10 Classic Hollywood Noirs Inspired by True Crimes

10 Classic Hollywood Noirs Inspired by True Crimes

Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the classic film noirs whose plots were inspired by shocking real-life crimes. Since we’ll be discussing how these stories unfold, a spoiler alert is in effect.

“The Enforcer” (1951)

Humphrey Bogart spent much of his career battling gangsters, but not many were as chillingly organized as the killers in “The Enforcer.” Bogart plays assistant district attorney Martin Ferguson, whose case against a mysterious crime boss begins falling apart after a crucial witness dies. The investigation uncovers a network of hired killers who take on murder “contracts,” eliminating strangers and leaving investigators with no apparent motive. The story fictionalized Murder, Inc., the Brooklyn-based enforcement arm of organized crime figures such as Louis “Lepke” Buchalter. Bogart’s character was modeled partly on prosecutor Burton Turkus, who helped dismantle the syndicate and advised the production.

“Boomerang!” (1947)

Elia Kazan’s “Boomerang!” begins with the murder of a respected priest and the public demand for an immediate arrest. Police eventually seize drifter John Waldron, played by Arthur Kennedy, whose identification by witnesses seemingly creates an airtight case. But prosecutor Henry Harvey, played by Dana Andrews, gradually realizes that the evidence doesn’t hold up under serious scrutiny. The story was drawn from the 1924 murder of Father Hubert Dahme in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Harold Israel was arrested, but prosecutor Homer Cummings concluded that the case against him was deeply flawed, helping to clear him rather than pursuing an easy conviction. Dahme’s murder was never solved.

“While the City Sleeps” (1956)

After a murderer leaves a message written in lipstick, the executives of a media empire compete to identify him, hoping the scoop will earn them a promotion. “While the City Sleeps”was adapted from Charles Einstein’s novel “The Bloody Spur.” Einstein’s novel drew upon the notorious “Lipstick Killer” case associated with William Heirens. At 17, Heirens pleaded guilty to three murders. He later insisted that his confession had been coerced, and the case remains controversial. Director Fritz Lang borrows the label, the lipstick message and the atmosphere of panic, but shifts attention toward the people packaging violence as entertainment. The reporters are hunting the killer, but they’re also feeding the spectacle around him.

“Call Northside 777” (1948)

Here, Jimmy Stewart plays initially skeptical reporter P.J. McNeal, who investigates a mother’s claim that her imprisoned son was wrongly convicted of killing a police officer. The case echoes that of Joseph Majczek and Theodore Marcinkiewicz, apprehended following the 1932 murder of Chicago officer William Lundy inside a speakeasy. Majczek’s mother, Tillie, spent years working as a scrubwoman and saving money for a reward. In 1944, she placed a classified advertisement offering $5,000 for information and directing callers to “Northside 777.” Chicago Times reporter James McGuire investigated, uncovered serious problems with the conviction and helped secure Majczek’s pardon in 1945. Marcinkiewicz remained imprisoned until 1950.

“The Sound of Fury” (1950)

Later reissued as “Try and Get Me!,” this blistering noir follows unemployed family man Howard Tyler as desperation pulls him into crime alongside the reckless Jerry Slocum. Their robberies snowball into kidnapping and murder, while sensational newspaper coverage pushes an already furious community toward mob violence. Jo Pagano based his novel “The Condemned,” and later his screenplay for this film, on the 1933 kidnapping and murder of Brooke Hart, the 22-year-old heir to a prominent San Jose department store. Suspects Thomas Thurmond and John Holmes confessed, but they never reached trial. After Hart’s body was recovered, a mob stormed the Santa Clara County Jail, dragged both men to St. James Park — and hanged them.

“He Walked by Night” (1948)

Richard Basehart is terrifyingly controlled as Roy Morgan, an electronics expert, burglar and killer who knows enough about police methods to stay ahead of them. The character was inspired by Erwin Walker, a former Glendale Police Department employee and Second World War veteran whose crimes culminated in the killing of a California highway patrolman. Working with Los Angeles police files and technical advisers, the filmmakers gave the picture an unusually convincing procedural feel. Morgan monitors police radios, changes his methods and even removes a bullet from his own body — anything to avoid the risk of visiting a doctor. The real Walker was captured, spent time under a death sentence and was later institutionalized before eventually regaining his freedom.

“The Wrong Man” (1956)

For Alfred Hitchcock, the frightening part of Christopher “Manny” Balestrero’s story was how little imagination it required. Henry Fonda plays the mild-mannered Stork Club musician, who visits an insurance office seeking money for his wife’s dental treatment and is mistaken for a robber. The real Balestrero was arrested outside his Queens home on January 14, 1953, after several witnesses identified him. He was charged with two armed robberies and brought to trial, only for a juror’s outburst to produce a mistrial. Before a second trial could begin, another man, Charles James Daniell, was caught and confessed to dozens of robberies, including those blamed on Balestrero. The charges were dismissed, but the ordeal had already devastated the family and contributed to his wife Rose’s hospitalization.

“The Phenix City Story” (1955)

“The Phenix City Story” opens with a documentary sequence featuring people connected to the actual events. That’s before dramatizing a city dominated by gambling, trafficking, political corruption and organized crime. Its central figure is Albert “Pat” Patterson, an Alabama attorney who ran for state attorney general on a promise to clean up Phenix City. Shortly after winning the Democratic nomination, Patterson was shot outside his law office on June 18, 1954. His murder finally forced the state government to confront the criminal operations that had controlled the area for decades. Martial law followed, hundreds of indictments were issued and institutionalized vice was largely dismantled within months.

“The Hitch-Hiker” (1953)

A fishing trip becomes a waking nightmare when two friends pick up stranded motorist Emmett Myers… only to discover that their passenger is a wanted killer. Director Ida Lupino, the first woman to helm a film noir, traps the characters in a scorched border landscape where every mile brings them farther from help. Myers was modeled after Billy Cook, who murdered six people during a multi-state crime spree in late 1950 and early 1951. His victims included Carl and Thelma Mosser, their three children and traveling salesman Robert Dewey. Cook later abducted hunters James Burke and Forrest Damron, forcing them to drive him into Mexico before he was captured.

“Double Indemnity” (1944)

Insurance salesman Walter Neff thinks he understands every possible scam until Phyllis Dietrichson persuades him to help murder her husband and collect on a policy containing a double-indemnity clause. James M. Cain’s story, upon which the film is based, is widely traced to the 1927 murder of Albert Snyder by his wife, Ruth Snyder, and her lover, corset salesman Judd Gray. Ruth had secretly arranged a $100,000 insurance policy on her husband and attempted to kill him several times before recruiting Gray. After finally murdering Albert, the pair staged the scene to resemble a burglary, but their plot quickly unraveled. Both were convicted and executed at the notorious Sing Sing Correctional Facility in 1928.

Which classic film noir has the most fascinating real-life backstory? Name your pick, and the crime that inspired it, in the comments.