The Hills of Ireland
Brief Synopsis
Cast & Crew
Harry Dugan
Pat O'brien
Deirdre O'donovan
Brendan De Glin Troupe
Michael William Balfe
Arthur Colahan
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
Urban and rural areas of Ireland are shown in this travelogue, which features sites in both Eire and Ulster. Castles and ruins of ancient kings, and monasteries and sacred sites of St. Patrick are presented, as well as locations of historical interest relating to patriots, such as Robert Emmet, and local poets, Sir Thomas Moore and William Butler Yeats. Songs performed by Irish tenor Christopher Lynch are interspersed throughout the film's soundtrack. Segments include a performance of Irish dance by the Brendan de Glin Troupe, and the appearance of Irish Dierdre O'Donovan, who sings "Peggy O'Neill" in both Gaelic and English. Other segments include scenes of tourists kissing the Blarney Stone, a Dublin horse fair, and a visit by Ireland's prime minister, Eamon De Valera, to the Aran Islands.
Director
Harry Dugan
Cast
Pat O'brien
Deirdre O'donovan
Brendan De Glin Troupe
Crew
Michael William Balfe
Arthur Colahan
R. J. Cunningham
Gilbert Dodge
Harry Dugan
Harry Dugan
Harry Dugan
Edmund Falcon
J. Fitzpatrick
Norman Graham
Charles Marsh
Sir Thomas Moore
Ed G. Nelson
Patrick J. O'reilly
Harry Pease
Angelo Ross
Oliver Ryan
Wilfrid Sanderson
Jack Shaindlaw
Harold Vivian
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
Although the opening screen credits include a 1950 copyright statement for World Travel Films, the picture was not registered for copyright until March 8, 1951. Some contemporary reviews reported a duration longer than the the copyrighted running time of 56-58 minutes for the The Hills of Ireland, which probably included the running time of two short subject films that were presented with the main feature. Christopher Lynch, whose offscreen singing of "Killarney," "Meeting of the Waters," "Hills of Donegal" and "Galway Bay" is heard at various points throughout the film, was a protégé of world renowned Irish tenor, John McCormack.
Newsreel footage of Ireland's president, Sean O'Kelly (1882-1966) plus two Prime Ministers, Eamon De Valera (1882-1975) and John Costello (1891-1976), was included in The Hills of Ireland. The narration suggests that Costello was the incumbant Prime Minister when the film was shot, but De Valera was Prime Minister before and after Costello held the office. According to a modern source, the film was financed by the Irish-born mother of producer-director-writer Harry Dugan of Wynnewood, PA, who wanted to present the genuine Ireland, as opposed to "comic Irishmen and other false ideas" Americans were seeing in popular culture. Dugan also produced the 1954 Celtic Films documentary, The Spell of Ireland , which May have included footage from The Hills of Ireland.
