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"Patriot" Restoration: History of the film
Film shown daily for 45 years at
Colonial Williamsburg
“Williamsburg – the Story of a Patriot” has been
seen by more than 30 million visitors to Colonial Williamsburg’s
Historic Area. The film, shot in 1956 and directed by academy-award-winning
director George Seaton (“Miracle on 34th Street”), gives
visitors to Williamsburg a “you-are-there” look at the
events and emotions that raced through the colonies in the 18th
century. The film debuted March 31, 1957, and has been shown daily
ever since, making it the longest-running film in American motion
picture history.
Linda Carpenter of Wisconsin Rapids, Wis., became the 30-millionth
viewer to see “Williamsburg – the Story of a Patriot”
in the theatre specifically designed for watching this film. Carpenter
and her husband Don visited Colonial Williamsburg, in Williamsburg,
Va., on September 20, 2002, and were greeted by Colin Campbell,
president and CEO of the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. To mark
the occasion, the Carpenters were presented with a videocassette
copy of the film, lodging at The Williamsburg Inn for two nights,
two Freedom passes for admission to Colonial Williamsburg for one
year, and other gifts.
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Colin Campbell
congratulates Linda Carpenter.
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The film’s story is told through
the character of fictional planter John Fry, from 1769 to 1776. Fry
struggles with the questions that faced all colonists in the years
leading up to the revolution: Shall the colonies unite to oppose British
punishment of Boston for its Tea Party? Meet Britain’s use of
force with force? Declare independence? The choices made by the colonists
were not easy ones, and, as the film depicts, family members and old
friends were often at odds with one another over those choices. Through
Fry, the audience is introduced to George Washington, Patrick Henry,
Thomas Jefferson, and other patriots who conceived the “idea
of America.” |
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Earl Robinson,
Colonial Williamsburg,
prepares to show the film.
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"The Patriot" was originally shot in Vista Vision, the first
ultra-wide-screen film format, to maximize its visual impact. The pioneering
movie technology included Todd-AO six-channel stereo in one of the first
uses of “surround sound.” The twin Patriot Theatres at Colonial
Williamsburg are the only cinematic environments ever created for the
exhibition of a Vista Vision motion picture.
The film is currently undergoing digital restoration, funded in part
through the generosity of fans of the film and friends of Colonial Williamsburg.
Robert Harris of the Film Preserve, Ltd., a New York company specializing
in the restoration of classic films, is supervising the work, in concert
with Pacific Title and Eastman Kodak’s CineSite. Harris has restored
several classic films, including “Lawrence of Arabia,” “Spartacus,”
“My Fair Lady,” “Vertigo,” and “Rear Window.”
Learn
more about the restoration of the film
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Historic Triangle