Editor’s Notes to the Welles Interview

Abstract Given the virtually mythological status of Citizen Kane in Welles ‘s career, it isn ‘t surprising that it has generated by far the most debate of all his films. Two publications in particular should be cited: “Raising Kane,” by Pauline Kael, which appeared originally in two successive issues of the New Yorker (February 20 and 27, 1971) and then as a lengthy preface to the script, published later the same year (The “Citizen Kane” Book, Boston: Atlantic/Little, Brown, and Robert L. Carringer ‘s The Makins of “Citizen Kane” (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1985). Kael ‘s essay was replied to at length by Bogdanovich and Welles in a point-by point refutation published by Bogdanovich as “The Kane Mutiny” in Esquire (October 1972), which included certain portions of the previous interview. Other rebuttals included Ted Gilling ‘s interviews with George Coulouris and Bernard Herrmann in Sisht and Sound (Spring 1972), polemics by Joseph McBride (Film Heritase, Fall 1971) and myself (Film Comment, Spring 1972 and Summer 1972), and remarks in the Welles biographies by Barbara Leaming (Orson  Citizen Kane enjoyed a spectacular critical reception. American novelist John O ‘Hara, writing for Time magazine, said quite simply that it was the best motion picture he had ever seen. ‘ Other serious reviewers in this country didn ‘t debate whether or not it was unusually good, but whether or not it was a great, even revolutionary, achievement. Meanwhile, Kane was the subject of considerable controversy in Hollywood; it was nominated for nine Academy Awards but received only one, for best original screenplay by Herman Mankiewicz and Orson Welles, who were booed by detractors at the award ceremony.