THE RELUCTANT WITCH (Part 1 of 7), a feature film adapted from the novella by James E. Gunn. (2017).
5A feature film by MUNROW'S RETRO. Including footage from the unfinished film by Herk Harvey (1971).
This is Phase 2 of a film project begun and completed in 2017 using the original unused film footage by Herk Harvey, found footage, parts from a film originally televised in 1972 (previously public domain, that status may have changed since re-release on DVD), clips from the television series Smallville and Charmed, old film footage from the early 1960's and 1930's now in the public domain, snippets from some video games, snippets from video shorts, clips from videotaped stage plays, and other sources. Actor dialogue is accomplished by use of captions. Soundtrack music is provided by copyrighted music in Parts 1 and 6 only, and free music and music licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (with link back) in the other parts. Phase 3 may be anywhere from a year to four years away (or never), and necessary changes including changes to plot points may be necessary, but enjoy the story in its current form as it unfolds which pretty much follows the now late Mr. Gunn's novella.
"The Reluctant Witch" by James E. Gunn was originally entitled "Happy Is The Bride" but was ultimately published in Galaxy Magazine in May 1953 under the title "Wherever You May Be." Gunn never liked the Galaxy title and when the story was published as the first of a trilogy of tales in a short-story collection entitled The Witching Hour in 1970, he re-titled it "The Reluctant Witch." I quote him here from his introduction: "I never liked 'Wherever You May Be' ... and changed it, in this collection, to "The Reluctant Witch." Thus, "the Reluctant Witch" (as it was labeled on Herk Harvey's film can) could not have been a working title Herk Harvey would have used until at least the summer of 1970 if not later. To me, based on my memory of the times, the footage looks as though it was either shot then or, much more likely, around the summer of 1971.
Part 1 of this video is almost entirely composed of scenes from the only known surviving raw footage from the unfinished Herk Harvey film, "The Reluctant Witch." The unused footage is located at the Internet Archives and is marked "Usage Public Domain Mark 1.0." The footage was discovered missing the soundtrack which means we'll never know what is being said in what few scenes where there is any dialogue or monologue. But based on a good reading of the short story, and some good lip reading, I have a pretty good idea. I have provided captions of what I think were likely remarks. Although there were a number of takes of some of the scenes, these "takes" were actually shots of the same scenes from different camera angles and close-ups. These were obviously going to be edited and mixed together to make the scenes, which is what I have done. There are also an amazing number of "one take only" scenes that were clearly to be used to establish mood.
The lead role of Matthew Wright, in this footage, was played by Leonard Schneider, who acted in two films in the 1950's, but after being drafted into the US army, moved on to do camera work on "Candid Camera" and also on the hugely popular television hit, "The Patty Duke Show." In the mid-60's Schneider joined Centron Productions in Lawrence, Kansas, directing and writing some of the short films and also working with Herk Harvey on other Centron projects. He agreed to star in The Reluctant Witch but after the preliminary footage was shot, wanted to be paid an actor's wage rather than Centron staff wages. This was one of the reasons the film was shelved, although "logistical problems" are also cited as being the cause. He left Centron in 1972 or 1973 and then pursued his life long love of painting.
According to a YouTube comment by Paul Miles Schneider, the son of Leonard Schneider, actress Jennifer Salt had been contracted to play opposite Schneider in the film in the role of the 19-year-old "reluctant witch," Abigail Jenkins. His comment can be read at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=raCkB9a2qbI at Joel Sanderson's short reconstruction of the footage: “I can't believe you have this footage! That professor is my father, Leonard Schneider. He was working for Centron as well, at the time, as a director and writer. They had him play the lead in this unfinished film, along with Jennifer Salt (later of "Soap")." It is clear to me that much of the footage was shot AROUND Jennifer Salt's character (that is, most of the scenes where she does not appear) before she was to join the cast.
Music: "Hollow Hills" by Faith & the Muse, "Lady Winter" by Poetry Of Shadows, "All We Ever Wanted Was Everything" by Blade Fetish (instrumental portions)