The French Atlantic Affair
| The French Atlantic Affair | |
|---|---|
 First edition (publ. Atheneum Books) | |
| Directed by | Douglas Heyes |
| Written by | Douglas Heyes |
| Based on | The French Atlantic Affair by Ernest Lehman |
| Starring | Telly Savalas Chad Everett Michelle Phillips Shelley Winters Horst Buchholz |
| Cinematography | Ralph Woolsey |
| Edited by | Tom Stevens Jamie Caylor |
| Music by | John Addison |
Production companies | Aaron Spelling Productions MGM Television |
Release date | November 15-18, 1979 |
Running time | 278 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
The French Atlantic Affair is a novel by Ernest Lehman which was published in 1977. A 3-part TV miniseries based on the book was produced and broadcast in 1979.
Plot
A luxury ocean liner, the SS Marseilles of the French Atlantic Line, is hijacked by Father Dunleavy, a messianic priest, and his cult followers for a $70 million ransom in gold. Harold Columbine, a novelist, and Charles Girodt, the ship's captain, attempt to save the lives of the passengers, some of whom are also members of the group.
Two young
In the novel, the hijackers were a group of employees laid off by NASA and its contractors after the termination of the Apollo program. The amateur radio operators were a passenger (not a member of the terrorist group), and his on-shore friend, both of whom were physicians.
Cast
- Jean-Pierre Aumont as Chief Jean-Claude Raffin
- Horst Buchholz as Dr. Chabot
- James Coco as George Sauvinage
- Chad Everett as Harold Columbine
- José Ferrer as President Aristide Brouchard
- John Houseman as Dr. Archady Clemens
- Carolyn Jones as Peg
- Richard Jordan as Julian Wunderlicht
- Louis Jourdan as Captain Charles Girodt
- Michelle Phillips as Jennie Barber
- Marie-France Pisier as Lisa
- Donald Pleasence as Max Dechambre
- John Rubinstein as Herb Kleinfeld
- Telly Savalas as Father Dunleavy
- Stella Stevens as Louise Crawford
- Shelley Winters as Helen Wabash
- Lance LeGault as Lester Foyles
- William Lucking as Don Crawford
- Nehemiah Persoff as Col. Schreiner
- Dane Clark as Admiral J. Elton Knox
- Richard Anderson as Terrence Crown
- Corinne Calvet as Madame Brouchard
- Harvey Jason as Plessier
- Dana Hill as Maggie Joy
- Army Archerd as Stanford Whitman
- M. Emmet Walsh as Harry
- Arielle Dombasle as Hotel Operator
- Roger Til as Devillaine
- James Jeter as Al
Production
Exteriors and scenes on deck in the miniseries were shot in the Caribbean aboard
Literature
- Ernest Lehmann: The French Atlantic Affair Atheneum, New York 1977, ISBN 0-689-10803-6
References
- "something in the creative process has gone badly awry with this ungainly, pedestrian, not-very-suspense story ..." https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1755&dat=19771113&id=UUk0AAAAIBAJ&sjid=X2cEAAAAIBAJ&pg=2331,5050136
External links
- The French Atlantic Affair at IMDb
