Alan Ladd Movies
Alan Ladd was a short (5' 5"), unexpressive lead actor with icy good looks and a resonant voice. He worked a variety of odd jobs -- in addition to radio and in local theater -- before entering films in his late teens as a bit player and grip. In the mid-'30s, he began appearing regularly in minor screen roles. Hollywood agent Sue Carol discovered him and began trumpeting him as star... (read more) material, and the actor eventually landed a major role in This Gun for Hire (1942) opposite Veronica Lake. He quickly became a major star, and was teamed with Lake in other films -- all hits. Ladd and Carol married in 1942, and she remained his agent for the rest of his life. On the Top Ten box-office attractions list in 1947, 1953, and 1954, he continued to star in films throughout the '50s, but -- with the exception of Shane (1953) -- few of his films were noteworthy; most were entertaining adventures featuring Ladd bare-chested and in fistfights, but, by the late '50s, their appeal was waning. Ladd was the father of actors Alan Ladd Jr. and David Ladd, and former child actress Alana Ladd. He died in 1964. ~ Rovi
Saturday at the Movies
1988
This is a tribute to the movie-making industry, with many film clips of, and much commentary about, several decades of fabulous films. ~ Rovi...
The Carpetbaggers
PG 1964
Edward Dmytryk brings Harold Robbins' trashy, dirt-dishing Hollywood best-seller to the screen with George Peppard starring as Jonas Cord, a rancidly-sketched portrait of...
13 West Street
1962
Leaning heavily on violence to ostensibly deliver a pacifist message, this standard drama by Philip Leacock looks at the problem of teen gangs from a slightly different angle...
Duel of the Champions
G 1961
Set in ancient Rome, this film follows the struggle of Roman triplets as they battle their Alban arch-enemies to prevent Rome from being annexed to Alba. ~ Iotis Erlewine, Rovi...
All the Young Men
1960
Set right near the 38th Parallel, the dividing line between North and South Korea, this conventional wartime tale focuses on the relationships of some GI's caught without...
Guns of the Timberlands
1960
In this action drama, ranchers and lumberjacks are at loggerheads over the proper usage of the land. When the logging team finds a prime stand, the ranchers beg the loggers not to...
One Foot in Hell
1960
TV producer Aaron Spelling first came up with the story for this standard western set in a small town just after the American Civil War. Mitch (Alan Ladd) has tragically...
The Man in the Net
1959
This undistinguished murder muddle by director Michael Curtis involves an artist and his alcoholic psychologically disturbed wife -- who disappears one day. John Hamilton...
The Proud Rebel
1958
A gentler but no less resourceful Alan Ladd stars in The Proud Rebel. Ladd is cast as civil war veteran John Chandler, while the star's son David (who grew up to become a...
The Badlanders
1958
Peter Van Hook (Alan Ladd), alias The Dutchman, is nearing the end of a stretch in Yuma Territorial Prison for a gold robbery that he didn't commit. Released early with the...
The Deep Six
1958
The conflict between duty and conscience is explored in the WWII drama The Deep Six. Alan Ladd stars as Naval gunnery officer Alec Austin, a Quaker whose sincere pacifist...
The Big Land
1957
Produced by Alan Ladd's own Jaguar company, The Big Land stars Ladd as Texas cattleman Morgan. As a means to expedite shipment of his stock to Missouri, Morgan...
The Boy on a Dolphin
1957
Italian screen goddess Sophia Loren made her American film debut with this glossy romantic adventure set (and partially filmed) on the Greek island of Hydra. Phaedra (Loren)...
Santiago
1956
Set during Cuba's struggle to free itself from colonialist Spain, this exciting adventure chronicles the exploits of a tough, mercenary gun runner who learns about honor,...
Hell on Frisco Bay
1955
Hell on Frisco Bay is a slam-bang return to the sort of gangster fare turned out by the yard at Warner Bros. in the 1930s. Alan Ladd plays ex-cop Steve Rollins, who serves five...
The McConnell Story
1955
Alan Ladd plays real-life air force hero Captain Joseph McConnell Jr. in this inspirational biopic, while June Allyson does her usual as McConnell's anxious,...
Drum Beat
1954
Though heavily advertised as Delmar Daves' Drum Beat, this film owed its existence to producer-star Alan Ladd. The star is cast as a veteran Indian fighter Johnny MacKay,...
The Black Knight
1954
Alan Ladd once more journeyed to England to make a film for Columbia's British counterpart (Warwick Studios), and the result was the lively swashbuckler The Black...
Saskatchewan
1954
Saskatchewan is a "northern" starring Alan Ladd as tight-lipped Canadian Mountie Sgt. Thomas O'Rourke. He rescues Grace Markey (Shelley Winters), sole survivor of a...
Hell Below Zero
1954
Hell Below Zero was one of several 1950s films made in Britain by Hollywood's Alan Ladd. The star plays Duncan Craig, who signs onto a whaling ship to get the facts behind...