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Mickey Spillane’s two-fisted private detective Mike Hammer makes his film debut in I, The Jury, which has been newly restored and is now available on DVD from ClassicFlix.

After his best friend and war buddy is mysteriously gunned down, Mike Hammer (Biff Elliot) will stop at nothing to settle the score for the man who sacrificed a limb to save his own life during combat. Along the way, Hammer rides a fine line between gumshoe and a one-man jury, staying two-steps ahead of the law—and trying not to get bumped off in the process.

At the time I, the Jury was adapted for the silver screen in 1953, Mickey Spillane was the best-selling mystery writer in the world. Capitalizing on Spillane’s acclaim, producer Victor Saville bought the rights to Jury and tapped screenwriter Harry Essex (Kansas City Confidential) to both write and direct. Saville also secured the services of cinematographer John Alton (Raw Deal, T-Men)—the master of light and shadows—to lense this iconic film noir and famed composer Franz Waxman (Sunset Boulevard, A Place in the Sun) to produce the score.

Co-starring Preston Foster (The Informer) and Peggie Castle (The Long Wait), Jury also boasts solid support from Alan Reed, John Qualen, Tom Powers, Margaret Sheridan, Mary Anderson, Frances Osborne, Nestor Paiva, Joe Besser and Elisha Cook, Jr.

ABOUT THE RESTORATION:I, The Jury has been restored by UCLA Film and Television Archive in collaboration with PKL Pictures and Romulus Films. Laboratory services by Roundabout Entertainment, The UCLA Digital Lab, Audio Mechanics and Simon Daniel Sound. Special thanks to Connie Elliot, Nicholas Varley and Jonathan C. Woolf.

FEATURES:

• format: DVD
• Theatrical Year: 1953
• Runtime: 88 Minutes
• # Discs: 1
• Genre: Crime, Drama, Film Noir
• Category: Classic
• Language: English
• DIRECTOR: Hary Essex
• ACTORS: Biff Elliot, Preston Foster, Peggie Castle, Margaret Sheridan, Alan Reed, Elisha Cook, Jr., Mary Anderson, Tom Powers, Joe Besser, John Qualen, Nestor Paiva, Frances Osborne
• Region: 1
• Rating: NR
• Color or B&W: Black & White

I THE JURY - DVD