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The History of American Cinema: 1955

September - December

29/9 -

The Night of the Hunter, a tale of good and evil set in rural America, is released.   The film stars Robert Mitchum as an evil preacher searching for the ill-gotten gains of his dead cellmate.   Lillian Gish also stars as Mitchum’s nemesis, a frail old lady who shelters the two children Mitchum knows hold the key to the money’s whereabouts.   This was actor Charles Laughton’s only attempt at directing.   Regarded as a classic today, the film was neither a critical or commercial success when released. [ADD}

30/9 -

At 5.58pm rising star James Dean dies from a broken neck received in a car smash en-route to Salinas in his Porsche 550 Spider at the intersection of Highway 41 and Route 466.   His early death ensures him a legendary status, and he becomes the first actor to be posthumously nominated for an Oscar. [ADD}

27/10 -

Nicholas Ray’s Rebel Without a Cause is released.   James Dean, Natalie Wood and Sal Mineo star.   The film’s early scenes were originally shot in black-and-white, but 20^th Century-Fox decided that all CinemaScope movies were to be shot in Technicolor and the scenes had to be re-shot. [ADD}

11/10 -

The Todd AO roadshow version of Oklahoma! is released. [ADD}

3/11 -

Joseph L. Manckiewicz’s screen adaptation of Frank Loesser’s Broadway musical Guys and Dolls is released by Samuel Goldwyn.   The film cost $4.5 million to make, and a boasts a stellar cast that includes Marlon Brando, Frank Sinatra, Jean Simmons and Vivian Blaine. [ADD}

6/11 -

The Constant Husband, a British film starring Rex Harrison and Kay Kendall, is transmitted by NBC, the first time in the States that a feature-length film premieres on TV before it is released in cinemas. [ADD}

9/11 -

Rock Hudson marries Phyllis Gates, his agent’s secretary. [ADD}

15/12 -

Otto Preminger’s The Man With the Golden Arm, in which Frank Sinatra stars as a drug addict trying to break his habit, is released.   The film was refused a seal of approval by the MPAA, so United Artists resigned from the organisation and submitted the film to local state censors, most of whom grant it a certificate. [ADD}

25/12 -

Susan Hayward hits the bottle once again, this time as singer Lillian Roth in the biopic I’ll Cry Tomorrow.   This is the third time she has battled with the bottle for the screen after Smash Up - The Story of a Woman (1947) and My Foolish Heart (1949). [ADD}

27/12 -

Harry Cohn’s Columbia Pictures begin court action against Rita Hayworth for her refusal to appear in the proposed biblical epic Joseph and His Brethren despite receiving an advance payment for appearing. [ADD}

31/12 -

Marilyn Monroe agrees to appear in four 20^th Century-Fox productions over the next four years in return for $100,000 per film and a percentage of the profits, as well as script and director approval and choice of subjects.   The actress is also free to pursue other projects outside of the agreement. [ADD}

31/12 -

The Motion Picture Herald's annual referendum among cinema staff reveals that James Stewart is the most popular star at the box office. [ADD}

– Walt Disney Studios demonstrates Circarama, its cinema-in-the-round system. [ADD}

– For the first time, masking is used in projection to achieve a widescreen effect, for the re-issue of Gone With the Wind. [ADD}

– More than half of Hollywood full-length films are now made in colour.   Most major studios have switched from using Technicolor’s three-strip process to Eastman Kodak’s single-strip Eastman Color which can be used in any camera. [ADD}

– Paul Terry retires after selling Terrytoons to CBS for $3,500,000. [ADD}

Top Ten US Box-office Stars of 1955

1.      James Stewart

2.      Grace Kelly

3.      John Wayne

4.      William Holden

5.      Gary Cooper

6.      Marlon Brando

7.      Dean Martin & Jerry Lewis

8.      Humphrey Bogart

9.      June Allyson

10.     Clark Gable

 Source: Quigley Poll

Other Key American Films of 1955

The History of Cinema: 1955