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IMDbPro

Gang Busters

  • 1955
  • Approved
  • 1h 14m
IMDb RATING
5.6/10
187
YOUR RATING
Gang Busters (1955)
True CrimeCrimeDrama

Hardened criminal repeatedly breaks out of Oregon State Prison, eluding police for prolonged periods afterwards.Hardened criminal repeatedly breaks out of Oregon State Prison, eluding police for prolonged periods afterwards.Hardened criminal repeatedly breaks out of Oregon State Prison, eluding police for prolonged periods afterwards.

  • Director
    • Bill Karn
  • Writers
    • Bill Karn
    • Phillips Lord
  • Stars
    • Myron Healey
    • Don C. Harvey
    • Sam Edwards
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    5.6/10
    187
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Bill Karn
    • Writers
      • Bill Karn
      • Phillips Lord
    • Stars
      • Myron Healey
      • Don C. Harvey
      • Sam Edwards
    • 6User reviews
    • 2Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Photos31

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    Top cast19

    Edit
    Myron Healey
    Myron Healey
    • John Omar Pinson
    • (archive footage)
    Don C. Harvey
    Don C. Harvey
    • Det. Lt. Walsh
    • (archive footage)
    • (as Don Harvey)
    Sam Edwards
    Sam Edwards
    • Wayne Long
    • (archive footage)
    Frank Gerstle
    Frank Gerstle
    • Det. Fuller
    • (archive footage)
    Frank Richards
    Frank Richards
    • Slug Bennett
    • (archive footage)
    Kate MacKenna
    • Landlady
    • (archive footage)
    Rusty Wescoatt
    • Mike Denike
    • (archive footage)
    William Justine
    • Louie Feth
    • (archive footage)
    Allan Ray
    • Larry Ogilvie
    • (archive footage)
    William Fawcett
    William Fawcett
    • Truck Driver
    • (archive footage)
    Ed Colbrook
    • Pete - Pool Hall Operator
    • (archive footage)
    Charles Victor
    • Police Officer Rondeau
    • (archive footage)
    Robert Carson
    Robert Carson
    • Dr. Hall
    • (archive footage)
    • (as Bob Carson)
    Joyce Jameson
    Joyce Jameson
    • Girl in Car
    • (archive footage)
    Mike Ragan
    Mike Ragan
    • Police Officer
    • (archive footage)
    Ed Hinton
    • Prison Guard
    • (archive footage)
    Robert Bice
    Robert Bice
    • Prison Guard
    • (archive footage)
    Gabriel Heatter
    • Self
    • (archive footage)
    • …
    • Director
      • Bill Karn
    • Writers
      • Bill Karn
      • Phillips Lord
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews6

    5.6187
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    Featured reviews

    7AlsExGal

    In the tradition of "Crime Does Not Pay"...

    ... the series of shorts at MGM during the 30s and 40s, comes this B crime feature derived from early television, featuring not one but two introductory hosts. The first tells us that we shouldn't consider the star of the film to be a hero, the second telling us just how interesting said anti-hero is. Somewhat conflicting messages, are they not?

    This is roughly - and I mean very roughly - the story of John Omar Pinson, a desperate criminal for sure, an escapee from Oregon State Prison for sure. The rest - I'm not so sure. In this film he escapes from prison twice, is buried in a grave only to later have the grave found empty, and is idolized by an incompetent but sociopathic hood named Wayne Long - he actually did exist - who is released from prison and commits daring cold blooded crimes on the off chance that Pinson is not dead, will read about the crimes, and contact him so he can be his partner in crime.

    If any of this is true, Oregon should have redone how it assigns past escapees to jobs in the prison where they can easily escape yet again. Because it just keeps happening! Also, apparently Pinson DID kill a cop when he escaped the first time. Why was he not executed for that? I'm guessing that there was no concrete proof that could tie Pinson to the crime, but it was assumed he did it, so it is in the film.

    One distinguishing feature is that there are no female cast members, no romance whatsoever. But the movie poster shows Pinson, in disguise, grabbing a screaming scantily clad young woman, as though there is some kind of female involvement. That is merely a still from the movie where Pinson steals a car from a couple parked on lover's lane and lasts about ten seconds, probably meant to mislead moviegoers into buying a ticket.

    This has a spartan and semi-documentary style to it, and it is very engaging and for sure a memorable story. Myron Healy plays Pinson as a cool clever criminal. Sam Edwards plays Long as the whiny devoted but incompetent follower. The actual Pinson was paroled some time before 1975, died a free man in 1997, and actually expressed regret for his crimes at the end of his life. Not the end you'd expect for the guy portrayed in the film.
    6CinemaSerf

    Gang Busters

    This format was well worn on TV and the wireless by the time we got to the movie iteration, and so the production is actually quite refined by the standards of the day. This story centres around a serial criminal John Pinson (Myron Healy) who escapes from prison and gets recaptured with relentless regularity - but each time he increases his network of allies who help him continue to escape. The storyline here is much sturdier than many of the genre; it has a rougher edge to it and makes for quite a compelling B-movie. The narration is grating, but essential to keep the plot moving along towards a fairly obvious but surprisingly involving ending.
    7Dewey1960

    A low-down grungy B movie that gets under the skin.

    At first glance this mid-fifties prison potboiler (itself a spin off of a syndicated television series and, prior to that a long-running radio series) seems like just another sub-par crime melodrama replete with every conventional cliché the genre has to offer. But look again. There's a musty, gritty quality to this film that gets under the skin, offering up a raft of disturbingly unique images and plot strands. At the center of it all is John Omar Pinson, Public Enemy #4 (!) slimily played by B-movie veteran Myron Healy. Pinson is in and out of Oregon prisons, escaping and being caught and sent back a number of times. Along the way he acquires a band of prison cronies who either assist or hinder his progress. Among them is Sam Edwards, a dreary B-actor who plays loser Wayne Long, a two-bit con who worships Pinson and eventually sacrifices his own life in order to make an impression on him. Long's demise in the prison's electric chair (shown in silhouette) is an eerily haunting image. Much of the acting is marginal and the overall production is pretty shoddy, but it contributes to that woozy, middle of the night dream-like quality that only a bona fide B movie can provide. If you're a fan of grungy B- films, and in particular grungy prison films, then Gangbusters just might fill your bill. Me, I'm a big fan of it.
    dougdoepke

    Awkward, but with an Intriguing Puzzle

    Put together from three installments of a TV show, a master escape artist keeps slipping out of prison, keeping the cops busy trying to catch up.

    I figure the movie was stitched together on the heels of the successfully similar Dragnet feature (1954). Here, however the cheapo production values and no-name cast were probably left to remote drive-ins. Still, the combined narrative has lots of action and never drags, even if the story is full of holes. For example, how does Pinson breathe while buried, or how is it the prison guards are consistently such terrible shots. Nonetheless, the unusual central puzzle is an intriguing one that distinguishes the movie as a whole. Then too, Healy's (Pinson) a familiar face from that period and does a good job as the wickedly brilliant escape artist. But what's with the two official prologues with two dull guys saying something or other. I figure that was added on to make the movie look more official, like the currently popular Dragnet series. Anyway, as long as you don't examine the narrative too closely, the movie's a decent time-passer.
    7planktonrules

    Surprisingly good.

    I had very low expectations for "Gang Busters". Much of this is because it's available from Something Weird Video and is on the same disc as "Ma Barker's Killer Brood"--a cheesy, low-budget but fun B-movie. Additionally, this film is made up of episodes of the TV show "Gang Busters"--all clear indications that the film will be terrible. Yet, interestingly enough, I thought it was pretty good.

    The film is the career of a criminal named John Omar Pinson. Pinson was NOT an ordinary crook but managed to make it to the FBI's most-wanted list. Additionally, he managed to repeatedly break out of prison in Oregon--mostly because he was so bright (and the guards so dumb). Interestingly, it's all taught almost documentary style with voice-over narration as well as recreations of the exploits of Pinson.

    The overall effect is quite interesting--sort of like a film noir picture merged with a documentary. Not great but very good and a must-see for old time crime film lovers.

    Storyline

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    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The film was a reedited composite of the three-part "The Pinson Gang," including new footage and originally made for the 1955 first-run syndicated television series of the same name by Visual Drama, Inc., which also produced the series. This full-length feature derivative premiered on January 19, 1955 at the Paramount Theater in Boston before opening nationally.
    • Goofs
      Pinson, after being captured, explains to Walsh (via flashback) that he returned to consciousness after having been buried by Bennett and dug himself out of the shallow grave with his hands. There is no explanation to how Pinson recovered so quickly from his gunshot wound in doing so.
    • Quotes

      Det. Lt. Walsh: You know what I figure?

      Det. Fuller: What?

      Det. Lt. Walsh: I think maybe we pulled a boner!

      Det. Fuller: That's Long, alright, but he's alone in that truck.

    • Connections
      Edited from Gang Busters (1952)

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • January 1963 (Austria)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Blood on Their Hands/Holiday in Hell
    • Filming locations
      • Rancho Hotel - 1534 Sawtelle Blvd, Los Angeles, California, USA(John Omar Pinson arrested near hotel, demolished)
    • Production company
      • Film Division of General Teleradio
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 14m(74 min)
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.33 : 1

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