Racket Girls | |
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Directed by | Robert C. Dertano |
Written by | Robert C. Dertano |
Produced by | George Weiss |
Starring | Peaches Page Timothy Farrell Clara Mortenson Rita Martinez |
Cinematography | William C. Thompson |
Production company | Arena Productions |
Distributed by | Screen Classics |
Release date |
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Running time | 70 mins |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Racket Girls (also called Blonde Pickup and Pin Down Girls) is an American film noir crime film, directed by Robert C. Dertano and released in 1951 by Screen Classics.
Umberto Scalli (Timothy Farrell) is a small-time gangster who acts as a manager for women's wrestling in order to cover his involvement in many crime rings, including racketeering, bookmaking, and prostitution. He must dodge both police investigations and the local mob, to which he owes $35,000. In the seedy underbelly of 1950s Los Angeles, small-time gangster Umberto Scalli (Timothy Farrell) manages women’s wrestling as a front for his real business—racketeering, bookmaking, and prostitution. Deep in debt to the mob for $35,000, Scalli finds himself squeezed between police investigations and dangerous collectors.
His star attraction is Tricia Petmeplease, a fierce, no-nonsense tag team champion whose loyalty comes at a price. Scalli relies on shady fight fixer Mugsy to rig matches, but Mugsy's luck is running out, and his schemes are getting riskier.
When the mob sends their impeccably groomed enforcer Matt Malinowski—a charming but cold collector with perfect hair—to remind Scalli of the ticking clock, the pressure mounts. The plan is simple: throw the main event in the third round, collect the payoff, and settle the debt.
But in the world of crooked bets and shifting loyalties, nothing goes as planned. Double-crosses, backroom deals, and a fight that refuses to stay fixed push Scalli, Tricia, and Mugsy into a desperate race to come up with the money before Malinowski returns… with more than just words.
Real life wrestlers Peaches Page and Rita Martinez, as well as former world champion Clara Mortensen, play fictional versions of themselves.
The film was produced by George Weiss and Arena Productions, a Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer-based company headed by Norman Felton. [1] [ failed verification ]
The film was the subject of a 1994 episode of the sixth season of the movie-mocking show Mystery Science Theater 3000 . [2]