Lilies of the Field

The story goes that I was five years old when I watched my first complete movie. My mother told the story, and you know how it is, my mind started building an actual scene around it. I can see myself sitting on the floor before the TV set in our wall unit, in my typical position, knees in front, feet at my sides - I was lot more flexible then - simply because that's how I used to do it later.
Anyhow, as a kid I loved to hear my mother tell me the story of my first "real" film and how I was glued to the screen.
The film was "Lilies of the Field" from 1963 which after watching it at least dozens of times is still one of my favorites.

Of course I chose a picture from
"Lilies of the Field" to make a beaded
portrait of Sidney Poitier for my fan wall.

Let's start with the movie (there will be spoilers for both the movie and the book it's based on).

Homer Smith stops at a small rundown farm because he needs water for his car. There are five women there, and when one of them, who introduces herself as Mother Maria, sees Homer she thanks God for sending her a strong man.
Homer, however, doesn't intend to stay. As there's not much in his wallet right now, he agrees to repair the roof - one man for hire for one day. At the end of the day he hands Mother Maria the bill and she just takes it and says she'll let him know about dinner.
Homer is surprised to see that the women are in fact nuns. They come from Germany, Austria, and Hungary and try to learn English, so he gives them a lesson after the very meager meal.

The next morning Homer is ready to move on, but instead Mother Maria takes him to a construction site where she wants him to build a chapel. Once again ignores the bill.
After cleaning up the site, Homer tries again in the evening, this time by quoting from the Bible, but the Mother quotes from the Sermon on the Mount - hence the title of the film - and informs him that he will drive them to Mass the next day.
Being a Baptist himself, Homer doesn't attend Mass. He goes to a diner for breakfast where Juan, the owner, tells him about the nuns coming from an East German order which inherited the farm and that they escaped over the Berlin Wall.

My favorite scene - Homer orders "a real breakfast" after
having to endure the "Catholic" meals. His passion
about wheatcakes with maple syrup, coffee, and fresh
orange juice makes me hungry every time I watch it.

Despite himself, Homer gets drawn in more and more. When he decides to leave for good, the Mother has him take her and one of the sisters to town to ask Mr. Ashton, the owner of a construction company, for donations. They tell him that Homer is their contractor, and not wanting to give Ashton the satisfaction of confirming his doubts, Homer says that he is indeed.
He starts working on the chapel, but also for Ashton two days a week and uses the money to buy groceries for the nuns.
Mother Maria has no luck getting more money and bricks, though, and one evening emotions rise so high that Homer leaves.

He does come back eventually, though, even if a little the worse for wear.
That impresses the people in the Hispanic community so much that they finally decide to help, both with supplies and their labor. At first, Homer refuses to let them help and admits to the nuns that he always wanted to build something by himself, but then he realizes how much it means that everyone wants to help with this special project as he tells Mr. Ashton who donates bricks after all.

When the chapel is finished, Homer signs his work. He knows that it's time for him to leave now although Mother Maria already has new plans for a school and more.

No matter how often I watch the movie,
I wonder every time why the h is lowercase.

On the evening before the dedication of the chapel, Homer and the nuns sing together once more.
Then he gets up, still singing, packs his things and drives off into the night.

Now what could it have been about the movie that attracted a five year old so much that it became one of her all time favorites? I never tried to dissect my feelings before, I just know the film makes me feel good.

One point is easy to find - I love "Amen", the Baptist spiritual Homer is singing with the nuns, and I'm afraid I might have turned it into a bit of an earworm at home back then, just the "Amen" part of course. I still sing along today.
Actually, I like the whole score.



Poitier didn't sing himself, by the way. "Amen" was written and sung by Jester Hairston (if you would like to know more about him, check the sources).

But obviously I was drawn to Poitier himself and the humor he's bringing to the film. I adore his smile and laugh and I love that the humor is warm and gentle, especially in the scenes with him and strict Mother Maria. 
The role was offered to Harry Belafonte first, but Belafonte thought it was demeaning and missed the social justice topic and Homer was too plain a character, so he turned it down. He even discussed that with Poitier who defended his reasons for not doing so.
Indeed the movie doesn't dwell much on racism except the one time Ashton calls Homer "boy" to which Homer reacts by calling him "boy" back. Instead it shows how people from different circles - the black handyman, European nuns, a Hispanic community, an Irish priest, and even a white businessman - can work together to accomplish something no one thought possible, despite the differences in race, wealth, and faith.
Although the spark for the plot was Mother Maria's unbroken faith in God, to me this was never a religious film (once I was old enough to think about it) although I'm aware others might not see it like that. For me, it's about community, communication, cooperation, understanding, and tenacity. Have I used the word gentle yet (I know I did)?

Sidney Poitier won an Academy Award for Best Actor (the first African-American to win that one), a Golden Globe, and the Silver Bear for Best Actor at the Berlin International Film Festival and was nominated for other awards as well.
Lilia Skala as Mother Maria Marthe was nominated for several awards as Best Supporting Actress.
Not that I cared much about that as a five year old (as if I even knew! 😉)

It wasn't easy for Ralph Nelson to get financial backing for the movie. It was even suggested to add a love interest, a nun who hadn't taken her vows yet. Another studio wanted Steve McQueen as Homer.
Ralph Nelson finally found a studio who offered a budget of $250,000 but demanded a collateral. Nelson offered his own home. At the time, Poitier had already been a respected actor and earned about twice that budget per film. Poitier accepted a deal of $50,000 and ten percent of the gross earnings. And as the budget was so low, he actually had to do the heavy work in the movie himself. Both of them really believed in this movie which only took 14 days to shoot, by the way.
Well, and it did become a success making $2.5 million in the first six months.

Now to the book.

My German copy.

William Barrett was a writer of novels three of which got adapted into movies including "The Lilies of the Field". He was Catholic and also wrote essays, reviews, and biographies, one of them about Pope Paul VI.

The story of the nuns is actually based on the true story of the Abbey of St. Walburga in Colorado. In 1935, three sisters  were sent from the Bavarian motherhouse Abtei St. Walburg to Colorado where they bought land cheaply from monks who said it was "un-farmable". Originally, it was meant to be one potential place of refuge from the Nazi regime if needed, but eventually the farm turned into a priory taking in novices and then became an abbey.
The book of course changed the time to that of the Cold War and the nuns fled East Germany as mentioned above.

It also explains a bit more about Homer.
He's 24 (that's younger than Poitier was when he made the movie), he "lives his life one day at a time, there is laughter in him". He has a bit of money after leaving the Army and wants to go see the West (while the film is set in Arizona). And he cherishes his freedom, being able to go where he wants when he wants, only working if he needs to. "A man was free when he could say 'yes' or say 'no'." And still he feels he can't just say no to Mother Maria Marthe.

There are also some small differences which aren't really important, though. The priest isn't Irish but Hispanic, and he doesn't have to hold the service from the back of a car, there is a little church. There's no Mr. Ashton, he's called Livingston in the book.
The book also explains what Homer does when he leaves for the first time. He gets himself a job with a wrecking company in the big city, but although his days with the nuns feels like a dream, he thinks of them when they tear down a row of houses. He goes through the salvage thinking that the nuns need a bath tub. So he buys one and takes it back as a present.
In the movie he just returns with a black eye, but the book doesn't say anything about him getting into trouble nor what made him come back.

The biggest difference, however, is the ending.
Homer drives into the night alright, but the book doesn't end here.
A legend is evolving around Homer and his chapel. Tourists start visiting. Thanks to contributions, the nuns can build a school and take in boys from broken families to help them make their way in life. And in the chapel there's a painting of Saint Benedict the Moor by Sister Albertine which looks like Homer.
To be honest, I'm glad the movie left that part out.

Now excuse me, I think I'm going to watch the movie one more time.


Sources and further information:

1. Brian Bergen-Aurand: Lilies of the Field (1963). On: Foreign Influence, February 3, 2017
2. Ron Olesko: "Amen" and Jester Hairston. On: Sing Out!, March 22, 2008
3. Abbey of St. Walburga History
4. David A. King: The heart of Barrett's 'The Lilies of the Field'. In: The Georgia Bulletin, March 20, 2014
5. "Lilies of the Field: The Story Behind the Film" on YouTube

My March books

This is an overview of the books I have finished in a month (not necessarily started in the same month) and those I have read to Gundel (marked with 😸).
I will be adding a short explanation why I chose a book or how I found it and possibly if it's a re-read candidate, but I'm usually not going to add real reviews or ratings (Gundel also refuses to give ratings). Should you want a little more information on a book you're interested in, though, just let me know.
This month I had a very hard time concentrating on books, luckily my hands were up for more crafting to help keeping me out of my own head.


"Wisecracker: The Life and Times of William Haines, Hollywood's First Openly Gay Star" by William J. Mann, first published in 1998

This is a biography of William Haines who was a movie star first, but a successful interior designer - or decorator how he preferred to be called - for much longer after having to leave the movie business for which one reason was his refusal to play the game. He was unapologetically gay and lived openly with his partner Jimmie Shields until his death.

I had watched a documentary about William Haines long before I even started watching silent movies and found his story really interesting.
It's not interesting enough for 400 pages, though, simply because most of his friends couldn't be interviewed for this book anymore, so a lot of information is lost, and of course you could never really trust information spread by the film studios.
So there's really a lot more "could", "might", "it is said" than I'd expect of a biography.
What bothered me even more, though, was the author listing a lot of Hollywood stars who were gay or lesbian repeatedly in a way that sometimes reminded me more of a tabloid. I would have preferred to read more details about Haines's career as a designer and less about other people's love life  given that this is supposed to be a Haines biography.
Still an interesting read.

"Lilien auf dem Felde" = "Lilies of the Field" by William E. Barrett, first published in 1962

Homer Smith, just out of the US Army, heads out to see the West. He sleeps in his station wagon and only takes up short jobs here and there if he needs money.
One day he comes to a rundown farm where five nuns live who came from an order in East Germany. Although he had only planned to make a little money by helping out, he's drawn into the Mother Superior's plan to build a chapel.

A re-read of this novella for a blog post.

"The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek" by Kim Michele Richardson, first published in 2019

Eastern Kentucky in the 1930s.
Cussy Mary Carter, also called Bluet, is a book woman, hired as a packhorse librarian who delivers books to remote areas of the Appalachian Mountains as part of the Works Progress Administration program.
She's also a "Blue" meaning she has a blue skin tone due to a rare genetic disorder which evokes hate and fear in others.

I had read both about the Fugate Blues and the packhorse librarian program before, so when I saw this book mentioned in a blog, I decided to read it (and am happy to report that the mule is fine).

"The Three Investigators in The Mystery of the Laughing Shadow" by William Arden (the books were published attributed to Alfred Hitchcock), first published in 1969 😸
(The Three Investigators 12)

This new case begins with Bob and Peter hearing a cry for help, seeing a strange shadow with a crazy laugh, and finding a gold amulet with a strange message.
Will the boys solve the mystery of the legendary Chumash Hoard?

I read this series a long time ago and am going through it again bit by bit after writing a blog post about it. This book is the twelfth in the series.

"The Thirty-Nine Steps" by John Buchan, first published in 1915

Richard Hannay has just come to London from Rhodesia and he's bored until an American tells him about an assassination plot before being killed himself. Hannay has to escape both the police and the force behind the plot. Will he be able to prevent the assassination?

When I mentioned my Hitchcock binge the other day, a friend drew my attention to the books some of the movies are based on.
In this case, I have to say I enjoyed the movie much more.

"The Home" by Penelope Mortimer, first published in 1971

Left by her husband Graham who's gone to live with a 22 year old after a long marriage, Eleanor is trying to make her new house a home for herself and her children even though her eldest son and her three daughters are grown up and looking for a life of their own and her 15 year old son is mostly away at school.
She finds, however, that she's devastated by the separation and struggles with beginning a new life.

Liz from Adventures in Reading, Running, and Working from Home has introduced me to the "British Library Women Writers" series (I found she had reviewed this book here after I had read it). I had a look which of the novels I could find rather easily, this was one of them.

"A Cast of Killers" by Sidney Kirkpatrick, first published in 1986

In 1922, film director William Desmond Taylor was found in his bungalow shot dead. The murder caused scandals and ended careers, it was never solved.
In the 60s, film director King Vidor tried to solve the case in order to turn it into a movie which he didn't do in the end. Kirkpatrick used Vidor's collected documents and notes to tell the story.

There's a newsletter called "Taylorology" for this case and issue 65 points out all the errors or omissions of the 1986 edition and encourages people to read the corrected 20th Anniversary edition instead.
As I stumbled upon this book by accident, I only knew about that after reading it, but I'm usually sceptical about publications that solve a cold case after decades, anyway, so although this is officially non-fiction, I didn't read it as such (I may read at least one other book on the case eventually), but still (or rather because of it?) enjoyed it.

"The Rainfall Market" by You Yeong-Kwang, first published in 2024

Serin has lost her father early, she and her mother are poor, and Serin is convinced her life is utterly useless.
Then she gets a golden ticket for the mysterious Rainfall Market where she will be able to exchange her life for another one, aided by the cat Issha.

This was another new entry on OverDrive.
I'm sure I'm not the only one who gets Studio Ghibli vibes from this even if it's a Korean book. While reading, I practically saw the Dokkaebi in the Ghibli style before my inner eye.
A cute, light and quick read.

"The Devil's Mill" by Walt Unsworth, first published in 1968 😸

England, the middle of the 18th century.
After a carriage accident, a 14 year old boy makes it to a farm in the Peak District. He has lost his memory and the farmer couple names him Jeremy after their late son. As they have failed to make the adoption official, however, Jeremy gets indentured and sent to a cotton mill as an apprentice.
During a riot, the mill burns down and the owner blames Jeremy who escapes thanks to the help of new friends. His adventures are not over yet, though.

When I looked for a different book on The Internet Archive, I found one of Unsworth's three middle grade novels about the Industrial Revolution, "Grimsdyke". I liked it, looked for the others and found this one as well (not the third one, though, "Whistling Clough").
Like "Grimsdyke" it didn't disappoint.

"The Case of the Heavenly Twin" by Christopher Bush, first published in 1962

Private detective Ludovic Travers is called upon in a fraud case in which several forged traveller's checks have been used.
Then an old friend of his dies and Travers is hired to find one of his grandsons. During the search he stumbles upon more forged checks. Are the cases connected?

I had never heard of Christopher Bush before - as far as I remember - when Liz from Adventures in Reading, Running, and Working from Home reviewed one of his books for a 1952 challenge. Now there are a few of his books on my reading list.

"The List of Suspicious Things" by Jennie Godfrey, first published in 2024

It's the 70s in Yorkshire and people are scared of the Yorkshire Ripper.
12 year old Miv decides that she and her best friend Sharon have to try to find him with the help of the "list of suspicious things" she puts down in her notebook as they learn more and more about their neighborhood and life.

A new entry at OverDrive.
I liked the book as such, maybe because the friendship reminded me of my friendships of my own - and no, I never went looking for a serial killer - but I think I would have liked it better with not quite so many triggers crammed in. Sometimes I have the feeling authors can't stop themselves and pile up things, I've noticed that in books, but also movies and TV shows. There is such a thing as "too much".