''Thunder Island'' is a 1963 American

action film Action film is a film genre in which the protagonist is thrust into a series of events that typically involve violence and physical feats. The genre tends to feature a mostly resourceful hero struggling against incredible odds, which include life ...

directed by Jack Leewood, written by Don Devlin and

Jack Nicholson John Joseph Nicholson (born April 22, 1937) is an American retired actor and filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest actors of all time. In many of his films, he played rebels against the social structure. He received numerous ...

, and starring

Gene Nelson Gene Nelson (born Leander Eugene Berg; March 24, 1920 – September 16, 1996) was an American actor, dancer, screenwriter, and director. Biography Born Leander Eugene Berg in Astoria, Oregon, he and his family moved to Seattle when he wa ...

Fay Spain Lona Fay Spain (October 6, 1932 – May 8, 1983) was an American actress in motion pictures and television. Early years Born in Phoenix, Arizona, Fay Spain was the younger of two daughters born to Robert C. Spain and Arminta Frances "Mick ...

, Brian Kelly,

Míriam Colón Míriam Colón Valle (August 20, 1936 – March 3, 2017) was a Puerto Rican actress. She was the founder and director of New York City's Puerto Rican Traveling Theater. Beginning her career in the early 1950s, she performed on Broadway and on ...

, Art Bedard and Antonio Torres Martino. The film was made by Robert L. Lippert's Associated Producers and released in September 1963, by

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...

. Actor

co-wrote the screenplay.

Plot

Contract killer Billy Poole is hired to assassinate a South American dictator. When he arrives, he and associate Anita Chavez arrange to have an innocent bystander, advertising man Vincent Dodge, take them by boat to the intended victim's island compound, holding Vincent's wife Helen hostage. Poole is able only to wound his target. After killing his accomplice Anita himself, Poole is shot by Vincent, who then rescues his wife.

Cast

as Billy Poole *

as Helen Dodge * Brian Kelly as Vincent Dodge *

as Anita Chavez *Art Bedard as Ramon Alou *Antonio Torres Martino as Colonel Cepeda *

Esther Sandoval Esther Sandoval (28 December 1928 – 6 February 2006) was a Puerto Rican actress and a pioneer in Puerto Rico's television. Early years Sandoval was born Esther María González in Ponce where she received her primary and secondary education. ...

as Rena *José de San Antón as Antonio Perez *Evelyn Kaufman as Jo Dodge *Stephanie Rifkinson as Linda Perez

Production

co-wrote the film early in his career. He and Don Devlin were paid $1,250. The film was shot in Puerto Rico. Robert L. Lippert was impressed with Nicholson's work and hired him as a writer and actor for ''

Flight to Fury ''Flight to Fury'' is a 1964 film starring Jack Nicholson, Fay Spain and Dewey Martin. The film was directed by Monte Hellman and filmed back to back with ''Back Door to Hell'' in the Philippines in 1964. Nicholson was one of the writers of the ...

'' shot in the Philippines.

References

External links

*
''Thunder Island''
at

TCMDB Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie-oriented pay-TV network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasting campus in the Midtown business district of Atl ...

''Thunder Island''
at BFI 1963 films 1960s action films American action films Films shot in Puerto Rico Films about contract killing 20th Century Fox films Films scored by Paul Sawtell Films set in South America 1960s English-language films 1960s American films {{action-film-stub