The Blue Gardenia

The Blue Gardenia
Theatrical release poster
Directed byFritz Lang
Screenplay byCharles Hoffman
Based onThe Gardenia
1952 novella
by Vera Caspary
Produced byAlex Gottlieb
Starring
CinematographyNicholas Musuraca
Edited byEdward Mann
Music byRaoul Kraushaar
Production
company
Blue Gardenia Productions
Distributed byWarner Bros.
Release dates
  • March 27, 1953 (1953-03-27) (Los Angeles)
  • March 28, 1953 (1953-03-28) (United States)
Running time
90 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

The Blue Gardenia is a 1953 American film noir starring Anne Baxter, Richard Conte, and Ann Sothern. Directed by Fritz Lang from a screenplay by Charles Hoffman, it is based on the novella The Gardenia by Vera Caspary.[1]

An independent production distributed by Warner Bros., The Blue Gardenia – a cynical take on press coverage of a sensational murder case similar to the real-life Black Dahlia killing – was the first installment of Lang's "newspaper noir" film trio, being followed in 1956 by While the City Sleeps and Beyond a Reasonable Doubt.

The song "Blue Gardenia", performed in the film by Nat King Cole, was written by Bob Russell and Lester Lee and arranged by Nelson Riddle. The director of cinematography for The Blue Gardenia was RKO regular Nicholas Musuraca, then working at Warner.