The Burning Cross

The Burning Cross
The Burning Cross
	Film poster
Directed by	Walter Colmes
Written by	Aubrey Wisberg
Produced by	Walter Colmes
Music by	Raoul Kraushaar
Production; company	Somerset Pictures
Distributed by	Screen Guild Productions
Release date	September 1, 1947;
Running time	77 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	less than $100,000

The Burning Cross is a 1947 American drama film directed by Walter Colmes. It was written by Aubrey Wisberg and released by Screen Guild Productions.

The film depicts Ku Klux Klan activities and was censored in Virginia and Detroit.^[2]^[3]^[4]^[5]

Plot[edit]

A war veteran joins the Ku Klux Klan and comes to regard it as evil.

Cast[edit]

Henry H. Daniels Jr. as Johnny Larrimer
Virginia Patton as Doris Greene
Dick Rich as Lud Harris
Joel Fluellen as Charlie West
John Fostini as Tony Areni
Betty Roadman as Agatha Larimer
Raymond Bond as Chester Larrimer
Matt Willis as Mort Dauson - the Grand Dragon
John Doucette as Toby Mason

Production[edit]

The film was made by Somerset Pictures, established in 1947 by Walter Combes, Solly Levenstein and Jake Milstein. It was their first movie.^[6] They signed an agreement with Screen Guild Productions to distribute. The New York Times called Screen Guild "a minor organization which can afford the risk of alienating the Southern market."^[1]

Filming started in June 1947.^[7] It was shot at a new studio at Cahuenga, where offices for the Metro organisation had been.^[8]

Release[edit]

The film was banned in Virginia and Detroit.^[9]

References[edit]

^ ^a ^b T. F. (Jun 1, 1947). "Big temblor staged for 'green dolphin, street' -- KKK expose -- addenda". New York Times. ProQuest 107926088.
^ Schallert, E. (Sep 22, 1947). "DRAMA AND FILM". Los Angeles Times. ProQuest 165803973.
^ THOMAS F BRADY (Sep 23, 1947). "LOW-BUDGET FILMS EXPANDING AT FOX". New York Times. ProQuest 108074960.
^ Ooten, Melissa (10 Apr 2013). "Censorship In Black And White: The Burning Cross (1947), Band Of Angels (1957) And The Politics Of Film Censorship In The American South After World War II". Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television. Vol. 33. pp. 77–98.
^ T.M.P. (Feb 20, 1948). "At the victoria". New York Times. ProQuest 108312513.
^ "FILMLAND BRIEFS". Los Angeles Times. May 21, 1947. ProQuest 165768143.
^ "Film exposes collaborator". Los Angeles Times. Jun 1, 1947. ProQuest 165762281.
^ Schallert, E. (May 23, 1947). "DRAMA AND FILM". Los Angeles Times. ProQuest 165775232.
^ "Protest ban on 'burning cross'". New York Times. Nov 4, 1947. ProQuest 108056373.

External links[edit]

The Burning Cross at IMDb
The Burning Cross at BFI
The Burning Cross at the TCM Movie Database

This 1940s drama film-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

[new-1] T. F. (Jun 1, 1947). "Big temblor staged for 'green dolphin, street' -- KKK expose -- addenda". New York Times. ProQuest 107926088.

[2] Schallert, E. (Sep 22, 1947). "DRAMA AND FILM". Los Angeles Times. ProQuest 165803973.

[3] THOMAS F BRADY (Sep 23, 1947). "LOW-BUDGET FILMS EXPANDING AT FOX". New York Times. ProQuest 108074960.

[4] Ooten, Melissa (10 Apr 2013). "Censorship In Black And White: The Burning Cross (1947), Band Of Angels (1957) And The Politics Of Film Censorship In The American South After World War II". Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television. Vol. 33. pp. 77–98.

[5] T.M.P. (Feb 20, 1948). "At the victoria". New York Times. ProQuest 108312513.

[6] "FILMLAND BRIEFS". Los Angeles Times. May 21, 1947. ProQuest 165768143.

[7] "Film exposes collaborator". Los Angeles Times. Jun 1, 1947. ProQuest 165762281.

[8] Schallert, E. (May 23, 1947). "DRAMA AND FILM". Los Angeles Times. ProQuest 165775232.

[9] "Protest ban on 'burning cross'". New York Times. Nov 4, 1947. ProQuest 108056373.

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