The Sharkfighters
Encyclopedia
The Sharkfighters is a 1956 American
film about U.S. Navy scientists working to invent a shark repellent
to help protect military personnel at sea. Directed by Jerry Hopper
, it starred Victor Mature
, James Olson
, and Claude Akins
to help downed World War II
pilots in shark
-infested open water. One scientist, however, cuts corners to finish the project more quickly, and the ineffective repellent results in a young man being killed. The repentant scientist attempts to redeem himself by creating a proper repellent, even at the cost of his own life.
directed, and Lee Garmes
was director of photography.
comic book
Four Color
#762 (Jan. 1957), cover-titled The Sharkfighters. The 34-page story, by an unknown writer, was penciled and inked
by John Buscema
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
film about U.S. Navy scientists working to invent a shark repellent
Shark repellent
A shark repellent is any method of driving sharks away from an area, object, person, or animal. Shark repellents are one category of animal repellents.-Overview:Shark repellents have been of interest to human beings for many years, for a number of reasons...
to help protect military personnel at sea. Directed by Jerry Hopper
Jerry Hopper
Jerry Hopper was an American film and television director, active from the mid-1940s through the early 1970s....
, it starred Victor Mature
Victor Mature
Victor John Mature was an American stage, film and television actor.-Early life:Mature was born in Louisville, Kentucky to an Italian-speaking father from the town Pinzolo, in the Italian part of the former County of Tyrol , Marcello Gelindo Maturi, later Marcellus George Mature, a cutler,...
, James Olson
James Olson
James Olson may refer to:*James Olson , American actor*James S. Olson, American professor of history at Sam Houston State University*James Olson, 17th president of the University of Missouri System*Jim Olson, Seattle architect...
, and Claude Akins
Claude Akins
Claude Marion Akins was an American actor with a long career on stage, screen and television.Powerful in appearance and voice, Akins could be counted on to play the clever tough guy, on the side of good or bad, in movies and television. He is best remembered as Sheriff Lobo in the 1970s TV series...
Plot
In 1943, U.S. Navy scientists and civilian marine biologists collaborate to devise a shark repellentShark repellent
A shark repellent is any method of driving sharks away from an area, object, person, or animal. Shark repellents are one category of animal repellents.-Overview:Shark repellents have been of interest to human beings for many years, for a number of reasons...
to help downed World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
pilots in shark
Shark
Sharks are a type of fish with a full cartilaginous skeleton and a highly streamlined body. The earliest known sharks date from more than 420 million years ago....
-infested open water. One scientist, however, cuts corners to finish the project more quickly, and the ineffective repellent results in a young man being killed. The repentant scientist attempts to redeem himself by creating a proper repellent, even at the cost of his own life.
Cast
- Victor MatureVictor MatureVictor John Mature was an American stage, film and television actor.-Early life:Mature was born in Louisville, Kentucky to an Italian-speaking father from the town Pinzolo, in the Italian part of the former County of Tyrol , Marcello Gelindo Maturi, later Marcellus George Mature, a cutler,...
... Lt. Commander Ben Staves - James OlsonJames Olson (actor)-Life and career:Olson was born in Evanston, Illinois and graduated from Northwestern University. He performed stage work in and around Chicago before his 1956 film debut in The Sharkfighters...
... Ensign Harold Duncan - Claude AkinsClaude AkinsClaude Marion Akins was an American actor with a long career on stage, screen and television.Powerful in appearance and voice, Akins could be counted on to play the clever tough guy, on the side of good or bad, in movies and television. He is best remembered as Sheriff Lobo in the 1970s TV series...
... Chief "Gordy" Gordon - George Neise ... Commander George Zimmer
- Karen SteeleKaren SteeleKaren Steele was an American actress and model with over 60 roles in film and television. Her most famous roles include starring as Virginia in Marty, as Mrs Lane in Ride Lonesome and as Eve McHuron in the Star Trek episode "Mudd's Women".-Early life:Karen Steele was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, to...
... Martha Staves - Philip Coolidge ... Lt. Commander Leonard Evans
- Rafael Campos ... Carlos
- Nathan Yates ... Captain Ruiz
Production
Samuel Goldwyn Jr. produced the film for Formosa Productions. Lawrence Roman and John Robinson wrote the screenplay based on an original story by Jo Napoleon and Art Napoleon. Jerry HopperJerry Hopper
Jerry Hopper was an American film and television director, active from the mid-1940s through the early 1970s....
directed, and Lee Garmes
Lee Garmes
Lee Garmes, A.S.C. was an American cinematographer. During his career, he worked with directors Howard Hawks, Max Ophuls, Josef von Sternberg, Alfred Hitchcock, King Vidor, Nicholas Ray and Henry Hathaway, whom he had met as a young man when the two first came to Hollywood in the silent era...
was director of photography.
Adaptations
The film was adapted as the Dell ComicsDell Comics
Dell Comics was the comic book publishing arm of Dell Publishing, which got its start in pulp magazines. It published comics from 1929 to 1973. At its peak, it was the most prominent and successful American company in the medium...
comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
Four Color
Four Color
Four Color, also known as Four Color Comics and One Shots, was a long-running American comic book anthology series published by Dell Comics between 1939 and 1962...
#762 (Jan. 1957), cover-titled The Sharkfighters. The 34-page story, by an unknown writer, was penciled and inked
Inker
The inker is one of the two line artists in a traditional comic book or graphic novel. After a pencilled drawing is given to the inker, the inker uses black ink to produce refined outlines over the pencil lines...
by John Buscema
John Buscema
John Buscema, born Giovanni Natale Buscema , was an American comic-book artist and one of the mainstays of Marvel Comics during its 1960s and 1970s ascendancy into an industry leader and its subsequent expansion to a major pop culture conglomerate...
.
External links
- The Sharkfighters at IMDb
- The Sharkfighters at Rotten TomatoesRotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...