During the Cold War, John Goldfarb crashes his spy plane in the Middle East and is taken prisoner by the local government. His captor, King Fawz, soon discovers that Goldfarb used to be a college football star. So he issues him an ultimatum: coach his country's football team, or Fawz will surrender him to the Russians. Goldfarb teams up with undercover reporter Jenny Ericson, and together they plot to escape their dangerous situation.
Acting
Peter Ustinov devours scenery as King Fawz.
Costume
Harem chic meets football pads. 1965 was unhinged.
Director
J. Lee Thompson
Shirley MacLaine
Jenny
Peter Ustinov
Fawz
Richard Crenna
John Goldfarb
Jim Backus
Whitepaper
Scott Brady
Sakalakis
Fred Clark
Overreach
Wilfrid Hyde-White
Guz
Harry Morgan
Sarajevo
Patrick Adiarte
Ammud
Richard Deacon
Maginot
Jerome Cowan
Brinkley
Leon Askin
Samir
David Lewis
Cronkite
Milton Frome
Air Force General
Charles Lane
Editor
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Shirley MacLaine allegedly hated this film so much she barely promoted it.
The film sparked minor diplomatic complaints for its portrayal of fictional Arab nations; 1965 audiences mostly shrugged.
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