The Basketball Fix (1951)

User Rating:

5.8/10   

Director:

Felix E. Feist

Writers:

Charles K. Peck Jr. (story)
Peter R. Brooke (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

August 1951 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Sport

Tagline:

Big-shot gamblers prostituting the nation's youth!

Plot:

A college basketball star collaborrates with organized crime and becomes involved in 'point shaving.' A sportswriter tries to get him back on the right track. |

Plot Keywords:

College | Basketball | College Basketball | Point Shaving | Arrest

Cast

John Ireland	...	Pete Ferreday
Marshall Thompson	...	Johnny Long
Vanessa Brown	...	Pat Judd
William Bishop	...	Mike Taft
Hazel Brooks	...	Lily Courtney
Johnny Sands	...	Jed Black (as John Sands)
Robert Hyatt	...	Mickey Long (as Bobby Hyatt)
Walter Sande	...	Nat Becker
Ted Pierson	...	Police Lt. Garrett
Johnny Phillips	...	Rival Reporter
Lester Sharpe	...	Jewelry Salesman (as Lester Sharp)
Art Millan
Lionel Kay
Jack Reynolds
Donald Kerr	...	Headwaiter

Also Known As:

The Big Decision (UK)

Runtime:

65 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #15307)

Company:

Jack Broder Productions Inc.

Goofs:

Continuity: The photo of Johnny in handcuffs shown at the beginning of the film differs from the scene where the photo was taken. The lights in the building are off in the photo but on in the scene, the number of people standing behind Johnny are different, and the man in the plaid shirt standing next to the policeman in the photo is not standing next to him in the scene.

Quotes:

[first lines]
The Rival Reporter: Hiya, Pete. Mind if I join the wake? Quite a yarn, huh?
Pete Ferreday: Yeah.
The Rival Reporter: You cookin' up a new angle for your column?
Pete Ferreday: No, thanks. This one's been grilled, fried and boiled in every rag in the country.
The Rival Reporter: That so? There's an angle that hasn't been touched.
[he shows Pete a photo of Johnny Long in handcuffs]
The Rival Reporter: Earn your bracelet with a college degree.

Decent

Basketball Fix, The (1951)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

A poor college freshman is a wiz on the basketball court but soon gets involved with gangsters in a points shaving scheme. Here's another moral "B" film from the 1950's this time taking shots at gamblers. The film doesn't have good acting or a real good story but it remains slightly entertaining throughout. It doesn't hurt matters that it only runs 65-minutes either. John Ireland stars as the sports reporter who starts to see the star shaving the points.

You can find this film on DVD through various public domain companies.