''The Devil's Sleep'' is a 1949

exploitation film An exploitation film is a film that tries to succeed financially by exploiting current trends, niche genres, or lurid content. Exploitation films are generally low-quality "B movies", though some set trends, attract critical attention, become hi ...

directed by

W. Merle Connell W. may refer to: * SoHo (Australian TV channel) (previously W.), an Australian pay television channel * ''W.'' (film), a 2008 American biographical drama film based on the life of George W. Bush * "W.", the fifth track from Codeine's 1992 EP ''Bar ...

and produced by George Weiss. Connell had previously directed a number of

American burlesque American burlesque is a genre of variety show derived from elements of Victorian burlesque, music hall and minstrel shows. Burlesque became popular in America in the late 1860s and slowly evolved to feature ribald comedy and female nudity. By ...

films.pp.267-268 Shteir, Rachel ''Striptease: The Untold History of the Girlie Show'' Oxford University Press, USA 1 Nov 2004- The film looks at

juvenile delinquency Juvenile delinquency, also known as juvenile offending, is the act of participating in unlawful behavior as a minor or individual younger than the statutory age of majority. In the United States of America, a juvenile delinquent is a person ...

, phony women's health gyms, and the pushing of narcotics to teenagers. Using many of the same cast and crew as ''

Test Tube Babies In vitro fertilisation (IVF) is a process of fertilisation where an egg is combined with sperm in vitro ("in glass"). The process involves monitoring and stimulating an individual's ovulatory process, removing an ovum or ova (egg or eggs) f ...

'', the film is the first of Timothy Farrell's "Umberto Scalli" trilogy.

Plot

Umberto Scalli has returned from a prison sentence with two lucrative enterprises: a women's health spa that gives the women

Dinitrophenol Dinitrophenols are chemical compounds which are nitro derivatives of phenol. There are six isomers of dinitrophenol: * 2,3-Dinitrophenol * 2,4-Dinitrophenol * 2,5-Dinitrophenol * 2,6-Dinitrophenol * 3,4-Dinitrophenol * 3,5-Dinitrophenol Din ...

tablets that reduce weight but may have dangerous side effects; and selling

Benzedrine Amphetamine (contracted from alpha- methylphenethylamine) is a strong central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is used in the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), narcolepsy, and obesity. It is also commonly used a ...

to teenagers through a young man who provides them through swinging parties held at a house Scalli owns. Some of the teenagers attempt to pay for their drugs by committing burglaries. Judge Rosalind Ballentine and Police Detective Sergeant Dave Kerrigan unite to end the menace, but Scalli attempts to blackmail the judge with photographs of her daughter Margie willfully drugged and nude at one of the parties.

Cast

Lita Grey Lita Grey (born Lillita Louise MacMurray, April 15, 1908 – December 29, 1995), who was known for most of her life as Lita Grey Chaplin, was an American actress and the second wife of Charlie Chaplin. Background She was born in Hollywood, Cal ...

... Judge Rosalind Ballentine * William Thomason ... Detective Sergeant Dave Kerrigan * Will Charles ... Inspector Darnell * Timothy Farrell ... Umberto Scalli * Fred Smith ... Tony Donardi * Muriel Gardner ... Ruby McKenzie * Jim Tyde ... Bob Winter * Stan Freed ... Hal Holmes * Tracy Lynne ... Margie Ballantine *

John Mitchum John Mitchum (September 6, 1919 – November 29, 2001) was an American actor from the 1940s to the 1970s in film and television. The younger brother of the actor Robert Mitchum, he was credited as Jack Mitchum early in his career. Early years ...

... Intern *

George Eiferman George Eiferman (November 3, 1925 – February 12, 2002) was a notable figure in the sport of bodybuilding. Born in Philadelphia in 1925, he served in the Navy during World War II and entered into the sport of bodybuilding afterwards. He won ...

as Himself

References

External links

* 1949 films American black-and-white films 1949 crime drama films 1940s exploitation films American teen drama films 1940s teen drama films American crime drama films American exploitation films 1940s English-language films 1940s American films {{exploitation-film-stub

Plot

Cast

See also

References

External links