''The Unholy Wife'' is a 1957

Technicolor Technicolor is a family of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes. The first version, Process 1, was introduced in 1916, and improved versions followed over several decades. Definitive Technicolor movies using three black-and ...

film noir Film noir (; ) is a style of Cinema of the United States, Hollywood Crime film, crime dramas that emphasizes cynicism (contemporary), cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of Ameri ...

crime film Crime film is a film belonging to the crime fiction genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and fiction. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine with many other genres, such as Drama (film and television), dr ...

produced and directed by

John Farrow John Villiers Farrow, Order of the Holy Sepulchre (Catholic), KGCHS (10 February 190427 January 1963) was an Australian film director, producer, and screenwriter. Spending a considerable amount of his career in the United States, he was nomina ...

RKO Radio Pictures RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, is an American film production and distribution company, historically one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Kei ...

, but released by

Universal Pictures Universal City Studios LLC, doing business as Universal Pictures (also known as Universal Studios or simply Universal), is an American filmmaking, film production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered at the 10 Universal Ci ...

as RKO was in the process of ceasing its film activities. The film features

Diana Dors Diana Dors (born Diana Mary Fluck; 23 October 19314 May 1984) was an English actress and singer. Dors came to public notice as a Bombshell (slang), blonde bombshell, much in the style of Americans Marilyn Monroe, Jayne Mansfield, and Mamie Van ...

Rod Steiger Rodney Stephen Steiger ( ; April 14, 1925 – July 9, 2002) was an American actor, noted for his portrayal of offbeat, often volatile and crazed characters. Ranked as "one of Hollywood's most charismatic and dynamic stars", he is closely associ ...

, Tom Tryon and

Beulah Bondi Beulah Bondi (born Beulah Bondy; May 3, 1888 – January 11, 1981) According to the State of California. ''California Death Index, 1940–1997''. Center for Health Statistics, California Department of Health Services, Sacramento, California. At ...

. The screenplay was written by William Durkee and Jonathan Latimer The plot concerns a ''

femme fatale A ( , ; ), sometimes called a maneater, Mata Hari, or vamp, is a stock character of a mysterious, beautiful, and Seduction, seductive woman whose charms ensnare her lovers, often leading them into compromising, deadly traps. She is an archetype ...

'' named Phyllis (

) who tells her sordid story from her prison cell in flashback. Dors later said the film "wasn't good. They edited it badly." The movie's box office failure hurt her career.

Plot

Phyllis tells her story, beginning with how she met rich

vintner A winemaker or vintner is a person engaged in winemaking. They are generally employed by wineries or wine companies, where their work includes: *Cooperating with viticulturists *Monitoring the maturity of grapes to ensure their quality and to de ...

Paul Hochen from

Napa Valley Napa Valley is an American Viticultural Area (AVA) in Napa County, California. The area was established by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) on February 27, 1981, after a 1978 petition submitted by the Napa Valley Vin ...

in a bar and married him soon after. Not long after the marriage, Phyllis begins having an affair with a local rodeo rider, San Sanford, seeing him every time her husband is away, which is frequently. One night, her elderly mother-in-law thinks a burglar is breaking into the house, so she calls the police. Phyllis sees this as an opportunity to kill her husband and blame the burglar for the crime. The plan backfires a day later when she instead kills her husband's best friend. Not wanting to go to jail, she convinces her husband to confess to the killing and they concoct a story that would set him free after the trial. Phyllis lies at the trial and Paul is put away for murder. The "unholy" wife finally gets the punishment she deserves when her mother-in-law dies of poisoning and the blame goes to Phyllis, who is sent to prison for a crime she did not commit. Later, she faces her execution in the gas chamber. Finally, Paul shows their son Michael the vineyard that will someday be his.

Cast

as Phyllis Hochen *

as Paul Hochen * Tom Tryon as San Sanford *

as Emma Hochen * Marie Windsor as Gwen *

Arthur Franz Arthur Sofield Franz (February 29, 1920 – June 17, 2006) was an American actor whose most notable feature film role was as Lieutenant, Junior Grade H. Paynter Jr. in ''The Caine Mutiny'' (1954). Early life Franz was born in Perth Amboy, N ...

as Father Stephen Hochen * Luis Van Rooten as Ezra Benton *

Joe De Santis Joseph Vito Marcello De Santis (June 15, 1909 – August 30, 1989), known as Joe De Santis, was an American radio, television, movie and theatrical actor. Biography Joseph Vito Marcello De Santis was born to Italian immigrant parents in New ...

as Gino Verdugo *

Argentina Brunetti Argentina Brunetti (born Argentina Josefina Ángela Ferraù; August 31, 1907 – December 20, 2005) was an Argentine stage and film actress and writer. Biography Brunetti was born Argentina Ferraù in Buenos Aires, Argentina, to Italian p ...

as Theresa *

Steve Pendleton Steve Pendleton (September 16, 1908 – October 3, 1984) was an American film and television actor. He also went by Gaylord Pendleton as a Broadway performer. He was in more than 220 different films and television episodes. Pendleton appea ...

as Deputy Bob Watkins * Douglas Spencer as Judge * Gary Hunley as Michael * James Burke as Sheriff Tom Watling *

Tol Avery Taliaferro Ware "Tol" Avery (August 28, 1915 – August 27, 1973) was an American film and television character actor who appeared in more than 100 separate works between 1950 and 1974. Biography Early in his career, Avery portrayed Lieutenant ...

as Dist. Atty. Carl Kramer

''The Prowler''

The film was based on a TV play, "The Prowler" which was presented on the TV show ''

Climax! ''Climax!'' (later known as ''Climax Mystery Theater'') is an American television anthology series that aired on CBS from 1954 to 1958. The series was hosted by William Lundigan and later co-hosted by Mary Costa. It was one of the few CBS pro ...

'' starring

Claire Trevor Claire Trevor (née Wemlinger; March 8, 1910April 8, 2000) was an American actress. She appeared in 65 feature films from 1933 to 1982, winning the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in '' Key Largo'' (1948), and received no ...

, Pat O'Brien and Cameron Mitchell. There was some talk this play was based on the Woodward case but the host of the show,

William Lundigan William Paul Lundigan (June 12, 1914 – December 20, 1975) was an American film actor. His more than 125 films include ''Dodge City (film), Dodge City'' (1939), ''The Fighting 69th'' (1940), ''The Sea Hawk (1940 film), The Sea Hawk'' (1940), ' ...

, denied this in the press, saying the script had been bought six months previously, and was held until

was available to star in it. The script had been purchased by CBS by

William Dozier William McElroy Dozier (; February 13, 1908 – April 23, 1991) was an American film and television producer, writer and actor. He is best known for two television series, ''Batman'' and '' The Green Hornet''. Early life Dozier was born in Omaha, ...

. When Dozier became head of RKO he purchased the film rights for RKO. Dozier bought two other ''Climax'' scripts for filming by RKO – ''Public Pigeon Number 1'' to star

Red Skelton Richard Bernard Skelton (July 18, 1913September 17, 1997) was an American entertainer best known for his national old-time radio, radio and television shows between 1937 and 1971, especially as host of the television program ''The Red Skelto ...

and ''Deal a Blow'' written by Dozier's son Robert. However these two films would not be made.

Production

RKO was attempting to re-establish itself as a leading filmmaking studio at the time and had numerous projects in development. The movie was made by

as the second in a three-film contract he had with RKO. The first was ''

Back from Eternity ''Back from Eternity'' is a 1956 American Drama (film and television), drama film about a planeload of people stranded in the South American jungle and subsequently menaced by Headhunting, headhunters. The film stars Robert Ryan, Rod Steiger, An ...

'' (1956); there ended up being no third film. Rod Steiger signed to star in April.

Shelley Winters Shelley Winters (born Shirley Schrift; August 18, 1920 – January 14, 2006) was an American film actress whose career spanned seven decades. She won Academy Awards for ''The Diary of Anne Frank (1959 film), The Diary of Anne Frank'' (1959) and ' ...

was a leading contender for the female lead. However, in July 1956 the role was given to

as part of a long-term contract with RKO; it was her second film in the USA (and for RKO) the first being ''

I Married a Woman ''I Married a Woman'' is a 1958 American comedy film made in 1956, directed by Hal Kanter, written by Goodman Ace, and starring George Gobel, Diana Dors, and Adolphe Menjou. The picture was produced by Gobel's company, Gomalco Productions. '' ...

'' (1956).

Ethel Barrymore Ethel Barrymore (born Ethel Mae Blythe; August 15, 1879 – June 18, 1959) was an American actress and a member of the Barrymore family of actors. Barrymore was a stage, screen and radio actress whose career spanned six decades, and was regarde ...

signed to play Dors' mother-in-law, her first film in two years. However, she changed her mind, fearing the heat of a location shoot in the Napa Valley, and dropped out.

replaced her. Filming started in September 1956 on location in the

under the title ''The Lady and the Prowler''.

Reception

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' panned the film when it was released, writing, "Indeed, this might be an excellent time for the actress to take inventory or choose a comedy (her real forte). For the new R. K. O. production and Universal-International release, teaming her with Rod Steiger, is a dull, unholy mess, and an absolute waste of anyone's time. Including, we might add, that of the two principals. Pretentiously tinted in garish color, and staged with coronation pomp by director-producer John Farrow, the picture is a hollow, tawdry little drama of frustration, violence and a loveless marriage in California's

." Dors made no more films for RKO. She later sued RKO for defamation of character claiming $1,275,000. She settled out of court for $200,000.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Unholy Wife, The 1957 films 1950s crime thriller films American crime thriller films Color film noir Films about capital punishment Films based on television plays Films directed by John Farrow Films scored by Daniele Amfitheatrof Films set in California Films with screenplays by Jonathan Latimer RKO Pictures films 1950s English-language films 1950s American films English-language crime thriller films