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The Slender Thread
The Slender Thread
from Wikipedia

The Slender Thread
1965 Theatrical Poster
Directed bySydney Pollack
Written byStirling Silliphant (writer)
Shana Alexander (article)
David Rayfiel (uncredited)
Produced byStephen Alexander
StarringSidney Poitier
Anne Bancroft
Telly Savalas
Steven Hill
CinematographyLoyal Griggs
Edited byThomas Stanford
Music byQuincy Jones
Production
company
Athene Productions
Distributed byParamount Pictures
Release date
  • December 23, 1965 (1965-12-23)
Running time
98 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$1.5 million (rentals)[1]

The Slender Thread is a 1965 American drama film starring Anne Bancroft and Sidney Poitier. It was the first feature-length film directed by future Oscar-winning director, producer and actor Sydney Pollack.

Poitier portrays Alan, a college student who is volunteering at Seattle's then-new Crisis Clinic, a suicide prevention hotline. Shortly after beginning his solo duty on the night shift, Alan receives a call from a woman named Inga (Bancroft) who says she has just taken a lethal dose of pills and wants to talk to someone before she dies. The story line follows the efforts of Alan, a psychiatrist (Telly Savalas) and a detective (Ed Asner) to locate Inga and her husband Mark (Steven Hill), who is on a local fishing vessel. Various flashback scenes depict the events that led Inga to make the attempt on her life.

The film was inspired by a Life magazine article by Shana Alexander about actual events. The film is set in Seattle, and includes scenes shot on location, as well as an opening tracking aerial shot of Seattle circa 1965.

This movie is noted for the physical tracing of the call to find Inga (Bancroft) before she dies. Throughout the movie, the call is traced by hand through several electro-mechanical telephone central office switches which leads to the hotel where Inga was staying (at the Hyatt House, since demolished) near the Seattle–Tacoma International Airport.

Plot

[edit]

Early one evening, psychology student Alan Newell (Sidney Poitier) rushes from the university to his shift as a volunteer telephone attendant at Seattle's then-new Crisis Clinic. As he drives past the Ballard Bridge, he doesn't notice the car being driven erratically in the opposite lane by a woman (Anne Bancroft) with whose path his will cross later on.

As Alan arrives at the clinic, Dr. Joe Coburn (Telly Savalas), who is on his way out, gives him his telephone number for use only in case of an emergency. Marian the secretary (Indus Arthur) prepares coffee before leaving as well. Now alone, Alan is prepared for an uneventful evening as he prepares to study while manning the phones. The only call he receives is some ramblings from a drunken barber.

Then Alan receives a call from a woman who claims she has ingested a large amount of barbiturates, intending to kill herself, and wants to talk with someone before she dies. Realizing that she is serious, Alan, with the pretense of getting coffee, puts down the phone. On another line, he calls the phone company to trace the call and have the police bring Dr. Coburn back to the clinic. Alan then returns to his call with the woman.

Eventually, Dr. Coburn returns and the call is put on speaker. Marian returns as well to help, and they are joined by a medical technician who monitors the woman's progress as he listens in. At the same time, off-duty Detective Ridley (Edward Asner) joins the police as they search for the woman, whose name Alan learns is Inga (the same woman seen driving recklessly at the beginning of the film). Through flashbacks, Inga begins to recall the events that led up to her desperate situation.

Sometime earlier, Inga's husband Mark (Steven Hill), a commercial fisherman, inadvertently finds out that he is not the biological father of their twelve-year-old son Chris (Greg Jarvis) – something which Inga never had the nerve to tell Mark. Mark takes it hard. A fun night out and a suicide attempt by Inga later on does little for him to forgive her.

As Alan continues to talk to Inga while being supervised by Dr. Coburn, the phone company traces the call using the technology of the day. Meanwhile, Ridley finds Inga's abandoned car, as the police continue their desperate search for her.

The call is finally traced to a hotel near the airport, where Ridley and the police search frantically for Inga. Back at the clinic, Alan and the team are relieved to hear the police entering the room and finding Inga still alive. At that moment, Mark, who was away on an expedition, enters the clinic with the police. He thanks Alan for his help before being taken by the police to be with Inga at the hospital.

Dr. Coburn also leaves for the hospital along with the medical technician, leaving Alan and Marian at the clinic. Relieved and emotionally spent, Alan lets out a triumphant cheer before continuing with the rest of his shift.

Cast

[edit]

Production

[edit]

On January 6, 1965, it was announced in Daily Variety that Paramount Pictures had secured the rights to produce "Voice in the Wind," a screenplay written by Stirling Silliphant. The script was based on the Life magazine article "Decision to Die," published on May 29, 1964, which chronicled the real-life story of a woman in Seattle, Washington, who attempted suicide. Originally developed as a 100-page treatment for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), the project faced rejection from the studio due to creative differences. Paramount's production president, Howard W. Koch, then acquired the treatment and enlisted Sidney Poitier to star. On April 21, 1965, Daily Variety revealed the film's title had been changed to Call Me Back![2]

Sydney Pollack, making his motion picture directing debut, was chosen to helm the project, having previously directed and starred in various television programs. In January 1965, Elizabeth Ashley was initially cast as "Inga Dyson," but a third party later informed her that she had been replaced by Anne Bancroft without formal notice. Allegedly, Ashley had turned down a lucrative opportunity worth $100,000 due to her commitment to the project, leading to a legal dispute with the studio. By November 1965, the lawsuit was settled out of court.[2]

Principal photography began on June 14, 1965. Paramount changed the film's title to The Slender Thread after agreeing to relinquish the rights to the title "Call Me Back" to accommodate negotiations for a feature project based on a 1960 NBC teleplay of the same name. Filming took place at Paramount Studios in Hollywood, California, as well as on location in Seattle. Poitier's scenes were filmed on a sound stage, while Bancroft read her lines offstage or through a receiver in her dressing room wired with a live telephone connection. The production incurred a daily expenditure of approximately $12,000 during location shoots. Filming concluded in late June or early July 1965.[2]

The Slender Thread was slated for a special engagement at the Stanley Warner Theater in Beverly Hills, California, on December 15, 1965, to qualify for Academy Award consideration. The film then opened in New York City on December 23, 1965, with a general release in early 1966.[2]

Awards

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Reception

[edit]

At the time, the film received indifferent reviews and did poor business at the box office upon release.[4] However, more recent reviews give it a favorable score of 83%.[5]

Musical score and soundtrack

[edit]
The Slender Thread
Soundtrack album by
Released1966
Recorded1965
GenreFilm score
Length24:47
LabelMercury
MG 21070/SR 61070
ProducerQuincy Jones
Quincy Jones chronology
Mirage
(1965)
The Slender Thread
(1966)
Quincy's Got a Brand New Bag
(1966)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllmusicStarStarStarHalf star[6]

The film score was composed, arranged and conducted by Quincy Jones, and the soundtrack album was released on the Mercury label in 1966.[7][8]

Reception

[edit]

The Vinyl Factory said "at only 26 minutes this soundtrack may be short on time but not quality. All smooth jazz grooves and rollicking vibes and gorgeous orchestrations, it’s a nice summation of the talents Jones acquired as a jazz music student in Paris in the late 1950s".[9]

Track listing

[edit]

All compositions by Quincy Jones

  1. "Preludium (Main Title Part II)" − 2:27
  2. "Main Theme (Main Title Part I)" − 2:02
  3. "Threadbare (Main Title Part III)" − 2:14
  4. "Aftermath" − 2:43
  5. "Fox's Sugar" − 3:27
  6. "Funny Farm" − 1:31
  7. "Theme for Inga" − 2:30
  8. "Psychosis" − 3:06
  9. "No Place to Go" − 3:08
  10. "Big Sir" − 2:15

Personnel

[edit]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia
from Grokipedia
The Slender Thread is a 1965 American drama film directed by Sydney Pollack in his feature-length directorial debut, starring Sidney Poitier as a college student volunteering at a suicide prevention crisis center and Anne Bancroft as a distraught housewife who calls the hotline after overdosing on barbiturates. The story unfolds in real time over the course of the tense phone conversation, intercut with flashbacks revealing the woman's marital strife and emotional unraveling, as the volunteer desperately tries to keep her engaged while police and medical personnel race to locate and rescue her in Seattle. Inspired by a true incident dramatized in Shana Alexander's "Decision to Die" article in the May 29, 1964, issue of Life magazine, the film highlights the pioneering work of the Seattle Crisis Clinic and addresses the growing awareness of suicide prevention in the United States during the 1960s. Produced by with a screenplay by , the black-and-white film was shot on location in , capturing the city's rainy urban atmosphere to underscore the characters' isolation and urgency. Supporting roles include as a aiding the search and Edward Asner as a , adding layers to the ensemble's efforts in the high-stakes intervention. The soundtrack, composed by , features a jazz-inflected score that heightens the emotional tension without overpowering the dialogue-driven narrative. Upon its release on December 23, 1965, The Slender Thread received praise for its taut suspense and the compelling performances of its leads, with of noting the film's "awesome, compelling" drama despite occasional melodramatic flourishes. It earned a 71% approval rating from critics on based on contemporary reviews, lauded for its sensitive handling of themes at a time when such topics were rarely depicted in mainstream cinema. Though not a major box-office success, the film marked an early showcase for Pollack's directorial talent and contributed to public discourse on crisis hotlines, reflecting the era's movements.

Synopsis and Cast

Plot

In The Slender Thread, college student and major Alan Newell, played by , volunteers for the night shift at a suicide prevention hotline on his first solo duty. He receives a frantic call from Inga Dyson, portrayed by , a despondent who has ingested a large dose of barbiturates in an attempt to end her life, leaving her young son with a neighbor before checking into a under an assumed name. As Alan desperately works to keep Inga engaged and conscious over the phone, she reveals the source of her despair: the collapse of her marriage to her husband, Mark Dyson, a boat captain. Mark recently learned that their son is not his biological child, stemming from Inga's affair before their wedding, which shattered their once-idyllic family life and prompted him to abandon her in rage. Intercut with the real-time phone conversation are flashbacks illustrating Inga's emotional turmoil, including joyful domestic scenes with Mark and their , the explosive confrontation over the affair's revelation, and Inga's prior by walking into the sea, which Mark physically stopped only to berate her unforgivingly during her subsequent hospitalization. Alan, drawing on his limited training and empathy, uses probing questions about her past, shared vulnerabilities, and even light distractions to delay the drugs' effects, estimating she has about four hours before unconsciousness becomes irreversible. Meanwhile, Alan coordinates with his supervisor, Dr. Joe Coburn, and the telephone company to trace the call's origin, enlisting police assistance led by Sgt. Harry Ward to comb Seattle's streets and landmarks. As Inga's speech slurs and she drifts in and out of lucidity—hallucinating and expressing profound betrayal—urgency mounts when the trace pinpoints the Hyatt House hotel, a sprawling 200-room complex. Mark, notified via radio from his fishing vessel at sea, races back to shore. In the tense climax, with Inga on the verge of , the police storm the hotel, locate her room, and break in to find her barely breathing amid scattered pill bottles. Paramedics rush her to the hospital, where doctors successfully revive her through emergency treatment. In the resolution, a guilt-ridden Mark arrives at Inga's bedside, where they begin confronting the raw pain of and loss, offering a fragile hope for as Alan, exhausted but resolute, chooses not to meet the woman he saved.

Cast

The principal cast of The Slender Thread features as Alan Newell, a college student serving as a volunteer crisis counselor at a suicide prevention hotline, and as Inga Dyson, the caller in emotional distress whose portrayal captures the intensity of a troubled . Supporting the leads are as Dr. Joe Coburn, the hotline's supervising psychiatrist who provides guidance over the phone; as Mark Dyson, Inga's husband; and as Detective Judd Ridley, who aids in locating the caller. Poitier delivers a compelling performance marked by restraint and empathy in maintaining the connection, while Bancroft matches it with a raw, voice-driven depiction of desperation that highlights her dramatic range. Savalas contributes vivid intensity to his role as the tense advisor.
ActorRole
Alan Newell
Inga Dyson
Dr. Joe Coburn
Mark Dyson
Detective Judd Ridley
Marian
Telephone Operator
Charlie (Deputy)
The billing prominently features Poitier and Bancroft as the stars, followed by Savalas, Hill, and Asner in the main supporting credits, with no major uncredited appearances noted among the principal ensemble.

Production

Development

The development of The Slender Thread originated from Shana Alexander's article "Decision to Die," published in the May 29, 1964, issue of Life magazine, which recounted a real-life suicide prevention effort involving a 75-minute phone call at a Seattle hotline. Screenwriter Stirling Silliphant adapted the article into the film's screenplay, initially as a 100-page treatment for MGM, drawing on the tense dynamics of crisis intervention to craft a narrative centered on a volunteer's efforts to avert a suicide. The project was acquired by on January 6, 1965, and greenlit, with the script finalized by May 1965. Sydney Pollack was chosen as director, marking his feature film debut after establishing himself in television direction, while Stephen Alexander took on producing duties as his first major effort in the role. Sidney Poitier and Anne Bancroft signed on as the lead actors during ; Bancroft replaced Elizabeth Ashley due to a contract dispute.

Filming

Principal photography for The Slender Thread commenced on June 14, 1965, under the direction of in his feature film debut. Filming took place primarily on location in , to capture the authentic urban atmosphere central to the story, including exteriors at the campus, the , and waterfront areas representing the city's crisis clinic and surrounding environments. Interiors, particularly the extended hotline sequences, were shot at Paramount Studios in Hollywood, California, allowing for controlled production of the film's tense, dialogue-driven scenes. This dual-location approach highlighted 's emerging role as a filming destination in the mid-1960s, though it required significant logistical coordination for cast and crew travel. The production schedule was compact, wrapping by early July 1965 after approximately three weeks of shooting. Daily expenditures on the Seattle location reached about $12,000, covering transportation, accommodations, and on-site operations for the remote shoot. No major weather-related delays were reported during the summer filming period, though the team constructed temporary sets for flashback sequences depicting the characters' personal histories, ensuring seamless integration with the real Seattle backdrops. During a scene, nearly drowned while wearing a . Technical challenges arose in conveying real-time tension during the hotline conversations, which formed the film's core. Sidney Poitier's isolated performance as the crisis volunteer was filmed on a soundstage where delivered her lines off-camera through a live connection, simulating the phone call's immediacy and emotional strain without visual interaction between the leads. Bancroft's portrayal of the overdose victim involved physically demanding scenes requiring careful simulation of deteriorating while prioritizing . These innovative techniques underscored Pollack's emphasis on psychological intensity over elaborate visuals.

Release

Premiere and Distribution

The world premiere of The Slender Thread took place on December 8, 1965, in , , followed by a special engagement at the Stanley Warner Theater in Beverly Hills on December 15 to qualify for consideration. The film opened in on December 23, 1965, distributed by , with a wider U.S. theatrical rollout commencing in early 1966. Paramount's marketing strategy centered on the film's Oscar-winning stars, and , using taglines such as "Two Academy Award winners giving the performances of their lives" to highlight their acclaimed portrayals. Promotional posters prominently featured the leads alongside symbolic imagery, including a to evoke the story's premise, though some designs misleadingly incorporated nautical elements suggesting adventure. Tie-in campaigns included partnerships with to promote Quincy Jones's through record store displays and a broader merchandising push. Distribution initially prioritized the U.S. market, with international expansion occurring in 1966 and 1967 across territories including , where it received releases in countries such as under Paramount's oversight. In Poland, the film was released under the title Wątła nić and featured a dubbed version with key voice actors including Roman Wilhelmi as Alan Newell, Aleksander Bardini as Dr. Coburn, and Maria Homerska as Inga Dyson. The film runs 98 minutes and received MPAA approval under the Production Code for general audiences following minor edits to comply with content guidelines.

Box Office Performance

The Slender Thread achieved modest box office results, earning approximately $1.5 million in U.S. rentals according to a 1966 Variety report, a figure that fell short of expectations for a film starring and following their respective high-profile successes. Several factors contributed to the film's underwhelming commercial reception, including stiff competition from major 1965-1966 releases such as and Thunderball, as well as the limited appeal of its intense subject matter centered on . Despite the holiday timing of its premiere, which might have boosted attendance in theory, audience turnout remained subdued, marking the film as a disappointment overall.

Awards and Recognition

Academy Awards

At the 38th ceremony on April 18, 1966, held at the , The Slender Thread received two s in technical categories but did not win any awards. The film earned a for Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Black-and-White, credited to art directors Hal Pereira and Jack Poplin, along with set decorators Robert R. Benton and Joseph Kish, recognizing their contributions to the film's intimate, crisis-center setting and atmospheric interiors. Edith Head was also nominated for Best Costume Design, Black-and-White, for her designs that complemented the characters' emotional vulnerability and the story's locale. These nominations highlighted the production's strong technical achievements, particularly notable as Sydney Pollack's feature directorial debut, signaling his emerging talent for taut, character-driven dramas.

Other Honors

The screenplay for The Slender Thread, written by Stirling Silliphant, received a nomination for Best Screenplay – Motion Picture at the 1966 Golden Globe Awards, recognizing its tense, dialogue-driven exploration of crisis intervention. At the 1966 Mar del Plata International Film Festival, director Sydney Pollack earned the OCIC Award for the film's sensitive handling of psychological themes, highlighting his debut feature's directorial promise in promoting humanistic values through cinema. Pollack was also nominated for Best Film in the International Competition, underscoring the film's international appeal and technical execution in real-time suspense.

Reception and Legacy

Critical Response

Upon its release in late 1965, The Slender Thread received mixed reviews from contemporary critics, who praised its tense real-time structure and strong lead performances while critiquing its occasional lapses into . of commended the film's intermittent tautness and dramatic intensity, particularly in the crisis center sequences, but faulted its domestic flashbacks for veering into banal territory that undermined the overall suspense. Similarly, Variety highlighted the mounting emotional tension maintained through the stars' telephonic interactions, describing the production as supercharged with dramatic overtones, though it noted the script could have benefited from more lucid writing to heighten clarity. Critics frequently pointed to the film's overly melodramatic flashbacks as a key weakness, arguing they disrupted the urgency of the real-time narrative. In the New York Times review, Crowther observed that scenes depicting the protagonist's unraveling marriage felt contrived and sentimental, diluting the story's potential for unrelenting drama. A review in the Cleveland Plain Dealer acknowledged the flashbacks' role in revealing and alleviating the static quality of phone conversations but conceded that other segments grew "sticky," leading to uneven pacing that occasionally stalled momentum. On the positive side, reviewers lauded Sydney Pollack's direction in his feature debut for effectively sustaining suspense within the confined setting. The Cleveland Plain Dealer described Poitier's performance in the telephone-centric scenes as a tour de force, achieved through subtle expressions and gestures to build emotional intensity without relying on overt action. Telly Savalas's portrayal of the clinic psychiatrist also drew acclaim for its nuance; Crowther noted Savalas's "vivid moments" of quiet tension and guidance, adding depth to the supporting ensemble. Performances by and were widely regarded as the film's strongest elements, anchoring the emotional core. Variety emphasized Poitier's compelling restraint as the volunteer counselor and Bancroft's tortured intensity as the caller, while the highlighted their naturalistic portrayals and dialogue as more memorable than the plot itself. The Cleveland Plain Dealer echoed this, calling Poitier's one-room confinement a standout achievement through subtle expressions and Bancroft's nerve-wracking vulnerability in both voice and flashback appearances. Overall, major outlets in 1965-1966 assessed the film as solid but flawed, with a Tomatometer score of 71% on based on 7 critic reviews (as of November 2025), reflecting its modest critical impact that mirrored its underwhelming returns.

Cultural Impact

The Slender Thread addresses key themes of and the pervasive stigma of the , portraying the crisis as a vital lifeline for those grappling with and societal pressures. Through its focus on a single conversation, the film underscores the importance of empathetic in averting tragedy, reflecting midcentury anxieties about psychiatric care and gender roles. It also subtly navigates racial dynamics, with Sidney Poitier's portrayal of a student in a position of authority embodying the "Poitier Effect," where Black empathy and restraint are emphasized to foster rather than in a racially divided era. Released in 1965, the film emerged during a period of growing awareness about suicide prevention hotlines, following the 1963 founding of Seattle's Crisis Clinic in response to a local tragedy involving a letter carrier's violent impulses toward a child. Inspired by the clinic's real-life operations and a subsequent Life magazine article detailing a saved life, The Slender Thread highlighted these emerging services at an "early crossroads" in their development, balancing radical care with institutional control. In its legacy, the film served as a launchpad for director Sydney Pollack's career, marking his feature debut and paving the way for his later acclaimed works in drama and social commentary. It contributed to the genre of crisis intervention narratives in Hollywood's dramas, influencing portrayals that model life-affirming behaviors and align with the Papageno Effect, where media depictions offer hope to discourage suicidality. By the , amid heightened discussions, the film's availability on streaming platforms has prompted reevaluation, earning a 71% Tomatometer score on based on 7 critic reviews (as of November 2025).

Soundtrack

Composition

Quincy Jones was commissioned to compose the original score for The Slender Thread, marking his inaugural collaboration with director Sydney Pollack on the filmmaker's feature debut. Jones, renowned for his jazz expertise, brought a sophisticated blend of the genre to the tense drama, drawing on his background as a bandleader and arranger. The score was recorded in December 1965, shortly after wrapped, to align with the film's timeline. Infused with elements, the score features urgent percussion to heighten suspense during the hotline sequences, as heard in tracks like "Psychosis," where subtle yet prominent rhythms underscore psychological strain. Lyrical, moody themes provide emotional depth to the flashback scenes, contrasting the film's real-time urgency with atmospheric introspection; the total runtime spans approximately 25 minutes. Jones collaborated closely with Pollack to tailor the music to the narrative's intensity, employing top session musicians from the West Coast jazz scene, including trumpeter Ray Triscari, saxophonist Paul Horn, pianist , and percussionist Larry Bunker. Within the film, the score received praise for enhancing suspense while remaining unobtrusive to the dialogue-driven tension, with star commending how it magnificently supported the story's emotional core.

Release and Track Listing

The soundtrack for The Slender Thread was released in February 1966 by Mercury Records as a vinyl LP in both stereo (SR 61070) and mono (MG 21070) formats. Produced and composed entirely by Quincy Jones, the album features 10 instrumental tracks drawn from the film's score, emphasizing jazz-inflected arrangements that underscore the movie's suspenseful narrative. The original release did not spawn any singles, reflecting the album's focus on atmospheric, non-vocal cues rather than commercial pop elements. The track listing is as follows:
SideTrackTitleDurationComposer
A1Preludium (Main Title Part II)2:27
A2Main Theme (Main Title Part I)2:02
A3Threadbare (Main Title Part III)2:14
A4Aftermath2:43
A5Fox's Sugar2:21
B1Funny Farm2:32
B2Theme From Inga2:24
B3Psychosis2:20
B4No Place To Go2:42
B5Big Sir2:22
Durations sourced from original LP timings. Key personnel on the recording include as conductor and arranger; on and organ; Al Hendrickson on guitar; on , contributing to the score's taut, modern jazz sound. Additional musicians featured brass and reed sections such as Ray Triscari on , on , on trombone, Paul Horn and Jack Nimitz on saxophone, with percussion by Larry Bunker, , and Stan Levy on drums. The album has been reissued in various compilations, including the 2016 6-CD set The Cinema of by Decca. No major chart success was reported, though it received attention within circles for Jones's innovative scoring approach.

References

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