Johnny Dark
| Johnny Dark | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster by Reynold Brown | |
| Directed by | George Sherman |
| Written by | Franklin Coen |
| Produced by | William Alland |
| Starring | Tony Curtis Piper Laurie Don Taylor |
| Cinematography | Carl E. Guthrie |
| Edited by | Edward Curtiss |
| Music by | Hans J. Salter |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 85 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $1,650,000[1] |
Johnny Dark is a 1954 American Technicolor comedy drama action film directed by George Sherman and starring Tony Curtis, Piper Laurie and Don Taylor.[2] It was produced and distributed by Universal Pictures.
Plot
[edit]Johnny Dark and his pal Duke Benson work for Fielding Motors, where owner James Fielding manufactures family-friendly automobiles. Chief engineer Scotty overhears the guys complaining about the company, and spots a sports-car design Johnny and Duke have done.
New employee Liz catches the eye of the guys. Her secret is that she is Fielding's granddaughter. When a major stockholder, Winston, protests the company's unwillingness to create new products for more profits, Scotty blurts out that Fielding Motors is developing a new sports car.
Liz is chosen as the car's designer while Johnny and Duke go to work building it. Duke invites her to go dancing, but is jealous when he spots her kissing Johnny, who has discovered Liz's true identity.
Duke is fired after flipping the car during a practice run. He blames it on brake failure, but Johnny feels it's just an excuse. Liz is disappointed in Johnny for not defending his friend.
The car is entered in a Canada-to-Mexico race. Johnny must drive it himself, Duke having been hired to drive another vehicle. Fielding dislikes making a sports car, but accepts Scotty's wager on the race. The car has a breakdown and Johnny must push it into Las Vegas, but when a radio broadcast implies that Fielding doesn't care, Scotty and a team of mechanics rush to Vegas to help Johnny get back into the race and win, which Liz and Duke help him celebrate.
Cast
[edit]- Tony Curtis as Johnny Dark
- Piper Laurie as Liz Fielding
- Don Taylor as Duke Benson
- Paul Kelly as William H. 'Scotty' Scott
- Ilka Chase as Abbie Binns
- Sidney Blackmer as James Fielding
- Ruth Hampton as Miss Border to Border
- Russell Johnson as Emory
- Joe Sawyer as Carl Svenson
- Robert Nichols as Smitty
- Pierre Watkin as Ed J. Winston
- Scatman Crothers as himself
- Ralph Montgomery as Morgan
References
[edit]- ^ "1954 Box Office Champs". Variety Weekly. January 5, 1955. p. 59. - figures are rentals in the US and Canada
- ^ Johnny Dark at TCMDB
External links
[edit]- Johnny Dark at IMDb
 | This article about an action film is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
- 1954 films
- American sports comedy films
- American action comedy films
- 1950s sports comedy films
- 1950s action comedy films
- American auto racing films
- Films directed by George Sherman
- Universal Pictures films
- 1950s English-language films
- 1950s American films
- English-language action comedy films
- English-language sports comedy films
- Films produced by William Alland
- Action film stubs