The Desperate Man | |
---|---|
Directed by | Peter Maxwell |
Written by | James Eastwood |
Based on | novel Beginner's Luck by Paul Somers |
Produced by | Jack Greenwood |
Starring | Conrad Phillips Jill Ireland William Hartnell Charles Gray |
Cinematography | Gerald Moss |
Edited by | Geoffrey Muller |
Music by | James Stevens |
Production company | |
Distributed by | Anglo-Amalgamated Film Distributors (UK) |
Release date |
|
Running time | 57 minutes |
Country | United Kingdom |
Language | English |
The Desperate Man is a 1959 British B movie crime film directed by Peter Maxwell and starring Conrad Phillips, Jill Ireland, William Hartnell, Charles Gray and Peter Swanwick. [1] The plot involves a writer who investigates a murder in the tower of a castle. It is adapted from the 1958 novel Beginner's Luck by Paul Somers, the writer better known as Andrew Garve. [2]
In the US, the feature was shown as an episode of Kraft Mystery Theater in 1961. [3]
Two reporters, Curtis and his girlfriend Carol, pursue jewel thief Smith through the Sussex countryside. On arriving at an ancient castle, Smith abducts Carol and holds her hostage, and Curtis is forced to assist the thief to find his buried loot.
Many notable works of fiction are set in London, the capital city of England and of the United Kingdom. The following is a selection; there are too many such fictional works for it to be possible to compile a complete list.
The Writers Guild of America Awards is an award for film, television, and radio writing including both fiction and non-fiction categories given by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America West since 1949.
Walter Peter Swanwick was a British actor best remembered as the "Supervisor" in the 1967 TV series, The Prisoner.
The Black Shield of Falworth is a 1954 American Technicolor historical adventure film from Universal-International, produced by Robert Arthur and Melville Tucker and directed by Rudolph Maté. It stars Tony Curtis, Janet Leigh, David Farrar, Herbert Marshall, and Torin Thatcher. The screenplay, set in Medieval England, was adapted by Oscar Brodney and is based on Howard Pyle's 1891 novel Men of Iron. The original music score was composed by Hans J. Salter although his name does not appear in the screen credits. The only musical notation is given as: "Music Supervision by Joseph Gershenson". Made Universal's music department head in 1940, Gershenson's name appeared on nearly every film made by that studio from 1949–1969.
Henry Slesar was an American author and playwright. He is famous for his use of irony and twist endings. After reading Slesar's "M Is for the Many" in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Alfred Hitchcock bought it for adaptation and they began many successful collaborations. Slesar wrote hundreds of scripts for television series and soap operas, leading TV Guide to call him "the writer with the largest audience in America."
Conrad Philip Havord, known professionally as Conrad Phillips, was an English television and film actor. He is best known for playing William Tell in the adventure series The Adventures of William Tell (1958–1959).
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The Adventures of William Tell is a British swashbuckler adventure series, first broadcast on the ITV network in 1958, and produced by ITC Entertainment. In the United States, the episodes aired on the syndicated NTA Film Network in 1958–1959.
The Ringer is a 1952 British mystery film directed by Guy Hamilton and starring Herbert Lom, Donald Wolfit, Mai Zetterling, Greta Gynt, William Hartnell, and Denholm Elliott. The screenplay was by Lesley Storm and Val Valentine. It was Hamilton's directorial debut and the third English-language sound version of Edgar Wallace's 1929 play based on his 1925 novel The Gaunt Stranger. The previous adaptations were in 1928 (silent), 1931, 1932 (Germany-Austria), and 1938.
The Night We Dropped a Clanger, is a 1959 black and white British comedy film directed by Darcy Conyers and starring Brian Rix, Cecil Parker, William Hartnell and Leslie Phillips. It was written by John Chapman.
The Agitator is a 1945 British drama film directed by John Harlow and starring William Hartnell, Mary Morris and John Laurie. It was written by Edward Dryhurst based on the 1925 novel Peter Pettinger by William Riley. It was made by British National Films at the company's Elstree Studios, with sets designed by the art director Wilfred Arnold.
Murder in Reverse is a 1945 British thriller film directed by Montgomery Tully and starring William Hartnell, Jimmy Hanley and Chili Bouchier. It was written by Tully based on the 1931 story Query by "Seamark".
Date with Disaster is a 1957 British crime film directed by Charles Saunders and starring Tom Drake, William Hartnell and Shirley Eaton. An innocent man becomes a suspect for a crime he did not commit.
Impulse is a 1954 British second feature film noir directed by Cy Endfield and starring Arthur Kennedy, Constance Smith and Joy Shelton. It was written by Endfield and Lawrence Huntington from an original story by Carl Nystrom and Robert S. Baker.
Richard the Lionheart was a British ITV television series which ran from 1961 to 1963, aimed at younger audiences.
The Professionals is a 1960 British crime thriller, directed by Don Sharp and starring William Lucas, Andrew Faulds and Colette Wilde.
The Dark Man is a 1951 British black and white film-noir thriller film written and directed by Jeffrey Dell and starring Edward Underdown, Maxwell Reed and Natasha Parry. It was produced by Julian WIntle for Rank Studios.
John Temple-Smith was a British film producer and writer.