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The Big Wheel (1949) -- Billy Coy comes to Carrell (a real speedway in Gardena, California when the movie was made). Red, Billy's late father's mechanic...

Overview

User Rating:
5.7/10   206 votes
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Down 22% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writer:
Robert Smith (original screenplay)
Contact:
View company contact information for The Big Wheel on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
4 November 1949 (USA) more
Genre:
Plot:
Billy Coy comes to Carrell (a real speedway in Gardena, California when the movie was made). Red, Billy's late father's mechanic... more | add synopsis
User Comments:
Good Character For Rooney, Good Atmosphere more (8 total)

Cast

  (Complete credited cast)

Mickey Rooney ... Billy Coy
Thomas Mitchell ... Arthur 'Red' Stanley
Mary Hatcher ... Louise Riley
Michael O'Shea ... Vic Sullivan
Spring Byington ... Mary Coy

Hattie McDaniel ... Minnie (as Hattie McDaniels)
Steve Brodie ... Happy Lee
Lina Romay ... Dolores Raymond
Allen Jenkins ... George
Richard Lane ... Reno Riley (as Dick Lane)
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Additional Details

Runtime:
92 min
Country:
Language:
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (RCA Sound System)
Certification:

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Hattie McDaniel's last movie. more
Goofs:
Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): A mechanic is describing a "hoodoo wagon" to Billy Coy and talks about one entered in the Indianapolis 500 that "had gone 490 miles with a minute to go" when it crashed into a wall. Ten miles in one minute translates to 600 miles/hour, well over the speed that race cars can attain. more
Quotes:
[Reno gives his tomboy daughter a wad of cash to buy her first dress]
Vic Sullivan: I wish you'd be that generous with me!
Reno Riley: You'd look good in a dress.
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FAQ

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11 out of 11 people found the following comment useful.
Good Character For Rooney, Good Atmosphere, 28 November 2005
Author: Snow Leopard from Ohio

Mickey Rooney gets a character well-suited to his abilities, and the good atmosphere at garages and auto racing tracks also helps make this a solid B-melodrama. The story follows a familiar pattern, but the setting is different enough to make it interesting.

Rooney plays the son of a race driver who wants to establish a racing career of his own. The character goes through a number of changes as his fortunes ebb and flow, and Rooney makes him believable at each stage. He had the ability to be sympathetic when necessary, and he also had the knack of making a character turn abrasive in a believable fashion. Here, it helps to flesh out a familiar plot.

Most of the other characters are one-dimensional, and are only there to give Rooney something to play off of. An exception is Thomas Mitchell, whose skill at playing seemingly simple roles makes the garage owner into a believable character in his own right.

The auto racing settings are interesting, and although the racing sequences rely on stock footage, they are still enjoyable. The story takes Rooney's character from hot rods to midget racers to the Indianapolis-style cars. It was set in what was then the present, and race fans in its audiences probably could have spotted some familiar cars. Now, it is also of interest as a decent recreation of the Indy racers of its day.

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Rear-engine racecar amesk
Nice watch for race fans folkepalm
Not Bad sipowicz
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