Hot Cars

Hot Cars is a 1956 American film noir crime film directed by Don McDougall and written by Don Martin and Richard H. Landau. The film stars John Bromfield, Carol Shannon, Joi Lansing, Ralph Clanton, Mark Dana, Charles Keane, and George Sawaya. It was released on November 2, 1956, by United Artists.

Plot
Nick Dunn, a used car salesman, can't close a deal with customers Karen Winter and Arthur Markel, so he is fired. A sympathetic Markel has a car lot of his own and offers a job to Nick, who quits after discovering Markel's disreputable sales methods.

Nick and wife Jane have a financial dilemma when their son falls ill. Swallowing his pride, Nick asks for his job back with Markel, who promotes him to manager. But the criminal activity continues, until Nick becomes convinced that Markel has even ordered his henchman, Smiley Ward, to murder Davenport, a detective.

Jane is appalled by Nick's new line of work. He seeks solace in the company of the beautiful Karen, but when the cops come to investigate Davenport's death, Karen refuses to give Nick an alibi. Now a suspect, he tracks down Ward, who during their struggle at an amusement park falls from a roller coaster to his death. Nick tries to explain the hot-car racket to the police, implicating Karen and Markel.

Cast

 * John Bromfield as Nick Dunn
 * Carol Shannon as Jane Dunn
 * Joi Lansing as Karen Winter
 * Ralph Clanton as Arthur Markel
 * Mark Dana as Smiley Ward
 * Charles Keane as Lieutenant Jefferson
 * George Sawaya as Lt. Fred Holmes
 * Dabbs Greer as Detective Davenport
 * John Frederick as Hutton
 * Kurt Katch as Otto
 * Joan Sinclair as Miss Rogers
 * Robert Osterloh as 'Big John' Hayman
 * Maurice Marks as Paul the Bartender
 * Paula Hill as Mrs. Davenport