The Desert Song (Max Liebman Presents)

"**The Desert Song**"
"The Desert Song"
Max Liebman Presents episode
Episode no.	Season 1; Episode 15
Directed by	Max Liebman
Written by	William Friedberg; Neil Simon; Will Glickman
Based on	The Desert Song
Featured music	Sigmund Romberg
Original air date	May 7, 1955
Running time	88 minutes
Guest appearances
	Nelson Eddy; Gale Sherwood; Otto Kruger; John Conte; Earl William; Salvatore Baccaloni; Viola Essen;

"The Desert Song" is an American television episode of The Desert Song operetta, which was based on a true event - an uprising of the Riffs against French rule in 1925.

The music for the operetta was composed by Sigmund Romberg. The book and the lyrics were written by Oscar Hammerstein II, Otto Harbach, Frank Mandel, and Laurence Schwab. Writers for the television adaptation were William Friedberg, Will Glickman and Neil Simon. The conductor for the production was Charles Sanford. The television version, which is slightly different from the operetta, as well as different from the films, was made two years after the 1953 film version with Gordon MacRae and Kathryn Grayson. "The Desert Song" is the only television production which features Nelson Eddy in a full live musical.

Rod Alexander was the choreographer for the dances and musical segments.

Plot

It is 1925 and the French are trying to turn Morocco into a modern colony. However, they are constantly being challenged, in their efforts, with rebellion by the native Riffs, led by the mysterious and fearless Red Shadow, a Frenchman.

In the French Foreign Legion outpost, General Birabeau offers a large reward for information leading to the capture of the Red Shadow.

Pierre, the French general's son, comes across as being an ineffectual, mild-mannered man. He explains to one of the soldiers that he could not help in the hunt for the Red Shadow because he had very sensitive skin and could not go into the desert because of this.

When Captain Paul Fontaine arrives with his fiancée, the very pretty Margot Bonvalet, Pierre falls in love with her. Paul comments that Margot was leaving the comforts of Paris behind her to marry him. When Paul later mentions to Pierre and Margot that he had General Birabeau's permission to marry Margot on the Sunday, both Pierre and Margot are upset. Margot, who is unsure of her feelings towards Paul, tries to get the marriage postponed, but Paul insists that it would take place in the outpost on the Sunday.

That night, the French soldiers are trying to capture the Red Shadow, who has been seen in the vicinity. Margot is eager to see the Red Shadow, wondering what he is like, so she stays outside the house. When she goes into the garden, she is suddenly and unexpectedly joined by the Red Shadow, who tries to persuade her to accompany him to the desert. Margot resists this and is kidnapped by the Red Shadow, who then takes Margot to the fortress of the caliph, Ali Ben Ali - where, later, the Red Shadow declares his love for her.

Hassi and Ali Ben Ali are unhappy that the Red Shadow had kidnapped Margot and brought her there, and try to get him to release her, saying that his capture of a French woman would be harmful to them - that the French would take revenge against them. Eventually, after receiving information from the dancing girl Azuri about the Red Shadow's whereabouts, General Birabeau arrives at Ali Ben Ali's fortress, telling Ali Ben Ali that he is there for the girl. Ali Ben Ali says that Margot was not his prisoner, but that of the Red Shadow. General Birabeau then asks Ali Ben Ali, as caliph, to order the Red Shadow to release Margot to him. Ali Ben Ali tells the general that the Red Shadow won't take orders from anybody, mentioning that the general would only be able to take Margot if he defeated the Red Shadow in a one-on-one armed combat. Ali Ben Ali also warns the general that the Red Shadow is an expert swordsman who has never been defeated. When the Red Shadow comes face to face with the general, he refuses to fight him - much to the surprise and disdain of the Riffs, who lose respect for their leader as a result - and General Birabeau accuses the Red Shadow of being a coward for not fighting him. The Red Shadow tells the general to take Margot - and the Riffs send the Red Shadow into the desert to die.

Back at the outpost, General Birabeau is acclaimed by some of his soldiers for his French courage in facing the Red Shadow and returning with Margot. The general is delighted with the accolades, saying that the Red Shadow would be killed by a French firing squad. Giving the large reward to Azuri for her help in locating the Red Shadow, General Birabeau comments that the Red Shadow would be dead in the morning. Azuri is horrified that her information about the whereabouts of the Red Shadow would lead to his possible death and reveals, to General Birabeau, the actual identity of the Red Shadow. Then, other soldiers return to the outpost from the desert, led by Captain Fontaine. When General Birabeau asks where the Red Shadow is, Captain Fontaine says that the Red Shadow is dead - much to the horror of both the general and Margot. Paul then says that he did not kill the Red Shadow, but that another man did. Then Pierre arrives, carrying the Red Shadow's cape, hat, sword and mask, and is welcomed with open arms by the French people. General Birabeau is delighted to see Pierre, saying that he now understood Pierre better. Margot is devastated by the news of the death of the Red Shadow, who she has discovered she is in love with. Pierre then reveals to Margot that he is, in fact, the Red Shadow, and all ends happily.

Cast members

Pierre Birabeau (the Red Shadow) — Nelson Eddy
Margot Bonvalet — Gale Sherwood
General Birabeau — Otto Kruger
Captain Paul Fontaine — John Conte
Ali Ben Ali — Salvatore Baccaloni
Hassi — Earl William
Azuri — Viola Essen
Dancers — Bambi Linn & Rod Alexander
Castagnette Dancer — Felisa Conde

Songs

"Ho! Bold Men of Morocco" — Ensemble
"The Riff Song" — Red Shadow, Ensemble
"Why Did We Marry Soldiers?" — Ensemble
"French Military Marching Song" — Ensemble
"Margot" — Paul, Margot, Ensemble
"Romance" — Margot, Ensemble
"Then You Will Know" — Pierre, Margot
"Soft as a Pigeon Lights Upon the Sand" — Hassi, Ensemble
"The Desert Song" — Red Shadow, Margot
"My Little Castagnette" — Ensemble
"Let Love Go" — Ali Ben Ali
"One Flower In Your Garden" — Hassi
"One Alone" — Red Shadow
"The Sabre Song" — Margot
"One Alone" (reprise) — Red Shadow
"The Desert Song" (reprise) — Pierre, Margot
"One Alone" (reprise) — sung by the entire company as an encore during the closing credits

Sources

The source of the information was the DVD of the operetta.

References

[1] (The Desert Song - Max Liebman Presents)

[2] (Memories of "The Desert Song". An interview with Earl William, who played the role of Hassi in the production). This article includes photos of the production.

External links

[3] ("The Desert Song" at IMDB - Internet Movie Data Base)

[4] "The Desert Song" at IMDB - reviews of the operetta]

[5] ("The Desert Song" at VAI Music - Video Artists International)

[6] Soundtract recording of the operetta