Robert Wise’s Next Film Project: “The Sand Pebbles”

Feb. 6, 1965 - Now that he has brought 20th Century-Fox’s “The Sound of Music” all the way from European locales to the point where it will reach the public’s eyes and ears at New York’s Rivoli Theater March 2, director Robert Wise (left) is prepared to go off to more exotic places. In New York last week on last-minute “Sound” chores, he revealed that “The Sand Pebbles,” his next film, will be shot on location in Taiwan. 

“We’ll be the first American company to film there, as far as I can recall,” Wise said. “We’re all happy that we’ve finally gotten official approval after several months of discussion with the Chiang Kai-shek government, and they have promised us all the cooperation we’ll need.”

The drama, adapted by Robert Anderson from the first and only novel by the late Richard McKenna, published in 1963, deals with the adventures of an American sailor on a gunboat on the Yangtze River in the 1920s. It is reminiscent of the author’s 22-year career as an enlisted Navy man in China.

“As you know,” Wise added, “the Taiwan landscape is closest to that of Red China. So, we’ll start filming about the beginning of September with Steve McQueen as the sailor-star — he’s the only one cast right now — on the Keelung border near Taipei and villages along the Tonsui River, which will be our Yangtze. We’ll also do some shooting in Hong Kong. That should take about three months, and then we’ll return to California for the interiors.”

What was Wise’s feeling about “Sound of Music,” now that it was about to be unveiled?“I think it’s pretty good,” he grinned. “But,” he added seriously, “I’m nervous. You never know.”

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