Hot Rod Girl (1956)

After his kid brother is killed in a street race, a champion drag-racer quits racing. However, a new kid comes to town determined to force him back into racing so he can take his title--and he's already taken his girlfriend.

Director:

Leslie H. Martinson

Writer:

John McGreevey (original story and screenplay) (as John McGreevy)

Stars:

Lori Nelson, Chuck Connors, John Smith

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Lori Nelson	...	Lisa Vernon
Chuck Connors	...	Det. Ben Merrill
John Smith	...	Jeff Northrup
Mark Andrews	...	Bronc Talbott
Roxanne Arlen	...	L.P.
Frank Gorshin	...	Flat Top
Fred Essler	...	Yo-Yo
Eddie Ryder	...	Two Tanks
Carolyn Kearney	...	Judy
Del Erickson	...	Steve Northrup
Russell Thorson	...	Detective Captain (as Russ Thorson)
Dabbs Greer	...	Henry Frye

Storyline

When his younger brother, Steve, is killed racing a hot-rod, Jeff Northup blames himself for the accident since he had built the car for his brother and had encouraged him to race it, with other boys on a special course provided by police detective Ben Merrill, who is working to reduce the city's hot-rod fatalities by providing supervision for the dangerous hobby. Jeff withdraws from participating in races on Merrill's course and, without his leadership, revert to racing on the streets. "Bronc" Talbott, a newcomers, makes a play for Jeff's girlfriend, Lisa Vernon. Eventually, the taunting-Talbott forces Jeff into a race which results in the death of a bicycling child, and evidence seems to indicate Jeff was at fault.

---

Plot Keywords:

psychotronic film | camp | teensploitation film | teensploitation | hot rod | 

---

Taglines:

Chicken Race...Rock 'N Roll...Youth on the loose!

---

Genres:

Action | Drama | Romance

---

Certificate:

Approved

Did You Know?

Trivia

The 1955 Thunderbird that Lori Nelson drives was actually her own car. The script called for her to drive a sports car but there wasn't enough money in the budget to rent one, so she offered to drive her own car, which the company gratefully accepted.

---

Goofs

Jeff is inspecting Bronc's car he lifts up the hood. In the next shot it is down, although Jeff never pushed it back down.

---

Quotes

Flat Top: We think and we don't say it, L.P. You say it and don't think.

---

Crazy Credits

The first word in Nacirema Productions is "American" backwards.

---

Connections

Referenced in Death Scenes 2 (1992)

User Reviews

Found it boring

I bought this movie on DVD.I am a Baby Boomer and a hot rod enthusiast.Although I liked the vintage drag strip shots I wanted to see more of the cars,especially under the hoods.I found the dialog campy even by 1956 standards.The "Hot Rod Girl" character contributed almost nothing to the movie,and I found myself asking why the movie even had her as part of the title.I also noticed they didn't even actually wreck a real car any where in the movie.One of the race scenes was "up hill" in the mountains and the cars looked as if they were doing about 20 m.p.h. I was disappointed but seeing the old cars was one redeeming quality of this movie.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

July 1956 (USA)

Also Known As:

Hot Rod Girl

Filming Locations:

San Fernando, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Nacirema Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

79 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1