84 Charing Cross Road

Synopsis

For twenty years they shared something stronger than friendship and closer than love, yet they never met. A true story based on the bestselling novel by Helen Hanff.

Directed by: David Jones
Release year: 1987
Runtime: 99 Minutes

Production Notes

Helene Hanff was a young writer who loved books.

Unable to afford fine editions of her beloved classics, she answered an advertisement in The Saturday Review of Literature placed by Marks & Co., Antiquarian Booksellers, 84 Charing Cross Road, London, for out-of-print books. Thus began the 20-year relationship that started as business and grew into friendship and a well-stocked library.

Helene's initial correspondence on October 5, 1949, was answered by FPD, later to be revealed as Frank Doel, on behalf of Marks & Co. The two volumes he sent, amazingly within her limited budget, were "mellow, leather-bound books with thick cream-colored pages ... They didn't have the look of rare or fine books, they looked like the friends I needed them to be. -For a while I just stood, turning the pages of each, and I knew I'd never look anywhere else for books," remembers Helene Hanff in her memoir, "Q's Legacy."

Helene Hanff to complete her education at Temple University, she devised a personal study course, electing Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch, MA, Professor of English Literature at England's University of Cambridge, her tutor in absentia. In time, Hanff tired of borrowing Q's (as the professor was affectionately nicknamed) recommended reading from the public library and embarked on a purchase program. Unfortunately, most of the books were out of print or out of budget.

Marks & Co. was especially glamorous because it was in London, which had intrigued her since her parents began taking her to the theatre at age 8. Her passion for London intensified as she read the English literature recommended by Q. "Between my hand-to-mouth income and my fear of travel, I never really expected to see London ...I thought it would be a lovely consolation prize to hold in my hands books that actually came from there," reminisces Hanff.

As the orders to Marks & Co. continued, Hanff began including long, amusing letters. Frank Doel and the staff enjoyed her warmth and pithy sense of humor, eagerly awaiting each correspondence. With her awareness of the food rationing that was still a part of postwar England, Hanff sent food parcels to the shop at Christmas and Easter, resulting in grateful thank yous and correspondence from everyone including Megan Wells (Wendy Morgan), George Martin  (Maurice Denham), Cecily Farr (Eleanor David), Bill Humphries (Ian McNiece) and Frank Doel's wife, Nora (Judi Dench). The correspondence broadened into a warm portrayal of the way of life and spirit of camaraderie that was present in postwar Britain.

Helene's story is told in New York with friends sharing the ups and downs of her fortunes and career. Kay (Mercedes Ruehl) and her English boyfriend, Brian (Daniel Gerroll), tell her how much she would like the neighborhood and atmosphere of 84 Charing Cross Road.

When her actress chum, Maxine (Jean De Baer), crosses the Atlantic to appear in a London stage production, Helene throws a bon voyage party, despite her sadness that she can't afford to make the trip herself. Soon afterwards, her luck changes and she becomes a television writer for the "Ellery Queen" series.

In 1952, just as she begins shopping for flights to London, she must spend her savings on preventive dental treatment. Thanks to her regular writing assignments, Hanff's finances steadily improve, but in 1956 her travel plans are again thwarted when she is evicted and forced to buy a new apartment. Her young married friends, Ginny (J. Smith-Cameron) and Ed (Tom Isbell), are Helene's proxy to England this time.

In January of 1969, before Helene has an opportunity to make her long-dreamed-of London trip, she is saddened to receive a letter informing her of the untimely passing of Frank Doel. Later that year, she finally crosses the Atlantic to visit 84 Charing Cross Road. Marks & Co. has closed its door as a book-selling establishment. Helene is surrounded by traces of workmen, broken-down furniture and dust. The realization of her dream of 20 years is tinged with sadness.

 

ABOUT THE PRODUCTION

Director David Jones first became involved with "84 Charing Cross Road" when Anne Bancroft invited him to a tea­time meeting in a London hotel. It was established from the beginning that they were not looking for an alternative version to the English television production of 1975 or the 1981 London stage version or the 1982 Broadway production.

"What we're talking about is the letters in terms of a film," said Anne Bancroft. He had to find a way to open up the letters so the story genuinely would become a film.

Jones was excited about the challenge of going back the raw material of the experience and creatively re­thinking and shaping "84 Charing Cross Road." Comments Jones, whose initial training had incorporated the study of English literature and poetry, "I believe that films are about words as well as pictures, and the idea of directing something actually based on words dancing with pictures was very attractive." Jones, who for the past seven years has been Artistic Director of the BAM Theatre Company in Brooklyn, was sharpened to the appeal of the opposites between America and England. "Here is a story of representatives of the two nations with many things in common, as well as a great deal separating them -- and yet they are drawn to each other. The movie's important
secondary theme is the love affair between England and America."

Hugh Whitemore, who wrote the teleplay for the BBC version of "84 Charing Cross Road," was chosen to restructure the material and write the screenplay. Says director Jones of Whitemore, whose stage and film successes include "Stevie," "Pack of Lies" and "Concealed Enemies," "Hugh is particularly good at taking real-life events and giving them dramatic shape without distorting them has a quiet respect for the truth."

Producer Geoffrey Helman was entrusted with the logistics of bringing "84 Charing Cross Road" to the screen. One of the first considerations was re-creating the set for Marks & Co. since 84 Charing Cross Road, in the heart of London's theatre district at Cambridge Circus, is now the location for a record shop and compact disc center. Another complication was that the set had to reflect the 20-year period between 1949 and 1969. One of London's busiest thoroughfares, the Charing Cross junction has its origins in the final commemorative cross which King Edward I of England erected in 1290 in the name of his wife, Eleanor of Castile, when she died and was brought to London for burial.
('Charing' is derived from the French 'chere reine,' meaning 'dear queen.')

With all of these difficulties involved in using the actual location, Helman arrived at a neat solution. "We were a location picture based out of Shepperton Studios. We found a stage with its large scene-dock doors opening out to an area of the studio lot, building the interior of the bookshop on the stage and constructing the steet on the lot." 'R' Stage fulfilled the requirements by providing sufficient space to reproduce the interior of the premises of Marks & Co., fronting a large open space wide enough to build a section of street proportionate to the real Charing Cross Road. The perspective from the shop overlooked a bustling thoroughfare, complete with moving traffic. Cars, buses, taxis and bikes were hired, and, like the passersby, constantly updated to keep pace with the span of the story.

To re-create the atmosphere of the antiquarian bookshop, Marks & Co., old prints, papers and 12,000 volumes were obtained by production designer Eileen Diss to line the shelves. Diss, a practiced creator at making stage sets come to life, knew where to locate the material from previous productions. "Eric Moreton has an enormous warehouse in Manchester, and having been in the book trade for years -- even knowing Frank Doel and Marks & Co. very well -- he's wonderfully knowledgeable. He was able to give us very detailed inside information, such as telling us that we should display signs saying 'Masonic Books - Please Ask' because Marks & Co. specialized in them although they could not put them on show. He also lent us the Antiquarian
Booksellers Association roundels that went in the windows."

Frank Doel's daughter, now Sheila Wheeler, visited the
set and was impressed with the re-creation of her father's domain. She recalled happy days when she went to Marks & Co., rummaging among the books in the basement: "My father went to Marks & Co. as an apprentice from grammar school and was with them until he died -- always known as 'young Frank.' Many prominent names in the book trade started out at Marks & Co., learned the business and branched out on their own."

She remembers being jealous of her father's preoccupation with books: "Like other booksellers, books were his life, occupying his time and thoughts, although more as a commodity than for their content. The book trade was a small, unique world which seemed to attract all odd people -- characters -- 'book people.'"

Sheila recalls that Helene Hanff was always viewed as a distant fairy godmother in the Doel household, with each new parcel bringing a great excitement to their lives. When Hanff finally made her visit to London in 1969, the two women met.
In order to tell the story of the transatlantic relationship, filming was done in London and New York with self-contained operations of separate production teams in the two cities. The only members of the English technical crew who were common to both shoots were director of photography Brian West and editor Chris Wimble. Two different visual approaches had been conceived to underline the contrast in postwar years on each side of the Atlantic. Explains American production designer Edward Pisoni, "It was important to use two designers who each knew their own city. You can't have the same feeling about a place you haven't lived in and been part of through its various periods, however good your research and contacts are."

The problem of finding '50s and '60s clothing was tackled in New York by costume designer Jane Greenwood, who raided city thrift shops and vintage clothing stores to unearth fussy hats, gloves, fitted coats and heavy pumps.

Prices were high and when dressing 'extras,' she was sometimes obliged to alternate combinations of coats with hats and accessories as an economy measure.

British costume designer Lindy Hemming was faced with an added dilemma: "Young people in England have decided to take clothes of that period on in a big way. There's one shop in the New King's Road where a gentleman's second-hand suit could cost up to 200 pounds -- nearly as much as a new one in Jermyn Street. Fashionable youngsters -- known as 'young fogies' -- like to wear plus-fours, long socks, fair­ isle jumpers and Brylcreem their hair. So much stuff has been bought up by the dealers to meet the demand of that trend, it's difficult to find good quality old clothing now. We hired a certain amount from theatrical costumers.

Otherwise it was a question of plowing round the markets and genuine second-hand shops with patience and a beady eye."
After completion of the 16-day English shoot, David Jones, Geoffrey Helman and Brian West flew to New York to carry out a 10-day coordination program of location recess with key members of the New York crew before shooting began there. A gruelling 16-day routine sometimes involving up to five location moves in Manhattan's busy streets per day had to be planned with precision.

Principal photography took place in interiors and exteriors on the Upper East Side and Madison Avenue, with venues including the 34th Street main post office, the City of New York Museum, the Cooper-Hewitt Museum, Brooklyn's Borough Hall and Central Park.

"We had 27 locations within 16 shooting days," said production manager Ken Golden. "Each location was subject to full art department design and '50s and '60s hand­propping. Madison Avenue had to revert to its original. two­way traffic system and was articulated with period vehicles we hired. We could not have met the demands of the schedule without the cooperation of the Mayor's Office for Motion Pictures and the Movie and TV Section of the New York City Police."

While New York of the '50s and '60s becomes more difficult to represent as the years go by, the Upper East Side remains reasonably unchanged, helped by the protective attitudes of the popluation who lives there. Hackles were raised as Upper -East Siders saw a make-believe newsstand under construction and took it for real. Background to the scene when Helene Hanff reads Marks & Co.'s advertisement in The Saturday Review of Literature, it was a practical period structure, prop-dressed with appropriate newspapers and magazines.

Corner newsstands had been traditionally unacceptable to the neighborhood, but opinion at the sudden appearance of one was mixed. Since buying a newspaper meant walking down the Avenue several blocks, some locals.welcomed it. The hard-liners rejected the idea totally. It was not only a question of the newsstand being there: "They disliked the 'lived in' look we had given it in the art department," said Edward Pisoni. "I think they would have preferred a more imposing design, even though it was there only temporarily."

A long-term resident of the Upper East Side herself, Helene Hanff was an honored guest when she came to visit Anne Bancroft and the unit on location in Central Park. Sincerely confounded that her story has touched the hearts of so many on both sides of the Atlantic, Hanff was fascinated to be a bystander at its current metamorphosis. In a letter to the production afterwards she said: "...and I do thank you... for the warm and friendly reception all of you gave me in Central Park. It was a wonderful morning and another drop in the bucket of miracles '84 Charing Cross' has been in my life.

 

ABOUT THE CAST

ANNE BANCROFT
"Ever since I read Helene Hanff's moving and witty book, '84, Charing Cross Road,' I knew the part of the sassy New York writer was for me. When it became possible to acquire the project for Brooksfilms, I was very excited about the prospect of bringing this story to the screen. Helene Hanff is such a rich and multi-dimensional character, it was a joy to prepare for the part," comments Academy­Award winning actress Anne Bancroft of her latest role in Columbia Pictures' "84 Charing Cross Road."

The renowned actress, born in New York of Italian parentage, knew from an early age that she wanted to be an actress. Bancroft enrolled in New York's American Academy of Dramatic Arts after graduating from Christopher Columbus High School. Even before completing her training at AADA, she was hired to perform regularly on such live television shows as "Studio One."

She subsequently signed a contract with 20th Century­Fox, where for "six frustrating years" she worked as a contract player on everything from the girl-in-distress in "Gorilla at Large" to being Mrs. Sol Hurok in "Tonight We Sing." "This baptism by fire taught me to be selective about my work," recounts Bancroft.

In 1957, Bancroft tried her talents on the Broadway stage, starring opposite Henry Fonda in William Gibson's "Two for the Seesaw," for which she received a Tony Award. Her performance as Annie Sullivan, Helen Keller's tough, courageous teacher in "The Miracle Worker," brought her a 1960 Tony Award and the 1963 Oscar for Best Actress when she re-created the role for the cinema.

Crossing the Atlantic to star with James Mason and Peter Finch in "The Pumpkin Eater" earned Bancroft both a British Academy Award as Best Actress and an Academy Award nomination. She then returned to Broadway and starred in such productions as "The Devils," Jerome Robbins' staging of Brecht's "Mother Courage," Mike Nichols' revival of Lillian Hellman's "The Little Foxes" and in William Gibson's "A Cry of Players." She later starred in the title role of "Golda," based on the life of Israeli stateswoman Golda Meir.

In the mid-sixties, she joined Sidney Poitier in "The Slender Thread" and starred in "Seven Women" before earning her third Academy Award nomination in Mike Nichols' "The Graduate." She traveled to England again in 1972 to star as Winston Churchill's American-born mother in "Young Winston," then returned to America to star in the television special "Annie and the Men in Her Life," a collection of sketches by Martin Charnin which earned her an Emmy Award.

She continued her film career in Neil Simon's "The Prisoner of Second Avenue" with Jack Lemmon, followed by "The Hindenberg" with George C. Scott and "Lipstick" in 1976. She made a cameo appearance with her husband, Mel Brooks, in his comedy "Silent Movie," returning to television in the much-praised, long-form Franco Zefferelli production of "Jesus of Nazareth."

Bancroft received another Oscar nomination for her portrayal of the veteran prima ballerina in "The Turning Point," followed by her memorable appearance as socialite Mrs. Kendall in "The Elephant Man." Her next endeavor was to combine roles on both side of the camera, writing, directing and starring in "Fatso" with Dom DeLuise. Then she appeared on Broadway, starring opposite Max von Sydow in "Duet for One." Her next films were "Garbo Talks" and "To Be or Not To Be," in which she co-starred in a glittering role with Mel Brooks.

Bancroft received a sixth Academy Award nomination for her role in "Agnes of God," and has most recently been seen in her critically acclaimed performance in "'night, Mother."
Columbia Pictures presents a Brooksfilms Production of "84 Charing Cross Road" starring Anne Bancroft and Anthony Hopkins. The film was directed by David Jones from a screenplay by Hugh Whitemore and produced by Geoffrey Helman.

ANTHONY HOPKINS
Versatile Engish actor Anthony Hopkins stars with Anne Bancroft in Columbia Pictures' "84 Charing Cross Road," portraying Frank Doel, the manager of the London antiquarian bookstore, marks & Co., where New Yorker Helene Hanff sent for beloved volumes at surprisingly affordable prices. During their almost 20-year correspondence, with his reserved professionalism, Doel dutifully fills Banff's orders. A warm, touching and humorous pen-pal type relationship develops, revealing the personal and national concerns of the transatlantic correspondents.

Comments Hopkins on his character, "Frank Doel is the kind of man who went about his job, got on with his life in a very non­demonstrative way. Of course he was a widely read man, a man of good education, but he just didn't brag about it, just quietly read and observed and probably in his own way became a philosopher."

Born in Port Talbot, Wales, on December 31, 1937, Anthony Hopkins won a scholarship to the Welsh College of Music and Drama, where he continued studying piano for two
years. In 1958 he was called up for two years' military training. Following this, Hopkins began his career in show business, joining the Manchester Library Theatre as an assistant stage manager. From there he went to the Nottingham Repertory Company and then auditioned for the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. He was accepted on a scholarship, graduating a silver medalist two years later.

In 1963, he joined the Phoenix Theatre in Leicester, followed by stints at the Liverpool Playhouse and Hornchurch Repertory Company. In 1965, he was invited to audition for the director of the National Theatre at the Old Vic -- Sir Laurence Olivier. Two years later, he was understudying the master in Strindberg's "Dance of Death." His film debut came with "The Lion in Winter" when Peter O'Toole chose him to play Richard the Lionheart.

Since then, he has divided his time between theatre, films and television both in England and the United States. In 1974, he went to New York to play Dr. Dysart in the National Theatre production of "Equus" on Broadway. He took that opportunity to settle in California to concentrate on American film and television work. He returned to London 10 years later and intends to continue working in all three media on both sides of the Atlantic.

He received Emmys for his role in "The Lindbergh Kidnapping" and his portrayal of Adolf Hitler in "The Bunker." Other notable television work includes his appearance in the BBC Television production of "Kean," produced by David Jones; the title role in the BBC's "Othello"; "A Married Man"; "Mussolini and I" for Italian television; "Hollywood Wives" and "Guilty Conscience." Recently he was seen as Guy Burgess in the BBC's Screen Two presentation, "Blunt."
His film appearances include "Magi," “The Bounty." Prior to "84 Charing Cross Road," he completed a role in "The Good Father," directed by Mike Newell.

In the theatre, Hopkins has most recently enjoyed great success in two productions at the National Theatre -­"Pravda" (as newspaper tycoon Lambert Le Roux) and "King Lear," directed by David Hare. He will appear as Antony with Judi Dench as Cleopatra in Peter Hall's "Antony and Cleopatra" this coming spring.

JUDI DENCH stars as Nora Doel, wife of Marks & Co. manager Frank Doel (Anthony Hopkins). Through the postwar rationing in Britain, Hanff's holiday food parcels became welcome additions to the festivities, and added much to the enjoyment of the Doels and their two daughters. Nora Doel developed her own correspondence with Hanff, through her thank yous.

A particular favorite with theatregoers, Judi Dench has been recognized for some years as one of Britain's finest actresses. Royal Shakespeare Artistic Director Trevor Nunn says: "Quite simply, she's the most generous person I've ever met, both on and off the stage." She is also immensely popular among fellow actors, known for her warm personality and ready sense of humor. Anthony Hopkins, who worked with her for the first time on "84 Charing Cross Road," made no secret of how much he enjoyed making the film with her.

Born in York, her first theatre appearance was as a fairy in a Nativity play at the age of 4. As a youngster, her career goals were to become a designer, attending art school for a year. She originally turned to acting as a substitute for designing, studying at the Central School of Drama, with fellow student Vanessa Redgrave. At the age of 23, she appeared at the Old Vic as Ophelia, opposite John Neville.

Since that memorable debut, she has gone on to portray most of the leading classical roles in the theatre as a distinguished member of the Royal Shakespeare Company. Her capabilities carry great range, having portrayed a singing­dancing Sally Bowles in the London stage production of "Cabaret," as well as appearing in the highly successful British television series, "A Fine Romance." Her latest motion picture roles have included "Wetherby" and the part of Miss Lavish, the spirited Edwardian novelist, in the critically acclaimed "A Room with a View."

Married to fellow Royal Shakespeare Company actor Michael Williams, Dench's work has been honored with numerous awards. Her Juliet won a Paladino D'Argentino at the Venice Festival in "Romeo and Juliet." She was British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Best Television Actress for "Talking to a Stranger" and Society of West End Theatres (SWET) Best Actress as Lady Macbeth. As Juno in "Juno and the Paycock," she was voted Best Actress by SWET and the Evening Standard Drama Awards panel, also receiving a Plays and Players Award as Best Actress and a Variety Club Award as Actress of the Year for that play.
Most recently, she won a Plays and Players and a SWET Award as Best Actress in Hugh Whitemore's "Pack of Lies" and an Evening Standard Best Actress Award for "A Kind of Alaska" and "The Importance of Being Earnest." In 1970, Dench was named to the Order of the British Empire and became an Honorary Doctor of Letters at Warwick University in 1978 and an Honorary Doctor of Letters at the University of York in 1983.

New York actress JEAN DE BAER plays the role of Helene Hanff's New York actress friend, Maxine. A native of Akron, Ohio, de Baer, after completing her education, "left home young and fiddled around -- I hadn't a clue I was going to end up doing this." Her first stop was six months on an Israeli kibbutz, next moving to New York. She waitressed at the Figaro coffee shop and began auditioning for Joseph Papp's New York Shakespeare Festival. After being complimented on her voice, but advised to learn how to act, de Baer spent two and a half years studying at Sanford Meisner's Neighborhood Playhouse.

She first appeared professionally in 1969 in New York, followed by regional theatre productions including "Vampires in Kodachrome" at the Yale Repertory Theater, "Alterations" at the Portland Stage Co., "Arms and the Man" at the Actors Theatre of Louisville, "The Saving Grace" at Buffalo Studio
Arena and "The Guardsman" at Stage West. Comments de Baer on these experiences, "I used to go to regional theatres because I was never an ingenue. I played roles I was far too young to play, but the experience was good. And at that time, I could live on what they paid me,, which covered my rent there and my rent in New York, even having enough left over to pay my agent. In those days you could do all that and still break even."

She chose to resist the lure to go to California, which was relocating so many East Coast actors in the '70s and stayed in New York to continue her career in the theatre. She has appeared in films including "F/X," "A Flash of Green," "The World. According to Garp" and "Girlfriends." Her television credits include "The Equalizer," "Trackdown, Looking for the Goodbar Killer," "One of the Boys" and the PBS Masterpiece Theatre production of Hugh Whitemore's "Concealed Enemies."

Stage plays remain her favorite form of acting with Broadways roles including "Chapter Two" and "The Women." Her appearances off-Broadway have included "To Gillian On
Her 37th Birthday," "Standing on My Knees," "The Misunderstanding," "Chisholm Trail Went Through Here," "Suicide in B Flat" and "Getting Through the Night."

MAURICE DENHAM, a familiar and well-loved figure in the world of British acting, appears as the endearing George late to get started," e says. "I hadn't been to drama school but had done an enormous amount of amateur work and managed to get into a drama league which presented productions at the Old Vic. Working with professional directors was very exciting for an amateur actor. I asked one of the producers if I had any chance in the professional theatre, where I had wanted to be for years. She got me a job at Hull rep." Denham stayed in weekly repertory at Hull for three years, moving on to Croydon and Brighton. His first West End engagement was in "Busman's Honeymoon," which ran for a year and a half, and during that time he obtained an audition at the BBC and started broadcasting.

His career was put on hold for service in World War II from May 1940 to November 1945. He then managed to land an assignment on BBC Radio and his popularity as a broadcaster was established.

His roles have encompassed a very wide range in favorite British radio shows from "Much Binding in the Marsh" to "Inspector Maigret" and "Rumpole of the Bailey." Recent broadcasts include Tom Stoppard's "The Dog It Was That Died," "Flowers of Eden," "Collecting for Pleasure," "Mystery of the Blue Train," "The Lady's Not for Burning" and "Blackbird."

As a leading member of the Old Vic Company in 1962-63, Denham played the title roles in "King John" and "Macbeth." He also appeared in the original productions of "Dock Brief" and "What Shall We Tell Caroline?" He has been seen recently on television in "Boon," "The Black Tower" and "Mr. Palfrey of Westminster."

Among his films of the '80s are "Monsieur Quixote," "Murder on the Orient Express," "The Chain," "Mr. Love," "From a Far Country" and "The Recluse." "84 Charing Cross Road" marks the 105th film in Maurice Denham's distinguished and varied career.

ELEANOR DAVID plays Cecily Farr, the gentle and unassuming behind-the-scenes secretary at Marks & Co. Born in Darwin, Lancashire, David studied acting at London's Central School of Speech and Drama. She graduated in 1979 and then spent the following season in repertory at the Belgrade, Coventry, where her many roles included Sally Bowles in "Cabaret" and Terry Philips in "How the Other Half Loves."

Her films include "Paradise Postponed," Bill Forsyth's "Comfort and Joy" and Alan Parker's "The Wall." Her London stage appearances include "When I Was a Girl I Used to Scream and Shout," "Victory," "Summer" and "The Enemy Within." English television audiences have enjoyed David's appearances in "Return of Sherlock Holmes," "The Antonia White Quartet," "The Member for Chelsea," "The Borgias," "Combat" and "Aspects of Love."

MERCEDES RUEHL plays Kay, Helene Hanff's young friend. Recently co-starring with Judd Hirsch in the Tony Award­winning comedy-drama "I'm Not Rappaport" on Broadway, Ruehl is a native New Yorker who grew up in Silver Spring, Maryland. She wanted to be an actress since the age of 7.. "I used to make up songs and 'secretly' sing them at the top
of my lungs in the hills behind our house. Little did I know that every household could hear me." But her wish came true and Ruehl has played a wide variety of parts from Medea to musicals (a recent revival of "June Moon") to a teenager in "Four Friends."

One of her favorite regional roles was Annie Sullivan in the sequel to "The Miracle Worker" called "Monday After the Miracle." "Annie's drive and indomitability really appealed to me. She knew what was important and never doubted herself, no matter what the obstacles," says Ruehl.

Delighted with her success in "Rappaport," Ruehl comments, "Being in a hit show was as big a thrill as I'd always imagined." Prior to "Rappaport," Ruehl appeared at the New York Shakespeare Festival in "The Marriage of Bette and Boo," for which she received an Obie Award. Previously she was also seen at the Festival in Albert Innaurato's "Coming of Age in Soho." She did extensive regional theatre work, as well as appearing on television in ABC's Afterschool Specials, "The Doctors" and with Lindsay Wagner in "Late Bloomers."

"84 Charing Cross Road" is Ruehl's fourth film, having been seen in "Warriors," "Four Friends" and Mike Nichols' "Heartburn."

DANIEL GERROLL is authentically cast as Brian, an Englishman abroad and Kay's boyfriend. Gerroll was not only familiar with the play, but Mr. Marks of Marks & Co. is the father of a good friend. "Leo Marks visited the set and I play bridge with them regularly when I'm in London. His cousin is my London agent."

London born, Gerroll received his dramatic training at London's Central School of Speech and Drama. He made his first professional appearance in repertory at Southwold Summer Theatre, moving to London for appearances in "Marching Song," "The Love of a Good Man," "A Respectable Wedding" and "Once a Catholic."

A frequent visitor to the United States since his mother is American, Gerroll 'accidentally' landed an acting job at the Hudson Guild Theatre in November 1980 in "The Slab Boys," for which he received a Theatre World Award. "That job led to another, to another, to another, and I've hardly gone back to England except once to work," remarks Gerroll.

His appearance in "Knuckle" earned him another Theatre World Award, as well as Outer Critics Circle Award. Gerroll's other New York acting credits include "Translations," "The Caretaker," "The Knack," "Plenty," "Black Comedy," "Public Eye" and "The Second Man."

In the last several years, he has turned his hand to directing theatre productions, including "She Stoops to Conquer," "The Custom of the Country," "Twelfth Night," "The Baker's Audition," "On Approval," which was nominated for a Drama Desk Award, and "The Accrington Pals," for which his direction was nominated for an Outer Critics Circle Award.

Gerroll's film and television roles include "Chariots of Fire," "The Woman in White" and "Happy New Year." He lives in Brooklyn with his actress wife, Patricia Kalember, and their young daughter.

WENDY MORGAN plays the role of Marks & Co.'s outspoken and mildly rebellious Megan Wells. Recently appearing as Tamar, the only daughter of King David in Peter Shaffer's "Yonadab" at the National Theatre, Morgan's career took off with considerable force when she landed the plum role opposite Richard Gere in John Schlesinger's "Yanks." Having spent the previous year touring with the Bubble Theatre Company after completion of her education, "Yanks" opened up many doors. Television opportunities included the title role in Bill Forsyth's "Andrina" and the part of Susan Layton in "Jewel in the Crown."

She has spent the last several years at the National Theatre, where her title-role performance in "Martine" won plaudits from audiences and critics alike. She has also appeared in "Coriolanus," "Animal Farm" and "You Can't Take It With You." Her other films include "The Mirror Crack'd" and "Life of the Beatles."

ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS

DAVID JONES
Director David Jones comments on his latest film for Columbia Pictures starring Anne Bancroft and Anthony Hopkins: "'84 Charing Cross Road' had become a myth, a fable, a story about two people having an amazing relationship over 20 years without actually seeing each other. The story was a bit beyond who the people were originally; with Tony and Anne we were into an imaginative re-creation. I hope we always got the inner truth of the story where sometimes we may have bypassed the photographic surface of the reality."

Born on February 19, 1934, in Poole, Dorset, England, Jones started his professional life as a documentary filmmaker for BBC-TV's first arts magazine, "Monitor," where the subjects of his film profiles included E.M. Forester, William Golding, Lawrence Durrell and R.S. Thomas.

An Associate Director of the Royal Shakespeare Company since 1965, his theatre productions have ranged from Shakespeare to a major reassessment of the plays of Maxim Gorky and frequent productions of contemporary writers such as David Mercer, Gunter Grass and Graham Greene. His continuing work with television includes a film biography of John Clare (1969) and Harold Pinter's "Langrishe, Go Down" (1978) with Annette Crosbie, Judi Dench and Jeremy Irons. From 1977-79 he was producer of BBC-TV's main classical play series, "Play of the Month." In 1979, he went to America as Artistic Director of the BAM Theatre Company in Brooklyn.

Subsequently, he directed the highly successful film version of Harold Pinter's "Betrayal," starring Jeremy Irons, Ben Kingsley and Patricia Hodge, was responsible for two productions in the BBC-TV Shakespeare series, "The Merry Wives of Windsor" (1983) and "Pericles" (1984), and directed the stage premiere of Nicholas Wright's "The Custom of the Country" (1983) and Ronald Harwood's "Tramway Road" (1984).

In 1985, David Jones directed Liv Ullman, Michael Gambon and Nicola Pagett in Harold Pinter's "Old Times" for a production at London's Theatre Royal. "Old Times" was later brought to the United States and played at the American Theatre, St. Louis, and the Henry Fonda Theatre, Los Angeles, in which Jones had an opportunity to direct playwright Pinter in the role of Deeley.

Recently, Jones directed Richard Nelson's new play, "Principia Scriptoriae" in London at the Pit Theatre. He is currently completing direction of "The Devil's Disciple" for BBC-TV.

Dividing his working life between New York and London, Jones and his actress wife, Sheila Allen, have two sons,
Joseph and Jesse.

 

GEOFFREY HELMAN
"84 Charing Cross Road" producer Geoffrey Helman comments about the unique atmosphere surrounding its filming, "Most noticeable were the attitudes of the people who worked on the film because they really wanted to be associated with the project which they considered to be a worthwhile film for audiences to enjoy."

Helman began his career in films as an assistant director with Columbia Pictures in 1947 on "The First Gentleman." He served a rigorous early apprenticeship on the studio floor before earning his present reputation as a highly regarded production executive in international filmmaking.

He has worked on television series and feature films worldwide, including "The Adventurers," "Friends," and, more recently, "The Message," "Superman," "Superman II," "The Passage," "Lion of the Desert," "The French Lieutenant's Woman," "Krull" and "The Young Visitors" for British Television.

Helman's contribution in keeping the Brooksfilms production of "The Doctor and the Devils" on schedule and
budget was recognized by Brooksfilms with an invitation to fulfill the role of producer on "84 Charing Cross Road."

 

HUGH WHITEMORE
Hugh Whitemore, a prolific writer of teleplays, screenplays and stageplays.on both sides of the Atlantic, was born in England in 1936. No stranger to the material about New York writer Helene Hanff's love affair with literature and London, Whitemore not only authored the screenplay for Columbia Pictures' "84 Charing Cross Road" starring Anne Bancroft and Anthony Hopkins, he also wrote the teleplay for the BBC's production.

Whitemore received the Writers Guild Award for his dramatization of "Cider With Rosie" (1971) and for his contributions to Granada's celebrated "Country Matters" series (1972). With director Franc Roddam, he created the controversial docu-drama "Dummy," which won the R.A.I. Prize in the 1979 Prix Italia. His first play for the stage, "Stevie," produced at the Vaudeville Theatre in 1977 with Glenda Jackson, later was made into a film which received critical acclaim. Among his recent television contributions are "I Remember Nelson" and three adaptations for Granada's anthology series "All For Love."

Whitemore wrote the screenplay for Alan Bridges' feature "Return of the Soldier" starring Julie Christie, Glenda Jackson, Ann-Margret and Alan Bates in 1982. His
stageplay, "Pack of Lies," won a Society of West End Theatres (S.W.E.T.) award for Judi Dench as Best Actress, and was later produced on Broadway and performed around the world.

The multi-talented writer adapted D.H. Lawrence's novel, "The Boy in the Bush," as a four-part drama for British television, and his highly praised "Concealed Enemies," produced by American Playhouse and Goldcrest, was seen in America and England during 1984.

HELENE HANFF
"It was something that I had to write, to keep for myself -- I wanted a record of that lovely episode of my life. I wrote '84' while I was busy with revisions on a book about the young activists of the '60s. I had needed an escape. I didn't realize the whole country needed an escape," says Helene Hanff about her autobiographical story, "84 Charing Cross Road." The moving story of the young writer's love affair with literature, letters and London portrayed through her 20-year correspondence with the staff of an English bookstore first appeared as a book, then as a BBC television show, next on stage in London and Broadway and most recently as a motion picture from Columbia Pictures starring Anne Bancroft and Anthony Hopkins.

"The metamorphosis of the story has just been unbelievable," continues Hanff. "I first heard that they were going to make '84' into a film while I was in London. I read it in the Daily Mail and had to phone my agent to see if it was true. I think it was dream casting of both Anne Bancroft and Anthony Hopkins."

The story of "84 Charing Cross Road" had its beginnings during the Depression when Pennsylvania native Helene Banff was an 18-year-old unable to continue her college education at Temple University. She went to the Philadelphia Public Library, where, after perusing a variety of textbooks on English Literature, she settled on Cambridge University's
Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch as her teacher in absentia. Known simply as Q to his students, Hanff was introduced to all of the immortals of literature, beginning with Izaak Walton, Cardinal Newman and John Milton. As her quest for knowledge continued, she yearned for her own copies of the recommended volumes so that they wouldn't have to be returned.

At the beginning of the third year of her program,
Hanff got sidetracked when she got stagestruck. She joined a little theatre group as an actress, writing plays in the evenings. At the end of the '30s, she won a national playwriting contest sponsored by the Theatre Guild. She was supported for the next year by the prize money, moved to New York and studied in a seminar for young playwrights conducted by the Guild.

Unfortunately, the Guild was experiencing a series of flops, but Hanff's mentor, Guild producer Terry Helburn, gave her a job writing publicity stories in the press department.

About a year after the Guild's successful run of "Oklahoma!," Hanff struck out on her own, working part-time at home reading for Paramount's story department.

In September 1949, back on track of her home-study course, while browsing through the out-of-print books column of The Saturday Review of Literature, Hanff saw an ad by Marks & Co., Antiquarian Booksellers in London. She promptly sent off an order for three books, cautioning them that her budget limit was $5 per book. To her delight, she received a letter signed FPD, and soon thereafter two of the volumes in wonderful, leather-bound editions that cost even less than her limit. Thus began the correspondence with Frank Doel and the staff at Marks & Co. that would result in warm, lasting relationships, several successful novels, plays, teleplays, and, most recently, a film.

Remembers Hanff in her book, "Q's Legacy," which details this time in her life, "I was between plays that fall. If you're a writer with nothing in the typewriter and time on your hands, you write something -- anything -- just to keep from going crazy. I began writing long, goofy letters to Marks & Co. So by 1952, when I broke into television as a writer of dramatic scripts, my correspondence with Marks & Co. was a part of my life."

During the '50s, the New York resident wrote more and better-paid TV scripts, but by late winter 1959, "Ellery Queen" went off the air and Hanff received no new assignments. Refusing to follow the majority of television writers to Hollywood, Hanff began writing magazine articles for Harper's and The New Yorker.

The articles led her to her longtime friend and editor, Genevieve Young. The result was "Underfoot in Show Business," Hanff's hilarious memoir of her early years as a penniless Broadway playwright. "The book crept out during the New York newspaper strike in 1962 and promptly died. When Little, Brown reissued the book in 1980, Gene Young sent letters to newspapers and booksellers explaining that it had not been reviewed the first time around and asking them to treat it as a new book. So what happened? Every reviewer said, 'This is an old book,' and didn't review it. Every bookseller said, 'This is an old book,' and stuck it up on the balcony,'" comments Hanff on her dim view of the author's lot.

In an effort to pay the rent, Hanff wrote training films for the Women's Army Corps, articles on American history for a children's encyclopedia, and several children's bedtime stories. In the mid-'60s she got fairly steady work writing American history books for children, as well as reading for United Artists. Hanff wrote several novels, but they didn't work. "I have not only started bad books, I have finished them!" she announces.

It was late in 1969, after receiving the assignment to write a full-length book for teenagers about the young reformers of the '60s, that Hanff learned that Frank Doel had died, sadly before she had the opportunity to make her dreamed-of trip to London.

Remembers Hanff, "The envelope was wrong. For 20 years I had gotten envelopes from Marks & Co. to Helene Hanff, single-spaced, and this was addressed to Miss H. Hanff, double-spaced. I looked at it and I thought he's left the shop, because he always typed his own letters and I knew he hadn't typed that envelope. I got very depressed and didn't open it until after dinner. Never crossed my mind that he was dead."

The news of Doel's death, followed so closely after Mr. Marks', came as a great blow to Hanff. But after she finally stopped crying, she decided, "I have to write it." The result was the deeply moving and personal "84, Charing Cross Road." The book received wonderful reviews and was a hit. Hanff followed this with "The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street," a guide to New York titled "The Apple of My Eye," and, most recently, "Q's Legacy" in 1985.

Martin, longest serving member of the staff at Marks & Co. Says Denham of his character, "Martin was a man who was probably born in 1880, and that's a totally different generation brought up in a Victorian atmosphere. I think he'd always lived in his own little world, didn't have a great deal of personality, was just totally absorbed in his particular job."

Denham was born in Kent in 1909, and on completing his education, served a four-year apprenticeship with the international elevator manufacturing company Waygood-Otis; one of his assignments being the installation of the lifts at the Portland Place, London headquarters of the British Broadcasting Company when it was built in 1930. He recalls pleasant memories of his times with Waygood-Otis: "I used to go around the West End with my mate and my kit of tools and mend the lifts in the theatres. I can remember standing in the wings watching Jessie Matthews in rehearsal for 'Evergreen'-- a wonderful, sylph-like figure. The job three days out of it. It was all a marvelous experience, with lots of remarks about life being full of ups and downs!"