Finian's Rainbow Overview:

Finian's Rainbow (1968) was a Musical - Fantasy Film directed by Francis Ford Coppola and produced by Joel Freeman and Joseph Landon.

Academy Awards 1968 --- Ceremony Number 41 (source: AMPAS)

AwardRecipientResult
Best Music - ScoringAdaptation score by Ray HeindorfNominated
.

BlogHub Articles:

Warner Archive Blu-ray: Musical Stars Go Modern in Finian's Rainbow (1968) and S.O.B. (1981)

By KC on Apr 6, 2017 From Classic Movies

This month, Warner Archive has released a pair of titles on Blu-ray where classic musical stars adapt themselves to modern times. Fred Astaire abandons the controlled environment of a big studio sound stage for wide open spaces in Finian's Rainbow (1968), while Julie Andrews exposes her raunchy side... Read full article


See all Finian's Rainbow articles

Quotes from

Senator Billboard Rawkins: My family's been having nothing but trouble with immigrants ever since they come to this country!


Finian McLonergan: America is full of millionaires.
Sharon McLonergan: But Father, are there no ill clad or ill housed in America?
Finian McLonergan: Aye, but they're the best ill clad and the best ill housed in the world.


Sharon McLonergan: Father is a mineralogist from the old country. He can make gold sprout out of the ground.
Senator Billboard Rawkins: Gold? There's no gold in Ireland.
Finian McLonergan: I meself discovered a vein our countrymen have been searching for ever since the reign of... Alfred the Thoughtless.
Senator Billboard Rawkins: Who?
Finian McLonergan: You've never heard of Alfred the Thoughtless? He was King of Erin following his father, Thomas the Temporary, who in turn was the only son of the Virgin Queen, Serena the Spotless.


read more quotes from Finian's Rainbow...

Facts about

This was Fred Astaire's last (non-compilation) musical.
Because of its satire on racism, this popular 1947 Broadway musical was considered such a hot potato in Hollywood that studios would not touch it unless they were allowed to change the story. Its original creators, E.Y. Harburg, Burton Lane and Fred Saidy, held out and by 1968 it was able to be filmed with very few changes.
One early attempt to film the musical was as an animated feature to be directed by John Hubley. It was during development of this unfinished project that Hubley first collaborated with future wife Faith Hubley (then Faith Elliot). The soundtrack for the animated film was already completed and the entire film had been storyboarded. The voice talents included Frank Sinatra (as Woody), Barry Fitzgerald (Finian), Jim Backus (Senator Rawkins), Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong and from the original Broadway cast Ella Logan (Sharon) and David Wayne (Og). The project died when Hubley refused to "name names" when he testified before The House Un-American Activities Committee. Hubley was blacklisted and Chemical Bank, which was providing the financing, withdrew funding for the proposed film. Artwork done for the movie appears in the PBS documentary "Independent Spirits - The Faith and John Hubley Story" and the Sinatra prerecordings are available on the CD Box-set "Sinatra in Hollywood 1940-1964."
read more facts about Finian's Rainbow...
Share this page:
Visit the Classic Movie Hub Blog CMH
Best Music - Scoring Oscar 1968











See more Academy Awards>>
Also directed by Francis Ford Coppola




More about Francis Ford Coppola >>
Also produced by Joel Freeman




More about Joel Freeman >>
Also released in 1968




See All 1968 films >>
More "Satire" films



See All "Satire" films >>
More "Based on Play" films



See All "Based on Play" films >>
More "Gold" films



See All "Gold" films >>
More "Treasure" films



See All "Treasure" films >>