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The Harder They Fall Poster

The Harder They Fall

No Punches Pulled! If you thought "On The Waterfront" hit hard... wait till you see this one!
1956 | 109m | English

(9961 votes)

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Popularity: 1 (history)

Details

Jobless sportswriter Eddie Willis is hired by corrupt fight promoter Nick Benko to promote his current protégé, an unknown Argentinian boxer named Toro Moreno. Although Moreno is a hulking giant, his chances for success are hampered by a powder-puff punch and a glass jaw. Exploiting Willis' reputation for integrity and standing in the boxing community, Benko arranges a series of fixed fights that propel the unsophisticated Moreno to #1 contender for the championship. The reigning champ, the sadistic Buddy Brannen, harbors resentment at the publicity Toro has been receiving and vows to viciously punish him in the ring. Eddie must now decide whether or not to tell the naive Toro the truth.
Release Date: May 08, 1956
Director: Mark Robson
Writer: Budd Schulberg, Philip Yordan
Genres: Drama
Keywords pride, tall man, fixed fight, corrupt system, press agent, broken jaw
Production Companies Columbia Pictures
Box Office Revenue: $1,350,000
Budget: $0
Updates Updated: Feb 01, 2025
Entered: Apr 13, 2024
Trailers and Extras

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Full Credits

Name Character
Humphrey Bogart Eddie Willis
Rod Steiger Nick Benko
Jan Sterling Beth Willis
Mike Lane Toro Moreno
Max Baer Buddy Brannen
Jersey Joe Walcott George
Edward Andrews Jim Weyerhause
Harold J. Stone Art Leavitt, TV sportscaster
Carlos Montalbán Luís Agrandi
Nehemiah Persoff Leo
Felice Orlandi Vince Fawcett
Herbie Faye Max
Rusty Lane Danny McKeogh
Jack Albertson Pop
Paul Frees Priest (uncredited)
William Henry Fight Arena Locker Room Guard (uncredited)
Frank McLure Reporter at Hospital (uncredited)
William H. O'Brien Ringsider (uncredited)
Bert Stevens Fight Crowd Spectator (uncredited)
Arthur Tovey Fight Crowd Spectator (uncredited)
Brandon Beach Party Guest (uncredited)
Joanne Arnold Pretty Girl (uncredited)
Val Avery Frank (uncredited)
Al Baffert Fighter (uncredited)
Bill Baldwin Oklahoma City Ring Announcer (uncredited)
Walter Baldwin Boxing fan at Dundee fight (uncredited)
Emily Belser New York Reporter (uncredited)
Julie Benedic Statuesque Blonde (uncredited)
Phil Berger Boxer Kayoed in Bakersfield (uncredited)
Eve Bernhardt Newspaper Reporter (uncredited)
Tony Blankley Benko Son (uncredited)
Penny Carpenter Benko Daughter (uncredited)
Marian Carr Alice (uncredited)
Steve Carruthers Reporter (uncredited)
Tina Carver Mrs. Benko (uncredited)
Edwin Chandler Chicago Television Announcer (uncredited)
Winnie Chandler Fight Fan (uncredited)
George Chester Fight Crowd Spectator (uncredited)
George Cisar Fight Manager (uncredited)
Pat Comiskey Gus Dundee (uncredited)
Lillian Culver Mrs. Wilson Harding (uncredited)
Jack Daly Reporter (uncredited)
Patricia Dane Shirley (uncredited)
Vinnie De Carlo Joey (uncredited)
Elaine Edwards Vince's Girlfriend (uncredited)
Matty Fain Fight Manager (uncredited)
Adolph Faylauer Fight Crowd Spectator (uncredited)
Abel Fernandez Chief Firebird (uncredited)
Gil Frye Minor Role (uncredited)
Robert Fuller Minor Role (uncredited)
Ralph Gamble Reporter (uncredited)
Tommy Garland Fighter (uncredited)
Eddie Garr Fight Manager (uncredited)
Charlie Gibbs Minor Role (uncredited)
Everett Glass Minister (uncredited)
Bennie Goldberg San Diego Referee (uncredited)
Mickey Golden Cornerman (uncredited)
Dorothy Gordon Las Vegas Showgirl (uncredited)
Michael Granger Gus Dundee's Doctor (uncredited)
Joe Greb Joey Greb - Fighter (uncredited)
Frank Hagney Referee (uncredited)
Stuart Hall Party Guest (uncredited)
Tommy Herman Tommy (uncredited)
Joe Herrera Referee (uncredited)
Vic Holbrook Fight Fan (uncredited)
Tex Holden Usher (uncredited)
Bob Hopkins San Diego Ring Announcer (uncredited)
Charles Horvath Fighter (uncredited)
Roy Jenson Fighter (uncredited)
Don Kelly Minor Role (uncredited)
Kenner G. Kemp Man at Contract Signing (uncredited)
Don Kohler Reporter (uncredited)
Joseph La Cava Manager (uncredited)
Pat Lawler Vince's Girlfriend (uncredited)
Peter Leeds Dundee Fight Ring Announcer (uncredited)
Larry Leverett Reporter (uncredited)
Harry Lewis New York Ring Announcer (uncredited)
Mark Lowell Minor Role (uncredited)
William Marks Minor Role (uncredited)
Mathew McCue Fight Crowd Spectator (uncredited)
Joseph Mell Ring Announcer (uncredited)
Mort Mills Reporter in Hospital (uncredited)
Frank Mitchell Dundee Referee (uncredited)
Irving Mitchell House Doctor - New York (uncredited)
Diana Mumby Vince's Girlfriend (uncredited)
Sol Murgi Fight Crowd Spectator (uncredited)
Matt Murphy Sailor Rigazzo (uncredited)
Richard Norris Reporter (uncredited)
Jimmy O'Gatty Milk Fund Referee (uncredited)
Ted Pavelec Fighter (uncredited)
Murray Pollack Fight Crowd Spectator (uncredited)
Fred Rapport Fight Crowd Spectator (uncredited)
Stafford Repp Reporter (uncredited)
Alan Reynolds Reporter (uncredited)
Eli Rill Minor Role (uncredited)
Joanne Rio Las Vegas Showgirl (uncredited)
Robert Robinson Fight Crowd Spectator (uncredited)
William Roerick Mrs. Harding's Lawyer (uncredited)
Jack Roper Fighter (uncredited)
Wally Rose Salinas Referee (uncredited)
Abe Roth Referee (uncredited)
Sandy Sanders Reporter (uncredited)
Cosmo Sardo Fight Crowd Spectator (uncredited)
Fred Scheiwiller Fighter (uncredited)
Mark Scott Reporter (uncredited)
Carl Sklover Referee (uncredited)
Gene Smith Minor Role (uncredited)
J. Lewis Smith Brannen's Manager (uncredited)
Angela Stevens Girl (uncredited)
Hal Taggart Fight Crowd Spectator (uncredited)
Charles Tannen Reporter (uncredited)
Ferris Taylor House Doctor - Chicago (uncredited)
Pat Valentino Milk Fund Fighter (uncredited)
Bennie Washington Fight Crowd Spectator (uncredited)
Russ Whiteman Reporter (uncredited)
Bob Whitney Reporter (uncredited)
Ulysses Williams Boxer Being Knocked Out in Salinas (uncredited)
James Wilson Oklahoma Referee (uncredited)
Sam Harris Fight Crowd Spectator (uncredited)
Dennis Moore Reporter (uncredited)
Name Job
William Flannery Art Direction
Jerome Thoms Editor
Burnett Guffey Director of Photography
Helen Hunt Hairstylist
Alfred E. Spencer Set Decoration
William Kiernan Set Decoration
Clay Campbell Makeup Artist
Lambert E. Day Sound
John P. Livadary Recording Supervision
Mark Robson Director
Budd Schulberg Novel
Philip Yordan Screenplay
Hugo Friedhofer Original Music Composer
Name Title
Philip Yordan Producer
Jerry Wald Executive Producer
Organization Category Person
Venice Film Festival Best Director Mark Robson Won
Popularity Metrics

Popularity History


Year Month Avg Max Min
2024 4 21 44 12
2024 5 16 24 10
2024 6 16 26 9
2024 7 16 26 9
2024 8 13 23 8
2024 9 9 15 5
2024 10 11 16 8
2024 11 13 29 6
2024 12 10 16 6
2025 1 10 17 6
2025 2 8 13 3
2025 3 5 11 1
2025 4 2 5 1
2025 5 1 6 1
2025 6 1 3 1
2025 7 1 2 0
2025 8 1 1 0
2025 9 1 2 1
2025 10 1 2 0

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