''Shadow in the Sky'' is a 1952 American

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...

directed by Fred M. Wilcox and starring

Ralph Meeker Ralph Meeker (born Ralph Rathgeber; November 21, 1920 August 5, 1988) was an American film, stage, and television actor. He first rose to prominence for his roles in the Broadway productions of '' Mister Roberts'' (1948–1951) and ''Picnic'' ...

Nancy Davis Nancy Davis Reagan (; born Anne Frances Robbins; July 6, 1921 – March 6, 2016) was an American film actress and First Lady of the United States from 1981 to 1989. She was the second wife of president Ronald Reagan. Reagan was born in New ...

James Whitmore James Allen Whitmore Jr. (October 1, 1921 – February 6, 2009) was an American actor. He received numerous accolades, including a Golden Globe Award, a Grammy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, a Theatre World Award, and a Tony Award, plus two Ac ...

and

Jean Hagen Jean Hagen (born Jean Shirley Verhagen; August 3, 1923 – August 29, 1977) was an American actress best known for her role as Lina Lamont in ''Singin' in the Rain'' (1952), for which she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting ...

. It was produced and distributed by

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 ...

Plot

Lou and Betty Hopke, who own a gas station in California, feel that they owe help to Burt, an ex-Marine who has been confined to a veteran's hospital since the war. Lou is indebted for Burt's having saved his life in combat, and Burt is also Betty's brother. Whenever it rains, Burt is stricken with terrible memories and panic attacks. Although they want to let Burt live in their home, Lou and Betty worry about his volatile behavior around their two young children. Stella Murphy has met Burt at a hospital dance and urges him to find a home of his own. She wants him to move to Oregon with her and work on her grandfather's farm, but that region's rainy climate discourages him. Burt decides to invest in the Hopkes' gas station, causing an angry Stella to leave him. Burt uses his savings to buy a small boat, which he fixes up. Lou and Betty's young son Chris keeps pleading with Burt to take him sailing. The boy stows away when Burt launches the boat, but Burt sends him safely home. Later, the boy sneaks out of his bedroom at the family's home and returns to Burt's boat, docked at a marina. It is dark and it is raining, and Burt is asleep inside the small boat, traumatized by the rain. The boy falls overboard, but his cries of help remind Burt of how he saved Lou's life in another torrential downpour. He rescues the boy, after which everyone is assured that Burt is going to be all right.

Cast

Reception

The film was a major financial disaster despite its low cost. According to MGM records it earned $244,000 in the US and Canada and $76,000 elsewhere, making a loss to the studio of $644,000.

References

External links

''Shadow in the Sky''
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 A ...

* 1952 films Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films 1952 drama films American drama films Films scored by Bronisław Kaper American black-and-white films Films directed by Fred M. Wilcox 1950s English-language films 1950s American films {{1950s-drama-film-stub