The FBI Story (1959)

A dedicated FBI agent recalls the agency's battles against the Klan, organized crime and Communist spies.

Director:

Mervyn LeRoy

Writers:

Richard L. Breen (screenplay), John Twist (screenplay)

Stars:

James Stewart, Vera Miles, Murray Hamilton

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
James Stewart	...	John Michael 'Chip' Hardesty
Vera Miles	...	Lucy Ann Hardesty
Murray Hamilton	...	Sam Crandall
Larry Pennell	...	George Crandall
Nick Adams	...	John Gilbert 'Jack' Graham
Diane Jergens	...	Jennie Hardesty
Jean Willes	...	Anna Sage
Joyce Taylor	...	Anne Hardesty
Victor Millan	...	Mario
Parley Baer	...	Harry Dakins
Fay Roope	...	Dwight McCutcheon
Ed Prentiss	...	U.S. Marshal
Robert Gist	...	Medicine Salesman
Buzz Martin	...	Mike Hardesty
Ken Mayer	...	Casket Salesman (as Kenneth Mayer)

Storyline

The story of the FBI unfolds through the eyes of one of its agents. During his career he investigates gangsters, swindlers, the klu klux klan, Nazi agents and cold war spies.

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Plot Keywords:

ku klux klan | native american | fbi agent | terrorism | based on book | 

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Taglines:

Greatest crimefighters of the nation - on their most exciting assignments - from Chicago's underworld to jungle ambush in South America. Filmed on location to capture each thrilling aspect of it's best-selling story!

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | History | Thriller

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Certificate:

Approved

Did You Know?

Trivia

After the shooting of the movie, Jimmy Stewart went to Europe with his wife for a vacation tour, and Edgard Hoover provided him two agents to take care of him. But Jimmy Stewart could spot the G men and told them he could take care of himself. The agents then replied that they stayed around him only to catch a jewel thief. It happened to be true. Jimmy Stewart was the witness of the thief arrest.

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Goofs

The film showed two men doing the Kansas City Massacre, with Frank Nash dying first as he was in the front passenger seat. The lead shooter is Pretty Boy Floyd. In reality, Floyd's involvement was never proven. However, at the time the film was made, the reality was that Vernon Miller was the primary shooter, along with Adam Richetti and a third man, thought to be Floyd. Miller immediately killed two Kansas City patrol officers, wounded FBI agent Smith and gunned down FBI agent Caffrey. The shooters then killed Nash and Oklahoma police chief Otto Reed. Both KC officers and Caffrey were killed outside of the car, while Nash and Reed were killed inside the vehicle. Three FBI agents who were wounded were all outside the vehicle.

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Quotes

John Michael 'Chip' Hardesty: Send all units to Yankee Stadium. Cover the exits.

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Connections

Followed by The F.B.I. Story: The FBI Versus Alvin Karpis, Public Enemy Number One (1974)

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Soundtracks

Comin' thro' the Rye
(uncredited)
Traditional

User Reviews

Riveting Back In '59; Not Much Now

When I was a very young teen, I saw this in the theater and was just awed. The different segments were very dramatic and stayed with me for decades.

So after a long, long absence, seeing this again in the late '90s turned out to be a major disappointment. As a kid, this movie was exciting, but it sure isn't now. It's two-and-a-half hours long and moves pretty well but too much time is spent on the marriage of Jimmy Stewart-Vera Miles ("Chip and Lucy Ann Hardesty").

As one who watches a lot of modern- day crime movies, it was odd to see one with absolutely no profanity in it and very little blood, but that's because it's a 1959 film. We see the FBI cracking down on the KKK, anti- Native Americans, the Communists, spies, etc. Some of those parts are exciting, but nothing like when it came out almost 50 years ago. Now, it's almost ho-hum stuff.

For me now, this movie is more of a nostalgia piece than anything else. Frankly, I doubt if I would watch it again.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

October 1959 (USA)

Also Known As:

The FBI Story

Filming Locations:

46th Street, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mervyn LeRoy Productions Inc.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

149 min 128 min (UK)

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1