Smoke Signal (1955)

Capt. Harper's cavalry patrol returns to the fort to find it besieged by Ute Indians. The apparent cause is the recapture of Army traitor Brett Halliday, who deserted to the Utes in a ... See full summary »

Director:

Jerry Hopper

Writers:

George F. Slavin (story), George W. George (story)

Stars:

Dana Andrews, Piper Laurie, Rex Reason

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Dana Andrews	...	Brett Halliday
Piper Laurie	...	Laura Evans
Rex Reason	...	Lt. Wayne Ford
William Talman	...	Capt. Harper
Milburn Stone	...	Sgt. Miles
Douglas Spencer	...	Garode
Gordon Jones	...	Cpl. Rogers
William Schallert	...	Pvt. Livingston
Robert J. Wilke	...	1st Sgt. Daly (as Robert Wilke)
William Phipps	...	Pvt. Porter (as Bill Phipps)
Pat Hogan	...	Delche
Peter Coe	...	Ute Prisoner

Storyline

Capt. Harper's cavalry patrol returns to the fort to find it besieged by Ute Indians. The apparent cause is the recapture of Army traitor Brett Halliday, who deserted to the Utes in a previous war; but Brett has a different story. With capture imminent, the only chance for the surviving men (and one woman) is to boat down a wild, uncharted river, where Harper and Halliday must pull together, like it or not.

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Plot Keywords:

river | daughter | new mexico | colorado river | prisoner | 

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Taglines:

Spectacularly photographed midst never-before dangers of the Colorado River Rapids! (original poster)

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Genres:

Action | Drama | Western

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

March 1955 (USA)

Also Known As:

Rauchsignale

Filming Locations:

Big Bend of the Colorado River, Colorado River, Utah, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal International Pictures (UI)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

According to an AP report from May, 1954, Piper Laurie was a replacement for original leading lady, Allison Hayes. No reason was given for the change, but Hayes left Universal-International about the same time.

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Goofs

Just before the two boats are put back in the river, the Indians attack and a trooper is killed. The dead soldier flinches two times during the rest of the battle.

User Reviews

Utes and Sioux team up to take on the U.S. Army

Huge war party is about to attack an Army outpost against an outnumbered military unit. To survive, the soldiers must take to a dangerous river flowing through canyon country, harassed by the savages all the way. Their troubles were compounded by internal strife created by a prisoner the Army was taking with them. Good action yarn filmed in the Grand Canyon.