Apology for Murder
| Apology for Murder | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Sam Newfield |
| Produced by | Sigmund Neufeld |
| Screenplay by | Fred Myton |
| Story by | Fred Myton |
| Starring |
Ann Savage Hugh Beaumont Russell Hicks Charles D. Brown |
| Music by | Leo Erdody (uncredited) |
| Cinematography | Jack Greenhalgh |
| Edited by | Richard L. Van Enger |
Production company |
Sigmund Neufeld Productions |
| Distributed by | Producers Releasing Corporation |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 67 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Apology for Murder is a 1945 American film noir directed by Sam Newfield, and starring Ann Savage, Hugh Beaumont, Russell Hicks and Charles D. Brown.[1]
The plot of Apology for Murder is a blatant rip-off of the seminal film noir Double Indemnity which was released the previous year. The production company Producers Releasing Corporation, one of the B movie studios of Hollywood’s Poverty Row, wanted to take advantage of Double Indemnity's huge success and originally intended to call the film Single Indemnity. However, Paramount Pictures the production company of Double Indemnity, got wind of it and obtained an injunction. PRC then changed the title to Apology for Murder.[2]
Much acclaimed B movie director Edgar G. Ulmer, who was working at PRC at the time Apology for Murder was made, claimed during a conversation with Peter Bogdanovich that he wrote the original Single Indemnity script for producer Sigmund Neufeld.[3] However, he erroneously believed that the film made from it was finally released under the title Blonde Ice, which is a totally different film produced by Film Classics.
Plot
Tough reporter Kenny Blake (Beaumont) falls in love with sultry Toni Kirkland (Savage) who is married to a much older man (Hicks). She seduces him to murder her husband. City editor Ward McKee (Brown), Kenny's boss and best friend, begins to pursue the tangled threads of the crime relentlessly and gradually closes the net on Kenny. In the end Tony and Kenny shoot each other. As he dies, Kenny types out his confession to the crime.
Cast
- Ann Savage as Toni Kirkland
- Hugh Beaumont as Kenny Blake
- Russell Hicks as Harvey Kirkland
- Charles D. Brown as Ward McKee
- Pierre Watkin as Craig Jordan
- Sarah Padden as Maggie, the Janitress
- Norman Willis as Allen Webb
- Eva Novak as Maid
- Budd Buster as Jed, the Caretaker
- George Sherwood as Police Lt. Edwards
- Wheaton Chambers as Minister
- Arch Hall Sr. as Paul
References
- ↑ Apology for Murder at the American Film Institute Catalog.
- ↑ Dixon, Wheeler. "Senses of Cinema". Retrieved September 27, 2013.
- ↑ Bogdanovich, Peter. Who The Devil Made It: Conversations with Legendary Film Directors, 1997. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. ISBN 0-679-44706-7.
External links
- Apology for Murder at the American Film Institute Catalog
- Apology for Murder at the Internet Movie Database
- Apology for Murder at AllMovie
- Apology for Murder at the TCM Movie Database