In 1963, Hollywood and Filipino producers collaborated on the making of To Be a Man, shot in the Philippines and topbilled by American and Filipino actors.
Leopoldo Salcedo led the local cast, which included Lisa Moreno, Vic Silayan and Mike Parsons. The Hollywood stars were Van Heflin, Rita Moreno and James MacArthur.
To Be a Man was produced by Joe Steinberg in association with Eddie Romero and released by Filipino Promotions.
Wikipedia released this brief biography of Van Heflin.
“Emmett Evan ‘Van’ Heflin Jr. (Dec. 13, 1908 to July 23, 1971) was an American theater, radio and film actor. He played mostly character parts over the course of his film career, but during the 1940s had a string of roles as a leading man. Heflin won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in Johnny Eager (1942). He also had memorable roles in Westerns such as Shane (1953), 3:10 to Yuma (1957), and Gunman’s Walk (1958).
“Heflin was born in Walters, Oklahoma, the son of Fanny (nee Shippey) and Dr. Emmett Evan Heflin, a dentist. He was of Irish and French ancestry. Heflin’s sister was Daytime Emmy-nominated actress Frances Heflin (who married composer Sol Kaplan).
“Heflin attended Classen High School in Oklahoma City. One source says Long Beach Polytechnic High School. He also went to the University of Oklahoma, where he received a bachelor’s degree in 1932 and was a member of Phi Delta Theta fraternity. He earned a master’s degree in theater at Yale University.”
Rita Moreno, the fiery Puerto Rican actress, won the Oscar Best Supporting award in 1961 for West Side Story. She also has Emmy (television), Grammy (recording) and Tony (theater) trophies.
James MacArthur was the son of legendary stage-screen actress Helen Hayes. — RKC