Seven Brides, Living It Up, a Ring of Fear, and On the Waterfront!

This Week (July 22-28) in 1954…

This week was quite a week for U.S. filmgoers. A new Brando, a musical, a comedy with Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis, and even a Mickey Spillane film!

First up, on Thursday, the musical Seven Brides for Seven Brothers debuted in theatres. This film starts by showing a man named Adam Pontipee agreeing to marry his soon-to-be-bride Milly despite having just met. Milly then finds that Adam has six brothers, all under the same roof… and she has to help civilize them!

On Friday, Living It Up, a comedy, was released. This Martin-Lewis flick is about a railroad worker (Lewis) dreaming of visiting New York City. When he finds an old car at an atomic test site, his friend and doctor Steve Harris (Martin) tells him he has radiation poisoning — and three weeks to live! This garners media attention as Steve realizes he was wrong — and hijinks ensue!

Then on Saturday (three days in a row now!) Ring of Fear was released. This mystery stars Mickey Spillane as himself, investigating a serial killer in a circus… and we’ll leave the rest of the plot to Mr. Spillane!

Finally, on Wednesday, July 28th, the film On the Waterfront came out. This crime drama stars Marlon Brando, and is based on a number of true stories. It’s filmed on location in New Jersey and tells the tale of union violence and corruption surrounding dockworkers and the mafia, and the police trying to break through it all…