The Narcotics Story (1958)

Semi-documentary on how marijuana dealers lure small-town teenagers into heroin use and prostitution and how the police help to fight it.

Director:

Robert W. Larsen

Writer:

Roger Emerson Garris

Stars:

Art Gilmore, Herbert Crisp, Joe Delro

Cast

Credited cast:
Art Gilmore	...	Narrator (voice)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Herbert Crisp
Joe Delro	...	(as Officer Joe Delro)
Darlene Hendricks
Bob Hopkins
Douglas Kester	...	(as Officer Douglas Kester)
Patricia Lynn
Fred Marratto
John Murphy	...	(as Sgt. John Murphy)
Allen Pitt
Sharon Strand
Nan Terry	...	Policewoman (as Officer Nan Terry)

Storyline

This police training film uses dramatizations of real life events to demonstrate the battle law enforcement faces with narcotics, most specifically barbiturates - also known as "goof balls" - and marijuana - also know as "tea". It shows how to identify certain narcotics, identify the signs that someone is using, identify the signs of where drug deals take place, identify the signs of use in a secluded public place, and apprehend the users in these public settings. As it follows one young woman neglected by her parents, the film also shows the underlying causes of narcotics use, with these underlying causes often the forgotten issue as everyone tends to deal with the symptoms.

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Plot Keywords:

police | heroin | drugs | cannabis

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Taglines:

This is a Fix! Startling! Shocking!

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

26 February 1958 (USA)

Also Known As:

Goofballs and Tea

Company Credits

Production Co:

Police Science Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

75 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Did You Know?

Trivia

Originally made as a police training film, and subsequently released to the public.

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Crazy Credits

The title screen reads, "NARCOTICS - Part I - GOOF BALLS AND TEA" (No sequel is known to exist.)

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Connections

Edited into Dusk to Dawn Drive-In Trash-o-Rama Show Vol. 9 (2002)

User Reviews

comical, but informative

Though this was made about 30 years after Reefer Madness, it is similar. It was good that it discussed the importance of underlying causes, like family stress, that can lead young people to use drugs. I don't know why anyone would say that it has to do with heroin, as there is nothing here about that drug. Very detailed instructions about how to clean marijuana, and how to roll the perfect joint. It was almost as though you were being taught how to do this as well as possible, which was odd. Though I am not recommending marijuana use, there was some overkill, i.e., we are told that when someone gets high on marijuana, they will deliberately injure or wound themselves and find that amusing. This is untrue and ridiculous, I've never even heard that in other anti-drug information. The info about barbiturates, especially mixed with alcohol, was sobering, and not funny, even after all this time. Yes the film is not high-quality, and could be dull, but unless I'm thinking of the wrong film, it's only 15 minutes long, so no big deal, and it was worth it for a few laughs.