A Hatful of Rain

A Hatful of Rain
Theatrical release poster
Directed byFred Zinnemann
Screenplay byMichael V. Gazzo
Alfred Hayes
Carl Foreman (uncredited)
Based onA Hatful of Rain
1955 play
by Michael V. Gazzo[1]
Produced byBuddy Adler
StarringEva Marie Saint
Don Murray
Anthony Franciosa
Lloyd Nolan
CinematographyJoseph MacDonald
Edited byDorothy Spencer
Music byBernard Herrmann
Color processBlack and white
Production
company
20th Century Fox
Distributed by20th Century Fox
Release dates
  • July 17, 1957 (1957-07-17) (New York City)
  • August 3, 1957 (1957-08-03) (Los Angeles)
Running time
109 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$1,820,000[2]
Box office$1.5 million (US)[3]

A Hatful of Rain is a 1957 American drama film directed by Fred Zinnemann and starring Eva Marie Saint, Don Murray, Anthony Franciosa, Lloyd Nolan and Henry Silva. The story is based on a 1955 Broadway play of the same name[1] about the effects of morphine addiction.[4]

The screenplay was adapted by Michael V. Gazzo, Alfred Hayes and Carl Foreman from the play, also written by Gazzo. Foreman was blacklisted at the time of the film's release. The Writers Guild of America added his name to the film's credits in 1998, 14 years after his death. It features music by Bernard Herrmann, who was asked by 20th Century Fox to rescore his prelude for the film as the original was considered to be terrifying.[5]

Franciosa was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role.

  1. ^ a b A Hatful of Rain Archived 2022-01-14 at the Wayback Machine at the Internet Broadway Database
  2. ^ Solomon, Aubrey. Twentieth Century Fox: A Corporate and Financial History (The Scarecrow Filmmakers Series). Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press, 1989. ISBN 978-0-8108-4244-1. p250
  3. ^ "Top Grosses of 1957", Variety, 8 January 1958: 30
  4. ^ AJ Giannini (1982). Handbook of Overdose and Detoxification Emergencies. New Hyde Park, NY: Medical Examination Publishing Co., p.166. ISBN 0-87488-182-X
  5. ^ "Michael V. Gazzo, 71, Is Dead; Playwright of 'Hatful of Rain'". The New York Times. 24 February 1995. Archived from the original on 24 January 2014. Retrieved 14 February 2017.