1956 in film
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| Years in film |
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| 1870s |
The year 1956 in film involved some significant events.
Events
- October 5 - The Ten Commandments opens in cinemas and becomes one of the most successful and popular movies of all time, currently ranking 5th on the list of all time moneymakers (when adjusted for inflation)
- February 5 - First showing of documentary films by the Free Cinema movement, at the National Film Theatre, London.
- February - Warner Bros. sells much of its pre-1950 library to Associated Artists Productions (a.a.p.), only for the films to return to WB ownership 40 years later.
- August 4 - The last film serial, Blazing the Overland Trail from Columbia Pictures, is released.
- November 15 - Elvis Presley's first film, Love Me Tender, opens.
Top grossing films (U.S.)
(*) After theatrical re-issue(s)
Awards
- Best Picture: Around the World in 80 Days - Todd, United Artists
- Best Director: George Stevens - Giant
- Best Actor: Yul Brynner - The King and I
- Best Actress: Ingrid Bergman - Anastasia
- Best Supporting Actor: Anthony Quinn - Lust for Life
- Best Supporting Actress: Dorothy Malone - Written on the Wind
- Best Foreign Language Film: La strada, directed by Federico Fellini, Italy
- Drama:
- Best Picture: Around the World in 80 Days
- Best Actor: Kirk Douglas - Lust for Life
- Best Actress: Ingrid Bergman - Anastasia
- Musical or comedy:
- Best Picture: The King and I
- Best Actor: Cantinflas - Around the World in 80 Days
- Best Actress: Deborah Kerr - The King and I
- Other
- Best Director: Elia Kazan - Baby Doll
- Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture: Earl Holliman - The Rainmaker
- Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture: Eileen Heckart - The Bad Seed
- Best Foreign Film: Before Sundown, West Germany
- Best Foreign Film: A Girl in Black, Greece
- Best Foreign Film: Richard III, United Kingdom
- Best Foreign Film: Roses on the Arm, Japan
- Best Foreign Film: War and Peace, Italy
- Best Foreign Film: The White Reindeer, Finland
Palme d'Or (Cannes Film Festival):
- The Silent World (Le monde du silence), directed by Jacques-Yves Cousteau and Louis Malle, France
Golden Lion (Venice Film Festival): Not awarded
Golden Bear (Berlin Film Festival):
- Invitation to the Dance, directed by Gene Kelly, United States
Top ten money making stars
| Rank | Actor/Actress |
|---|---|
| 1. | William Holden |
| 2. | John Wayne |
| 3. | James Stewart |
| 4. | Burt Lancaster |
| 5. | Glenn Ford |
| 6. (tie) | Dean Martin Jerry Lewis |
| 7. | Marilyn Monroe |
| 8. | Gary Cooper |
| 9. | Kim Novak |
| 10. | Frank Sinatra |
Notable films released in 1956
U.S.A. unless stated
#
- 7th Cavalry, starring Randolph Scott and Barbara Hale
- 23 Paces to Baker Street, starring Van Johnson and Vera Miles
- 1984, directed by Michael Anderson, starring Edmond O'Brien and Michael Redgrave - (GB)
A
- Accused of Murder, starring Vera Ralston
- Alexander the Great, starring Richard Burton
- Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves (Alibabavum 40 Thirudargalum) - (India)
- The Ambassador's Daughter, starring Olivia de Havilland, Myrna Loy, John Forsythe
- Anastasia, starring Ingrid Bergman and Yul Brynner
- And God Created Woman, directed by Roger Vadim, starring Brigitte Bardot - (France)
- Aparajito (The Unvanquished), directed by Satyajit Ray - (India)
- Around the World in 80 Days, directed by Michael Anderson, starring David Niven, Cantinflas, Shirley MacLaine - Academy Award for Best Picture
- At Gunpoint, starring Fred MacMurray, Walter Brennan, Dorothy Malone
- Attack, aka Attack!, directed by Robert Aldrich, starring Jack Palance, Eddie Albert, Lee Marvin
- Autumn Leaves, starring Joan Crawford and Cliff Robertson
- Away All Boats, starring Jeff Chandler
B
- Baby Doll, directed by Elia Kazan, starring Carroll Baker, Karl Malden, Eli Wallach
- Back from Eternity, starring Robert Ryan, Anita Ekberg, Rod Steiger
- Backlash, starring Richard Widmark and Donna Reed
- The Bad Seed, starring Nancy Kelly and Patty McCormack
- Bandido, starring Robert Mitchum
- The Battle of the River Plate, aka Pursuit of the Graf Spee, written and directed by Powell and Pressburger, starring John Gregson and Peter Finch - (GB)
- Before Sundown (Vor Sonnenuntergang) - (West Germany)
- Behind the Headlines, starring Paul Carpenter and Hazel Court
- The Benny Goodman Story, starring Steve Allen and Donna Reed
- The Best Things in Life Are Free, starring Gordon MacRae, Dan Dailey, Sheree North
- Between Heaven and Hell, directed by Richard Fleischer, starring Robert Wagner and Buddy Ebsen
- Beyond a Reasonable Doubt, directed by Fritz Lang, starring Dana Andrews and Joan Fontaine
- Bhowani Junction, starring Ava Gardner and Stewart Granger - (GB/U.S.A.)
- Bigger Than Life, directed by Nicholas Ray, starring James Mason, Barbara Rush, Walter Matthau
- The Birds and the Bees, starring George Gobel and Mitzi Gaynor
- The Black Tent, directed by Brian Desmond Hurst, starring Donald Sinden, Anthony Steel, Anna Maria Sandri & Andre Morell - (U.K.)
- Bob le flambeur (Bob the Gambler), directed by Jean-Pierre Melville - (France)
- The Bold and the Brave, starring Wendell Corey and Mickey Rooney
- The Boss, starring John Payne and Doe Avedon
- The Bottom of the Bottle, directed by Henry Hathaway, starring Van Johnson, Joseph Cotten, Ruth Roman
- The Brave One, directed by Irving Rapper
- The Burmese Harp (Biruma no tategoto), directed by Kon Ichikawa - (Japan)
- The Burning Hills, starring Natalie Wood and Tab Hunter
- Bus Stop, starring Marilyn Monroe and Don Murray
C
- C.I.D., starring Dev Anand - (India)
- Calabuch (aka The Rocket from Calabuch), directed by Luis García Berlanga, starring Edmund Gwenn and Valentina Cortese - (Spain)
- Calle Mayor (Main Street), directed by Juan Antonio Bardem, starring Betsy Blair - (Spain)
- Carnival Night (Karnavalnaya noch) - (USSR)
- Carousel, directed by Henry King, starring Shirley Jones and Gordon MacRae
- The Case of the Mukkinese Battle Horn, comedy short starring Peter Sellers, Spike Milligan, Dick Emery - (GB)
- The Catered Affair, starring Bette Davis, Ernest Borgnine, Debbie Reynolds
- Checkpoint (1956 film), directed by Ralph Thomas, starring Anthony Steel, Odile Versois, Stanley Baker & James Robertson Justice - (U.K.)
- Child of Sorrow (Anak dalita) - (Philippines)
- Chori Chori, starring Nargis and Raj Kapoor - (India)
- Comanche, starring Dana Andrews and Linda Cristal
- Come Next Spring, starring Ann Sheridan and Steve Cochran
- Congo Crossing, starring Virginia Mayo and Peter Lorre
- The Conqueror, directed by Dick Powell, starring John Wayne (as Genghis Khan)
- The Court Jester, starring Danny Kaye
- Crazed Fruit (Kurutta kajitsu), directed by Kō Nakahira - (Japan)
- Crime Against Joe, starring Julie London
- Crime in the Streets, directed by Don Siegel, starring James Whitmore and John Cassavetes
- A Cry in the Night, starring Edmond O'Brien, Natalie Wood, Raymond Burr
D
- D-Day the Sixth of June, starring Robert Taylor
- Dakota Incident, starring Dale Robertson
- Dance with Me, Henry, starring Bud Abbott and Lou Costello
- Death in the Garden (La mort en ce jardin), directed by Luis Buñuel, starring Simone Signoret and Charles Vanel - (France)
- Death of a Scoundrel, starring George Sanders and Zsa Zsa Gabor
- Diane, starring Lana Turner in her final MGM film after nearly 20 years with the studio
- Donatella, directed by Mario Monicelli, starring Elsa Martinelli - (Italy)
- Don't Look Back, My Son (Ne okreći se sine) - (Yugoslavia)
- The Dragon (O Drakos) - (Greece)
E
- Early Spring (Soshun), directed by Yasujirō Ozu - (Japan)
- Earth vs. the Flying Saucers, starring Hugh Marlowe
- The Eddy Duchin Story, starring Tyrone Power and Kim Novak
- Elena and Her Men, starring Ingrid Bergman - (France/Italy)
F
- The Fastest Gun Alive, starring Glenn Ford and Broderick Crawford
- The First Texan, starring Joel McCrea
- The First Traveling Saleslady, starring Ginger Rogers, Barry Nelson, Carol Channing
- Forbidden Planet, starring Walter Pidgeon, Leslie Nielsen, Anne Francis
- Forever, Darling, starring Desi Arnaz, Lucille Ball, James Mason
- Friendly Persuasion, directed by William Wyler, starring Gary Cooper, Dorothy McGuire, Anthony Perkins
- Funtoosh (Funny Man), starring Dev Anand - (India)
G
- Gaby, starring Leslie Caron
- Gervaise, directed by René Clément, starring Maria Schell - (France)
- Giant, directed by George Stevens, starring Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson and James Dean in his final film
- The Girl Can't Help It, starring Tom Ewell and Jayne Mansfield in her first starring role
- The Girl He Left Behind, starring Tab Hunter and Natalie Wood
- A Girl in Black, directed by Michael Cacoyannis - winner of Golden Globe - (Greece)
- Godzilla, King of the Monsters!, starring Raymond Burr and Takashi Shimura - (Japan/U.S.A.)
- Good-bye, My Lady, directed by William A. Wellman, starring Brandon deWilde, Walter Brennan, Phil Harris
- Great Day in the Morning, directed by Jacques Tourneur, starring Robert Stack and Virginia Mayo
- The Great Locomotive Chase, starring Fess Parker and Jeffrey Hunter
- The Great Man, directed by and starring José Ferrer, with Julie London, Keenan Wynn, Ed Wynn
- The Green Man, starring Alastair Sim, George Cole, Terry-Thomas - (GB)
- Gun the Man Down, starring James Arness and Angie Dickinson in her film debut
- Gunslinger, directed by Roger Corman, starring John Ireland and Beverly Garland
H
- The Harder They Fall, starring Humphrey Bogart in his final film
- The Harvest Month (Elokuu) - (Finland)
- Helen of Troy, starring Rossana Podestà, Stanley Baker
- High Society, starring Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra and Grace Kelly in her final film
- Hilda Crane, starring Jean Simmons
- Hold Back the Night, starring John Payne
- Hollywood or Bust, starring Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis, with Anita Ekberg, in the final Martin and Lewis film
- Hot Blood, starring Jane Russell and Cornel Wilde
- The Hunchback of Notre Dame, starring Gina Lollobrigida and Anthony Quinn - (France/Italy)
I
- Ich suche Dich (I Seek You), starring O. W. Fischer and Anouk Aimée - (West Germany)
- The Indian Fighter, starring Kirk Douglas and Walter Matthau
- Invasion of the Body Snatchers, directed by Don Siegel, starring Kevin McCarthy
- Invitation to the Dance, directed by and starring Gene Kelly
- It Conquered the World, directed by Roger Corman, starring Peter Graves and Beverly Garland
J
- Jagte Raho (Stay Awake), starring Raj Kapoor - (India)
- Johnny Concho, starring Frank Sinatra
- Jubal, starring Glenn Ford, Rod Steiger, Ernest Borgnine, Felicia Farr, Charles Bronson
- Judgement of Coyote
- Julie, starring Doris Day and Louis Jourdan
K
- Kanal, directed by Andrzej Wajda - (Poland)
- The Killer Is Loose, directed by Budd Boetticher, starring Joseph Cotten, Rhonda Fleming, Wendell Corey
- The Killers, a short film directed by Andrei Tarkovsky - (U.S.S.R.)
- The Killing, directed by Stanley Kubrick, starring Sterling Hayden, Coleen Gray, Marie Windsor, Vince Edwards
- The King and Four Queens, starring Clark Gable
- The King and I, starring Deborah Kerr and Yul Brynner
- A Kiss Before Dying, starring Robert Wagner and Joanne Woodward
L
- The Last Hunt, directed by Richard Brooks, starring Robert Taylor and Stewart Granger
- The Last Wagon, starring Richard Widmark
- The Leech (Shabab emraa) - (Egypt)
- The Lieutenant Wore Skirts, directed by Frank Tashlin, starring Tom Ewell and Sheree North
- Lisbon, directed by and starring Ray Milland, with Maureen O'Hara and Claude Rains
- The Long Arm, starring Jack Hawkins - (GB)
- Love Me Tender, starring Elvis Presley in his film debut
- Lust for Life, starring Kirk Douglas (as Vincent van Gogh) and Anthony Quinn
M
- A Man Escaped (Un condamné à mort s'est échappé ou Le vent souffle où il veut), directed by Robert Bresson - (France)
- The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit, starring Gregory Peck, Jennifer Jones, Fredric March, Keenan Wynn, Lee J. Cobb
- Man on the Tracks (Człowiek na torze) - (Poland)
- The Man Who Knew Too Much, directed by Alfred Hitchcock (a remake of his own 1934 British film), starring James Stewart and Doris Day
- The Man Who Never Was, starring Clifton Webb and Gloria Grahame - (GB)
- Meet Me in Las Vegas, starring Cyd Charisse
- Merry-Go-Round (Körhinta) - (Hungary)
- Michel Strogoff
- Miracle in the Rain, starring Jane Wyman
- Moby Dick, directed by John Huston, starring Gregory Peck, Richard Basehart, Leo Genn
- Mukh O Mukhosh (The Face and the Mask) - (East Pakistan)
N
- Naked Gun starring Mara Corday and Willard Parker
- Nagareru (Flowing), directed by Mikio Naruse - (Japan)
- Never Say Goodbye, starring Rock Hudson, David Janssen, Cornell Borchers
- New Delhi - (India)
O
- Old Khottabych (Starik Khottabych) - (U.S.S.R.)
- On the Threshold of Space, starring Guy Madison
- The Opposite Sex, starring June Allyson, Leslie Nielson, Joan Collins
- Over-Exposed, starring Cleo Moore
P-Q
- Pardners, starring Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis
- Patterns, starring Van Heflin and Ed Begley
- Pillars of the Sky, starring Jeff Chandler and Dorothy Malone
- Please Murder Me, starring Angela Lansbury and Raymond Burr
- Poor but Handsome (Poveri ma belli) - (Italy)
- The Power and the Prize, starring Robert Taylor, Burl Ives, Mary Astor, Cedric Hardwicke, Elisabeth Müller
- Private's Progress, a Boulting Brothers film starring Ian Carmichael and Richard Attenborough - (GB)
- Professor Hannibal (Hannibál tanár úr), directed by Zoltán Fábri (Hungary)
- The Proud and Profane, starring William Holden and Deborah Kerr
- The Proud Ones, starring Robert Ryan and Virginia Mayo
- Qivitoq - (Denmark)
R
- The Rack, starring Paul Newman, Edmond O'Brien, Walter Pidgeon, Anne Francis
- The Railroad Man (Il Ferroviere), directed by and starring Pietro Germi - (Italy)
- The Rainmaker, starring Burt Lancaster and Katharine Hepburn
- Ransom!, starring Glenn Ford and Donna Reed
- Reach for the Sky, a biopic of Douglas Bader starring Kenneth More - (GB)
- The Red Balloon (Le Ballon rouge) - (France)
- The Road of Life (El camino de la vida) - (Mexico)
- Rock Around the Clock, featuring Bill Haley and His Comets
- Rodan, directed by Ishirō Honda - (Japan)
- The Roof (Il Tetto), directed by Vittorio De Sica - (Italy)
- Run for the Sun, starring Richard Widmark, Trevor Howard, Jane Greer
S
- Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island, directed by Hiroshi Inagaki, starring Toshiro Mifune - (Japan)
- The Searchers, directed by John Ford, starring John Wayne, Jeffrey Hunter, Vera Miles, Ward Bond, Ken Curtis, Natalie Wood
- Serenade, directed by Anthony Mann, starring Mario Lanza and Joan Fontaine
- Seven Men from Now, directed by Budd Boetticher, starring Randolph Scott and Lee Marvin
- Seven Wonders of the World, a documentary film directed by Tay Garnett and others
- Seven Years in Tibet - (GB)
- The She-Creature, starring Marla English
- The Silent World, a marine documentary by Jacques-Yves Cousteau and Louis Malle - (France)
- Sira` Fi al-Mina (aka Dark Water), directed by Youssef Chahine, starring Omar Sharif - (Egypt)
- Slightly Scarlet, starring John Payne and Rhonda Fleming
- The Solid Gold Cadillac, starring Judy Holliday
- Somebody Up There Likes Me, starring Paul Newman
- The Spanish Gardener, starring Dirk Bogarde - (GB)
- The Square Jungle, starring Tony Curtis and Patricia Crowley
- Star in the Dust, starring John Agar and Mamie Van Doren
- Stars in Your Eyes - (GB)
- Storm Center, starring Bette Davis and Kim Hunter
- Street of Shame (Akasen chitai), directed by Kenji Mizoguchi - (Japan)
T-V
- Tea and Sympathy, directed by Vincente Minnelli, starring Deborah Kerr and John Kerr
- The Teahouse of the August Moon, starring Marlon Brando and Glenn Ford
- The Ten Commandments, directed by Cecil B. DeMille, starring Charlton Heston, Yul Brynner, Anne Baxter, Yvonne De Carlo, Edward G. Robinson
- There's Always Tomorrow, starring Barbara Stanwyck, Fred MacMurray, Joan Bennett
- Three Brave Men, starring Ray Milland
- Time Table, directed by and starring Mark Stevens, with Felicia Farr
- Toward the Unknown, starring William Holden and Virginia Leith
- A Town Like Alice, starring Virginia McKenna and Peter Finch - (GB)
- Trapeze, directed by Carol Reed, starring Burt Lancaster, Tony Curtis, Gina Lollobrigida
- Tribute to a Bad Man, directed by Robert Wise, starring James Cagney, Irene Papas, Stephen McNally, Don Dubbins, Vic Morrow
- The Twelve Months (Dvenadtsat mesyatsev) - (USSR)
- Uncle Hyacynth (Mi tío Jacinto) - (Spain)
- Valley of Peace (Dolina miru) - (Yugoslavia)
- I Vampiri (The Vampire) - (Italy)
W
- War and Peace, directed by King Vidor, starring Audrey Hepburn, Henry Fonda, Mel Ferrer, Anita Ekberg
- What a Woman!, starring Sophia Loren, Charles Boyer and Marcello Mastroianni - (Italy)
- While the City Sleeps, starring Dana Andrews, Ida Lupino, Rhonda Fleming, George Sanders, Vincent Price
- Who Done It?, starring Benny Hill - (GB)
- A Woman's Devotion, starring Ralph Meeker and Janice Rule
- Written on the Wind, directed by Douglas Sirk, starring Rock Hudson, Lauren Bacall, Robert Stack, Dorothy Malone
- The Wrong Man, directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring Henry Fonda and Vera Miles
X-Z
- X the Unknown, starring Dean Jagger and Leo McKern - (GB)
- Yield to the Night, starring Diana Dors - (GB)
- You Can't Run Away from It, directed by Dick Powell, starring June Allyson and Jack Lemmon
- Zarak, starring Victor Mature - (GB)
Serials
Short film series
- Looney Tunes (1930–1969)
- Terrytoons (1930–1964)
- Merrie Melodies (1931–1969)
- Popeye (1933–1957)
- The Three Stooges (1934–1959)
- Bugs Bunny (1940–1962)
- Tom and Jerry (1940–1958)
- Droopy (1943–1958)
- Yosemite Sam (1945–1963)
- Speedy Gonzales (1953–1968)
Ending this year
- Donald Duck (1934-1956)
- Chip 'n' Dale (1943-1956)
- Ranger Don (1953-1956)
Births
- January 3 - Mel Gibson, American Irish actor and director
- January 7 - David Caruso, actor
- January 9 - Kimberly Beck, actress
- January 21 - Geena Davis, actress
- January 25 - Dinah Manoff, actress and director
- January 27 - Mimi Rogers, actress
- February 3 - Nathan Lane, actor
- February 17 - Richard Karn, actor
- February 19 - Kathleen Beller, actress
- March 1 - Tim Daly, actor
- March 7 - Bryan Cranston, actor and director
- March 13 - Dana Delany, actress
- April 12 - Andy García, Cuban-American actor
- April 30 - Lars von Trier, Danish director
- May 10 - Jonathan Roberts, American screenwriter, producer, and author
- May 12 - Kimiko Yo, Japanese actress
- June 4 - Keith David, actor
- July 1 - Alan Ruck, actor
- July 9 - Tom Hanks, actor and director
- July 11 - Sela Ward, actress
- July 31 - Michael Biehn, actor
- August 12 - Bruce Greenwood, Canadian actor
- August 20 - Joan Allen, actress
- August 21 - Kim Cattrall, English-born Canadian actress
- September 20 - Gary Cole, actor
- September 26 - Linda Hamilton, actress
- October 20 - Danny Boyle, English director and producer
- October 21 - Carrie Fisher, actress
- October 26 – Rita Wilson, actress & producer
- November 8 - Richard Curtis, New Zealand-born British director and screenwriter
- November 20 - Bo Derek, actress and model
Deaths
- January 9 - Marion Leonard, 74, American early silent actress, At the Crossroads of Life, The Gibson Goddess
- January 12 - Norman Kerry, 61, American actor, The Phantom of the Opera, The Unknown
- January 23 - Alexander Korda, 62, Hungarian film director, the founder of London Films, That Hamilton Woman, The Private Life of Henry VIII
- March 17 - Fred Allen, 61, It's in the Bag!, O. Henry's Full House
- March 25 - Robert Newton, 50, English actor, Oliver Twist, Odd Man Out
- April 15 - Kathleen Howard, 71, Canadian-American opera singer and actress, It's a Gift, Ball of Fire
- April 26 - Edward Arnold, 66, American actor, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Diamond Jim
- May 12 - Louis Calhern, 61, Duck Soup, Notorious
- June 6 - Margaret Wycherly, 74, English-American actress, White Heat, Sergeant York
- June 30 - Thorleif Lund, 76, Norwegian actor, Skibsrotten, Republikaneren
- July 8 - Mona Mårtenson, 54, Swedish actress, Pippi Longstocking, The Saga of Gosta Berling
- July 16 - Olof Winnerstrand, 80, Swedish actor, Torment, A Lesson in Love
- August 16 - Bela Lugosi, 73, Hungarian-born American actor, Dracula, White Zombie
- October 2 - George Bancroft, 74, American actor, Stagecoach, Mr. Deeds Goes to Town
- October 9 - Marie Doro, 74, American actress, Oliver Twist, Sally Bishop
- November 30 - Viggo Wiehe, 81, Danish actor, Doctor Nicholson and the Blue Diamond, Røverne fra Rold
- December 12 - E. A. Dupont, 64, German writer, director, Jealousy, The Scarf
- December 26 - Holmes Herbert, 74, British actor, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, The Invisible Man
Film Debuts
- Jean-Paul Belmondo - Molière
- Michael Caine - Panic in the Parlor
- James Garner - Toward the Unknown
- Robert Loggia - Somebody Up There Likes Me
- Robert Morse - The Proud and Profane
- Leslie Nielsen - Forbidden Planet
- Elvis Presley - Love Me Tender
- John Schlesinger - Sunday in the Park
- Maggie Smith - Child in the House
- Rip Torn - Baby Doll
- Christopher Walken - The Boy Who Saw Through
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