Big Jim McLain (1952)
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- Approved
- 1h 30min
- Crime, Drama
- 30 Aug 1952 (USA)
- Movie
Photos and Videos
Cast verified as complete
John Wayne | ... |
Jim McLain
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Nancy Olson | ... |
Nancy Vallon
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James Arness | ... |
Mal Baxter
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Alan Napier | ... |
Sturak
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Veda Ann Borg | ... |
Madge
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Hans Conried | ... |
Robert Henried
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Hal Baylor | ... |
Poke
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Gayne Whitman | ... |
Dr. Gelster
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Gordon Jones | ... |
Olaf
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Robert Keys | ... |
Edwin White
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John Hubbard | ... |
Lt. Cmdr. Clint Grey
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Soo Yong | ... |
Mrs. Namaka
(as Madame Soo Yong)
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Dan Liu | ... |
Dan Liu
(as Honolulu Chief Of Police Dan Liu)
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Vernon 'Red' McQueen | ... |
Phil Briggs
(as Red McQueen)
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Rest of cast listed alphabetically: | |||
Leon Alton | ... |
Reporter (uncredited)
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Charles Baptiste | ... |
Minor Role (uncredited)
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Lulu Mae Bohrman | ... |
Nightclub Patron (uncredited)
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Peter Brocco | ... |
Dr. Carter (uncredited)
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Rennie Brooks | ... |
Minor Role (uncredited)
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Steve Carruthers | ... |
Nightclub Patron (uncredited)
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Spencer Chan | ... |
Nightclub Patron (uncredited)
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Beulah Christian | ... |
Nightclub Patron (uncredited)
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Franklyn Farnum | ... |
Nightclub Patron (uncredited)
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Robert Fellows | ... |
Soldier Boarding Ship (uncredited)
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Paul Fix | ... |
Chauncey (uncredited) (voice)
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Bess Flowers | ... |
Nightclub Patron (uncredited)
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Lloyd Ford | ... |
Bouncer (uncredited)
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William Forrest | ... |
J.E. Lowry (uncredited)
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Akira Fukunaga | ... |
Minor Role (uncredited)
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Kenneth Gibson | ... |
Nightclub Patron (uncredited)
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Joe Gilbert | ... |
Nightclub Patron (uncredited)
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Herschel Graham | ... |
Nightclub Patron (uncredited)
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Sam Harris | ... |
Nightclub Patron (uncredited)
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Douglas Henderson | ... |
J.J. Donahue (uncredited)
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Ralph Honda | ... |
Minor Role (uncredited)
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Paul Hurst | ... |
Mr. Lexiter (uncredited)
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Kinai Ikuma | ... |
Reverend Ito (uncredited)
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Kenner G. Kemp | ... |
Night Club Patron (uncredited)
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Paul King | ... |
Nightclub Patron (uncredited)
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Edwin Layton | ... |
Edwin Layton (uncredited)
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Harry Morgan | ... |
Narrator (uncredited) (voice)
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Sarah Padden | ... |
Mrs. Lexiter (uncredited)
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Suzanne Ridgway | ... |
Nightclub Patron (uncredited)
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Jeffrey Sayre | ... |
Nightclub Patron (uncredited)
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Kinko 'Lucky' Simunovich | ... |
Muscle Man (uncredited)
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Norman Stevans | ... |
Reporter (uncredited)
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Bert Stevens | ... |
Nightclub Patron (uncredited)
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Joel Trapido | ... |
Minor Role (uncredited)
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Harry Tyler | ... |
Waiter (uncredited)
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Peter Whitney | ... |
Communist Truck Driver (uncredited)
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Jay Wilsey | ... |
Mr. Whalen (uncredited)
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Florence Wix | ... |
Nightclub Patron (uncredited)
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Directed by
Edward Ludwig |
Written by
Stephen Vincent Benet | ... | (quotes from "The Devil And Dan'l Webster") |
James Edward Grant | ... | (written by) & |
Richard English | ... | (written by) & |
Eric Taylor | ... | (written by) |
Richard English | ... | (short story) (uncredited) |
James Atlee Phillips | ... | () (uncredited) |
William Wheeler | ... | (story) (uncredited) |
Produced by
Robert Fellows | ... | producer |
John Wayne | ... | producer (uncredited) |
Music by
Paul Dunlap | ||
Arthur Lange | ||
Emil Newman | ||
Hugo Friedhofer | ... | (uncredited) |
Robert Wiley Miller | ... | (uncredited) |
Cinematography by
Archie Stout | ... | director of photography |
Editing by
Jack Murray |
Art Direction by
Alfred Ybarra | ... | (as Al Ybarra) |
Set Decoration by
Charles S. Thompson | ... | (as Charles Thompson) |
Makeup Department
Web Overlander | ... | makeup artist |
Fae M. Smith | ... | hair stylist (as Fae Smith) |
Production Management
Nate H. Edwards | ... | production manager |
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Andrew V. McLaglen | ... | assistant director (as Andrew McLaglen) |
Art Department
Hans Otto Wendt | ... | poster artist : West Germany (uncredited) |
Sound Department
T.A. Carman | ... | sound (as Tom Carmen) |
Tani Marsh | ... | foley artist (uncredited) |
Costume and Wardrobe Department
Neva Bourne | ... | wardrobe (as Geneva Bourne) |
Music Department
Emil Newman | ... | musical director (uncredited) |
Max Steiner | ... | composer: stock music (uncredited) |
Additional Crew
Al Murphy | ... | production assistant (uncredited) |
Production Companies
Distributors
- Warner Bros. (1952) (United States) (theatrical)
- Warner Bros. (1952) (United Kingdom) (theatrical)
- Warner Bros. (1953) (Sweden) (theatrical)
- Warner Bros. (1953) (West Germany) (theatrical)
- Warner Bros. (1955) (Norway) (theatrical)
- Warner Home Video (2007) (United States) (DVD)
- BBC Two (2017) (United Kingdom) (tv)
Special Effects
Other Companies
- Committee on Un-American Activities, House of Representatives, Congress of the United States (the incidents in this motion picture are based on the files of - names and places have been changed)
- Committee on Un-American Activities, House of Representatives, Congress of the United States (we gratefully acknowledge the cooperation of this Committee)
- International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) (this picture made under the jurisdiction of: affiliated with A. F. of L.)
- RCA (sound system)
Storyline
Plot Summary |
The House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) works on the premise that anyone who has been a member of the Communist Party since the end of the war in 1945 is committing high treason, the Committee stymied by most brought before them pleading the Fifth Amendment. This does not sit well with partnered HUAC investigators Jim McLain and Mal Baxter. The latter often lets his emotions get the better of him, from having fought against the Communists in the war. Their next assignment sends them to Honolulu to follow-up on the last investigative team sent there. There, they end up getting help from both the Honolulu Police Department's Chief Dan Liu, and from former Communist Max Veneby. Some of their time is spent looking for a man named Willie Namaka, who they are told may be able to name names. What they are initially unaware of is that the other side is also looking for him to neutralize him in he being a liability. In the process, Jim falls for war widow Nancy Vallon, the assistant to Dr. Gelster, Namaka's doctor, a Communist who was tasked to kill Namaka if he is found. While Jim eventually comes clean to Nancy about who he is and what he is doing in Honolulu, Nancy in return does whatever she can to help him in her connection to Gelster being solely a paycheck. They will discover just how dangerous the issue of Namaka is. Written by Huggo |
Plot Keywords | |
Taglines | He's a Go-Get-'Em Guy for the U.S.A. on a Treason Trail that leads Half-a-World Away! See more » |
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Parents Guide | Add content advisory for parents » |
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Box Office
Budget | $826,000 (estimated) |
Did You Know?
Trivia | Nancy Olson hated the script, but figured six weeks in Hawaii and a chance to work with an icon like John Wayne seemed like a good enough reason to accept. Besides, she thought the film would flop and nobody would see it. She was right, to a degree: it wasn't one of Wayne's more successful pictures, but she didn't count on the constant television exposure it has had, and says people stop her all the time to say they've seen her in the film. Olson, a staunch liberal Democrat, said she and Wayne would often have political arguments, but she would always let him have the last word. See more » |
Goofs | Jim states that the USS Arizona "is still carried on Navy lists as a fighting ship of the line." The Arizona was actually officially struck from the Navy Vessel Register in December 1942. See more » |
Movie Connections | Featured in The John Wayne Anthology (1991). See more » |
Soundtracks | Yankee Doodle See more » |
Crazy Credits | Closing credits epilogue: The Incidents in this motion picture are based on the files of the Committee on Un-American Activities, House of Representatives, Congress of the United States. Names and places have been changed. We gratefully acknowledge the cooperation of this Committee. See more » |
Quotes |
Jim McLain:
Lot of wonderful things written into our constitution that were meant for honest decent citizens. I resent the fact that it can be used and abused by the very people who want to destroy it. See more » |