year before. Norfolk Island, 900 miles east of the Australian coast, has an area of 13 square miles, making it six times larger than Pitcairn. Until 1855 it had been used by the British government as a convict settlement for the most hardened criminals. Norfolk today has a population oi about 1,000, of whom more than half proudly bear names of Bounty mutineers. To this day every June 8th is celebrated by the people of Norfolk as the anniversary of the arrival of the Morayshire. But even though some Pitcairners were content to remain on Norfolk Island, 43 of them felt a nostalgia for the lonely South Pacific island which had once been their home. In 1859, sixteen of them, including the Youngs and the McCoys, boarded the clipper yacht, Mary Ann, and were taken back to Pitcairn. Five years later, the remainder of the 43 homesick Pitcairners found their way back to the island. To this day none has ever tried to move them again and it is not likely anyone, not even the British government, would be able to do so if they tried. |
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Recent Stamp Commemorates Return Of Bounty Descendants To Pitcairn |
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 The story of the mutiny aboard H.M.S. Bounty and the subsequent settlement
by some of the mutineers on faraway Pitcairn Island in 1790 lives today as
one of the world's best-known adventures.British historians and researchers, novelists from all of the world, and motion picture makers, most recently Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, have combined to keep alive this history-making saga of the sea. Yet, no one is more dedicated to the task of perpetuating the exciting story than the descendants of Fletcher Christian and his mates, who live today on the remote South Pacific island first settled by their outlawed ancestors. And not the least important way in which they are telling the story is through the issue of stamps commemorating the event. Bounty stamps from Pitcairn Island, as a matter of fact, are a valuable collector's item for any philatelist. And now that Marlon Brando, Trevor Howard, Richard Harris and a cast of many thousands have recreated the story of Christian and Bligh in a spectacular new motion picture, "Mutiny on the Bounty," interest in Pitcairn Island is greater than ever. Today, 150 direct descendants of Christian and the other settlers live peacefully on the island. Since it is a British Protectorate, the islanders are empowered to print and sell postage stamps under the banner of "Pitcairn Islands" and their sales over the past twenty years have provided them with their main source of revenue. The most recent stamp commemorates the return of these hearty people to Pitcairn and its resettlement in 1859-1864. In 1856, the British government determined it would be better for them to abandon Pitcairn for another island whose resources could better support the growing population. Thus, the entire population of 187 was transplanted, quite willingly, to Norfolk Island, some 4,000 miles away. In three years, however, the Pitcairners became so lonely for their island that they determined to return to it. The resettlement took five years to complete, from 1859-1864, and its centennial is now being celebrated with a 6d. stamp entitled "Return from Norfolk Island." Another famous stamp series honored the return of the "Bounty's" Bible to the island. The Bible, used by Captain Bligh and later by the mutineers, had been exchanged for a newer one in 1839 by a grandson of one of the mutineers. Eventually, the Bible turned up in Windsor, Connecticut, where in 1949 it became the property of a local historical society. When the society learned of the spiritual value it held for the Pitcairn people, the Bible was generously returned to the island. This was commemorated hy a 4d. stamp released in 1951 and again by a 2d. stamp in 1957. Both stamps were entitled "Bounty Bible." Although it has been a continuing policy of the Pitcairn Islands to commemorate the "Bounty," most recent stamps are intended to give the outsider a glimpse of present-day island life and the various occupations of the people who live there. The use of the plural "islands" stamps is explained by the fact that the uninhabited islands of Henderson, Ducie and Oeno were formally annexed to Pitcairn in 1902. |
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 • Go to Background Information on "Mutiny on the Bounty" |
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