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"American Playhouse" The Killing Floor (1985)
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Overview
User Rating:
TV Series:
"American Playhouse" (1982)Original Air Date:
January 1985Plot:
During World War I, a poor black Southerner travels north to Chicago to get work in the city's slaughterhouses... more | add synopsisAwards:
1 win & 1 nomination moreUser Comments:
Useful for those studying the black migration during WWI, the race riots in Chicago and the labor movement moreCast
(Episode Credited cast) | Cynthia Baker | ... | Emma |
 | Dennis Farina | ... | Supervisor |
 | Clarence Felder | ... | Bremer |
| Moses Gunn | ... | Heavy Williams |
| Richard Lavin | ||
 | Damien Leake | ... | Frank Custer |
| Ted Levine | ... | Policeman |
| Robert Minkoff | ... | Extra |
| Ernest Rayford | ... | Thomas Joshua |
| Miklos Simon | ... | Michora |
 | James Vallo | ... | Army Man |
 | Alfre Woodard | ... | Mattie |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parentsRuntime:
USA:118 minCountry:
USALanguage:
EnglishColor:
ColorAspect Ratio:
1.33 : 1 moreSound Mix:
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Summary: Black workers from the South migrate North during WWI to look for jobs left vacant by people going off to war. They were often relegated to the most undesirable jobs and faced some prejudice. Some of them join the local labor unions and find themselves being paid substantially more than they would have if they had stayed in the South. After the war ends, the labor union loses influence as there are men who want their jobs back that these workers filled. We see employers using race to try to break up the union and there are accurate depictions of the Chicago race riots that occurred in 1919. There were massive strikewaves after WWI when many workers were laid off or had their wages cut. This film is useful to anyone interested in the labor movement.