Executive Action (1973)


Executive Action
Release Date07 November 1973
TaglineTheir Goal...Assassination. November 22, 1963...Accomplished!
GenreCrime, Drama, History, Thriller
CountryUSA
Filming Locations380 South San Rafael Avenue, Pasadena, California, USA
LanguageEnglish
Sound MixMono
ColorColor
Film TypeFeature
Film ClassPolitical Thriller, Docudrama
Niche GenreHistorical Film
ThemesMurder Investigations, Conspiracies, Assassination Plots
TonesConfrontational, Paranoid
TagsAssassin, Conspiracy, Espionage, Industrialist, Investigator, Political Intrigue, Politician, President

Executive Action is a 1973 movie about the assassination of U.S. President John F. Kennedy, written by Dalton Trumbo, Donald Freed and Mark Lane, and directed by David Miller. The film opened to a storm of controversy over the depiction of the assassination: in some places in the U.S., the film ran only 1 to 2 weeks in movie theaters or got pulled from them altogether. The movie was part fiction, but it would contest other reports of the assassination, including the controversial Warren Commission report of 1964, which led to attacks against the film. The trailers for the film never ran on certain television stations, including WNBC-TV in New York City. The criticism of the film and its suggestion of a Military-industrial complex conspiracy led to the film being removed totally from the movie theaters by early December 1973 and getting no TV/Video runs until the 1980's and mid-90's, when it got legal release and distribution for TV and video. The film was originally released on November 7, 1973, almost two weeks before the tenth anniversary of the JFK Assassination.


Cast and Crew


Cast

James Farrington

Foster

Harold Ferguson

Gilbert Green
Paulitz

Halliday

Paul Carr
Chris

Colby Chester
Tim

Operations Chief - Team A

Walter Brooke
Smythe

John Brascia
Rifleman - Team B

Gunman - Team A

Sidney Clute
Depository Clerk

Deanna Darrin
Stripper

Lee Delano
Gunman - Team A

McCadden

Graydon Gould
TV Commentator

Used Car Salesman

Robert Karnes
Man at Rifle Range

James MacColl
Oswald Imposter

Joaquín Martínez
Art Mendoza

Rifleman - Team B

Oscar Orcini
Jack Ruby

Tom Peters
Sergeant

Paul Sorensen
Officer Brown

Hunter von Leer
Rifleman - Team B

Sandy Ward
Policeman

William Watson
Technician - Leader of Team B

John Himes
Reporter

Matthew Ahman
Himself

George Aiken
Himself

Glen A. Bennett
Himself

Eugene Carson Blake
Himself

Leonid Brezhnev
Himself

Earle Cabell
Himself

Mrs. Earle Cabell
Herself

John Connally
Himself

Nellie Connally
Herself

Jesse E. Curry
Himself

Chuck Dawson
Extra

J.C. Day
Himself

Patrick Dean
Himself

Everett Dirksen
Himself

William C. Foster
Himself

Will Fritz
Himself

J. William Fulbright
Himself

L.C. Graves
Himself

William Greer
Himself

Andrei Gromyko
Himself

Bobby Hargis
Himself

George W. Hickey
Himself

Clint Hill
Himself

Himself

Roy Kellerman
Himself

Ed Kemmer
Reporter

Himself

Nikita Khrushchev
Himself

Malcolm Kilduff
Himself

Samuel A. Kinney
Himself

Paul E. Landis
Himself

Jim Leavelle
Himself

Himself

B.J. Martin
Himself

Tim McIntyre
Himself

Robert McNamara
Himself

W.E. Newman Jr.
Himself

Kenneth P. O'Donnell
Himself

Ike Pappas
Himself

David F. Powers
Himself

Joachim Prinz
Himself

Sam Rayburn
Himself

John D. Ready
Himself

Walter Reuther
Himself

Emory P. Roberts
Himself

Himself

Dean Rusk
Himself

Leverett Saltonstall
Himself

George A. Smathers
Himself

Himself

Lewis Strauss
Himself

Edward Teller
Himself

U Thant
Himself

Cyrus Vance
Himself

Henry M. Wade
Himself

Himself

Himself

Director

Writer

Donald Freed

Mark Lane

Producer

Dan Bessie
co-producer

Gary Horowitz
co-producer

associate producer in charge of publicity

Edward Lewis
producer

Original Music

Randy Edelman
-

Cinematographer

Robert Steadman
-

Editor

George Grenville
-

Art Director

Kirk Axtell
-

Makeup Department

Byrd Holland
makeup artist

Carl A. Russell
makeup artist

Production Manager

Harry Caplan
production manager

Severo Perez
location production manager

Sound Department

Bruce Bisenz
sound

Richard S. Brummer
sound editor

Kirk Francis
sound recordist

Jock Putnam
sound recordist

Special Effects

special effects

Costume and Wardrobe Department

Gerry Puhara
wardrobe

Editorial Department

Ivan Dryer
editor: documentary footage

Irving Lerner
associate editor

Melvin Shapiro
associate editor

Music Department

Michael Arciaga
music supervisor

Other Crew

Lillian Castellano
researcher

Barbara Elman
researcher

W.M. Getzel Jr.
researcher

Eda Hallinan
researcher

Penn Jones Jr.
researcher

David Lifton
researcher

Robert Polin
researcher

Carol Rosenstein
researcher

Gil Schuckman
production assistant

Kevin Van Fleet
researcher

Frank White
dialogue director

Production Company

Executive Action Enterprises
-

Wakefield-Orloff Productions
-

Distributor

National General Pictures

Turner Entertainment

Warner Home Video
,






Navigation Boxes
Films directed by David Miller
Back Street (1961)
Billy the Kid (1941)
Diane (1956)
Drunk Driving (1939)
Executive Action
Flying Tigers (1942)
Hail, Hero! (1969)
Hammerhead (1968)
Love Happy (1949)
Midnight Lace (1960)
Our Very Own (1950)
Penny Wisdom (1937)
Sudden Fear (1952)
Twist of Fate (1954)