The Gambler and the Lady (1952)

Directors:

Patrick Jenkins
Sam Newfield
(more)

Writer:

Sam Newfield

Release Date:

26 December 1952 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Plot:

A social-climbing American with a business in illegal gambling falls in love with a blue blood, but gangsters and a jealous ex-girlfriend stand in the way of happiness.

Plot Keywords:

Gambler | Gambling | Illegal Gambling | Bounced Check | Pantomiming A Cigarette

Cast

Dane Clark	...	Jim Forster
Kathleen Byron	...	Pat
Naomi Chance	...	Lady Susan Willens
Meredith Edwards	...	Dave Davies
Anthony Forwood	...	Lord Peter Willens
Eric Pohlmann	...	Arturo Colonna
Enzo Coticchia	...	Angelo Colonna
Julian Somers	...	Licasi - Club Manager
Anthony Ireland	...	Richard Farning
Thomas Gallagher	...	Sam
Max Bacon	...	Maxie
Mona Washbourne	...	Miss Minter
Jane Griffiths	...	Lady Jane Greer
Richard Shaw	...	Louis
George Pastell	...	Jacko Spina
Martin Benson	...	Tony - Pat's Dance Partner
Eric Boon	...	The Boxer (scenes deleted)
Felix Felton	...	Boxing Promoter (scenes deleted)
Hal Osmond	...	Fred - Stable Groom
Percy Marmont	...	Lord Willens-Hortland
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Robert Adair	...	Engles (uncredited)
Robert Brown	...	John - Waiter at Max's Dive (uncredited)
Irissa Cooper	...	The Tart (uncredited)
Peter Hutton	...	Roger Bowen (uncredited)
David Keir	...	The Gambler (uncredited)
André Mikhelson	...	El Greco (uncredited)
Prince Monolulu	...	Himself (uncredited)
Paul Sheridan	...	The Croupier (uncredited)
Mark Singleton	...	Waiter at Jack of Spades (uncredited)
Larry Taylor	...	Shadow (uncredited)

Directed by
Patrick Jenkins
Sam Newfield		(footage added for US release)
Terence Fisher		(unconfirmed) (uncredited)

Writing credits
Sam Newfield

Produced by
Anthony Hinds	....	producer

Original Music by
Ivor Slaney

Cinematography by
Walter J. Harvey		(as Walter Harvey)

Film Editing by
Maurice Rootes

Casting by
Michael Carreras

Art Direction by
J. Elder Wills

Makeup Department
Philip Leakey	....	makeup artist (as Phil Leakey)
Pauline Trent	....	hair stylist

Production Management
John 'Pinky' Green	....	production manager (as Pinky Green)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Ted Holliday	....	assistant director
Bill Herlihy	....	second assistant director (uncredited)
Phil Rigal	....	first assistant director (uncredited)

Sound Department
Bill Salter	....	sound recordist
Percy Britten	....	boom operator (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Moray Grant	....	camera operator
Tom Friswell	....	clapper loader (uncredited)
John Jay	....	still photographer (uncredited)
Manny Yospa	....	focus puller (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Bill Lenny	....	assembly cutter (uncredited)

Music Department
Marcus Dods	....	conductor
Dennis Wilson	....	composer: additional music (uncredited)

Other crew
Renée Glynne	....	continuity

Production Companies

• Hammer Film Productions (in association with)
• Lippert Films

Distributors

• Exclusive Films (1952) (UK) (theatrical)
• Lippert Pictures (1952) (USA) (theatrical)
• Kit Parker Films (2004) (USA) (all media) (copyright owner)
• VCI Entertainment (2006) (USA) (DVD)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

72 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Filming Locations:

Bray Studios, Down Place, Oakley Green, Berkshire, England, UK

Company:

Hammer Film Productions

Soundtrack:

Happy Birthday To You

noir-like drama from Hammer films

There were lots of movies like "The Gambler and the Lady" back in the '50s: low-budget British noir-like films, sometimes detective stories, starring an American second or third-stringer, with the rest of the cast British. Often they're quite entertaining.

"The Gambler and the Lady" is one such film from 1952, produced by Hammer Film, and stars Dane Clark, Kathleen Byron, Naomi Chance, and Anthony Forwood. Forwood, by the way, was a very handsome man who was married to Glynis Johns and then became Dirk Bogarde's partner and manager for 30-plus years.

Clark plays Jim Forster, an American running an illegal gambling houses in England. The story is told in flashback - when the film begins, we see Forster being hit by a car.

Forster, a little rough around the edges, is a social climber, and in fact is taking lessons in social niceties so he can rub elbows with the mucky-mucks. He is dating a dancer at his club, Pat (Byron), who seems to want to get more serious than Forster. One night, she loses her temper at him and he walks out and won't have anything to do with her again.

At his club, he meets Lady Willens (Chance), and though her brother (Forwood) who bounced a check at Forster's club is against him, she starts to see him. Pat becomes jealous and attempts to warn her off.

That's on the personal end. On the professional end, some thug-types want to take over his clubs. When Lady Willens' father talks about a mining deal that promises to be lucrative, Forster thinks he's found a way into the social strata and out of illegal gambling.

Dane Clark had a very prolific 45-year career which, once the '50s hit, was mostly in television. He started out in films as an ersatz John Garfield but never hit those heights. He is well cast in this. Naomi Chance was effective and beautiful as the society woman; she did a lot of this type of movie during her career. The patrician-looking Kathleen Byron (who appeared in "Saving Private Ryan") made a good shrew. Interestingly, all of the lead actors had long, very active careers.

Hammer Films are low budget, yes, but they usually are atmospheric, as this one was, and entertaining. They attempted to copy the American films done by, say, RKO in the '40s, and while not entirely successful, you may enjoy this one.