Spill Your Scoop!
If you have a story about the filming of The Prince of Tides in South Carolina, let us know.
The Prince of Tides: Overview
Director – Barbra Streisand
Cast – Nick Nolte, Barbra Streisand, Blythe Danner, Kate Nelligan
Genre – Drama, Romance
Plot – A man with a troubled childhood falls in love with his suicidal sister's psychiatrist. It is based on the novel by Beaufort native Pat Conroy.
The Prince of Tides: SC Locations
The former Bay Street Inn (601 Bay Street) in Beaufort was used as Tom Wingo's mother's home in the film.
The famous boat Tiderunner on St. Helena Island is featured in the movie.
The beach house in the movie is located on Fripp Island. The beach scenes were also shot on Fripp.
The Beaufort River is seen in the opening scene of the movie, where the camera flies over the marsh.
Dennis Adams from the Beaufort Library wrote that some Manhattan apartment scenes were shot at the Beaufort Arsenal on Craven Street, which is now home to the Beaufort Arsenal Museum. He also recalls visiting what is now the Beaufort County EMS/Records Management building and seeing portions of the Manhattan apartment setting there, too.
The football field at the former Beaufort High School became the backdrop for the football scenes.
The Beaufort County Records Management Department warehouse on Depot Street was used as the set for the Lowensteins' apartment.
A sound stage was built in the gymnasium of the Technical College of the Lowcountry and was used in the filming of the rape scene. Traffic was stopped on Ribaut Road to lessen outside noise.
We learned from Billy Palmer and Sgt Angus Patterson that the Beaufort National Guard Armory was also used in the film. Billy writes, "That movie used just about everything around here."
The Prince of Tides: Fun Facts
Although not originally planning to film there, Barbra Streisand was convinced to check out Beaufort during location scouting because Pat Conroy had grown up there and it was the original setting for the book. After spending a night at the Rhett House Inn, she and her cinematographer fell in love with Beaufort.
Barbra, as well as co-star Blythe Danner and her daughter Gwyneth Paltrow, very much enjoyed the ice cream at Plums on Bay Street in downtown Beaufort.
Nick Nolte was coached on his Southern accent by Wayne Zurenda, an English instructor at the Technical College of the Lowcountry. Wayne sent us this great info about his experience ...
"I was Nick Nolte's Dialect Coach for The Prince of Tides from May to August of 1990. I taught speech and English at the Technical College of the Lowcountry for 30 years before retiring in August of 2005 and moving to Spartanburg, SC. I also worked with Kate Nelligan, Brad Sullivan, and several of the children on their southern accents during the filming. Nick took me around to Barbra Streisand's house one Saturday because she wanted to meet me, since I was then one of her employees on the set. During the conversation I told her The Shag was SC's Official State Dance. SHE ASKED ME TO DEMONSTRATE IT FOR HER! It's a funny story. It was a summer I shall never forget."
Barbra Streisand rented the home of Dr. Gene and Beth Grace, located in downtown Beaufort, during the filming. A privacy fence was erected and Streisand made a few personal touches to the house, such as adding bathroom carpeting.
While in Beaufort, Nick Nolte bought a bicycle to lose the weight he had gained for the filming of 48 Hours. He would sometimes bike from downtown Beaufort to the Steamer Restaurant, where he enjoyed eating.
Christine Livingston shares, "My sister, Tammy Livingston May, had just delivered my nephew in the naval hospital. Barbra Streisand and Nick Nolte filmed in that hospital and they came in my sister's room. They held my nephew and took a picture with my sister and my nephew and the doctor that delivered my nephew. That was in 1990. Her husband was a marine and away on deployment."