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Storm Center (1956)A small-town librarian is branded as a Communist by local politicians when she refuses to withdraw a controversial book from the library's shelves. Director:Daniel Taradash |
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Title: Storm Center (1956)
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Cast
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| Bette Davis | ... |
Alicia Hull
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| Brian Keith | ... |
Paul Duncan
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| Kim Hunter | ... |
Martha Lockridge
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Paul Kelly | ... |
Judge Robert Ellerbe
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| Joe Mantell | ... |
George Slater
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Kevin Coughlin | ... |
Freddie Slater
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Sally Brophy | ... |
Laura Slater
(as Sallie Brophie)
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Howard Wierum | ... |
Mayor Levering
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Curtis Cooksey | ... |
Stacey Martin
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Michael Raffetto | ... |
Edgar Greenbaum
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Joseph Kearns | ... |
Mr. Morrisey
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| Edward Platt | ... |
Rev. Wilson
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| Kathryn Grant | ... |
Hazel Levering
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Howard Wendell | ... |
Sen. Bascomb
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Plot Summary
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Storyline
A small-town librarian is branded as a Communist by local politicians when she refuses to withdraw a controversial book from the library's shelves. Written by Daniel Bubbeo <dbubbeo@cmp.com>
Taglines:
Who really set the town aflame?... See more »Genres:
DramaParents Guide:
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Details
Country:
USALanguage:
EnglishRelease Date:
31 July 1956 (USA) See more »Also Known As:
The Library See more »Filming Locations:
Santa Rosa, California, USACompany Credits
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Technical Specs
Runtime:
Sound Mix:
Mono (RCA Sound Recording)Color:
Black and WhiteAspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1
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(uncredited)
Lyrics by Elick Moll
Music by Morris Stoloff
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Did You Know?
Trivia
Mary Pickford was originally slated to make her comeback with this film but later dropped out of the project. See more »Soundtracks
"Hymn to Our Library"(uncredited)
Lyrics by Elick Moll
Music by Morris Stoloff
See more »
I guess I'll have to be the outlier here and state that "Storm Center" is an overdone B movie starring Bette Davis. The premise is excellent -a librarian, Mrs. Hull (Davis) refuses to remove a book about Communism from the library. An ambitious politician, played by Brian Keith, discovers that Mrs. Hull joined a few organizations during the war that were Communist fronts. The fact that she quit them when she realized this doesn't make much of an impression on him. She ends up losing her job and being branded a Communist.
There isn't any doubt that a Communist was about the worst thing you could be called or suspected of being in the '50s, and the film makes an excellent point about the damage gossip and innuendo can do, and how people used the accusations as a soap box for their own means. The main problem I had with the film was the 9-year-old boy (Kevin Coughlin) who was close to Mrs. Hull and turns on her once his idiot father badmouths her. I'm sorry, but are we supposed to believe this kid is normal, and his reactions are because he thinks this woman is a Communist? The kid is another Unibomber in the making - a deeply disturbed child. I just can't blame it on Communist rumors.
Davis gives a good, if mannered performance, and is very effective when she talks about how she could have stood anything but the children turning away from her. "Storm Center" has a good message even today, but I could have done without the psycho kid.