''The Lindbergh Kidnapping Case'' is a 1976 American

television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

dramatization of the

Lindbergh kidnapping On March 1, 1932, Charles Augustus Lindbergh Jr. (born June 22, 1930), the 20-month-old son of aviators Charles Lindbergh and Anne Morrow Lindbergh, was abducted from his crib in the upper floor of the Lindberghs' home, Highfields (Amwell and Ho ...

, directed by

Buzz Kulik Seymour "Buzz" Kulik (July 23, 1922 – January 13, 1999) was an American film director and film producer, producer. He directed 72 films and television shows, including the landmark CBS television network anthology series ''Playhouse 90'' a ...

and starting

Cliff DeYoung Clifford Tobin DeYoung (born February 12, 1945)According to the State of California. ''California Birth Index, 1905-1995''. Center for Health Statistics, California Department of Health Services, Sacramento, California. At Ancestry.com is an Ame ...

Anthony Hopkins Sir Philip Anthony Hopkins (born 31 December 1937) is a Welsh actor, director, and producer. One of Britain's most recognisable and prolific actors, he is known for his performances on the screen and stage. Hopkins has received many accolad ...

Martin Balsam Martin Henry Balsam (November 4, 1919 – February 13, 1996) was an American actor. He had a prolific career in character roles in film, in theatre, and on television. An early member of the Actors Studio, he began his career on the New ...

Joseph Cotten Joseph Cheshire Cotten Jr. (May 15, 1905 – February 6, 1994) was an American film, stage, radio and television actor. Cotten achieved prominence on Broadway, starring in the original stage productions of '' The Philadelphia Story'' and ''Sabr ...

, and

Walter Pidgeon Walter Davis Pidgeon (September 23, 1897 – September 25, 1984) was a Canadian-American actor. He earned two Academy Award for Best Actor nominations for his roles in ''Mrs. Miniver'' (1942) and ''Madame Curie'' (1943). Pidgeon also starred in ...

. It first aired on the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

network on February 26, 1976.

Plot

The film opens with archive footage of

Charles Lindbergh Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, military officer, author, inventor, and activist. On May 20–21, 1927, Lindbergh made the first nonstop flight from New York City to Paris, a distance o ...

's pioneering 1927 transatlantic flight in the ''

Spirit of St. Louis The ''Spirit of St. Louis'' (formally the Ryan NYP, registration: N-X-211) is the custom-built, single-engine, single-seat, high-wing monoplane that was flown by Charles Lindbergh on May 20–21, 1927, on the first solo nonstop transatlant ...

'' and the song “

Lindbergh (The Eagle of the U.S.A.) "Lindbergh (The Eagle of the U.S.A.)" was a popular song written by famous Tin Pan Alley songwriters, Howard Johnson and Al Sherman in 1927. It chronicles Charles Lindbergh's famous pioneer solo-flight across the Atlantic Ocean in the ''Spirit ...

”. Hopewell, New Jersey, March 1, 1932. After preparing a bath,

Anne Morrow Lindbergh Anne Spencer Morrow Lindbergh (June 22, 1906 – February 7, 2001) was an American writer and aviator. She was the wife of decorated pioneer aviator Charles Lindbergh, with whom she made many exploratory flights. Raised in Englewood, New Jers ...

(

Sian Barbara Allen Sian Barbara Allen (born July 12, 1946) is a former American actress who mainly appeared on television throughout the 1970s. A native of Reading, Pennsylvania, Allen studied at the Pasadena Playhouse before appearing in her first screen role on t ...

) is alerted by her nurse, Betty Gow, that her baby is not in its crib. They check with Charles Lindbergh (

), reading in his study, that the baby is not with him then immediately go to the nursery and discover an envelope near the window. Lindbergh orders Betty to ask their butler to call the police. Lindbergh informs his wife not to interfere with anything in the nursery and that their baby has been stolen. The police investigate the Lindbergh home and establish a command post in the garage. A ladder is found outside the nursery window along with a nearby footprint. Inside the house, the envelope is opened and Lindbergh reads a letter indicating his child is in good care and future communications with have a distinctive signature with three holes in the paper. The press quickly descend on the house and the police are angered when a reporter attempts to gain a statement from Lindbergh. In New York City, the police department consider the possibilities that the child was kidnapped by organised criminals. They are advised by a criminal profiler that the kidnapper is likely to be acting on their own as they only asked for $50,000, and an individual who is jealous of Lindbergh's status. In New York City, concerned citizen Dr John Condon (

) decides to write to the Bronx Home News newspaper to offer himself as an intermediary in the ransom exchange. Condon receives a reply from the kidnapper and telephones Lindbergh, giving him confirmation that the letter has the unique signature with three holes in the paper with a demand for $70,000. Condon later telephones Lindbergh to inform him that he has received a package with the sleeping garment of the child. Lindbergh dons a disguise and is able to drive away from his home without attracting the attention of the massed press. Lindbergh identifies the garment and also retrieves instructions for the rendezvous to pay the ransom. The Bronx, April 2, 1932. Condon and Lindbergh drive to a cemetery to hand over the ransom. Lindbergh stays in the car while Condon meets the kidnapper. The kidnapper speaks with a German accent and tells Condon that his name is John. Condon hands over the ransom but is told that further instructions will be given on where to retrieve the child. Despite a search by air for a boat indicated in the instructions, they are unable to find the child. The following month, the body of the child is found just two miles from the Lindbergh home. Lindbergh identifies the body at that of his missing child. By November 1933, New York City detectives are tracing Gold Certificates, contained in the ransom money, that are now entering circulation. On September 15, 1934, a breakthrough is made when a gas station attendant receives a

gold certificate Gold certificates were issued by the United States Treasury as a form of representative money from 1865 to 1933. While the United States observed a gold standard, the certificates offered a more convenient way to pay in gold than the use of coin ...

from a customer. The attendant had been notified to watch out for ransom banknotes and wrote the car licence plate on a gold certificate he received. Under questioning, he describes the customer as having a German accent. The car was a brown Plymouth Sedan and is identified as belonging to Bruno Hauptmann (

), resident in the Bronx. The detectives stake out Hauptmann's home and identify his car. After following Hauptmann, they decide to stop him quickly and find ransom money on his person. At his home, Hauptmann protests his innocence. Stripping his garage, the police find $14,000 ransom money hidden inside with matching serial numbers. Hauptmann is arrested. On January 2, 1935, the trial of Hauptmann begins in Flemington, New Jersey. Evidence is presented to connect Hauptmann to the ransom letters and ladder, the wood of which came from his attic. At the conclusion of the trial, Hauptmann is permitted to see his wife and his own child. Outside the courthouse, an angry mob are calling for the death penalty. Hauptmann remarks on his innocence and that the jury has deliberated for eleven hours, and that this is a good sign. Returning for the verdict, Hauptmann is found guilty. Cheering erupts in the courtroom and the mob applaud outside. Hauptmann is sentenced to death and later electrocuted on April 3, 1936, after being informed all appeals have failed. The Lindberghs decide to leave the country and move to England, where they are informed of Hauptmann's execution.

Cast

as Bruno Hauptmann *

Denise Alexander Denise Alexander is an American actress, best known for her role as Lesley Webber on ''General Hospital'', a role she originally played from 1973 to 1984 (contract), 1996 to 2009, and a guest stint in 2013, in honor of the show's 50th anniversa ...

as Violet Sharpe *

as Edward J. Reilly *

as Dr. John F. Condon *

Peter Donat Peter Donat (born Pierre Collingwood Donat; January 20, 1928 – September 10, 2018) was a Canadian-American actor. Early life Pierre Collingwood Donat was born in Kentville, Nova Scotia, Canada, the son of Marie (née Bardet) and Philip Ernst ...

as Col. H. Norman Schwarzkopf *

John Fink John Fink (born February 11, 1940) is an American film and television actor. In the 1970–1971 the NBC sitcom '' Nancy'', Fink was cast as an Iowa veterinarian, Dr. Adam Hudson, who marries the daughter of the President of the United States. ...

as Mr. Anderson *

Dean Jagger Dean Jagger (November 7, 1903 – February 5, 1991) was an American film, stage, and television actor who won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Henry King (director), Henry King's ''Twelve O'Clock High'' (1949). E ...

as Koehler *

Laurence Luckinbill Laurence George Luckinbill (born November 21, 1934) is an American actor, playwright and director. He has worked in television, film, and theatre, doing triple duty in the theatre by writing, directing, and starring in stage productions. He is kn ...

as Gov. Hal Hoffman *

Frank Marth Frank Marth (July 29, 1922 – January 12, 2014) was an American film and television actor. He may be best known as a cast-member of ''Cavalcade of Stars'' (1949; 1950–1957), especially segments of ''The Honeymooners'', which later became a ...

as Chief Harry Wolfe *

as Judge Trenchard * Tony Roberts as Lt. Jim Finn * Robert Sampson as John Curtis *

David Spielberg David Spielberg (March 6, 1939 – June 1, 2016) was an American television and film actor. Early years Spielberg was born in Weslaco, Texas, and was a resident of Mercedes, Texas. His father was a Romanian-Jewish immigrant, and his mother was a ...

as David Wilentz *

Joseph Stern Joseph Stern (born September 3, 1940) is an American television, film and theater producer and actor. Life and career Stern, who was born in Los Angeles, graduated from Fairfax High School and UCLA. Aiming to become a professional Shakespearea ...

as Dr. Schonfeld * Kate Woodville as Betty Gow *

Keenan Wynn Francis Xavier Aloysius James Jeremiah Keenan Wynn (July 27, 1916 – October 14, 1986) was an American character actor. His expressive face was his stock-in-trade; and though he rarely carried the lead role, he had prominent billing in mos ...

as Fred Huisache *Alan Beckwith as Walter Lyle

Reception

Awards and nominations

The production was nominated for a

Golden Globe The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of t ...

for Best Motion Picture Made for TV.

won a

Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie is an award presented annually by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS). It is given in honor of an actor who has delivered an outstanding pe ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lindbergh Kidnapping Case, The 1976 television films 1976 films Cultural depictions of Charles Lindbergh Films directed by Buzz Kulik Films scored by Billy Goldenberg Films set in the 1930s Films about child abduction in the United States Lindbergh kidnapping NBC network original films Crime films based on actual events Films set in New Jersey