Bernadette Peters - Forever Young, Forever Free

[Theatre Fan3]

Posted: 3/22/24 at 8:53pm

Does anybody else remember seeing this film and hearing Bernadette singing the title song?  I remember seeing an advance screening of the film sometime back around 1976 at a motion picture exhibitors convention.  Universal had acquired the film for distribution in the US an Canada.  It's original title was "e'Lollipop".  I believe when we saw that advance screening the title had been changed to just "LOLLIPOP".  At some point after that advance screening Universal re-edited the ending of the film and changed the title once again to "FOREVER YOUNG, FOREVER FREE" and that was when Bernadette singing the title song was added.  I remember the film making enough of an impression on me that I bought the Original Soundtrack LP.  It's stashed away somewhere and I should really dig it out and listen to it again.  What brought this all back to my mind after 45+ years was that I recently ran across the original full length version of the film "e'Lollipop" that had been uploaded on Youtube by the films writer and director.  Watching the film again after all those years lead me to reading more about the backstory of the film which was made during the height of apartheid in South Africa and about the connection between the two young stars of the film that has last all the years since and how, due to the circumstances of the time, their lives took drastically different paths.  It was only when one of the producers of the film was preparing for the film to be released on dvd that he began his search to find actors that had been the young stars in the film.  He found one of them and together they continued their search to find the other.  Their search was finally rewarded when people came forward after having seen coverage in the media about the search for this person.  Once both men had been found, the vastly different paths their lives had followed ended up leading to a new film about that called A MILLION COLOURS,  Once again it appears that that original title was changed for the US release and titled COLORS OF HEAVEN and I discovered that this film is currently available on Amazon Prime here in the US.  I would highly recommend these films as both are quite impactful in their own way and judging by the comments left about both of these films on Youtube, have made lasting impressions on many.  Sorry for rambling on as my original intent was to see if anybody else recalled seeing the film and remembered Bernadette singing the title song.  You can check it out here to jog your memory if needed. 

Forever Young, Forever Free - E' Lollipop - Bernadette Peters - Vocal