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The Crooked Web
''The Crooked Web'' is a 1955 crime film noir directed by Nathan Juran and starring Frank Lovejoy, Mari Blanchard and Richard Denning. Plot Stan Fabian runs a drive-in restaurant with girlfriend Joanie Daniel, whose brother Frank turns up for a visit. Joanie has declined to marry Stan because he's strapped for cash, but Frank tempts him with a proposition, mentioning that he and a partner hid a stash of gold in Germany during the war. Stan accepts an offer to help recover the gold for a cut of the loot. What he doesn't know is that Joanie and Frank are actually undercover cops. A rich businessman's son was apparently killed by Stan during a deal gone wrong, but the German police are unable to extradite him to charge him with a crime. Frank pretends to shoot his partner, using blanks. He secretly meets with Berlin chief of police Koenig, pretending to be looking for the gold. Stan fears a double-cross, but confesses his wartime murder to Joanie, and is shocked to be placed unde ...
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Nathan Juran
Naftuli Hertz "Nathan" Juran (September 1, 1907 – October 23, 2002) was an Austro-Hungarian-born film art director, and later film and television director. As an art director, he won the Oscar for Best Art Direction in 1942 for '' How Green Was My Valley'', along with Richard Day and Thomas Little. His work on '' The Razor's Edge'' in 1946 also received an Academy nomination. In the 1950s, he began to direct, and was known for science fiction and fantasy films such as '' Attack of the 50 Foot Woman''. He was also the brother of quality guru Joseph M. Juran. Life and career Early life Juran was born to a Jewish family in Gura Humorului, Austro-Hungarian Empire (now Romania). In 1912, he emigrated to America with his family, settling in Minneapolis. He earned a bachelor's degree in Architecture from the University of Minnesota. He also spent a summer studying at the École des Beaux-Arts before earning a master's degree in Architecture from the Massachusetts Institute of T ...
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Lou Merrill
Louis Dilman Merrill (April 1, 1912 – April 7, 1963) was an American actor, who worked primarily in radio from the 1930s through the 1950s. Early life Lou Merill was born on April 1, 1912, in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada., and moved to the United States when he was young. He acted in stock theater and little theater before going to radio. Radio Merrill began working in radio in 1928. He performed in ''Lux Radio Theater'' as a utility supporting player in nearly every broadcast from 1937 to 1939 (notably as Sleepy in ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs''), and also served as an assistant director handling the crowd scenes during that time. He continued to work the show sporadically until 1953. His career in the 1930s also included roles in the children's Christmas series ''The Cinnamon Bear'' (as Santa Claus), the crime drama ''Big Town'' (as various gangsters and a stand-in for Edward G. Robinson as Steve Wilson), the soap opera ''Those We Love'' (as con man Ed Neely), and ...
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American Black-and-white Films
American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, people who self-identify their ancestry as "American" ** American English, the set of varieties of the English language native to the United States ** Native Americans in the United States, indigenous peoples of the United States * American, something of, from, or related to the Americas, also known as "America" ** Indigenous peoples of the Americas * American (word), for analysis and history of the meanings in various contexts Organizations * American Airlines, U.S.-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas * American Athletic Conference, an American college athletic conference * American Recordings (record label), a record label that was previously known as Def American * American University, in Washington, D.C. Sports tea ...
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1950s English-language Films
Year 195 ( CXCV) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known in Rome as the Year of the Consulship of Scrapula and Clemens (or, less frequently, year 948 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 195 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years. Events By place Roman Empire * Emperor Septimius Severus has the Roman Senate deify the previous emperor Commodus, in an attempt to gain favor with the family of Marcus Aurelius. * King Vologases V and other eastern princes support the claims of Pescennius Niger. The Roman province of Mesopotamia rises in revolt with Parthian support. Severus marches to Mesopotamia to battle the Parthians. * The Roman province of Syria is divided and the role of Antioch is diminished. The Romans annex the Syrian cities of Edessa and Nisibis. Severus re-establishes his headquarters and the colonies ...
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Columbia Pictures Films
Columbia most often refers to: * Columbia (personification), the historical personification of the United States * Columbia University, a private university in New York City * Columbia Pictures, an American film studio owned by Sony Pictures * Columbia Sportswear, an American clothing company * Columbia, South Carolina * Columbia, Missouri Columbia may also refer to: Places North America Natural features * Columbia Plateau, a geologic and geographic region in the U.S. Pacific Northwest * Columbia River, in Canada and the United States ** Columbia Bar, a sandbar in the estuary of the Columbia River ** Columbia Country, the region of British Columbia encompassing the northern portion of that river's upper reaches *** Columbia Valley, a region within the Columbia Country ** Columbia Lake, a lake at the head of the Columbia River *** Columbia Wetlands, a protected area near Columbia Lake ** Columbia Slough, along the Columbia watercourse near Portland, Oregon * Glacial La ...
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1955 Crime Drama Films
Events January * January 3 – José Ramón Guizado becomes president of Panama. * January 17 – , the first Nuclear marine propulsion, nuclear-powered submarine, puts to sea for the first time, from Groton, Connecticut. * January 18–January 20, 20 – Battle of Yijiangshan Islands: The Chinese Communist People's Liberation Army seizes the islands from the Republic of China (Taiwan). * January 22 – In the United States, The Pentagon announces a plan to develop intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), armed with nuclear weapons. * January 23 – The Sutton Coldfield rail crash kills 17, near Birmingham, England. * January 25 – The Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union announces the end of the war between the USSR and Germany, which began during World War II in 1941. * January 28 – The United States Congress authorizes President Dwight D. Eisenhower to use force to protect Taiwan from the People's Republic of China. February * February 10 – T ...
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Films Directed By Nathan Juran
A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, since the 1930s, synchronized with sound and (less commonly) other sensory stimulations. Etymology and alternative terms The name "film" originally referred to the thin layer of photochemical emulsion on the celluloid strip that used to be the actual medium for recording and displaying motion pictures. Many other terms exist for an individual motion-picture, including "picture", "picture show", "moving picture", "photoplay", and "flick". The most common term in the United States is "movie", while in Europe, "film" is preferred. Archaic terms include "animated pictures" and "animated photography". "Flick" is, in general a slang term, first recorded in 1926. It originates in the verb flicker, owing to the flickering appearance of early films. ...
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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 American film noir. Film noir of this era is associated with a low-key lighting, low-key, black-and-white visual style that has roots in German expressionist cinematography. Many of the prototypical stories and attitudes expressed in classic noir derive from the hardboiled school of crime fiction that emerged in the United States during the Great Depression, known as noir fiction. The term ''film noir'', French for "black film" (literal) or "dark film" (closer meaning), was first applied to Hollywood films by French critic Nino Frank in 1946, but was unrecognized by most American film industry professionals of that era. Frank is believed to have been inspired by the French literary publishing imprint Série noire, founded in 1945. Cinema hist ...
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1955 Films
The year 1955 in film involved some significant events. __TOC__ Top-grossing films (U.S.) The top-grossing hits of 1955 in the United States. Top-grossing films by country The highest-grossing 1955 films from countries outside of North America. Events * January 7 – UK release of the Halas and Batchelor film animation of George Orwell's ''Animal Farm'' (completed April 1954), the first full-length British-made animated feature on general theatrical release. *February 24 - 12th Golden Globe Awards announced: ''On The Waterfront'', Marlon Brando, & Judy Garland win * March 18 – The film adaptation of Evan Hunter's novel ''Blackboard Jungle'' previews in New York City, featuring the single " Rock Around the Clock" by Bill Haley & His Comets over the opening credits, the first use of a rock and roll song in a major film. Teenagers jump from their seats to dance to it. * June 1 – Premiere of Billy Wilder's film of '' The Seven Year Itch'' featuring an iconic scene of ...
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American Film Institute
The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the History of cinema in the United States, motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees. Leadership The institute is composed of leaders from the film, entertainment, business, and academic communities. The board of trustees is chaired by Kathleen Kennedy (producer), Kathleen Kennedy and the board of directors chaired by Robert A. Daly guide the organization, which is led by President (corporate title), President and CEO, film historian Bob Gazzale. Prior leaders were founding director George Stevens Jr. (from the organization's inception in 1967 until 1980) and Jean Picker Firstenberg (from 1980 to 2007). History The American Film Institute was founded by a 1965 presidential mandate announced in the White House Rose Garden, Rose Garden of the White House by Lyndon B. Johnson—to establish ...
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Van Des Autels
Richard Van Tassel Des Autels(December 11, 1910 – September 2, 1968) was an American film actor, radio announcer, and television news anchor. Early life and career The only child of James A. Des Autels and Phoebe Van Tassel,"Des Autels Funeral Thursday"
''The El Paso Times''. February 8, 1966. p. 22.
he was born in . The family later relocated to and, in 1923, to