in that form, so a decision was made to split the longer film into two shorter features, the second part becoming 1974's The Four Musketeers. Though some actors knew of this decision earlier than others, by the time of the Paris premiere all had been informed. Screenwriter George MacDonald Fraser records the evening, "That not all the actors knew about this I didn't discover until the Paris premiere, which began with a dinner for the company at Fouquet's and concluded in the small hours with a deafening concert in what appeared to be the cellar of some ancient Parisian structure (the Hotel de Ville, I think). Charlton Heston knew, for when we discussed it before dinner he shrugged philosophically and remarked: 'Two for the price of one.'" This incensed the actors and crew, since they were being paid for one film, and their original contracts made no mention of a second feature, resulting in lawsuits being filed to receive compensation for salaries associated with the sequel. This led to the Screen Actors Guild requiring all future actors' contracts to include what has become known as the "Salkind clause" (named after producers Alexander and Ilya Salkind), which stipulates that single productions cannot be split into film instalments without prior contractual agreement. Sequels The Four Musketeers was released the following year, with footage originally intended to combine with this film's to be part of a much longer film. In 1989, much of the cast and crew of the original returned to film The Return of the Musketeers, loosely based on Dumas' 1845 novel Twenty Years After. References Bibliography External links 1970s historical adventure films American historical adventure films American swashbuckler films British historical adventure films British swashbuckler films Cultural depictions of Cardinal Richelieu Cultural depictions of Louis XIII Films scored by Michel Legrand Films based on The Three Musketeers Films directed by Richard Lester Films featuring a Best Musical or Comedy Actress Golden Globe winning performance Films shot in Madrid Films set in France Films set in Paris Films with screenplays by George MacDonald Fraser Films shot in Segovia 1970s English-language films 1970s American films 1970s British films