TEENAGE CRIME WAVE (1955)

 This segment of the Lonely Street Bar Noir Pub Crawl is remarkably brief as there is only one real stop along the crawl. The sign is never fully revealed but it looks like it begins with a and has a P and a T and maybe a J in its name. The only discernable word is Cocktails. (NOTE: I went back to look at the scene again and discovered the bar name is The Dolphin. I'm not sure that helps.)

The Dolphin 

Small Cocktails and Nefarious Customers

The movie opens in this hole-in-the-wall on some backstreet in Los Angeles. A young woman sits at the bar having a cigarette and a cocktail. It's an odd time in American bar culture. Is she a teen or is she that as of yet unidentified demographic of 'young adult' in those grey years of 18-20? And if she's younger, why is she sitting at the bar knocking back the hooch in the company of guys one street north of Skid Row?

The Dolphin: Where No One Gets Carded

As I said, there are few and far places in this movie to visit. The county will provide ride service from Juvenile Hall to a reform school.

"Where are the parents? If you ask me, we're arresting the wrong people."

Maybe you just want to get away. Hiding out at a farm with a statewide manhunt for you might be the ticket.

Farm Fantasy Camp

The crawl concludes at the iconic Griffith Observatory.

Griffith Observatory

AND NOW THE STORY

A team of recalcitrant teens lures unsuspecting men to mug them. When the latest robbery goes awry, a rough-edged teen and an innocent girl who thought she was out on a double date get arrested and sent to Juvenile Hall. From there, the boyfriend of the troubled teen plots a breakout. The majority of the movie takes place on a dairy farm until the climactic conclusion at Griffith Observatory. 

Poster

A rather lengthy opening read sets the tone and warns the audience that 'this is everyone's problem.'

'Juvenile' is open to interpretation in this movie

Molly McCart plays the siren to George Cisar's lecherous older man in the opening sequence at the Dolphin. Cisar was known for his many roles on shows like Hogan's Heroes, The Andy Griffith Show, and That Girl to name a few.  McCart would go on to play a similar delinquent teen in the 1957 film, Dino, written by Reginald Rose, who penned Twelve Angry Men. I had the opportunity many years ago to direct a stage version of Dino but wound up choosing Dark of the Moon. I did get to direct another Rose play, The Death and Life of Larry Benson, first seen on Studio One in 1948. I directed it in 1989.  The play appears to have been the forerunner of The Return of Martin Guerre (1982), or as it is known in America from the remake, Sommersby, aka The Return of Richard Gere (1993).

That's it for the latest stop along the Lonely Street Bar Noir Pub Crawl. What follows are images of the production crew. Until we meet up again, be sure to settle your tab.