''The 49th Man'' is a 1953 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
Fred F. Sears and starring
John Ireland
John Benjamin Ireland (January 30, 1914 – March 21, 1992) was a Canadian actor. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance in ''All the King's Men'' (1949), making him the first Vancouver-born actor to receive an Oscar nomin ...
and
Richard Denning
Richard Denning (March 27, 1914 – October 11, 1998) was an American actor who starred in science fiction films of the 1950s, including ''Unknown Island'' (1948), ''Creature from the Black Lagoon'' (1954), '' Target Earth'' (1954), ''Day the ...
. It was released by
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...
. The
Cold War
The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
thriller was based on a story by
Ivan Tors
Ivan Tors (born Iván Törzs; June 12, 1916 – June 4, 1983) was a Hungarian playwright, film director, screenwriter, and film and television producer with an emphasis on non-violent but exciting science fiction, underwater sequences, and s ...
and the screenplay written by
Harry Essex
Harry Essex (November 29, 1910 – February 6, 1997) was an American screenwriter and director in feature films and television. Born and raised in New York City, his career spanned more than fifty years.
Career
After graduating from St John' ...
.
The film's title is a cryptic reference to the men in the film hired to smuggle 48
nuclear weapon
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions ( thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bom ...
s components into the United States as part of a secret
war game
A wargame is a strategy game in which two or more players command opposing armed forces in a realistic simulation of an armed conflict. Wargaming may be played for recreation, to train military officers in the art of strategic thinking, or to s ...
and the unexpected 49th man, using the war game as cover, smuggling in a real atomic bomb as part of a plot to destroy an American city.
Plot
After a fatal car crash in
Lordsburg, New Mexico
Lordsburg is a city in and the county seat of Hidalgo County, New Mexico, United States. Hidalgo County includes the southern "bootheel" of New Mexico, along the Arizona border. The population was 2,797 at the 2010 census, down from 3,379 in 20 ...
, investigators find a mysterious machine component that they turn over to the nearby
Los Alamos National Laboratory
Los Alamos National Laboratory (often shortened as Los Alamos and LANL) is one of the sixteen research and development laboratories of the United States Department of Energy (DOE), located a short distance northwest of Santa Fe, New Mexico, ...
for identification. Scientists there declare that it is one component of an advanced portable
nuclear weapon
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions ( thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bom ...
designed by an unknown, presumably hostile power. The discovery prompts Paul Reagan (
Richard Denning
Richard Denning (March 27, 1914 – October 11, 1998) was an American actor who starred in science fiction films of the 1950s, including ''Unknown Island'' (1948), ''Creature from the Black Lagoon'' (1954), '' Target Earth'' (1954), ''Day the ...
), chief of the Security Investigation Division (SID), to send agent John Williams (
John Ireland
John Benjamin Ireland (January 30, 1914 – March 21, 1992) was a Canadian actor. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance in ''All the King's Men'' (1949), making him the first Vancouver-born actor to receive an Oscar nomin ...
) to investigate the source of these components and to prevent them from being assembled into a functioning weapon. As more parts are smuggled into the United States, the investigation expands and a pattern begins to emerge which points to
Marseilles, France
Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the France, French Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regio ...
.
After
uranium
Uranium is a chemical element with the symbol U and atomic number 92. It is a silvery-grey metal in the actinide series of the periodic table. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons. Uranium is weak ...
is found welded to the hull of a
U.S. Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage o ...
submarine in
New London, Connecticut
New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States, located at the mouth of the Thames River in New London County, Connecticut. It was one of the world's three busiest whaling ports for several decades ...
, Williams continues his investigation aboard that submarine, now bound for the French port, undercover as a naval officer preparing a training film. While in Marseilles, he learns that civilians Margo Wayne (
Suzanne Dalbert
Suzanne Dalbert (12 May 1927 – 31 December 1970) was a French actress who appeared in a number of American films and television series during the 1940s and 50s.
Biography
Dalbert was born in Paris and moved to the United States, following Worl ...
) and her husband Leo Wayne (
Peter Marshall Peter Marshall may refer to:
Entertainment
* Peter Marshall (entertainer) (born 1926), American game show host of ''The Hollywood Squares'', 1966–1981
* Peter Marshall (author, born 1939) (1939–1972), British novelist whose works include ''Th ...
) are working with clarinet player Buzz Olin (
Richard Avonde
Richard Avonde (1914–1981) was a Canadian film actor who settled in the United States. He appeared in more than 50 films and television series.
In 1956, Avonde completed his 200th role in a television series when he appeared in an episode of '' ...
) and an unknown member of the submarine's crew to smuggle the parts in special metal cases built by Pierre Neff (
George Dee
George may refer to:
People
* George (given name)
* George (surname)
* George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George
* George Washington, First President of the United States
* George W. Bush, 43rd Preside ...
). After a fight near the dock, Williams believes that Lt. Magrew (
Mike Connors
Krekor Ohanian (August 15, 1925 – January 26, 2017), known professionally as Mike Connors, was an American actor best known for playing private detective Joe Mannix in the CBS television series ''Mannix'' from 1967 to 1975, a role which earned ...
) and Commander Jackson (
Robert Foulk
Robert C. Foulk (May 5, 1908 – February 25, 1989) was an American television and film character actor who portrayed Sheriff H. Miller in the CBS series '' Lassie'' from 1958 to 1962.
Early years
Foulk attended the University of Pennsylva ...
) are in on the plot. He orders them arrested, only to be betrayed by his colleague, agent Andy (
Robert Hunter), and taken into custody himself.
Arriving in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
, Williams escapes from his captors and contacts Reagan at SID headquarters where he finds Jackson and Magrew waiting for him in Reagan's office. The whole exercise was a
war game
A wargame is a strategy game in which two or more players command opposing armed forces in a realistic simulation of an armed conflict. Wargaming may be played for recreation, to train military officers in the art of strategic thinking, or to s ...
, put on in secret by the
Defense Department to test the nation's readiness for a subversive attack. However, the Waynes and Olin are ''not'' part of the war game. They have used Neff to construct 4 cases, in addition to the 48 ordered by the naval officers, and smuggled their own portable nuclear weapon into the United States. With less than 48 hours before the bomb's scheduled detonation at 3 p.m. on Tuesday, Williams and his team track Buzz Olin and the Waynes to the
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
area. After a desperate attempt to escape with the bomb and destroy San Francisco by air, Leo Wayne is killed and Jackson has just two hours to attempt to defuse the bomb while Williams flies towards Nevada. This fails and with less than a minute to go the bomb is dropped from the plane to detonate over
Frenchman Flat
Frenchman Flat is a hydrographic basin in the Nevada National Security Site south of Yucca Flat and north of Mercury, Nevada. The flat was used as an American nuclear test site and has a dry lake bed (Frenchman Lake) that was used as a 1950s ...
at the
Nevada Test Site
The Nevada National Security Site (N2S2 or NNSS), known as the Nevada Test Site (NTS) until 2010, is a United States Department of Energy (DOE) reservation located in southeastern Nye County, Nevada, about 65 miles (105 km) northwest of th ...
. Crisis averted, the film ends with the narrator intoning, "...and three o'clock is just the middle of another afternoon in the life of a city."
Cast
*
John Ireland
John Benjamin Ireland (January 30, 1914 – March 21, 1992) was a Canadian actor. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance in ''All the King's Men'' (1949), making him the first Vancouver-born actor to receive an Oscar nomin ...
as SID agent John Williams
*
Richard Denning
Richard Denning (March 27, 1914 – October 11, 1998) was an American actor who starred in science fiction films of the 1950s, including ''Unknown Island'' (1948), ''Creature from the Black Lagoon'' (1954), '' Target Earth'' (1954), ''Day the ...
as SID chief Paul Reagan
*
Suzanne Dalbert
Suzanne Dalbert (12 May 1927 – 31 December 1970) was a French actress who appeared in a number of American films and television series during the 1940s and 50s.
Biography
Dalbert was born in Paris and moved to the United States, following Worl ...
as Margo Wayne
*
Robert Foulk
Robert C. Foulk (May 5, 1908 – February 25, 1989) was an American television and film character actor who portrayed Sheriff H. Miller in the CBS series '' Lassie'' from 1958 to 1962.
Early years
Foulk attended the University of Pennsylva ...
as Commander Jackson
*
Mike Connors
Krekor Ohanian (August 15, 1925 – January 26, 2017), known professionally as Mike Connors, was an American actor best known for playing private detective Joe Mannix in the CBS television series ''Mannix'' from 1967 to 1975, a role which earned ...
as Ensign Magrew (credited as "Touch Conners")
*
Richard Avonde
Richard Avonde (1914–1981) was a Canadian film actor who settled in the United States. He appeared in more than 50 films and television series.
In 1956, Avonde completed his 200th role in a television series when he appeared in an episode of '' ...
as Buzz Olin
*
William Bryant as FBI Agent in Montage (as William R. Klein)
*
Cicely Browne
''Myrrhis odorata'', with common names cicely (), sweet cicely, myrrh, garden myrrh, and sweet chervil, is a herbaceous perennial plant belonging to the celery family Apiaceae. It is the only species in the genus ''Myrrhis''.
Etymology
The gen ...
as Blonde Woman (as Cicely Brown)
*
Tommy Farrell
Tommy Farrell (born Thomas Farrell Richards; October 7, 1921 – May 9, 2004) was an American actor and comedian who appeared in over 100 films and TV series between 1944 and 1983. He was best known for his sidekick roles in the Hollywood Gold ...
as Agent Reynolds
*
Joseph Mell
Joseph Mell (June 23, 1915 – August 31, 1977) was an American film and television actor. He was known for starring as Burt Stone in the 1971 film ''The Ski Bum''. Mell died in August 1977 in Los Angeles, California, at the age of 62.
Partia ...
as Box of Taffy Man at Penn Station
* Robert Hunter as Andy - alias Andre
*
Peter Marshall Peter Marshall may refer to:
Entertainment
* Peter Marshall (entertainer) (born 1926), American game show host of ''The Hollywood Squares'', 1966–1981
* Peter Marshall (author, born 1939) (1939–1972), British novelist whose works include ''Th ...
as Leo Wayne
Production
*director of photography
Lester White
Lester White (July 25, 1907 - December 4, 1958) was an American cinematographer.
Selected filmography
*''The Prizefighter and the Lady'' (1933)
*'' Laughing Boy'' (1934)
*'' A Wicked Woman'' (1934)
*''Society Doctor'' (1934)
*''Times Square Lady ...
, A.S.C.
*art director
Paul Palmentola
Paul Palmentola (1888–1966) was an Italian-born American art director.Stephens p.233 He designed the film sets for more than two hundred productions during his career, much of his work during the 1930s and 1940s at low-budget studios such as Ma ...
*film editor
William A. Lyon
William Austin Lyon (January 21, 1903 – March 18, 1974) was an American film editor, from 1935 to 1971.
He was born in Texas, and died in Los Angeles, California. Employed by Columbia Pictures for most of his career, he was nominated for the Ac ...
, A.C.E.
*set decorator
Louis Diage
*assistant director
Milton Feldman
*sound engineer
George Cooper
*musical director
Mischa Bakaleinikoff
Mikhail Romanovich "Mischa" Bakaleinikov (also spelled Bakaleynikov and Bakaleinikoff; russian: Михаил Романович Бакалейников; November 10, 1890 – August 10, 1960) was a noted musical director, film composer and ...
*certificate number 16329
*Western Electric recording
*produced by
Sam Katzman
Sam Katzman (July 7, 1901 – August 4, 1973) was an American film producer and director. Katzman produced low-budget genre films, including serials, which had disproportionately high returns for the studios and his financial backers.
Ea ...
*associate producer
Charles H. Schneer
Charles Hirsch Schneer (May 5, 1920 – January 21, 2009) was an American film producer, best known for working with Ray Harryhausen, the specialist known for his work in stop motion model animation.
Life and career
Born in Norfolk, Virginia, ...
References
*
*
*
*
External links
*
*
Review of filmat Variety
{{DEFAULTSORT:49th Man, The
1953 films
1950s action thriller films
American black-and-white films
American spy films
American crime thriller films
American action thriller films
Cold War spy films
Columbia Pictures films
Films about nuclear war and weapons
Films directed by Fred F. Sears
Films produced by Sam Katzman
Films set in Nevada
Films set in Washington, D.C.
Films set in New Mexico
Films set in Connecticut
Films set in Marseille
Films set in San Francisco
1950s English-language films
1950s American films