The Hitch-Hiker (1953)
- Starring:
- Edmond O'Brien, Frank Lovejoy, (more)
- Director(s):
- Ida Lupino
- Theatrical MPAA Rating:
- PG13
- Format(s):
- DVD
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Synopsis of The Hitch-Hiker
Daniel Mainwaring took this story right out of the headlines of the day, penning this true story of a mass murderer who was eventually executed in San Quentin's gas chamber. Released during McCarthy's witch-hunt, Mainwaring was not given credit because Howard R. Hughes, who produced it under RKO, refused to give credit to any "radicals." The story is that of two men on a fishing trip who pick up a hitchhiker. He turns out to be a sadistic psychopath who has committed multiple murders, a sociopath who hates humanity because of his own abuse as a child. He also has an affliction which terrifies these two men: an eye which is permanently open, thereby never allowing them to know if he is really asleep or just faking it--something which he does with regularity to scare them...letting them take off and then meeting up with them just as they feel they have escaped from him. A tense thriller skillfully directed by the only female director of the time, Ida Lupino, it is a suspenseful tale of terror on the highways. ~ Tana Hobart, Rovi
- Theatrical Feature Running Time:
- 120 mins
Complete Cast of The Hitch-Hiker
- Edmond O'Brien - Ray Collins
- William Talman - Emmett Myers
- Sam Hayes - Sam
- Jean del Val - Inspector General
- Natividad Vacio - Jose
- Nacho Galindo - Proprietor
- Tony Roux - Gas Station Owner
- Felipe Turich - Mexican Man in Car
- George Navarro - Salesman
- Wade Crosby - Joe the Bartender
- Gordon Barnes - Hendrickson
- Ed Hinton - Chief of Police
- Frank Lovejoy - Gilbert Bowen
- José Torvay - Capt. Alvarado
- Wendell Niles - Wendell
- Clark Howat - Government Agent
- Rodney Bell - William Johnson
- Martin Garralaga - Bartender
- Jerry Lawrence - News Broadcaster
- Rosa Turich - Woman
- Joe Dominguez - Man
- Henry Escalante - Mexican Guard
- Al Ferrara - Gas Station Attendant
- Larry Hudson - FBI Agent
- Director(s):
- Ida Lupino
- Writer(s):
- Collier Young, Ida Lupino, Robert L. Joseph
- Producer(s):
- Collier Young, Ida Lupino
- Theatrical MPAA Rating:
- PG13(Not For Children)
- Categories:
- Mystery & Suspense
- 1998 - Library of Congress - U.S. National Film Registry
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