Where Did A & E "Ambersons" Script Originate?

[Roger Ryan]

Forgive me if this topic has been covered before, but how closely was Welles' original shooting script followed for the atrocious A & E "Ambersons" remake? I understand certain sequences were added from the novel to flesh out the running time and I know that Welles' original ending had Eugene explaining his feelings to the departed Isabel in a letter, but can't fathom why the remake begins with the "Last Ball", then goes into the lengthy and awkward flashback sequence to bring the viewer up to speed.

I guess it goes without saying that any remake attempting to honor Welles' vision should have been adapted from the cutting continuity, but did Welles really have an earlier draft devoid of narration, but with flashbacks?

[mteal]

I doubt it. I think that, in the process of making hash of Welles' screenplay, they simply decided arbitrarily to start things off with the ballroom scene. The best things in A&E's Ambersons were things that were not in Welles' screenplay, but were in Tarkington's novel, such as George discovering towards the end that the Amberson name is not even listed anymore among the town's leading families of the past. There are some other good things in it, but these things have more to do with Tarkington then with Welles. A&E used Welles' name for publicity purposes, but I think they missed (or ignored) the point of his original version, an evocation and elegy for a vanished age. A&E's version was more like a fruedian soap opera, with mostly lousy performances. I really don't think they ever had any intention of honoring Welles' vision.