IMDb > Harlan County U.S.A. (1976)

Harlan County U.S.A. (1976) More at IMDbPro »

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Overview

User Rating:
8.4/10   1,424 votes
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Up 1% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
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View company contact information for Harlan County U.S.A. on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
28 September 1977 (France) more
Genre:
Plot:
A filmed account of a bitterly violent miner strike. full summary | add synopsis
Awards:
Won Oscar. Another 2 wins more
NewsDesk:
Ten greatest Films about America
 (From SoundOnSight. 4 July 2009, 6:48 PM, PDT)

User Comments:
unique and enlightening documentary chronicles labor strike more (24 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)
Norman Yarborough ... Himself - Eastover Mining President
Houston Elmore ... Himself - UMW organizer
Phil Sparks ... Himself - UMW staff
John Corcoran ... Himself - Consolidated Coal President
John O'Leary ... Himself - former Bureau of Mines director
Donald Rasmussen ... Himself - Blackwing Clinic, WV (as Dr. Donald Rasmussen)
Hawley Wells Jr. ... Himself (as Dr. Hawley Wells Jr.)
Tom Williams ... Himself - Boyle campaigner
Chip Yablonski ... Himself
Ken Yablonski ... Himself
Logan Patterson ... Himself - negotiator
Harry Patrick ... Himself - UMW secretary-treasurer
Mike Trbovich ... Himself - UMW VP
Bernie Aronson ... Himself - UMW staff
Guy Farmer ... Himself - BCPA General Counsel
more

Additional Details

Runtime:
103 min
Country:
Language:
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Sound Mix:
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Filming Locations:
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Fun Stuff

Trivia:
When filming began, the film was intended to be about the 1972 campaign by Arnold Miller and Miners For Democracy to unseat UMWA president Tony Boyle, in the aftermath of Joseph Yablonski's murder; but the Harlan County strike began and caused the filmmakers to change their principal subject, with the campaign and murder becoming secondary subjects. more
Movie Connections:
Soundtrack:
They Can Never Keep Us Down more

FAQ

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9 out of 9 people found the following comment useful.
unique and enlightening documentary chronicles labor strike, 16 June 1999
9/10
Author: Catbutt from Chicago

This movie is a must-see for fans of socially active documentary film, or for those interested in the American labor movement.

It sometimes loses momentum as it documents the details of a particular labor strike in a mining town in rural Kentucky; yet that particular strike yields many memorable moments, including flashes of violence and revelatory dialogue. The company men are deliciously slick and slimy, and their goons are so ornery, that it's easy to forget that these people are real!

Where this film is at its best is where it uses historical footage and traditional labor songs to tie the strike to the larger past, and also where it explores other details of these people's lives -health issues, living conditions- that aren't specific to the strike. In this sense, the film becomes an important historical document of its own accord; unique, compelling, and enlightening to future generations.

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harlan county USA on cd galvatron44
harlan county USA is on DVD galvatron44
I'm from Harlan Co. Ky Nymesis
Where did the profits go? orangutangerine
Govt. Regulations acesfull-2
Oh, and why no Dvd either? WillieKilligan
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