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"Blackboard Jungle" is remembered for many things. It was the first movie to feature a rock and roll song, "Rock Around the Clock," which Brooks personally chose for the soundtrack. (It wasn't until the movie came out that the song hit No. 1.) "Blackboard Jungle" was a huge hit, MGM's top earner that year, and on a shoestring budget to boot.
Why did Blackboard Jungle cause controversy?
The novel The Blackboard Jungle caused a great deal of controversy surrounding the state of education in the United States during the 1950's. It paints a less than bright picture of inner-city education as it focuses on a young teacher teaching at a trade school filled with young, violent juvenile delinquents.Jan 21, 2007
Is Blackboard Jungle based on a true story?
Blackboard Jungle is a 1955 American social drama film about teachers in an interracial inner-city school, based on the 1954 novel The Blackboard Jungle by Evan Hunter and adapted for the screen and directed by Richard Brooks....Blackboard JungleBox office$8,144,00016 more rows
What was the purpose of Blackboard Jungle?
The American drama film Blackboard Jungle (1955) is a social commentary that highlighted violence in urban schools and also helped spark the rock-and-roll revolution by featuring the hit song “Rock Around the Clock” (1954) by Bill Haley and His Comets.
Who is Artie West in Blackboard Jungle?
Vic MorrowBlackboard Jungle (1955) - Vic Morrow as Artie West - IMDb.
How old is Sidney Poitier and what is his net worth?
Sidney Poitier Net WorthFull Name:Sidney PoitierNet Worth:$20 MillionAge:94Country:United StatesBorn:20 February 19272 more rows•Jan 13, 2022
How old was Sidney Poitier in the movie Blackboard Jungle?
He grew up in the Bahamas, but moved to Miami at age 15, and to New York City when he was 16. He joined the American Negro Theatre, landing his breakthrough film role as a high school student in the film Blackboard Jungle (1955)....Sidney Poitier.Sidney Poitier KBE2002–2007Ambassador to UNESCO18 more rows
Why did schools condemn the film Blackboard Jungle?
The film Blackboard Jungle was banned in Memphis, Tennessee, on this day because authorities feared that its depiction of juvenile delinquency was too graphic and might lead kids who see the movie into delinquency.
Did Sidney Poitier star in Blackboard Jungle?
Blackboard Jungle (1955) was revolutionary for its time. Starring Sidney Poitier and Glenn Ford, the film uniquely focused on the growing youth culture and fear of juvenile delinquency in 1950s America.
Overview
Blackboard Jungle is a 1955 American social drama film about teachers in an interracial inner-city school, based on the 1954 novel The Blackboard Jungle by Evan Hunter and adapted for the screen and directed by Richard Brooks. It is remembered for its innovative use of rock and roll in its soundtrack, for casting grown adults as high school teens, and for the unusual breakout role of a blac…
Plot
In the mid-1950s, Richard Dadier is a new teacher at North Manual Trades High School, an inner-city school of diverse ethnic backgrounds. Led by student Gregory Miller, most engage in anti-social behavior. The school principal, Mr. Warneke, denies there are discipline issues, but the school faculty, particularly Mr. Murdock, warn Dadier otherwise. Dadier befriends two other new teachers, Joshua Edwards and Lois Hammond. Dadier's class includes not only Miller but Artie …
Cast
• Glenn Ford as Richard Dadier
• Sidney Poitier as Gregory Miller
• Vic Morrow as Artie West
• Anne Francis as Anne Dadier
Critical reception
"As a straight melodrama of juvenile violence this is a vivid and hair-raising film", wrote Bosley Crowther of The New York Times in a positive review. "Except for some incidental romance, involving the teacher and his wife and a little business about the latter having a baby, it is as hard and penetrating as a nail." Variety called it "a film with a melodramatic impact that hits hard at a contemporary problem. The casting, too, is exceptionally good". Harrison's Reportscalled the fil…
Box office
According to MGM records the film earned $5,292,000 in the US and Canada and $2,852,000 elsewhere.
Awards and honors
In 2010, Turner Classic Movies (TCM) listed the soundtrack of the movie on its list of the Top 15 Most Influential Movie Soundtracks of all time. TCM described the impact and the influence of the movie:
MGM brought Hollywood into the rock'n'roll era with BLACKBOARD JUNGLE. In search of the kind of music teens like the film's potential delinquents were listening to, director Richard Brooks borr…
Cultural impact
The film marked the rock and roll revolution by featuring Bill Haley & His Comets' "Rock Around the Clock", initially a B-side, over the film's opening credits (with a lengthy drum solo introduction, unlike the originally released single), as well as in the first scene, in an instrumental version in the middle of the film, and at the close of the movie, establishing that song as an instant hit. The record had been released the previous year, gaining only limited sales. But, popularized by its us…
Home media
The film was released on DVD in North America on May 10, 2005 by Warner Home Video.