''Six Bridges to Cross'' or ''6 Bridges to Cross'' is a 1955 American

film noir Film noir (; ) is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of American ' ...

crime film Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine ...

directed by

Joseph Pevney Joseph Pevney (September 15, 1911 – May 18, 2008) was an American film and television director.

and starring

Tony Curtis Tony Curtis (born Bernard Schwartz; June 3, 1925September 29, 2010) was an American actor whose career spanned six decades, achieving the height of his popularity in the 1950s (Kansas Raiders, 1950) and early 1960s. He acted in more than 100 f ...

George Nader George Garfield Nader, Jr. (October 19, 1921 – February 4, 2002) was an American actor and writer. He appeared in a variety of films from 1950 to 1974, including ''Sins of Jezebel'' (1953), ''Congo Crossing'' (1956), and ''The Female Animal'' ...

and

Julie Adams Julie Adams (born Betty May Adams; October 17, 1926 – February 3, 2019) was an American actress, billed as Julia Adams toward the beginning of her career, primarily known for her numerous television guest roles. She starred in a number of ...

. ''Six Bridges to Cross'' is based upon the famous 1950

Great Brink's Robbery The Great Brink's Robbery was an armed robbery of the Brink's building in the North End of Boston, Massachusetts, on January 17, 1950. The $2.775 million ($ million today) theft consisted of $1,218,211.29 in cash and $1,557,183.83 in checks, m ...

of Boston, Massachusetts in which the thieves made off with roughly $2.5 million.

Plot

Jerry Florea (Tony Curtis) is planning a heist. The story begins with the events which led a young Florea (Sal Mineo) to become a crook. One day he is shot during a robbery and as a result an amenable policeman and his wife take him under their wing. As a young man he deludes them, and pretends to no longer have criminal intent and even gets a job at the

Brinks The Brink's Company is an American private security and protection company headquartered outside Richmond, Virginia. Its core business is Brink's Inc.; its sister brand Brink's Home Security company operates separately and is headquartered in ...

. They are unaware he is preparing to rob the establishment. It is only after he and his gang pull off the heist that Florea reconsiders his actions and attempts to make amends for the crime.

Cast

as Jerry Florea *

as Edward Gallagher *

as Ellen Gallagher *

Jay C. Flippen Jay C. Flippen (March 6, 1899 – February 3, 1971) was an American character actor who often played crusty sergeants, police officers or weary criminals in many films of the 1940s and 1950s. Before his motion-picture career he was a leading va ...

as Vincent Concannon *

Sal Mineo Salvatore Mineo Jr. (January 10, 1939 – February 12, 1976) was an American actor, singer, and director. He is best known for his role as John "Plato" Crawford in the drama film ''Rebel Without a Cause'' (1955), which earned him a nomination f ...

as Jerry as a boy *

Jan Merlin Jan Merlin (born Jan Wasylewski, April 3, 1925 – September 20, 2019) was an American character actor, television writer, and author. Early years Born Jan Wasylewski and reared in New York City, Merlin was of Polish ancestry. He attended the ...

as Andy Norris *

Richard Castle Richard Edgar "Rick" Castle (born Richard Alexander Rodgers) is a fictional character on the ABC crime series '' Castle''. He is portrayed by Nathan Fillion. The name Richard Castle is also used as a pseudonym under which a set of real books a ...

as Skids Radzevich * William Murphy as Red Flanagan *Kendall Clark as Mr. Sanborn *

Don Keefer Donald Hood Keefer (August 18, 1916 – September 7, 2014) was an American actor known for his versatility in performing comedic, as well as highly dramatic, roles. In an acting career that spanned more than 50 years, he appeared in hundreds of ...

as Mr. Sherman *

Harry Bartell Harry Alfred Bartell (November 29, 1913 – February 26, 2004)Aaker, Everett (2006). ''Encyclopedia of Early Television Crime Fighters''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . p. 34. was an American actor and announcer in radio, television and film. Wit ...

as Father Bonelli *

Tito Vuolo Tito Vuolo (22 March 1893 – 14 September 1962) was an Italian-born American actor, best known for his supporting work playing often stereotypical Italian characters. Prior to his film career, he toured the United States as a stage actor. His wi ...

as Angie

Production

The screenplay for the film was written by

Sydney Boehm Sydney Boehm (April 4, 1908 – June 25, 1990) was an American screenwriter and producer. Boehm began his writing career as a newswriter for wire services and newspapers before moving on to screenwriting. His films include ''High Wall'' (1947), ...

, based on Joseph F. Dinneen's ''They Stole $25,000,000 – And Got Away with It''. The film was shot on location in Boston.

Jeff Chandler Jeff Chandler (born Ira Grossel; yi, יראַ גראָססעל; December 15, 1918 – June 17, 1961) was an American actor, film producer, and singer, best remembered for playing Cochise in '' Broken Arrow'' (1950), for which he was nom ...

was to play the lead but refused and was put on suspension by Universal. A young

Clint Eastwood Clinton Eastwood Jr. (born May 31, 1930) is an American actor and film director. After achieving success in the Western TV series '' Rawhide'', he rose to international fame with his role as the "Man with No Name" in Sergio Leone's "''Doll ...

auditioned for the film in May 1954 in his first real audition but was rejected by Pevney. The part of the young Florea was given to a 15-year-old Sal Mineo. Mineo had also successfully auditioned for a part in ''

The Private War of Major Benson ''The Private War of Major Benson'' is 1955 comedy film starring Charlton Heston, Julie Adams, Sal Mineo and Tim Hovey, about a tough-talking U.S. Army officer who must shape up the JROTC program at Sheridan Academy, a Catholic boys' military a ...

'' as a cadet colonel opposite

Charlton Heston Charlton Heston (born John Charles Carter; October 4, 1923April 5, 2008) was an American actor and political activist. As a Hollywood star, he appeared in almost 100 films over the course of 60 years. He played Moses in the epic film ''The Ten C ...

Sammy Davis, Jr. Samuel George Davis Jr. (December 8, 1925 – May 16, 1990) was an American singer, dancer, actor, comedian, film producer and television director. At age three, Davis began his career in vaudeville with his father Sammy Davis Sr. and the ...

was hired to sing the title track written by friend

and

Henry Mancini Henry Mancini ( ; born Enrico Nicola Mancini, ; April 16, 1924 – June 14, 1994) was an American composer, conductor, arranger, pianist and flautist. Often cited as one of the greatest composers in the history of film, he won four Academy Award ...

, recording it on December 2, 1954. The overall score was composed by Frank Skinner and Herman Stein but they went uncredited in the film for their contributions.

References

External links

* * * {{Joseph Pevney 1955 films Film noir 1955 crime drama films 1950s crime thriller films 1950s heist films American crime drama films American crime thriller films American heist films Films directed by Joseph Pevney Films shot in Massachusetts Universal Pictures films 1950s English-language films 1950s American films American black-and-white films

Plot

Cast

Production

See also

References

External links