Dumb question but....
How old are the boys supposed to be? And why aren't they in school (assuming they're school age)?
I just started watching it, so maybe my questions will be answered shortly...
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MovieChat Forums > West Side Story (1961) Discussion > Dumb question but....
In this movie hard to say 15 to 22. The older guys have nothing going on except gang life.
Lot of youth gang members today are still in the gangs in their later years. Like the Latin kings.
The real gang that the jets were based on at least in this movie was the Red Wings also in the Movie the young savages. There were girls part the red wing debs.
A lot of young kids during this time were in another gang of little kids before they became red wings. Like the HBB stood for Harlem Ball Busters :)
Here is how it really went for the Red Wings.
Some were in the HBB as little kids. Then moved to the Red Wings. Then they saw a movie called the Purple Gang a bout Detroits Purple gang. Loved it and they started their own Version of the purple gang. They called themselves the NY Purple Gang from their some went into business for themselves Heroin or into the Italan. Mafa they became Captains one even became a boss Danny the lion.
Most ended up dead or in jail but not all of them.
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On page 11 of West Side Story: A Musical published in 1959 by Steven Sondheim -- essentially the script of the movie -- the Jets and the Sharks are described as "teen-age gangs." See http://tinyurl.com/qhnhum5 (will take you to Google Books).
shareFacts are a special thing
shareI think they were supposed to be between the ages of 15-19.
Esta es mi firma
They're all 26. ; )
shareThe actors that played the jets and the sharks in the movie were no kids. Most were in their 20s.
shareThey do look too old to be attending high school dances. Even though teenagers tended to look older in the early sixties, with their big hair, ties and heels, the actors still look twenty-odd. Which is a problem, as the Jets and Sharks are supposed to be the kind of kids' gang that hasn't started selling drugs or extorting money from shopkeepers yet.
Still, there aren't many teenagers that could dance at the level Jerome Robbins required.
" Jack, you have debauched my sloth! "
High school age/dropouts and not candidates for college for the older ones. Tony has a full time job at the drug store. The others are squandering.
Don't confuse or compare their chronological age (of the actors) with whom they're portraying. They have nothing to do with each other.
I would say that they were all very young men and women who were in their late teens and/or early 20's at the time when West Side Story was filmed.
shareSURE WASN'T Shaun.
nope.
i knew that too about Jerome.
Yea,
THE DANCERS had to be really awesome!
JEROME MY MOM AND GRANDMA SAY WANTED Perfection period,and i m glad. i m so addicted to this very good film, But the sad ending i cry almost or do cry each time
love this movie.incredible
night
They do look too old to be attending high school dances.
In those days (I'm told) they held neighborhood dances at rec-centers. This was to keep the neighborhood youths entertained and out of trouble during the summer months. (Tax dollars actually at work!) Not all who attended would be in high school, but that age would likely have the most interest.
"Good times, noodle salad" share
That's a good point, JujusFlix. Thanks.
shareI would guess they are teens and 20s. Takes place in summer, so they aren't in school. Plus, these are gang members, so I am sure school wasn't #1 on their to-do list.
shareI would guess they are teens and 20s. Takes place in summer, so they aren't in school. Plus, these are gang members, so I am sure school wasn't #1 on their to-do list.
They were more than likely in their (late) teens/early twenties, except for Baby-John, the youngest, who was only 14. share
They are supposed to be teens. And the story takes place during the summer, so they aren't in school.
shareThey are supposed to be teens. And the story takes place during the summer, so they aren't in school.
It's kind of hard to believe that the ages of the Jets and the Sharks didn't range from their mid-teens (except for Baby-John, who was about 14) to their early 20's, but that's my take on it. I agree that the story takes place during the summer. share
Yeah, they don't really look like real teens, but that doesn't matter. Anyway, since it is during the summer, there was no school. That was the original question.
share