The Phenix City Story (1955)

User Rating:

7.5/10   

Director:

Phil Karlson

Writers:

Daniel Mainwaring (writer)
Crane Wilbur (writer)

Release Date:

14 August 1955 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Film-Noir

Tagline:

ALABAMA'S CITY OF SIN AND SHAME! (original print ad - all caps)

Plot:

In this semidocumentary, an Alabama town is run by a crime syndicate that's grown fat on prostitution and crooked gambling...

Plot Keywords:

Gambling | Alabama | Lawyer | State Attorney General | Campaign

Cast

John McIntire	...	Albert Patterson
Richard Kiley	...	John Patterson
Kathryn Grant	...	Ellie Rhodes
Edward Andrews	...	Rhett Tanner
Lenka Peterson	...	Mary Jo Patterson
Biff McGuire	...	Fred Gage
Truman Smith	...	Ed Gage
Jean Carson	...	Cassie
Meg Myles	...	Judy
Kathy Marlowe	...	Mamie (as Katherine Marlowe)
John Larch	...	Clem Wilson
Allen Nourse	...	Jeb Bassett
James Edwards	...	Zeke Ward
Helen Martin	...	Helen Ward
Otto Hulett	...	Hugh Bentley

Runtime:

100 min | USA:87 min (without prologue)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:(Banned) (1956) | Finland:K-18 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Phenix City, Alabama, USA

Company:

Allied Artists Pictures

Trivia:

The film was in production so quickly, some of the criminals it was portraying where standing trial while filming was taking place.

Movie Connections:

Featured in A Personal Journey with Martin Scorsese Through American Movies (1995) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Phenix City Blues

Non-Fiction Film

I have seen this film quite a few times during my lifetime. It has been on television in the past. In the 1980's it was aired on an independent UHF television station in Tampa Bay, Florida, and my father taped it, so we were able to watch it at will. Additionally, I found a copy of it on-line. If you go to a search engine you will be able to find it as I did. The copy I have is a copy of a copy, so the quality is not perfect. The person I got it from said that it came from a Canadian distributor, and was not available anymore. Additionally, my wife is in a documentary film program at the University of Florida and is in the process of making a documentary about Phenix City, (which should be completed by summer 2002). During the course of preparing for this, I have spent some time in trying to find out if the film is in public domain or not. I am currently waiting to hear back from Warner Brothers as they may well own the current copyright on the film. (In January of 2001 the University of Alabama also did a documentary on Phenix City and used some of the footage from the film. A copy of their production is available from them.) I should note here why I am so interested in this film. My family used to own the Columbus (GA) Ledger-Enquirer newspapers which is mentioned in "The Phenix City Story." The paper won a Pulitzer Prize for its coverage of the story. My own grandfather was threatened with his life due to the paper's stories. I would like to see the film released on video and hope one day it will. We are coming up on the 50th anniversary of the main incidents that are shown in the film. Maybe that would be a good time to release the film again. Also, I am a motion picture still photographer, and have a listing on this website under my nickname, Gene Page.