"Lux Radio Theater" broadcast a 60 minute radio adaptation of the movie onMarch 23, 1953 with Paul Douglas reprising his film role.
A number of character actors in this film who had been associated with communist associations and left-wing theater groups -Howard Da Silva,Martin Gabel,Jeff Corey,Leif Erickson andJohn Randolph - were soon to be called before the House Un-American Activities committee or listed in the anti-communist publication Red Channels. Most were blacklisted and did not appear again in films for many years; one (Erickson, who had been married to Frances Farmer) named names and was cleared.
As was typical of other big studio films of the time, the exterior action photographed on location on the streets of New York City, but the dialogue scenes were shot on a copy of the building and on studio sets at the Fox Studios in Hollywood. The film is notable in that a number of actors just beginning their careers who were soon to go on to major roles in theater and film were cast in bit parts or as extras, among them:Joyce Van Patten,Janice Rule,John Randolph,Harvey Lembeck,Brian Keith,Richard Beymer,David Burns,Ossie Davis,John Cassavetes andGrace Kelly, in her first screen appearance.
Except for brief scoring under the main titles and at the film's conclusion, the film has no music.
Film debut of Grace Kelly.
Producer Sol C. Siegel won permission from the New York Police Department to rope off a large section of downtown New York as one extensive set.
The building used was demolished in 1967. It was replaced by the 52-story tower 140 Broadway, noted for its large red cube in the plaza.
The film was shelved for six months because the daughter of Fox exec Spyros Skouras leaped to her death on the very day the film was previewed. By the time of its eventual release, some Spyros-mandated compromises were made to the film's storyline.
The production used a real bank building in New York (The Guaranty Trust Co.) and they planned to film all of the outdoor crowd scenes over Memorial Day weekend. However, the ledge on the bank building turned out to be too narrow, so an extension was built (12 inches deep, 42 feet wide)) and filming ended up taking two weeks. The entire bank building was dressed with curtains, a new entrance canopy, metal nameplates, and marquee. The replica of the hotel ledge that was built on Fox's Stage 8 cost $32,000.
This film is based on a real life incident which happened July 26, 1938 in New York City. John W. Warde, 26 years of age, leaped seventeen floors to his death from the ledge outside a room in the Hotel Gotham.
Two New York City landmarks can be seen in the background in scenes filmed from the ledge: The Woolworth Building and the Old Trinity Church.