Movielogr
The Petrified Forest (1955)
Directed by Delbert Mann
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Gabrielle Maple works in a dusty desert gas station-café, but yearns for the life of an artist in France, knowing there must be something finer than the provincial dead-end she is trapped in. A hitch-hiking writer, the disillusioned Alan Squier, appears and revitalizes her dreams of a better place, and finds his own sense of worth refreshed by this vital young girl. When Duke Mantee and his gang, wanted killers, show up and take hostages, Gabrielle falls in love with the poetic Alan, and Squier begins to see a way to give Gabby the life she deserves.
Length 76 minutes
Actors
Humphrey Bogart | Henry Fonda | Lauren Bacall | Paul Hartman | Jack Warden | Richard Jaeckel | Joseph Sweeney | Natalie Schafer | Richard Gaines | Jack Klugman | Dick Elliott | Steven Ritch | Morris Buchanan | Julia Montoya | Frank London
Viewing History (seen 1 time)
| Date Viewed | Device | Format | Source | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01/18/2025 | Phone | Streaming | Video on Demand | 7 stars |
| (Average) 7 stars |
Viewing Notes
If I didn’t already know, this tv movie remake of the 1936 film is so obviously adapted from a stage play and looks like it was shot as a stage play. The murky versions available online (really rough in the second half of the film) had me wondering why this wasn’t more accessible given the history and cast. This passage on Bogart’s wiki explains it:
Bogart and Bacall worked on an early color telecast in 1955, an NBC adaptation of “The Petrified Forest” for Producers’ Showcase. Bogart received top billing, Henry Fonda played Leslie Howard’s role and Bacall played Bette Davis’s part. Jack Klugman, Richard Jaeckel, and Jack Warden played supporting roles. In the late 1990s, Bacall donated the only known kinescope of the 1955 performance (in black and white) to the Museum of Television & Radio (now the Paley Center for Media), where it remains archived for viewing in New York City and Los Angeles. It is now in the public domain.
So now I’m curious how this crummy looking transfer found its way online. Perhaps it aired on television again and was recorded?
Been a few years ~8 since I’ve seen the original film but this remake with Bogart reprising his role as Duke Mantee is pretty darn good with Henry Fonda and Lauren Bacall opposite him. Plus I love seeing babyface Richard Jaeckel and Jack Klugman in Mantee’s gang.
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