Trivia / The Haunting (1963)

• Acclaimed Flop: It's widely considered one of the best ghost films ever made, yet it was not a great box office success.
• Acting for Two: Stunt performer Connie Tilton doubles for both the second Mrs Crane when she falls down the stairs, and Abigail's companion when she hangs herself.
• Approval of God: Shirley Jackson approved of the adaptation changing the novel's title, and she suggested 'The Haunting' herself.
• Awesome, Dear Boy:
  • Julie Harris took the role mainly because she was interested in parapsychology.
  • Claire Bloom was very interested in playing an Ambiguously Gay woman and signed on for this reason.
• California Doubling: Despite Hill House being located in Vermont, the film was shot in England.
• Contractual Obligation Project: Sort of. Russ Tamblyn didn't want to do the film at first, even though he liked the script (he thought Luke was too much of a Jerkass in particular). When MGM threatened him with suspension, he agreed to do it.
• Creator Backlash: Julie Harris later said she would have liked to go back and play Eleanor differently, feeling she should have been "odder".
• Creator Breakdown: Julie Harris suffered from depression while filming, disliking how she had to isolate herself from the rest of the cast.
• Enforced Method Acting:
  • The house used for exteriors genuinely creeped Julie Harris and Claire Bloom out.
  • The noises the characters hear in the night were played on set while filming so their reactions would be genuine.
  • Robert Wise encouraged the actors to speak over each other's lines to heighten the sense of conflict.
  • All the actors were very disturbed by the collapsing staircase effect, despite Robert Wise demonstrating it was safe by climbing it himself.
• Executive Meddling:
  • Claire Bloom and Richard Johnson's casting was due to Eady Levy requirements that part of the cast be British.
  • The censors insisted that Theo could never be shown touching Eleanor, to make the lesbianism less obvious. It appears they ignored this, as there are several scenes where Theo touches Eleanor, and one where she holds her to be comforting.
• Method Acting: Julie Harris deliberately avoided everyone else on set to get into character, as Eleanor is the outsider in the film. This led to Claire Bloom mistakenly thinking she had annoyed Harris in some way. Harris went over to her house with a present at the end of the shoot and explained the reason.
• Production Posse: Robert Wise and Russ Tamblyn had just worked together on West Side Story.
• Reality Subtext: Luke Sanderson inherits a Big Fancy House and has no interest in it. His actor Russ Tamblyn was not interested in doing the film, until MGM threatened to resign his contract. Luke becomes a believer, just as Russ Tamblyn later called this his favourite role.
• Uncredited Role:
  • Pamela Buckley as the firt Mrs Crain.
  • Freida Knorr as the second Mrs Crain.
  • Janet Mansell as the six-year-old Abigail Crain.
  • Amy Dalby as the 80-year-old Abigail Crain.
  • Howard Lang as Hugh Crain.
  • Rosemary Dorken as Abigail's companion who hangs herself.
  • Paul Maxwell as Bud Fredericks.
• What Could Have Been:
  • The initial treatment for the script was to have a Cuckoo Nest plot, with Eleanor having suffered a nervous breakdown, the house being revealed as a hospital, the other characters being the staff and patients, and the various noises were actually shock treatments. This was dropped after a discussion with Shirley Jackson, but Eleanor's deteriorating sanity was still emphasised in the final script.
  • A scene was planned showing Theo in her apartment. She would be screaming curses out the window, while "I hate you" would be written on a mirror in lipstick - implying she has just split up with a female lover. This was dropped as the director believed it to be too on-the-nose.
  • Susan Hayward was said to be in consideration for either the role of Eleanor or Theo. However after seeing Julie Harris on the stage, Robert Wise knew she was perfect for Eleanor. Claire Bloom's casting was influenced by the circumstances above.

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