Underworld U.S.A. (1961)

Director:

Samuel Fuller

Writer:

Samuel Fuller (written by)
(more)

Release Date:

13 May 1961 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

A Sensational Film That Puts the Finger On Today's Biggest Business... Crime!

Plot:

Fourteen-year-old Tolly Devlin sees four hoods beat his father to death. Twenty years later, the killers...

Plot Keywords:

Syndicate | Revenge | Death | Pistol | Numbers Collector

Cast

Cliff Robertson	...	Tolly Devlin
Dolores Dorn	...	Cuddles
Beatrice Kay	...	Sandy
Paul Dubov	...	Gela
Robert Emhardt	...	Earl Connors
Larry Gates	...	John Driscoll
Richard Rust	...	Gus Cottahee
Gerald Milton	...	Gunther
Allan Gruener	...	Smith
David Kent	...	Tolly - Aged 14
Tina Pine	...	Woman (as Tina Rome)
Sally Mills	...	Connie Fowler
Robert P. Lieb	...	Officer
Neyle Morrow	...	Barney
Henry Norell	...	Prison Dr. Meredeth
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Alan Aaronson	...	Boy (uncredited)
James Bacon	...	Newspaperman (uncredited)
Peter Brocco	...	Vic Farrar (uncredited)
Donald Douglas	...	Man (uncredited)
David Fresco	...	Convict (uncredited)
Samuel Fuller	...	Himself - Trailer Host (uncredited)
Donald Gamble	...	Boy (uncredited)
Bernie Hamilton	...	Investigator (uncredited)
Bob Hopkins	...	Drunk (uncredited)
Tom London	...	Drunk (uncredited)
Jerry Mann	...	Cashier (uncredited)
Joni Beth Morris	...	Jenny Menkin (uncredited)
Rickie Sorensen	...	Harry (uncredited)
Charles Sterrett	...	Investigator (uncredited)
Audrey Swanson	...	Mrs. Menkin (uncredited)

Directed by
Samuel Fuller

Writing credits
Samuel Fuller		(written by)
Joseph Dineen		Saturday Evening Post articles (uncredited)

Produced by
Samuel Fuller	....	producer

Original Music by
Harry Sukman

Cinematography by
Hal Mohr		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Jerome Thoms

Art Direction by
Robert Peterson

Set Decoration by
William F. Calvert		(as Bill Calvert)

Costume Design by
Bernice Pontrelli

Makeup Department
Helen Hunt	....	hair stylist
Ben Lane	....	makeup supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Floyd Joyer	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Charles J. Rice	....	recording supervisor
J.S. Westmoreland	....	sound (as Josh Westmoreland)

Music Department
Jack Hayes	....	orchestrator
Leo Shuken	....	orchestrator

Production Companies

• Globe Enterprises

Distributors

• Columbia Pictures (1961) (USA) (theatrical)
• Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (1967) (USA) (TV) (original airing)
• RCA/Columbia Pictures Home Video (1988) (USA) (VHS)
• Sony Video (1999) (USA) (VHS)
• Columbia Films (1961) (Belgium) (theatrical)
• Kommanditbolaget Mårten Kihlman Ky & Co (1974) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (2009) (USA) (DVD) (Sam Fuller Collection)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

99 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Finland:K-18 | West Germany:18 | Netherlands:18 (orginal rating)

Company:

Globe Enterprises

Trivia:

Hanging on the wall in Driscoll's office is a certificate bearing the symbol of the U.S. Army's First Infantry Division - the unit that Samuel Fuller served in during World War II and depicted in his 1980 film, The Big Red One (1980). The same typestyle for the infantry's numeral "1" is also featured in a reading-campaign poster in front of National Accounts, the gangster headquarters building.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "TCM Underground: Machine Gun McCain/Underworld U.S.A. (#1.43)" (2008)

The Count Of The Underworld

Anyone who doesn't realize that Sam Fuller used The Count Of Monte Cristo as his inspiration for Underworld USA has not read too much classical literature. Or seen any of the film adaptations of same. Nevertheless the imprint of Alexander Dumas's classic French novel is unmistakable.

Young David Kent suffers the loss of his father who was beaten to death at the hands of four thugs. Later on he takes up a life of crime and goes to jail. By now he's an adult and played by Cliff Robertson. One of the four thugs who murdered dad is dying in the prison hospital and confesses and names to Robertson his accomplices.

After that Robertson works as methodically as Edmond Dantes now the Count Of Monte Cristo working his way into the confidences of the mob bosses who were back in the day the same thugs who killed his old man. He makes a lot of alliances of convenience, one being a hooker played by Dolores Dorn, another being a special federal prosecutor played by Larry Gates.

Robertson is fine as the old style kind of hoodlum that would have found a home in the Warner Brothers gangster flicks of the Thirties. However for my book Dolores Dorn got her career role in Underworld USA. She registers as both tough and fragile at the same time and she does bring out the humanity in Robertson.

As for how it ends, don't think of The Count Of Monte Crist, rather if you've seen the great James Cagney/Humphrey Bogart film The Roaring Twenties than you know how Underworld USA ends.

Sam Fuller did a great job with his cast and Underworld USA is a classic noir/gangster thriller not to be missed.