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[Bud Brewster]

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Mike, that's brilliant!

If Sinbad and a loyal sidekick were written and played the way Burt Lancaster and Nick Cravat did in their amazing films, the two later Sinbad movies would have been magnificent!

The public loves heroes who are cool, mischievous, and well-nigh unbeatable — while making it all look easy. Sinbad movies which had been done like that would have delighted audiences of all ages!

The Flame and the Arrow (1950) Official Trailer - Burt Lancaster, Virginia Mayo Movie


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The Crimson Pirate (1952) Official Trailer - Burt Lancaster Swashbuckler Adventure Movie


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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Pow]

I meant to also add that the Sinbad films should have also included more action scenes with Sinbad the way Burt & Nick were in their swashbuckling movies.

Burt & Nick were former circus acrobats, so they had some terrific scenes of them performing exuberant action scenes. Sinbad had sword fights but that was pretty much it. No swinging on ropes overhead, dashing across rooftops, and that kind of stuff such as Burt & Nick performed. It really would have added to the action and thrills by Ray giving us a more athletic Sailor of the Seven Seas.

[Bud Brewster]

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Absolutely!

Kerwin Matthews had a certain amount charisma that was lacking in the actors who played Sinbad in the later movies. But even he was not up to the standards of Burt Lancaster.

I wonder who could have played Sinbad successfully in the style which Lancaster demonstrated in The Crimson Pirate and The Flame and the Arrow.
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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Pow]

Imposing William Smith (Rich Man, Poor Man, Any Which Way You Can) would have made an imposing Sinbad. Smith was a weightlifter, boxer, martial artist, etc, so he'd have had the physical stunts nailed down perfectly.

I think one issue here was that Charles Schneer & Ray were still casting American actors in what really should have been a non-American role. It'd be like casting John Wayne as the King of Siam in The King and I because he's a box office draw. Or Burt Reynolds as James Bond which Burt reported he was offered.

None of the 3 actors who played Sinbad were top box office draws. Searching out a non-American performer would have added a more realistic and exotic flavor to the role. I'm not suggesting that such casting would have insured much more success for the Sinbad films which all did well. I also realize that back when the Sinbad films were made that casting American actors was not thought unusual even though the character is from Baghdad. It just might have been more true to the Arabian Nights to have had someone from that region portray the famous Sailor of the Seven Seas.

Michael Ansara was Syrian and would have looked more like Sinbad. However, Michael would have been too old for the role in as he would have been in his 50s by the time of the later Sinbad films. But that's the type of actor that the producers could have been shooting for.