''99 and 44/100% Dead!'' is a 1974 American

action comedy Action comedy is a genre that combines aspects of action and comedy. The genre is most prevalent in film with action comedy films, though several TV series fit this genre. Film The action comedy film is a film genre that combines aspects of acti ...

film directed by

John Frankenheimer John Michael Frankenheimer (February 19, 1930 – July 6, 2002) was an American film and television director known for social dramas and action/suspense films. Among his credits were ''Birdman of Alcatraz'' (1962), '' The Manchurian Candidate'' ( ...

and starring

Richard Harris Richard St John Francis Harris (1 October 1930 – 25 October 2002) was an Irish actor and singer. He appeared on stage and in many films, notably as Corrado Zeller in Michelangelo Antonioni's '' Red Desert'', Frank Machin in '' This Sporting ...

. The title is a play on an advertising slogan for Ivory soap.

Plot

Harry Crown, a stylish professional hit man with a pair of Browning Hi-Power 9mm pistols with ivory grips, carried in a shoulder holster, is brought in by mob boss "Uncle Frank" Kelly when his operation is challenged by Big Eddie, a grinning, lisping rival. Crown is caught in the crossfire, as is his romantic interest, Buffy, a third-grade schoolteacher. In his attempt to take over the rackets, Big Eddie has hired Marvin "The Claw" Zuckerman, a sadistic one-armed killer with a prosthetic attachment that includes machine guns and knives. Buffy is abducted, causing Harry to ignore Uncle Frank's warnings not to take on Eddie's men in broad daylight. A showdown in a warehouse results in The Claw being overpowered and literally disarmed. Harry appears to be too late to save Buffy, but a gunshot rings out and Big Eddie falls to the ground, slain by Uncle Frank.

Cast

as Harry Crown *

Edmond O'Brien Eamon Joseph O'Brien (September 10, 1915 – May 9, 1985) was an American actor and film director. His career spanned almost 40 years, and he won one Academy Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. O'Brien w ...

as Uncle Frank Kelly *

Bradford Dillman Bradford Dillman (April 14, 1930 – January 16, 2018) was an American actor and author. Early life Bradford Dillman was born on April 14, 1930, in San Francisco, the son of Dean Dillman, a stockbroker, and Josephine (née Moore). Bradford's pa ...

as Big Eddie *

Chuck Connors Kevin Joseph Aloysius "Chuck" Connors (April 10, 1921 – November 10, 1992) was an American actor, writer, and professional basketball and baseball player. He is one of only 13 athletes in the history of American professional sports to have p ...

as Marvin 'Claw' Zuckerman * Ann Turkel as Buffy * Constance Ford as Dolly * David Hall as Tony * Kathrine Baumann as Baby * Janis Heiden as Clara * Max Kleven as North * Karl Lukas as Guard * Tony Brubaker as Burt (as Anthony Brubaker) * Jerry Summers as Shoes *

Roy Jenson Roy Cameron Jenson, also known and credited as Roy Jensen, (February 9, 1927 – April 24, 2007) was a Canadian American football player, stuntman, and actor. Early years Born in Calgary, Alberta, Jenson moved to Los Angeles with his family as ...

as Jake

Release

In 1969 the film was reported to be directed by Sergio Leone and starring Marcello Mastroianni and Charles Bronson. Principal photography began on August 10, 1973, in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

before moving to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

. Frankenheimer later described the film as "a bit off center":

It's like 1970s pop art, the idea being, quickly, that our society is so violent that the person best qualified to cope with it is the professional killer. I hope what happens won't be what happened with '' The Manchurian Candidate'' — horrible reviews and then five years later it's on everyone's list. I don't want that to happen again.

In an interview two decades later, Frankenheimer himself thought the film a failure. He felt that he did not do his best work on it and in hindsight, shouldn't do this sort of satire. On December 13, 2011 Shout! Factory released the film on DVD as part of a double feature with ''

The Nickel Ride ''The Nickel Ride'' is a 1974 American neo-noir crime film directed and produced by Robert Mulligan and starring Jason Miller, Linda Haynes, Victor French, Bo Hopkins, and John Hillerman. It is the debut film of screenwriter Eric Roth. It wa ...

''.

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:99 And 44 100 percent Dead 1974 films 1974 comedy films 1970s action comedy films 1970s crime comedy films 1970s English-language films 20th Century Fox films American action comedy films American crime comedy films Films scored by Henry Mancini Films directed by John Frankenheimer Films shot in Florida Films shot in Washington (state) American neo-noir films American gangster films Films shot in Seattle Films shot in Los Angeles 1970s American films

Plot

Cast

Release

See also

References

External links