My Six Convicts

Last updated
My Six Convicts
My Six Convicts FilmPoster.jpeg
Directed by Hugo Fregonese
Screenplay by Michael Blankfort
Based onBook by Donald Powell Wilson
Produced by Edna and Edward Anhalt
(associate producers)
Starring Millard Mitchell
Gilbert Roland
John Beal
Marshall Thompson
CinematographyGuy Roe, A.S.C.
Edited by Gene Havlick, A.C.E.
Music by Dimitri Tiomkin
Production
company
Stanley Kramer Productions
Distributed by Columbia Pictures
Release date
  • March 20, 1952 (1952-03-20)
Running time
104 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$1.1 million (US rentals) [1]

My Six Convicts is a 1952 American film noir crime drama directed by Hugo Fregonese. The screenplay was adapted by Michael Blankfort from the autobiographical book My Six Convicts: A Psychologist's Three Years in Fort Leavenworth , written by Donald Powell Wilson.[ citation needed ]

Contents

The film stars Millard Mitchell, Gilbert Roland, John Beal and Marshall Thompson. Mitchell won a Golden Globe Award for his performance.[ citation needed ]

Plot

Prison psychologist Doc attempts to help his incarcerated patients.[ citation needed ]

Cast

Uncredited

Style

While dealing with serious issues, the film conveys a comedic tone. The film is true to the overall spirit of the book upon which it is based, but dramatic license was taken with certain events that were created solely to add dramatic elements. For example, the failed prison break and the resulting death of an innocent inmate are fictional plot points not found in Donald Powell Wilson's book,[ citation needed ] although the book may itself contain plot contrivances. [2]

Production

The film was shot on location at San Quentin State Prison, where warden Clinton Duffy had implemented reforms that sought to rehabilitate prisoners much in the same way as does the Doc character. [3]

Because of San Quentin's strict policy prohibiting women from entering the inner prison area, a short prison guard was asked to impersonate the Mrs. Randall character in long shots. Actress Carol Savage portrayed the character in closeup studio shots. [4]

Musical director Dimitri Tiomkin visited Sing Sing prison to hear the prisoners' band and songs sung by the prisoners in preparation for his film score. [5]

Reception

In a contemporary review for The New York Times , critic A. H. Weiler wrote: "... [P]enology, psychology and crime have been blended into a compassionate, thoughtful, incisive and, above all, genuinely humorous account of life behind prison walls. ... There may be doubters who will scoff at the possibility of a convict such as Connie being permitted to leave the penitentiary (under guard) to open a bank safe but as played by Millard Mitchell, who runs off with the acting honors, the facts are not particularly important." [6]

Director Hugo Fregonese received fan letters from prison inmates and said, "I'm flattered. After all, these are the first fan letters I've ever received." [7]

Accolades

AwardCategoryRecipient(s)Result
Golden Globe Awards Best Supporting Actor Millard Mitchell Won
Directors Guild of America Awards Outstanding Directing – Feature Film Hugo Fregonese Nominated

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stanford prison experiment</span> Controversial 1971 psychological experiment

The Stanford prison experiment (SPE) was a psychological experiment conducted in August 1971. It was a two-week simulation of a prison environment that examined the effects of situational variables on participants' reactions and behaviors. Stanford University psychology professor Philip Zimbardo led the research team who administered the study.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Folsom State Prison</span> Prison in Folsom, California, United States

Folsom California State Prison is a California State Prison in Folsom, California, U.S., approximately 20 miles (32 km) northeast of the state capital of Sacramento. It is one of 34 adult institutions operated by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Quentin Rehabilitation Center</span> Mens prison in California, US

San Quentin Rehabilitation Center (SQ), formerly known as San Quentin State Prison, is a California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation state prison for men, located north of San Francisco in the unincorporated place of San Quentin in Marin County.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Louisiana State Penitentiary</span> American maximum-security prison farm

The Louisiana State Penitentiary is a maximum-security prison farm in Louisiana operated by the Louisiana Department of Public Safety & Corrections. It is named "Angola" after the former slave plantation that occupied this territory. The plantation was named after the country of Angola, from which many slaves originated before arriving in Louisiana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Millard Mitchell</span> American character actor (1903–1953)

Millard Mitchell was a Cuban-born American character actor whose credits include roughly 30 feature films and two television appearances.

<i>The Longest Yard</i> (1974 film) 1974 film by Robert Aldrich

The Longest Yard is a 1974 American prison sports comedy-drama film directed by Robert Aldrich, written by Tracy Keenan Wynn, based on a story by producer Albert S. Ruddy, and starring Burt Reynolds, Eddie Albert, Ed Lauter, Michael Conrad and James Hampton. The film was released as The Mean Machine in the United Kingdom and South Africa. The film follows a former NFL player recruiting a group of prisoners and playing football against their guards. It features many real-life football players, including Green Bay Packers legend Ray Nitschke.

<i>Mean Machine</i> (film) 2001 film by Barry Skolnick

Mean Machine is a 2001 British sports comedy film directed by Barry Skolnick and starring former footballer Vinnie Jones. The film is an adaptation of the 1974 American film The Longest Yard, featuring association football rather than American football.

<i>Escape from Alcatraz</i> (film) 1979 film by Don Siegel

Escape from Alcatraz is a 1979 American epic prison action thriller film directed and co-produced by Don Siegel, written by Richard Tuggle, and starring Clint Eastwood alongside Patrick McGoohan, Fred Ward, Jack Thibeau, and Larry Hankin with Danny Glover appearing in his film debut.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holman Correctional Facility</span> Alabama prison and execution center

William C. Holman Correctional Facility is an Alabama Department of Corrections prison located in Atmore, Alabama. The facility is along Alabama State Highway 21, 9 miles (14 km) north of Atmore in southern Alabama.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oregon State Penitentiary</span> Prison in Salem, Oregon, U.S.

Oregon State Penitentiary (OSP), also known as Oregon State Prison, is a maximum security prison in the northwest United States in Salem, Oregon. Originally opened in Portland 173 years ago in 1851, it relocated to Salem fifteen years later. The 2,242-capacity prison is the oldest in the state; the all-male facility is operated by the Oregon Department of Corrections (ODOC). OSP contains an intensive management wing, which is being transformed into a psychiatric facility for mentally ill prisoners throughout Oregon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Menard Correctional Center</span> Prison in Illinois, United States

Menard Correctional Center, known prior to 1970 as Southern Illinois Penitentiary, is an Illinois state prison located in the town of Chester in Randolph County, Illinois. It houses maximum-security and high-medium-security adult males. The average daily population as of 2007 was 3,410.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Waupun Correctional Institution</span> United States historic place

The Waupun Correctional Institution is a maximum security penitentiary in Waupun, Wisconsin. The prison is under the command of Warden Randall Hepp.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Alcatraz</span> Unsuccessful escape attempt from Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary in 1946

The Battle of Alcatraz, which lasted from May 2 to 4, 1946, was the result of an escape attempt at Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary by armed convicts. Two Federal Bureau of Prisons officers—William A. Miller and Harold Stites—were killed. Three inmates were also killed during the incident. Fourteen other officers and one uninvolved convict were also injured. Two of the perpetrators were executed in 1948 for their roles.

<i>Riot in Cell Block 11</i> 1954 film by Don Siegel

Riot in Cell Block 11 is a 1954 American film noir crime film directed by Don Siegel and starring Neville Brand, Emile Meyer, Frank Faylen, Leo Gordon and Robert Osterloh. Director Quentin Tarantino called it "the best prison film ever made."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James A. Johnston</span> Prison warden of Alcatraz

James Aloysius Johnston was an American politician and prison warden who served as the first and longest-serving warden of Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary, serving from 1934 to 1948. He had earlier served as wardens of California state prisons at Folsom (1912-1913) and San Quentin (1914-1924).

Harley Oliver Teets was the warden of San Quentin State Prison from 1951 until his death in 1957. During that time he presided over executions performed in San Quentin's notorious gas chamber. Teets is probably best known for seizing the manuscript of one of condemned prisoner Caryl Chessman's books, arguing that since it was written on death row, it constituted "prison labor".

The San Quentin Six were six inmates at San Quentin State Prison in the U.S. state of California who were charged with actions related to an August 21, 1971 escape attempt that resulted in six deaths and at least two people seriously wounded. The San Quentin Six were Fleeta Drumgo, David Johnson, Hugo Pinell, Johnny Larry Spain, Willie Tate, and Luis Talamantez. The dead included George Jackson, a co-founder of the Black Guerrilla Family; two other inmates, and three guards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Montana State Prison</span> United States historic place

The Montana State Prison is a men's correctional facility of the Montana Department of Corrections in unincorporated Powell County, Montana, about 3.5 miles (5.6 km) west of Deer Lodge. The current facility was constructed between 1974 and 1979 in response to the continued degeneration of the original facility located in downtown Deer Lodge.

<i>The Kings Thief</i> 1955 adventure film by Robert Z. Leonard

The King's Thief is a 1955 swashbuckling CinemaScope adventure film directed by Robert Z. Leonard, who replaced Hugo Fregonese during filming. Released on August 5, 1955, the film takes place in London at the time of Charles II and stars Ann Blyth, Edmund Purdom, David Niven, George Sanders and Roger Moore.

The Marin County Civic Center attacks were two related attacks in 1970 at the Marin County Superior Court, located in the Marin County Civic Center in San Rafael, California, United States, tied to escalating racial tensions in the state's criminal justice system.

References

  1. 'Top Box-Office Hits of 1952', Variety, January 7, 1953
  2. Sokolsky, George (1951-09-23). "'My Six Convicts' No Book To Take Seriously". Argus Leader . Sioux Falls, South Dakota. p. 6.
  3. Fidler, Jimmie (1951-10-12). "'My Six Convicts' Is Important Picture". The Durham Sun . pp. 6-D.
  4. "Pint-Sized Prison Guard Doubles for Actress". The Charlotte Observer . 1952-01-15. pp. 9-A.
  5. "Around and about the film studios". Paddington Mercury. London, England. 1951-07-27. p. 2.
  6. Weiler, A. H. (1952-03-28). "The Screen: Three Films Have Premieres". The New York Times . p. 27.
  7. Hopper, Hedda (1952-01-31). "Hedda Hopper's Hollywood". Tucson Citizen . p. 18.