ABOUT THE PRODUCTION

Based on the novel by Truman Capote and produced and directed by Charles Matthau, The Grass Harp is set in the 1940s in a small southern town and tells the story of how people learn to love and to change. After his mother dies, Collin Fenwick (child - Grayson Fricke; teen - Edward Furlong) comes to live with his father's maiden cousins, Verena and Dolly Talbo. Verena (Sissy Spacek) is a rigid and proper businesswoman who owns half the stores in their small town. Collin prefers the company of Verena's sister Dolly (Piper Laurie), who has a delicate and romantic soul, but her lack of practicality is a constant vexation to her sister. Catherine (Nell Carter) is the Talbos' outspoken housemaid and Dolly's closest friend. Collin also learns about life and love from the local retired Judge Charlie Cool (Walter Matthau) who himself discovers, when he meets Dolly Talbo, that his heart, once dry as an empty husk at the twilight of his life, can again be filled with love. It is clear to the townspeople that Collin, raised by this household of eccentric women, will have anything but a normal childhood.

When Dolly, Collin and Catherine leave the Talbo home for a tree house to escape Verena and to dream and talk, they set in motion a chain of comic events that will change their world and the lives of several townspeople. The trio's friendship gives Dolly the courage to take control of her life and find love, self-respect and independence. Collin's life opens up as he learns from Dolly of the "grass harp," the unforgettable sound of wind rushing through the Indian grass whispering life's secrets.

The cast of characters also features Morris Ritz (Jack Lemmon), a sly entrepreneur from Chicago who, for Verena Talbo, is a kindred spirit who teaches her a bitter lesson, and Amos Legrand (Roddy McDowall), the fey hair cutter whose upholstered barber chair is the town's altar of gossip. Sister Ida (Mary Steenburgen) is a traveling evangelist with 15 children, whose free living ways scandalize the straight-laced town and make her an unlikely ally of Dolly's.

The Grass Harp is directed by Charles Matthau and produced by Matthau, Jerry Tokofsky and John Davis from a screenplay by Stirling Silliphant and Kirk Ellis, based on the novel of the same name by Truman Capote. The behind-the-scenes team includes the work of director of photography John A. Alonzo, production designer Paul Sylbert, editors Sidney Levin and Tim O'Meara, costume designer Albert Wolsky and composer Patrick Williams. The film will be released by Fine Line Features in the United States and is represented internationally by Mayfair Entertainment.

Charles Matthau, the director and one of the producers of the film, discovered the book, The Grass Harp, six years ago. While having dinner with a friend and book agent of twenty years, Melanie Ray, he asked the question, "What is the best material you have ever read that never got made into a film?" Without hesitation she answered The Grass Harp, by Capote. "I read the book in one sitting," says Matthau. "It made me laugh a lot and touched me in a way that was very uplifting. It is a beautiful, poignant story with great characters. It was exactly the kind of film that I wanted to make."

Matthau was able to put together an impressive ensemble cast of actors because of their tremendous affection for the project. Says producer Jerry Tokofsky, "It's a wonderful challenge to work with a group of people, both in front of and behind the camera, who genuinely admire each other not only as performers and craftsmen but as human beings, and who also share an incredible passion for the material."

The Grass Harp is a reunion for almost all of these Academy Award-winning performers. Sissy Spacek worked with Jack Lemmon in both JFK and Missing. Piper Laurie and Sissy Spacek worked together in Carrie, and Mary Steenburgen and Roddy McDowall worked on Dead of Winter eight years ago. Jack Lemmon and Roddy McDowall worked together forty-eight years ago in the theatre. And of course, the teaming of Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon is legendary.

Charles Matthau, who has grown up on movie sets, said of the shoot, "It was like being in the living room with my family, only there were a lot of people around with photographic equipment. My father and I are truly best friends and directing him felt oddly natural. There is a shorthand between us that is a tremendous help. He made the work a delightful experience because he was determined to help make this the best film possible. He did things that I've never seen him do for another director. He worked outlandish hours and would try anything I came up with. Besides, it's every kid's dream to tell your father what to do."

Director Matthau says, "When I first read The Grass Harp, one casting idea came to mind right away; I heard Walter saying the Judge's lines. It's such a different role than Walter usually plays, a stretch, and yet it's impossible to imagine another actor doing better. He knows how to make these lines seem natural, warm, and poetic without ever being precious."

The film brings to life the magnificent characters written by Truman Capote, how they behaved, how they spoke, what they felt. Walter Matthau says "It's a picture about real people speaking real words which are fascinating, interesting and delightful. There are no car chases or violence but my character, Judge Cool - a maverick late in life - does fall in love and propose to Dolly. I even kiss her. It looks pretty sexy to me."

The judge sees in Dolly not only a beautiful woman but a great, independent spirit, and, though late in life, he falls in love with her. "Dolly is trapped in a prison of conformity," says Piper Laurie. "She's extremely shy. Many townspeople think she is an eccentric and maybe even a little crazy. Even though her sister, Verena, is younger, she is very domineering. It isn't until Dolly meets Judge Cool that she flowers into a woman and feels free to give her affection and make her own decisions."

Verena Talbo has no sense of humor and is consumed by running profitable businesses and maintaining an outward appearance of control and decency. She is the wealthiest woman in town and thinks her sister, Dolly, is truly eccentric, yet in the end it is her sister who teaches her everything. "When I first received the script I was sure there had been a mistake," says Sissy Spacek. "I've never played a severe, frightening, intimidating woman. It's been an interesting physical evolution for me. When I got into my hair and make up I even shocked myself."

One block of Wetumpka, Alabama, was sandblasted back to a 1940s look. An antique shop was converted into a dry goods store, an old bank building became a hotel and at the foot of the bridge leading into downtown, the facade of the long closed Fain Theater was restored to its former glory. An old Victorian mansion in Prattville, Alabama, was used as the family home.

The film's visual design contrasts the riverwoods area with Verena's house. Director Matthau explains, "In the Talbo house, I frequently kept the camera static, used long lenses and staged the scene with a minimum of movement. In the riverwoods, I did the opposite to convey the sense of freedom our characters experience. Furthermore, the house is designed to convey Verena's power over the other characters. The wallpaper downstairs is a vertical stripe to convey a prison-like feeling and the colors are green and gold -- the color of money. This contrasts with Dolly's kitchen which is pink with lots of open space."