Blackbeard (miniseries)

Blackbeard
DVD cover art
GenreAdventure, Drama
Written byBryce Zabel
Directed byKevin Connor
StarringAngus Macfadyen
Richard Chamberlain
Theme music composerElia Cmiral
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
Production
ProducersH. Daniel Gross
Robert Halmi
Larry Levinson
CinematographyAlan Caso
Running time169 minutes
(DVD version)
Production companiesLarry Levinson Productions
Hallmark Entertainment
Original release
NetworkHallmark Channel
ReleaseJune 17, 2006 (2006-06-17)

Blackbeard is a 2006 American adventure-drama television miniseries based on the pirate Blackbeard, directed by Kevin Connor from a screenplay written by Bryce Zabel.[1] It premiered on Hallmark Channel on June 17, 2006. The miniseries was shot on location in Thailand and the town of New Providence was built on a coconut plantation, and includes many factual names and places, but it is essentially a fictional story since Blackbeard's most notable exploits took place in North Carolina.[2]

Plot

In the first quarter of the 18th century, Blackbeard, otherwise known as Edward Teach, was seen as the most notorious and dangerous seafaring pirate of all. Plying his trade around the West Indies and the eastern coast of England’s North American colonies in his ship Queen Anne's Revenge.[3] Blackbeard wreaks havoc whilst looking for Captain Kidd's treasure, and his dark presence causes controversy in the port town of New Providence (The Bahamas), especially for Governor Charles Eden and his adopted daughter Charlotte, who is being wooed by Lieutenant Robert Maynard.[3]

Cast

Production

Despite being about the miniseries, the series is largely a remake of Captain Blood (1935). It was filmed by Living Films on location around Seattle, Washington.[3]

Home media

It was released on DVD by Echo Bridge Entertainment on July 11, 2006. It was later released in an international DVD edition re-titled Pirates: The True Story of Blackbeard, though by the writer's own admission little of the screenplay was actually true.[4]

References

  1. ^ Marill, Alvin H. (2010-10-11). Movies Made for Television: 2005-2009. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 9780810876590.
  2. ^ Fries, Laura (2006-06-14). "Blackbeard". Variety. Archived from the original on 2019-04-12. Retrieved 2019-04-12.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Vincent Terrace, Encyclopedia of Television Miniseries, 1936-2020 (2021), p. 23
  4. ^ Zabel, Bryce. "The (True) "True Story of Blackbeard"". Movie Smackdown. Archived from the original on 7 August 2016. Retrieved 17 July 2016.