South Pacific/Trivia

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.


  • Dawson Casting: Even though Nellie Forbush is supposed to be young and naive, she was portrayed by women in their 30s for both Broadway productions. Also, ABC's 2001 TV movie has grown infamous for casting a 53-year old Glenn Close in the role.
  • ~Hey, It's That Guy!~: Coalhouse Walker Jr. is a middle-aged French widower... wait, what?
  • Non-Singing Voice: Reports claim that among the movie's leads, only Mitzi Gaynor, who played Nellie, and Ray Walston, who played Luther Billis, did their own singing. Juanita Hall deserves special notice, as she originated the role of Bloody Mary on Broadway nine years earlier, but still needed dubbing by Muriel Smith.
  • Old Shame: Director Joshua Logan publicly apologized for the use of color filters. Incidentally, they were not supposed to be that heavy, and he was aghast when he saw the final print.
  • What Could Have Been: The producers had considered casting Doris Day as Nellie, but she felt too nervous to sing for Richard Rodgers.