Crime of Passion (1957)

Director:

Gerd Oswald

Writers:

Jo Eisinger (screenplay)
Jo Eisinger (story)

Release Date:

9 January 1957 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Film-Noir | Drama

Plot:

Kathy is a smart and tough 1950's advice columnist at a San Francisco newspaper, with her name plastered on billboards all over the city...

Plot Keywords:

Career | Ambition | Detective | Murder | Columnist

Cast

Barbara Stanwyck	...	Kathy Ferguson Doyle
Sterling Hayden	...	Police Lt. Bill Doyle
Raymond Burr	...	Police Inspector Anthony (Tony) Pope
Fay Wray	...	Alice Pope
Virginia Grey	...	Sara Alidos
Royal Dano	...	Police Capt. Charlie Alidos
Robert Griffin	...	Police Sgt. James
Dennis Cross	...	Police Sgt. Jules
Jay Adler	...	Mr. Nalence
Stuart Whitman	...	Laboratory Technician
Malcolm Atterbury	...	Police Officer Spitz
Robert Quarry	...	Sam, Reporter
Gail Bonney	...	Mrs. London
Joe Conley	...	Delivery Boy
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Patricia Merlin	...	Taxi Driver
Ralph Brooks	...	Reporter in Newspaper Office (uncredited)
Larry Carr	...	Bit (uncredited)
Jack Chefe	...	Bartender, Airport Lounge (uncredited)
Richard Collier	...	Reporter (uncredited)
Nan Dolan	...	(uncredited)
Madelon Erin	...	(uncredited)
Michael Granger	...	Jason, Reporter on Phone (uncredited)
Jean Howell	...	Mrs. Jules (uncredited)
Helen Jay	...	Newspaper Reader at Bar (uncredited)
Eddie Kafafian	...	(uncredited)
Kenner G. Kemp	...	Birthday Party Extra (uncredited)
Peg La Centra	...	Mrs. James (uncredited)
S. John Launer	...	Chief of Police (uncredited)
Hank Mann	...	Husband in Bed (uncredited)
Edward McNally	...	Detective Jones (uncredited)
Marjorie Owens	...	Mrs. Jones (uncredited)
Joe Ploski	...	Bartender in Montage (uncredited)
Alan Reynolds	...	Police Commissioner (uncredited)
Nancy Reynolds	...	Mrs. Johns (uncredited)
Cosmo Sardo	...	Birthday Party Extra (uncredited)
Norbert Schiller	...	Helpful Man in Bar (uncredited)
Bert Stevens	...	Policeman Writing Ticket (uncredited)
Hal Taggart	...	Restaurant Table Extra (uncredited)
Arthur Tovey	...	Flight Departee / Restaurant Table Extra (uncredited)
Brad Trumbull	...	Detective Johns (uncredited)
Geraldine Wall	...	Justice of the Peace, Marriage Ceremony (uncredited)
Harry Wilson	...	Boxing Spectator (uncredited)
Sally Yarnell	...	(uncredited)

Directed by
Gerd Oswald

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Jo Eisinger		screenplay
Jo Eisinger		story

Produced by
Herman Cohen	....	producer
Robert Goldstein	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Paul Dunlap

Cinematography by
Joseph LaShelle

Art Direction by
A. Leslie Thomas		(as Leslie Thomas)

Set Decoration by
Morris Hoffman

Makeup Department
Shirley Madden	....	hair stylist
Robert J. Schiffer	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Jack R. Berne	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Jack R. Berne	....	assistant director

Art Department
Joseph Thompson	....	property master

Sound Department
Verna Fields	....	sound effects editor
Francis J. Scheid	....	sound

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Jack Masters	....	wardrobe

Editorial Department
Marjorie Fowler	....	supervising editor

Music Department
Jill Campbell	....	music editor
Paul Dunlap	....	conductor

Other crew
Mary Gibsone	....	script supervisor
Grace Houston	....	clothes: Miss Stanwyck

Production Companies

• Robert Goldstein Productions

Distributors

• United Artists (1957) (USA) (theatrical)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2003) (USA) (DVD)

Runtime:

84 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | Australia:PG

Company:

Robert Goldstein Productions

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Kathy runs her car into a pole she steps in front of the car to inspect the damage. The right front fender that bore the brunt of the impact shows it is still firmly attached. However any trace of the headlight including the hole where it would mount is missing.

Quotes:

Police Lt. Bill Doyle: [after just being married and arriving at their new home] What do you think of the neighbourhood?
Kathy Ferguson Doyle: Right now I'm not thinking about the neighbourhood.

Great!

From a sociological point of view, CRIME OF PASSION has much to offer. It is a rare instance of a film told from a very liberal (especially by 1950s standards) standpoint from this era of "I Love Lucy" doting housewives and such. Most young people today think all wives of the 1950s stood around wearing aprons and catering to their husbands. This film shows a marked contrast between what is perceived to be 1950s typical domestic life, and the quiet desperation which it may have actually hid, and how some women rebelled against the conventions of the time.

This film shockingly shows what happens to an independent woman when she is suffocated by the conventions of her time, in this case the late 1950s, when women were supposed to stay home and cook dinner for their husbands. In fact, there is a fascinating line early in the film when a police officer says just that! The film has a very clear thesis, and builds up adequately to move the viewer. Top notch in this film is the powerful performance of Barbara Stanwyck, still at her peak at this late date. The supporting cast leaves a lot to be desired (Sterling Hayden is awful, as always), the direction is merely average, and everything else is straight out of B-movie territory. That said, it is a fascinating early glimpse of feminism. It should be taught in all sociology classes.