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The Man With the Golden Arm (1955)
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Synopsis
When
Otto Preminger
was willing to release his drug-addiction drama
Man With the Golden Arm
without the sanction of a Production Code seal, it proved to be yet another nail in the coffin of that censorial dinosaur. Based on the novel by Nelson Algren, the film stars
Frank Sinatra
as Frankie Machine, expert card dealer (hence the title). Recently released from prison, Frankie is determined to set his life in order-and that means divesting himself of his drug habit. He dreams of becoming a jazz drummer, but his greedy wife
Eleanor Parker
wants him to continue his lucrative gambling activities. Since Parker is confined to a wheelchair as a result of a car accident caused by Frankie, he's in no position to refuse. Only the audience knows that Parker is not crippled, but is faking her invalid status to keep Frankie under her thumb. Gambling boss
Robert Strauss
wants Frankie to deal at a high-stakes poker game; terrified that he's lost his touch, Frankie asks dope pusher
Darren McGavin
to supply him with narcotics. When McGavin discovers that Parker is not an invalid, she kills him, and Frankie (who is elsewhere at the time) is accused of the murder. He is willing to go to the cops, but he doesn't want to show up with drugs in his system. So with the help of sympathetic B-girl
Kim Novak
, Sinatra locks himself up and goes "cold turkey"-a still-harrowing sequence, despite the glut of "doper" films that followed in the wake of this picture. After Parker herself is killed in a suicidal fall, the path is cleared for Frankie to pursue a clean new life with Novak. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Cast
Paul E. Burns
Suspenders
John Conte
Drunky
Leonid Kinskey
Dr. Dominowski
Shelly Manne
Himself
Frank Marlowe
Antek
George Mathews
Williams
Joe McTurk
Meter Reader
Doro Merande
Vi
Emile G. Meyer
Inspector Bednar
Kim Novak
Molly
Eleanor Parker
Zosch Machine
Shorty Rogers
Himself
Charles Seel
Proprietor
Arnold Stang
Sparrow
George E. Stone
Sam Markette
Robert Strauss
Schwiefka
Martha Wentworth
Vangie
Will Wright
Lane
Darren McGavin
Louis
Frank Sinatra
Frankie Machine
Leonard Bremen
Taxi Driver
Ralph Neff
Chester
Frank Richards
Piggy
Production Crew
Nelson Algren
Book Author
Sam Leavitt
Cinematographer
Elmer Bernstein
Composer (Music Score)
Mary Ann Nyberg
Costume Designer
Otto Preminger
Director
Louis Loeffler
Editor
Ben Lane
Makeup
Bernard Ponedel
Makeup
Jack Stone
Makeup
Elmer Bernstein
Musical Direction/Supervision
Otto Preminger
Producer
Joseph C. Wright
Production Designer
Lewis Meltzer
Screenwriter
Walter Newman
Screenwriter
Darrell Silvera
Set Designer
Year: 1955
Runtime: 119
Country: USA
MPAA Rating:
Category: Feature
Genre
Drama
Produced by
Otto Preminger Productions
United Artists
Awards
1956 - Best British Film - British Academy Awards
1956 - Best British Film - British Academy Awards
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