Magnificent Rebel, The (television) Two-part television show; aired on November 18 and 25, 1962. Directed by Georg Tressler. The life of musical genius and nonconformist composer Ludwig van Beethoven, from his arrival in Vienna in 1792 through the writing of the famous Ninth Symphony, who along the way fought those who opposed something new in music. Rejected by the family of the only woman he truly loved, he devoted himself to music, rising to the height of his career only to be shattered by the loss of hearing. After a period of seclusion, he began anew with a new flood of inspiration that carried him on to even greater acclaim. Stars Karl Boehm, Giulia Rubini, Peter Arens. Boehm was an accomplished pianist and was able to perform his own musical sequences in the film. Filmed in the sumptuous concert halls of Vienna. This was Walt Disney’s first filmmaking venture in Austria and he chose actual locales, many of them unchanged over the centuries, where Beethoven lived, found inspiration, and worked. Released theatrically abroad.
