The ultimate site about the king of the analogue age
Half a year after "Follow That Dream" Mirisch released their second movie starring Elvis Presley. In the US and Canada "Kid Galahad" earned rental fees of 1.8 million USD, which means there were ticket sales of 3.6 million USD. Translated to the present (with our beloved factor 15) this would mean a box office gross of 54 million USD with 27 million USD for Mirisch.
Hadn't Elvis been on the poster, the Germans could have thought it was an adult movie. The company named their product "Harte Faeuste, Heisse Liebe", which means "Hard Fists, Hot Love". If one wasn't sure what the picture was all about, one had the possibility to check it out from February 8, 1963 onwards.
Looking for a job Walter Gulick (Elvis) meets boxing promoter Willy Grogan. At first he wants to burn the trustful Walter against a brutal boxer named Shakes, but when he shows real talent Grogan decides to build him up as a champion. While Walter falls in love with Rose, Grogan's sister, the boxing promoter wants him to loose a fight on purpose to pay off his debts. Walter has to make some decisions.
David Weisbart (producer), Phil Karlson (director), William Fay (script), Jeff Alexander (music), Burnette Guffey (camera), Steward Gillmore (editor).
Elvis Presley (Walter Gulick), Gig Young (Willy Grogan), Lola Albright (Dolly Fletcher), Joan Blackman (Rose Grogan), Charles Bronson (Lew nyack) und David Lewis (Otto Danzig). The German voice of Elvis was dubbed by Rainer Brandt.
The original "Kid Galahad" movie was released in 1937. It was directed by Michael Curtiz and starring Humphrey Bogart and Bette Davis. Four years later there was a remake called "The Wagons Roll At Night", which switched the action from a boxing camp to a circus. This one was also starring Humphrey Bogart. Strangely though Warner Brothers didn't sue Mirisch for also naming their movie "Kid Galahad", but renamed their own production "The Battling Bellhop".
To prepare for the shooting Elvis watched the original movie more than 30 times and also requested Curtiz (with whom he had made "King Creole" in 1958) to direct. Obviously Mirisch thought it was enough to grant him $500,000 and 50% of the earnings and declined. Besides watching "Kid Galahad" Elvis also took boxing lessons. The movie was shot in November and December 1961, parts were filmed in Idyllwind/California. The budget was 1.75 million USD, including the 500k for Presley.
In the end neither "Follow That Dream" nor "Kid Galahad" made even half of what Paramount had earned with "G.I. Blues" or "Blue Hawaii". Besides that Mirisch had paid almost three times as much for Elvis and had to give him half of the rental fees minus $500,000. So it was decided not to hire im again.
Once again RCA Victor released an extended player, this time even with six tracks. It sold well, but not as good as "Follow That Dream". By tapping on the cover you'll be forwarded to the accordant review.
A hd version of "Kid Galahad" was released in August 2018 by Explosive Media. For a short review just tap on the cover.
The movie can be described as a romance with a touch of gangster story, boxing and music. Physically Elvis doesn't look like a boxer at all, but the action sequences are filmed and performed well.
Movie Posters (C) Mirisch and BluRay Cover (C) Explosive Media, Record Cover (C) RCA Victor