Carbine Williams

Carbine Williams
Carbine Williams
Directed by	Richard Thorpe
Written by	Art Cohn
Produced by	Armand Deutsch
Starring	James Stewart
Cinematography	William C. Mellor
Edited by	Newell P. Kimlin
Music by	Conrad Salinger
Distributed by	Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Release date	May 1952;
Running time	92 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$1,111,000
Box office	$2,589,000

Carbine Williams is a 1952 American drama film directed by Richard Thorpe and starring James Stewart. The film follows the life of its namesake, David Marshall Williams, who invented the operating principle for the M1 Carbine while in a North Carolina prison. The M1 Carbine was used extensively during World War II.

Originally filmed in black-and-white, it is also shown in a computer-colorized version.^[2]

Plot

The film follows the life of David Marshall Williams (James Stewart), who was a member of the Winchester team that invented the semi-automatic M1 Carbine used in World War II. Williams was found distilling illegal moonshine, and was held responsible for the death of a federal officer during a raid on his still. He was sentenced to thirty years hard labor. He cycled through the prison system, until a firm, but compassionate warden, H.T. Peoples (Wendell Corey), allowed him to work in a prison tool shop. There, he invented the gas system for his famous rifle. Williams was released from prison in 1929 and worked with Winchester Firearms on development of the M1 Carbine.

Cast

James Stewart as David Marshall 'Marsh' Williams
Jean Hagen as Maggie Williams
Wendell Corey as Capt. H. T. Peoples
Carl Benton Reid as Claude Williams
John Smith as David Marshall's brother (uncredited)
James Arness as David Marshall's oldest brother^[3]

Reception

According to MGM records the film earned $1,787,000 in the US and Canada^[4] and $802,000 elsewhere, resulting in a profit of $575,000.^[1]

Comic book adaption

Fawcett Movie Comic #19 (October 1952)^[5]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c The Eddie Mannix Ledger, Los Angeles: Margaret Herrick Library, Center for Motion Picture Study.
^ Maltin, Leonard, ed. (2007). Leonard Maltin's 2008 Movie Guide. New York: Signet. p. 211. ISBN 978-0-451-22186-5.
^ James Arness#Filmography
^ See also 'Top Box-Office Hits of 1952', Variety, January 7, 1953
^ "Fawcett Movie Comic #19". Grand Comics Database.

External links

Carbine Williams at IMDb
Carbine Williams at AllMovie
Carbine Williams at the TCM Movie Database

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[Mannix-1] The Eddie Mannix Ledger, Los Angeles: Margaret Herrick Library, Center for Motion Picture Study.

[2] Maltin, Leonard, ed. (2007). Leonard Maltin's 2008 Movie Guide. New York: Signet. p. 211. ISBN 978-0-451-22186-5.

[3] James Arness#Filmography

[4] See also 'Top Box-Office Hits of 1952', Variety, January 7, 1953

[5] "Fawcett Movie Comic #19". Grand Comics Database.

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