Jailhouse Rock (1957)

Director:

Richard Thorpe

Writers:

Nedrick Young (story)
Guy Trosper (writer)

Release Date:

8 November 1957 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Music | Romance

Tagline:

MGM Presents ELVIS PRESLEY at his greatest

Plot:

After serving time for manslaughter, young Vince Everett becomes a teenage rock star.

Plot Keywords:

Singer | Manslaughter | Jail | Country Singer | Fame

Awards:

2 wins

Cast

Elvis Presley	...	Vince Everett
Judy Tyler	...	Peggy Van Alden
Mickey Shaughnessy	...	Hunk Houghton
Vaughn Taylor	...	Mr. Shores (narrator)
Jennifer Holden	...	Sherry Wilson
Dean Jones	...	Teddy Talbot
Anne Neyland	...	Laury Jackson
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Dorothy Abbott	...	Woman in restaurant (uncredited)
Peter Adams	...	Jack Lease (uncredited)
François André	...	Waiter (uncredited)
Robert Bice	...	Bardeman (TV studio manager) (uncredited)
Bill Black	...	Bass player (uncredited)
Don Burnett	...	Mickey Alba (uncredited)
Jack Chefe	...	Waiter in Strip Club (uncredited)
George Cisar	...	Jake (bartender) (uncredited)
Fred Coby	...	Jerry (bartender) (uncredited)
John Daheim	...	Tough man in bar (uncredited)
John Dennis	...	Mail clerk #1 (uncredited)
Francis De Sales	...	Surgeon (uncredited)
Elaine DuPont	...	Minor Role (uncredited)
Joan Dupuis	...	Record shop girl (uncredited)
Bess Flowers	...	Van Alden party guest (uncredited)
D.J. Fontana	...	Drummer (uncredited)
William Forrest	...	Head of studio (uncredited)
Jo Gilbert	...	Minor Role (uncredited)
Bill Hale	...	Guard (uncredited)
Percy Helton	...	Sam Brewster (uncredited)
Jack Herrin	...	Minor Role (uncredited)
Bill Hickman	...	Guard who whips Vince (uncredited)
Harry Hines	...	Hotel clerk (uncredited)
Bob Hopkins	...	Announcer (uncredited)
John Indrisano	...	Convict (uncredited)
Walter Johnson	...	Shorty (bartender) (uncredited)
Sid Kane	...	Minor Role (uncredited)
Donald Kerr	...	Studio photographer (uncredited)
George Klein	...	Party Guest (uncredited)
Frank Kreig	...	Drunk (uncredited)
S. John Launer	...	Judge (uncredited)
Alyn Lockwood	...	Minor Role (uncredited)
John Logan	...	Minor Role (uncredited)
Tom Mayton	...	Mail clerk #2 (uncredited)
Joe McGuinn	...	Studio gateman (uncredited)
Tom McKee	...	TV director (uncredited)
Carl Milletaire	...	Mr. Drummond (uncredited)
Frank Mills	...	Shooting gallery proprietor (uncredited)
Orv Mohler	...	Minor Role (uncredited)
Scotty Moore	...	Guitar player (uncredited)
Tracey Morgan	...	Girl in booth (uncredited)
Gloria Pall	...	Striptease woman (uncredited)
Joe Ploski	...	Convict in 'Jailhouse Rock' number (uncredited)
Charles Postal	...	Minor Role (uncredited)
Robin Raymond	...	Dotty (uncredited)
Grandon Rhodes	...	Prof. August van Alden (uncredited)
Dick Rich	...	Prison guard (uncredited)
Hugh Sanders	...	Prison warden (uncredited)
Jeffrey Sayre	...	Van Alden Party Guest (uncredited)
Jack Shea	...	Minor Role (uncredited)
Elizabeth Slifer	...	Cleaning woman (uncredited)
K.L. Smith	...	Worker (uncredited)
Mike Stoller	...	Piano player (uncredited)
Glenn Strange	...	Matt (convict) (uncredited)
Bob Stratton	...	Orderly (uncredited)
Brick Sullivan	...	Convict in Yard (uncredited)
William Tannen	...	Record distributor (uncredited)
Arthur Tovey	...	Record Shop Owner in Montage (uncredited)
Paula Trent	...	Minor Role (uncredited)
Katherine Warren	...	Mrs. Van Alden (uncredited)
Steve Warren	...	Assistant director (uncredited)
Dan White	...	Paymaster (uncredited)
Russ Whitney	...	Minor Role (uncredited)
Linda Williams	...	Girl in bathing suit (uncredited)
Matt Winston	...	Minor Role (uncredited)
Wilson Wood	...	Recording engineer (uncredited)
Jack Younger	...	Minor Role (uncredited)

Directed by
Richard Thorpe

Writing credits
Nedrick Young		(story) (as Ned Young)
Guy Trosper		(writer)

Produced by
Pandro S. Berman	....	producer
Kathryn Hereford	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Jeff Alexander

Cinematography by
Robert J. Bronner		(director of photography) (as Robert Bronner)

Film Editing by
Ralph E. Winters

Art Direction by
Randall Duell
William A. Horning

Set Decoration by
F. Keogh Gleason		(as Keogh Gleason)
Henry Grace

Makeup Department
William Tuttle	....	makeup artist

Production Management
James Marchant	....	production manager (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Robert E. Relyea	....	assistant director
Hank Moonjean	....	assistant director (uncredited)

Sound Department
Wesley C. Miller	....	recording supervisor (as Dr. Wesley C. Miller)

Special Effects by
A. Arnold Gillespie	....	special effects

Stunts
Joe Gray	....	stunts (uncredited)
Loren Janes	....	stunts (uncredited)

Music Department
Jeff Alexander	....	music supervisor
Arthur Morton	....	orchestrator (uncredited)

Other crew
Tom Parker	....	technical advisor (as Colonel Tom Parker)
Alex Romero	....	choreographer (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Avon Productions (II)
• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Distributors

• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1957) (USA) (theatrical)
• Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (1975) (USA) (TV) (network premiere) (pan/scan)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (1992) (USA) (VHS) (pan/scan)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (1997) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2000) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Chapel Distribution (1997) (Australia) (theatrical) (35mm and 16mm prints)
• Warner Home Video (19??) (Netherlands) (VHS)
• Warner Home Vídeo (19??) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Warner Home Vídeo (2007) (Brazil) (DVD)

Runtime:

96 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Perspecta Sound encoding) (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Iceland:L | New Zealand:G | Argentina:Atp | Australia:G (alternate rating) | Australia:PG (original rating) | Chile:TE | Finland:K-16 | Norway:12 (video rating) | Norway:16 (original rating) | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company:

Avon Productions (II)

Trivia:

In the lawn party scene, just after Vince embraces an unresponsive Peggy, the hired orchestra begins an instrumental number. The tune they're playing is "All I Do Is Dream Of You", from the 1934 film "Sadie McKee". This same tune, with vocal accompaniment, was featured in a series of television commercials for Bell Canada during the mid-1970s.

Goofs:

Continuity: Teddy Talbot's shirt changes between shots (most noticeable in the colorized version).

Quotes:

Peggy Van Alden: How dare you think such cheap tactics would work with me!
Vince Everett: That ain't tactics, honey. It's just the beast in me.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Blues Brothers (1980)

Soundtrack:

Treat Me Nice

Not bad

Vince (Elvis Presley) is a backwoods boy with a HUGE temper problem. One day he beats a guy to death in a fight and is sent to prison. While there he's cell mates with Hunk (Mickey Shaughnessy) who gets him interested in playing the guitar and singing. When released Vince makes it big with the help of Peggy (Judy Taylor)...but becomes an obnoxious jerk. He treats Hunk and Peggy like dirt. Will he come around and treat them better? What do you think?

I tuned into this just to watch the "Jailhouse Rock" number. I'm not a fan of Presley but I heard this was good. I was surprised at how much I liked it. All the songs are good and the "Jailhouse Rock" number is just stunning--easily one of the best choreographed musical numbers ever caught on screen. Taylor is pretty and just charming in her role (sadly she died right after completing this) and Shaughnessy offers strong support. Also it's well-directed in Cinemascope.

The only debits are the overly familiar story and Presley's acting. He was a great singer but no actor--sometimes it was almost embarrassing to watch how badly he played scenes. But it's still worth watching for the songs and the other performances. I give this a 7.