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They Drive by Night ()

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When one of two truck-driving brothers loses an arm, they both join a transport company where the other is falsely charged as an accessory in the murder of the owner.
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Photos and Videos

54 photos | 1 video

Cast verified as complete

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Joe Fabrini
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Cassie Hartley
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Lana Carlsen
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Paul Fabrini
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Pearl Fabrini
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Ed Carlsen
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Irish McGurn
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Harry McNamara
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George Rondolos
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
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Driver in Café (uncredited)
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Truck Driver Watching Pinball Game (uncredited)
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Waitress (uncredited)
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Man Griping at Farnsworth (uncredited)
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Driver (uncredited)
Richard Clayton ...
Young Man (uncredited)
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Sue Carter (uncredited)
Alan Davis ...
Driver (uncredited)
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Fatso (uncredited)
Demetris Emanuel ...
Waiter (uncredited)
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Driver in Café (uncredited)
Eddie Fetherston ...
Driver in Café (uncredited)
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Driver in Café (uncredited)
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Party Guest (uncredited)
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Prison Matron (uncredited)
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Prison Door Repairman (uncredited)
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Truck Driver Warning about Farnsworth (uncredited)
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Charles Culpepper (uncredited)
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Mike (uncredited)
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Tough Driver (uncredited)
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Farnsworth (uncredited)
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Defense Attorney (uncredited)
Phyllis Hamilton ...
Stenographer (uncredited)
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Mechanic (uncredited)
George Haywood ...
Policeman at Accident (uncredited)
Oscar 'Dutch' Hendrian ...
Driver (uncredited)
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The Judge (uncredited)
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Driver in Café (uncredited)
J. Anthony Hughes ...
Reporter #3 (uncredited)
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Pete Haig (uncredited)
Claire James ...
Party Guest (uncredited)
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Trucker (uncredited)
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Sue (uncredited)
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Man Griping at Farnsworth (uncredited)
Harry Levette ...
Second butler at Carlsens' home (uncredited)
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Landlady (uncredited)
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Barney (uncredited)
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Bailiff (uncredited)
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Motorist at Accident Scene (uncredited)
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Repairman (uncredited)
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Extra in Courtroom (uncredited)
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Deputy with Farnsworth (uncredited)
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District Attorney (uncredited)
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Harry's Partner (uncredited)
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Hank Dawson (uncredited)
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Driver in Café (uncredited)
Cliff Saum ...
Man Outside Barney's (uncredited)
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Leo (uncredited)
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Driver in Café (uncredited)
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Driver in Café (uncredited)
Don Turner ...
Driver (uncredited)
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Courtroom Matron (uncredited)
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Sweeney (uncredited)
Howard Washington ...
Garage attendant (uncredited)
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Repairman (uncredited)
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Driver in Café (uncredited)
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Reporter #1 (uncredited)
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Neves (uncredited)
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Mike Williams (uncredited)
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Man Outside Barney's (uncredited)
Jack Wise ...
Jake (uncredited)
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Chloe (uncredited)
Katherine Yorke ...
Courtroom spectator (uncredited)

Directed by

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Raoul Walsh

Written by

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Jerry Wald ... (screen play) and
Richard Macaulay ... (screen play)
 
A.I. Bezzerides ... (from a novel by)

Produced by

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Mark Hellinger ... associate producer
Hal B. Wallis ... executive producer

Music by

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Adolph Deutsch

Cinematography by

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Arthur Edeson ... director of photography

Editing by

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Thomas Richards ... film editor

Editorial Department

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Robert Burks ... montage (uncredited)
Don Siegel ... montage (uncredited)

Art Direction by

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John Hughes

Costume Design by

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Milo Anderson ... (gowns)

Makeup Department

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Perc Westmore ... makeup artist

Production Management

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Jack L. Warner ... in charge of production

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director

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Elmer Decker ... assistant director (uncredited)

Sound Department

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Oliver S. Garretson ... sound

Special Effects by

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Byron Haskin ... special effects
Hans F. Koenekamp ... special effects (as H.F. Koenekamp)

Stunts

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Ed Brandenburg ... stunt driver (uncredited)
Harvey Parry ... stunts (uncredited)
Buster Wiles ... stunt double: George Raft (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department

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George Hurrell Sr. ... still photographer (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department

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Eugene Joseff ... costume jeweller (uncredited)

Music Department

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Leo F. Forbstein ... musical director
Hugo Friedhofer ... orchestrator (uncredited)
Arthur Lange ... orchestrator (uncredited)
Jerome Moross ... orchestrator (uncredited)

Additional Crew

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Hugh MacMullan ... dialogue director (as Hugh MacMullen)
Crew verified as complete

Production Companies

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  • Warner Bros. (presents) (A Warner Bros.-First National Picture)

Distributors

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Special Effects

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Other Companies

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Storyline

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Plot Summary

Brothers Paul and Joe Fabrini run a trucking business in California mainly shipping fruit from farms to the markets in Los Angeles. They struggle to make ends meet in the face of corrupt businessmen and intense competition. They are forced into driving long hours, and one night pick up waitress Cassie Hartley who's just quit her job at a truck stop. The three of them witness the death of a mutual acquaintance when he falls asleep at the wheel. This has a profound effect on Paul and Joe and they become determined to find a way to make the business pay so they can quit. Written by Col Needham

Plot Keywords
Taglines Thrills . . . from coast to coast . . . ! See more »
Genres
Parents Guide View content advisory »
Certification

Additional Details

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Also Known As
  • The Road to Frisco (United Kingdom)
  • Une femme dangereuse (France)
  • La pasión ciega (Spain)
  • Nachts unterwegs (West Germany)
  • Een gevaarlijke vrouw (Belgium, Flemish title)
  • See more »
Runtime
  • 95 min
Official Sites
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Language
Color
Aspect Ratio
Sound Mix
Filming Locations

Box Office

Budget $400,000 (estimated)
Cumulative Worldwide Gross $4,000,000

Did You Know?

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Trivia The wife of producer Mark Hellinger, Gladys Glad, a former showgirl for Broadway producer Florenz Ziegfeld Jr., was responsible for getting this film made. Hellinger had brought home a large stack of scripts that he was to read for filming consideration. He had leafed through the script and read the summary, but felt that "nobody would pay money to see a bunch of truck drivers." His wife read this script, liked it, and pressured Hellinger to read it. Reluctantly, he did, the film eventually got made, and it became the sleeper hit of the year for Warners. It was made for an estimated $400,000 and grossed more than $4 million. (Source: Book "The Mark Hellinger Story" by Jim Bishop, New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts, 1952) See more »
Goofs When Joe and Paul's truck crashes, a motorist in a 1933 Cadillac with California license number 2N 214 stops to give assistance. Later, at Ed and Lana Carlson's anniversary party the same car (and same license number) is shown as one of Ed's cars as he demonstrates his garage door opener. See more »
Movie Connections Featured in Hollywood: The Great Stars (1963). See more »
Soundtracks When the Swallows Come Back to Capistrano See more »
Quotes Ed Carlsen: Early to rise and early to bed, makes a man healthy, but socially dead!
See more »
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