Fury Unleashed (1958)
"Hot Rod Gang" (original title)

Kid who wants to enter his car in the drag races joins a rock band to make enough money to do it.

Director:

Lew Landers

Writer:

Lou Rusoff (story)

Stars:

John Ashley, Jody Fair, Steve Drexel

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
John Ashley	...	John Abernathy III
Jody Fair	...	Lois Cavendish
Steve Drexel	...	Mark (gang leader)
Scott Peters	...	Jack (Mark's henchman)
Helen Spring	...	Abigail Abernathy
Lester Dorr	...	Dryden Philpott
Doodles Weaver	...	Wesley Cavendish
Dub Taylor	...	Al Berrywhiff
Gloria Grant	...	Tammy
Maureen Arthur	...	Marley
Dorothy Neumann	...	Anastasia Abernathy (as Dorothy Newman)
Russ Bender	...	Motorcycle cop
Claire Du Brey	...	Agatha - The Maid (as Claire Dubray)
Henry McCann	...	Dave
Robert Whiteside	...	Jimmy (blond guy)

Storyline

Kid who wants to enter his car in the drag races joins a rock band to make enough money to do it.

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Plot Keywords:

hot rod

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Taglines:

Proud young rebels!

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Genres:

Drama | Music

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

June 1958 (USA)

Also Known As:

Fury Unleashed

Company Credits

Production Co:

Indio Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

72 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Did You Know?

Connections

Referenced in British Men Behaving Badly: Rent Boy (1992)

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Soundtracks

"Hit and Run Lover"
Performed by John Ashley

User Reviews

Fast Cars and Music

Hot Rod Gang (1958)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Fun teen stuff from AIP has John Ashley playing John Abernathy III, a cool teen who drives a fast car and even manages to get the pretty new girl (Jody Fair) in town. However, trouble happens when his gang of friends are about to be thrown out of the place they hang out so they decide to use their band to make some money and they also get some help from Gene Vincent. If you're looking for a film that will change your life or change your views on certain topics then HOT ROD GANG certainly isn't for you. If you're just wanting some cheap fun from the 1950s drive-in craze then this film offers up a pretty good time. I thought the story was actually one good enough to where you could get wrapped up in what was going on. Yes, it's pretty far-fetched and you could argue that it was silly but in a teenage guys life is there anything more important than a girl, a car and a place to hang out? I thought director Lew Landers (THE RAVEN) did a very good job at keeping the film running at a nice pace and he also added in some nice touches with the supporting characters. I really liked how eccentric, weird and rather silly all of the adults were. This is something that happened in most of these films but here it's done in a way that was pretty funny to watch and especially the two aunts. The performances really weren't all that bad with Ashley once again playing the type he's best remembered for and he even gets to sing a couple songs. Fair made for a good love interest even though she wasn't all that energetic. Future Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Gene Vincent gets to do a few tunes including his final hit Dance to the Bop. Again, HOT ROD GANG isn't going to change your life but it's fast and fun entertainment.