Editing Bad Day at Black Rock

{{Short description|1955 film}}
{{Hatnote group|{{Distinguish|Bad Day in Blackrock{{!}}''Bad Day in Blackrock''}}{{For|the ''Supernatural'' episode|Bad Day at Black Rock (Supernatural){{!}}"Bad Day at Black Rock" (Supernatural)}}}}
{{good article}}
{{Use American English|date=June 2022}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2022}}
{{Infobox film
| name           = Bad Day at Black Rock
| image          = Bad Day at Black Rock (1955 poster).jpg
| caption        = Theatrical release poster
| director       = [[John Sturges]]
| producer       = [[Dore Schary]]
| based_on       = {{based on|"Bad Time at Honda"<br>1947 short story in ''[[The American Magazine]]''|[[Howard Breslin]]}}
| screenplay     = [[Millard Kaufman]]<br/>[[Don McGuire (actor)|Don McGuire]] (adaptation)
| starring       = [[Spencer Tracy]]<br/>[[Robert Ryan]]<br/>[[Anne Francis]]<br/>[[Dean Jagger]]<br/>[[Walter Brennan]]<br/>[[John Ericson]]<br/>[[Ernest Borgnine]]<br/>[[Lee Marvin]]
| music          = [[André Previn]]
| cinematography = [[William C. Mellor]]
| editing        = Newell P. Kimlin
| distributor    = [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer]]
| released       = {{Film date|1955|1|7|United States}}
| runtime        = 81 minutes
| country        = United States
| language       = English
| budget         = $1,288,000<ref name="Mannix">{{cite journal|last=Glancy |first=H. M. |year=1992 |title=MGM film grosses, 1924–1948: The Eddie Mannix Ledger |journal=Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television |volume=12 |number=2 |pages=127–144 |doi=10.1080/01439689200260081}}</ref><ref name="sturges">{{cite book|first=Glenn |last=Lovell |title=Escape Artist: The Life and Films of John Sturges |publisher=University of Wisconsin Press |year=2008 |page=97}}</ref>
| gross          = $3,788,000<ref name="Mannix"/>
}}
'''''Bad Day at Black Rock''''' is a 1955 American [[film noir]] [[Contemporary Western|neo-Western]] film directed by [[John Sturges]] with screenplay by [[Millard Kaufman]]. It stars [[Spencer Tracy]] and [[Robert Ryan]] with support from [[Anne Francis]], [[Dean Jagger]], [[Walter Brennan]], [[John Ericson]], [[Ernest Borgnine]] and [[Lee Marvin]]. The film is a [[crime drama]] set in 1945 that contains elements of the [[revisionist Western]] genre. In the plot, a one-armed stranger (Tracy) comes to a small desert town and uncovers an evil secret that has corrupted the entire community.

The film is based on a short story called "Bad Time at Honda" by [[Howard Breslin]], published by ''[[The American Magazine]]'' in January 1947. Filming began in July 1954, and the movie went on national release in January 1955. It was a box-office success and was nominated for three [[28th Academy Awards|Academy Awards]] in 1956. In 2018, it was selected for preservation in the United States [[National Film Registry]] by the [[Library of Congress]] as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".<ref name="NFRL">{{cite web |url=https://www.loc.gov/programs/national-film-preservation-board/film-registry/complete-national-film-registry-listing/ |title=Complete National Film Registry Listing |website=Library of Congress |access-date=September 16, 2020}}</ref><ref name="NFR30">{{cite web |url=https://www.loc.gov/item/prn-18-144/library-of-congress-national-film-registry-turns-30/2018-12-12/ |title=National Film Registry Turns 30 |website=Library of Congress |access-date=September 16, 2020}}</ref>

==Plot==
[[File:Tracy Bad Day at Black Rock Color Still 1955.jpg|thumb|left|Macreedy (Spencer Tracy) is told by Wirth ([[John Ericson]]) there are no hotel rooms available.]]
<!--plot is at maximum length; plot summaries should be between 400 and 700 words per [[MOS:FILMPLOT]]-->In late 1945, one-armed John J. Macreedy gets off a train at the isolated [[Deserts of California|Californian desert]] hamlet of Black Rock. The residents are suspicious, as this is the first time in four years that the [[Limited express|streamliner express train]] has stopped at the [[Request stop|tiny flag stop station]]. After Macreedy states that he is looking for a man named Komoko, several of the local men become hostile. Hastings, the telegraph agent, tells him that there are no taxis, the hotel desk clerk, Pete Wirth, claims that he has no vacant rooms, and Hector David threatens him. Later, Reno Smith informs Macreedy that Komoko, a Japanese-American, was [[Internment of Japanese Americans|interned during World War II]].

Macreedy visits Sheriff Tim Horn, but the alcoholic lawman is of no help. The veterinarian and undertaker, Doc Velie, advises Macreedy to leave town immediately, but lets it slip that Komoko is dead. Pete's sister, Liz, rents a [[Jeep]] for Macreedy. He drives to nearby Adobe Flat, where he finds a homestead burned to the ground and wildflowers growing nearby. As Macreedy drives back, Coley Trimble tries to run him off the road. Macreedy tries to leave town, but Liz, having been previously confronted by Smith, refuses to rent him the Jeep again. When Smith asks about his missing left arm, Macreedy says that he lost it [[Italian Campaign (World War II)|fighting in Italy]]. Macreedy says that the wildflowers at the Komoko place make him suspect that a body is buried there. Smith reveals that he is virulently anti-Japanese; he tried to enlist the day after the [[attack on Pearl Harbor]] but failed the physical.

Macreedy tries to telephone the state police, but Pete refuses to put the call through. Doc Velie admits that something terrible happened four years ago, but Smith has everyone too terrified to speak up. Velie offers his hearse to Macreedy to leave town, but Hector disables it by yanking out the cables. Macreedy writes a [[telegram]] to the California police summoning help and gives it to Hastings.

Macreedy goes to the diner, where Trimble provokes a fight, but Macreedy, despite having only one arm, easily throws him to the ground using martial arts. Macreedy confronts Smith and accuses him of killing Komoko with the help of others. Hastings arrives and tries to give Smith a piece of paper, but Macreedy snatches it. It is his unsent draft of a telegram. Macreedy and Velie tell Hastings that he has broken the law and demand that Horn take action. Horn stands up to arrest Hastings, but Smith pulls the sheriff's badge off Horn's shirt and pins it on Hector, who casually tears up the telegram.

After Smith and Hector leave, Macreedy reveals that the loss of his arm had left him wallowing in self-pity, but Trimble's attempt to kill him has reinvigorated him. Macreedy finally reveals that Komoko's son died in combat (with the [[442nd Infantry Regiment (United States)|442nd Infantry Regiment]]) while saving his life. Macreedy came to give the man's medal to Komoko. Macreedy learns that the elder Komoko had leased some farmland from Smith, who was sure that there was no water. Komoko dug a well and found water. After Smith was rejected for military service, he and the other men began drinking, and decided to scare Komoko. The old man barricaded himself inside his home, but the men set it on fire. When Komoko emerged ablaze, Smith shot and killed him.

Doc and Pete enlist Liz to help Macreedy to escape under cover of darkness. Hector is standing guard outside the hotel; Pete lures him into the office, where Doc Velie knocks him unconscious. Liz drives Macreedy out of town but stops at Adobe Flat. Macreedy realizes that he has been set up. When Smith starts shooting at him, Macreedy shelters behind the Jeep. Liz rushes to Smith despite Macreedy's warning. Smith tells her that she has to die with the rest of his accomplices, and shoots her in the back as she flees.

Macreedy finds a bottle and fills it with gasoline from the Jeep. When Smith climbs down for a better shot, Macreedy throws the [[Molotov cocktail]], setting Smith on fire. Macreedy drives back to town with Smith and Liz's body. The state police are called, and several arrests are made. As Macreedy is leaving, Velie requests Komoko's medal to help Black Rock heal. Macreedy gives it to him before boarding the train.

==Cast==
{{cast list|
* [[Spencer Tracy]] as John J. Macreedy
* [[Robert Ryan]] as Reno Smith
* [[Anne Francis]] as Liz Wirth
* [[Dean Jagger]] as Sheriff Tim Horn
* [[Walter Brennan]] as Doc Velie
* [[John Ericson]] as Pete Wirth
* [[Ernest Borgnine]] as Coley Trimble
* [[Lee Marvin]] as Hector David
* [[Russell Collins]] as Mr Hastings
* [[Walter Sande]] as Sam, the diner owner
}}

The small cast includes three past and two future [[Academy Award]] winners; one past Academy Award nominee; and one future [[Golden Globe]] winner. Brennan (1936, 1938, 1940), Jagger (1950) and Tracy (1938, 1939) had all won Academy Awards.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Walter-Brennan |title=Walter Brennan |website=Britannica.com |access-date=June 2, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1950 |title=22nd Academy Awards (1950) Nominees and Winners |website=Oscars.org |date=October 3, 2014 |access-date=June 2, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Spencer-Tracy |title=Spencer Tracy |website=Britannica.com |access-date=June 2, 2022}}</ref> Ryan (1948) had been nominated for one.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1948 |title=20th Academy Awards (1948) Nominees and Winners |website=Oscars.org |date=October 5, 2014 |access-date=June 2, 2022}}</ref> In subsequent years, Borgnine (1956) and Marvin (1965) both won Academy Awards;<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ernest-Borgnine |title=Ernest Borgnine |website=Britannica.com |access-date=June 2, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Lee-Marvin |title=Lee Marvin |website=Britannica.com |access-date=June 2, 2022}}</ref> and Francis (1965) won a Golden Globe.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.goldenglobes.com/person/anne-francis |title=Anne Francis |website=GoldenGlobes.com |access-date=June 2, 2022}}</ref>

==Production==
[[File:Bad-Time-at-Honda-1.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|[[Robert Fawcett]] illustrated ''[[The American Magazine]]'' printing of "Bad Time at Honda", a 1947 short story by [[Howard Breslin]] that was adapted for the film.]]
''Bad Day at Black Rock'' originated as a short story by [[Howard Breslin]] with full-color illustrations by [[Robert Fawcett]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Author Breslin Succumbs at 51 |work=Los Angeles Times |date=May 31, 1964}}</ref> Titled "Bad Time at Honda", it was published by ''[[The American Magazine]]'' in January 1947.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Breslin |first=Howard |title=Bad Time at Honda |journal=The American Magazine |date=January 1947 |volume=143 |page=40}}</ref><ref name="Densho">{{cite encyclopedia |url=http://encyclopedia.densho.org/Bad_Day_at_Black_Rock_(film)/ |last=Niiya |first=Brian |title=Bad Day at Black Rock |encyclopedia=Densho Encyclopedia |access-date=March 27, 2020}}</ref> It was adapted into a script by [[Don McGuire (actor)|Don McGuire]] and pitched to [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer]] production head [[Dore Schary]], who was known for championing films that addressed social problems. Schary had previously produced ''[[Go for Broke! (1951 film)|Go for Broke!]]'' (1951), based on the exploits of the segregated Japanese-American [[442nd Infantry Regiment (United States)|442nd Regimental Combat Team]].<ref name="Densho"/><ref>{{cite news |title=Metro to Stress Big-Budget Films |work=New York Times |date=August 7, 1953}}</ref> Breslin novelized the script, using the pseudonym Michael Niall. His book was published in 1954 by [[Fawcett Publications]].{{sfn|Streamas|2003|p=114}}<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1964/05/31/archives/howard-breslin-novelist-51-dead-author-of-tamarack-tree-gave-up.html |title=Howard Breslin, Novelist, 51, Dead; Author of 'Tamarack Tree' Gave Up Success in Radio |work=New York Times |date=May 31, 1964 |access-date=June 3, 2022}}</ref>

Schary acquired the film rights for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, but he hired [[Millard Kaufman]] to rewrite McGuire's script. The producers were worried about the title because "Bad Time at Honda" was similar to ''[[Hondo (film)|Hondo]]'', recently made with [[John Wayne]]. Kaufman suggested changing the name of the town to Black Rock, after a real town in Arizona. Kaufman finished the script in fall 1953.<ref name="Densho"/>

Although [[Spencer Tracy]] was 54 and much older than the platoon leader in the original story, Schary wanted Tracy to play the lead role.<ref>{{cite news |title=Metro Eyes Tracy For Western Lead |work=New York Times |date=August 13, 1953}}</ref> [[John Sturges]] was hired as director in June 1954, and shooting began the following month near [[Lone Pine, California]], where the small town set had been quickly constructed.<ref name="Densho" /> Just before shooting began, an indecisive Tracy tried to back out of the picture. Schary made clear that he was willing to sue the actor if he quit the film. ''Bad Day at Black Rock'' was Tracy's final film for MGM, with the exception of ''[[How the West Was Won (film)|How the West Was Won]]'' (1963), for which he supplied the narration.{{sfn|Andersen|1997|p=243}}

Budget for the film was $1.3 million and it was shot in color using [[Cinemascope]] because Schary thought that widescreen would emphasize the menace of the isolated town. Temperatures on location were over {{convert|100|°F|°C}}. On August 9, the cast and crew relocated to the MGM studio lot in [[Culver City]]. [[André Previn]] was hired to write the score.<ref name="Densho" />

Although the film is essentially a [[crime drama]] set in 1945, it is recognized as a [[Contemporary Western|neo-Western]], with strong links to the [[revisionist Western]] genre.{{sfn|Newman|1990|p=198}} The premiere was at Loew's 72nd Street Theatre in [[New York City]] on December 8, 1954. The film was released nationally in January 1955.<ref name="Densho" /> According to MGM records, it earned US$1,966,000 in the US and Canada, and $1,822,000 elsewhere, making the studio a profit of $947,000.<ref name="Mannix" />

The plot of the movie—a small western desert town hiding a guilty secret, or protecting a local person from outside law enforcement officers—reappeared in US television crime shows. Detective and crime series as diverse as ''[[Cannon]]'', ''[[Kojak]]'', ''[[The A-Team]]'' and ''[[Remington Steele]]'', among others, each had an episode similar to the plot of ''Bad Day at Black Rock''. In the case of ''Kojak'' and ''Remington Steele'', the film is actually mentioned in the dialogue of the episodes.{{Original research inline|date=September 2024}}{{citation needed|date=September 2024}}

==Themes==
Film historian [[Stuart M. Kaminsky]], in ''American Film Genres'' (1985), contrasts the ideology that guides Spencer Tracy's McCreedy, with the key motivating factor in [[samurai]] tradition:

{{blockquote |There is a crucial difference between Tracy and a samurai hero. Tracy is very much interested in preserving his own life. He ''wants'' to bring about justice, but he will escape without providing it if he must. Duty to a cause is the guiding principle for a samurai...Death is not relevant; it is, in fact, ennobling if it comes in the service of one's lord. The Western hero has a great sense of self; the samurai has a great sense of subordination of self.{{sfn|Kaminsky|1985|pp=66-67: Italics in original}}}}

Although essentially a crime drama with [[revisionist Western]] overtones, the film is one of the first to recognize [[Anti-Japanese sentiment in the United States|discrimination against Japanese Americans]] in World War II. No Japanese American characters are portrayed, although Komoko and his son, both dead, are central to the plot. In her 1991 documentary film ''[[History and Memory: For Akiko and Takashige]]'', [[Rea Tajiri]] uses footage from ''Bad Day at Black Rock'' to illustrate prevailing attitudes toward the Japanese. Tajiri's family were among those interned after the attack on Pearl Harbor.<ref name="Densho"/>

John Streamas describes the film as an indictment of both [[racism]] and [[McCarthyism]]. He comments on the unusual means of denunciation that it employs, because with no Japanese-American characters in the story, there is no liberation of an oppressed victim. Instead, the plot delivers justice for the victim of a murder that occurred four years earlier.{{sfn|Streamas|2003|p=99}}

==Reception==
===Critical response===
When ''Bad Day at Black Rock'' was released, the reviews were almost universally positive, with, for example, [[John O'Hara]] in ''[[Collier's]]'' hailing it as "one of the finest motion pictures ever made".<ref name="Densho"/> Many reviewers noted the film's Western-like elements, comparing it favorably with ''[[High Noon]]'', and cinematographer [[William C. Mellor]] was widely praised for his use of [[widescreen]].<ref name="Densho"/>

Film critic [[Bosley Crowther]] of ''[[The New York Times]]'' wrote, "Slowly, through a process of guarded discourse, which director John Sturges has built up by patient, methodical pacing, an eerie light begins to glimmer."<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1955/02/02/archives/screen-drama-at-rivoli-spencer-tracy-seen-in-bad-day-at-black-rock.html |last=Crowther |first=Bosley |title=Film Review: Bad Day at Black Rock |work=The New York Times |date=February 2, 1955 |access-date=June 5, 2022}}</ref> At the end of 1955, ''The New York Times'' included the film in its best ten of the year.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1955/12/25/archives/best-films-of-1955-critic-has-difficulty-sifting-top-screen.html |last=Crowther |first=Bosley |title=Best Films of 1955; Critic Has Difficulty Sifting Top Screen Achievements of the Year |work=New York Times |date=December 25, 1955 |access-date=February 13, 2022}}</ref>

Despite a storyline that she called "crudely melodramatic", [[Pauline Kael]] of ''[[The New Yorker]]'' heaped praise on the film for its direction and cinematography, calling it "a very superior example of motion picture craftsmanship".<ref name="Kael">{{cite book |last=Kael |first=Pauline |author-link=Pauline Kael |title=5001 Nights at the Movies |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w4LzeUZ03vQC |year=2011 |orig-year=1991 |publisher=Henry Holt and Co |location=New York City |pages=46–47 |isbn=978-12-50033-57-4}}</ref> In 2017, critic [[Bilge Ebiri]] considered it to be "one of the greatest films ever made."<ref>{{cite tweet|author=[[Bilge Ebiri]]|user=BilgeEbiri|number=821567879892140032|date=17 January 2017|title=This is one of the greatest films ever made. You can watch it over and over again.|accessdate=20 January 2017}}</ref>

''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' magazine's reviewer wrote, "Considerable excitement is whipped up in this suspense drama, and fans who go for tight action will find it entirely satisfactory. Besides telling a yarn of tense suspense, the picture is concerned with a social message on civic complacency."<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Bad Day at Black Rock |magazine=Variety |date=1955 |url=https://variety.com/1953/film/reviews/bad-day-at-black-rock-1200417724/ |access-date=January 23, 2025}}</ref>

{{Rotten Tomatoes prose|97|8.2|33|ref=yes |access-date=February 13, 2022}}

===Accolades===
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders"
|-
! Award
! Category
! Nominee(s)
! Result
! Ref.
|-
| rowspan="3"| [[28th Academy Awards|Academy Awards]]
| [[Academy Award for Best Director|Best Director]]
| [[John Sturges]]
| {{nom}}
| align="center" rowspan="3"| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1956 |title=The 28th Academy Awards (1956) Nominees and Winners |access-date=August 20, 2011 |publisher=[[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706094007/http://www.oscars.org/awards/academyawards/legacy/ceremony/28th-winners.html |archive-date=July 6, 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
| [[Academy Award for Best Actor|Best Actor]]
| [[Spencer Tracy]]
| {{nom}}{{efn|The award was won by co-star [[Ernest Borgnine]] for his performance in ''[[Marty (film)|Marty]]''.}}
|-
| [[Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay|Best Screenplay]]
| [[Millard Kaufman]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Boston Society of Film Critics Awards 2003|Boston Society of Film Critics Awards]]
| colspan="2"| Special Commendation
| {{won}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://bostonfilmcritics.org/past-winners-2000s/ |title=BSFC Winners: 2000s |date=July 27, 2018 |publisher=[[Boston Society of Film Critics]] |access-date=July 5, 2021}}</ref>
|-
| rowspan="2"| [[9th British Academy Film Awards|British Academy Film Awards]]
| colspan="2"| [[BAFTA Award for Best Film|Best Film from any Source]]
| {{nom}}
| align="center" rowspan="2"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bafta.org/awards/search?search=1956 |title=BAFTA Awards: Film in 1956 |publisher=[[British Academy Film Awards]] |access-date=September 16, 2016}}</ref>
|-
| colspan="2"| United Nations Award
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="2"| [[1955 Cannes Film Festival|Cannes Film Festival]]
| [[Palme d'Or]]
| John Sturges
| {{nom}}
| align="center" rowspan="2"| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.festival-cannes.fr/en/archives/1955/allAward.html |title=Awards 1955: All Awards |publisher=Cannes Film Festival |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131101164106/http://www.festival-cannes.fr/en/archives/1955/allAward.html |archive-date=November 1, 2013}}</ref> <br> <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/archives/ficheFilm/id/3718/year/1955.html |title=Festival de Cannes: Bad Day at Black Rock |access-date=January 31, 2009 |publisher=Cannes Film Festival |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110822150048/http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/archives/ficheFilm/id/3718/year/1955.html |archive-date=August 22, 2011}}</ref>
|-
| [[Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor|Best Actor]]
| Spencer Tracy
| {{won}}{{efn|Tied with the ensemble cast of ''[[A Big Family]]''.}}
|-
| [[8th Directors Guild of America Awards|Directors Guild of America Awards]]
| [[Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Feature Film|Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures]]
| John Sturges
| {{nom}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.dga.org/Awards/History/1950s/1955.aspx?value=1955 |title=8th Annual DGA Awards |publisher=[[Directors Guild of America Awards]] |access-date=July 5, 2021}}</ref>
|-
| [[National Board of Review Awards 1955|National Board of Review Awards]]
| colspan="2"| [[National Board of Review: Top Ten Films|Top Ten Films]]
| {{draw|4th place}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://nationalboardofreview.org/award-years/1955/ |title=1955 Award Winners |publisher=[[National Board of Review]] |access-date=July 5, 2021}}</ref>
|-
| [[National Film Preservation Board]]
| colspan="2"| [[National Film Registry]]
| {{won|Inducted}}
| align="center"| <ref name="NFRL"/>
|-
| [[8th Writers Guild of America Awards|Writers Guild of America Awards]]
| [[Writers Guild of America Award for Best Written Drama|Best Written American Drama]]
| Millard Kaufman
| {{nom}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wga.org/awards/awardssub.aspx?id=1551 |title=Awards Winners |publisher=[[Writers Guild of America Awards]] |archive-url=https://archive.today/20121205095022/http://www.wga.org/awards/awardssub.aspx?id=1551 |archive-date=December 5, 2012 |access-date=June 6, 2010 |url-status=live}}</ref>
|}

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Bibliography==
* {{cite book |last=Andersen |first=Christopher P. |author-link=Christopher Andersen |title=An Affair to Remember |publisher=William Morrow and Co. |location=New York City |year=1997 |isbn=978-06-88153-11-3}}
*{{cite book |last1=Kaminsky |first1=Stuart M.|author-link=Stuart M. Kaminsky |title=American Film Genres |date=1985 |publisher=Nelson-Hall |location=Chicago |isbn=0-88229-826-7 |pages=66–67 |edition=Second}}
* {{cite book |last=Newman |first=Kim |author-link=Kim Newman |title=Wild West Movies |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing Ltd |location=London |year=1990 |isbn=978-07-47507-47-5}}
* {{cite journal |last=Streamas |first=John |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/40643435 |title="Patriotic Drunk": To be Yellow, Brave, and Disappeared in Bad Day at Black Rock |journal=[[American Studies (journal)|American Studies]] |volume=44 |issue=1/2, New Voices in American Studies |date=Spring–Summer 2003 |pages=99–114 |publisher=[[Mid-America American Studies Association]] |jstor=40643435}}

==External links==
{{wikiquote}}
* {{IMDb title|0047849}}
* {{TCMDb title|2090}}
* {{AFI film|53482}}
* {{Rotten Tomatoes|bad_day_at_black_rock}}
* {{YouTube|17nCYAayWMQ|Theatrical trailer}}
* ''[http://encyclopedia.densho.org/Bad%20Day%20at%20Black%20Rock%20%28film%29/ Bad Day at Black Rock]'' at Densho Encyclopedia
* ''[https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/829-bad-day-at-black-rock Bad Day at Black Rock]'' essay at the [[Criterion Collection]]

{{John Sturges}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bad Day At Black Rock}}
[[Category:1955 films]]
[[Category:1955 Western (genre) films]]
[[Category:1955 crime drama films]]
[[Category:1950s mystery films]]
[[Category:1950s English-language films]]
[[Category:1950s American films]]
[[Category:American mystery films]]
[[Category:American Western (genre) films]]
[[Category:CinemaScope films]]
[[Category:Contemporary Western films]]
[[Category:Films scored by André Previn]]
[[Category:Anti-Japanese sentiment in the United States|*]]
[[Category:Films about disability in the United States]]
[[Category:Films about racism in the United States]]
[[Category:Films about veterans]]
[[Category:Films based on short fiction]]
[[Category:Films directed by John Sturges]]
[[Category:Films set in 1945]]
[[Category:Films set in California]]
[[Category:Films shot in Lone Pine, California]]
[[Category:Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films]]
[[Category:United States National Film Registry films]]
[[Category:English-language Western (genre) films]]
[[Category:Social thriller films]]
[[Category:English-language crime drama films]]
[[Category:English-language mystery films]]