kittykitty Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 I watched this on tv as a child in the mid to late 50's, maybe early 60's. I do not know if it was in color or not since we only had b&w tv. It was at the theater at some point before that time frame, because the trend was not "made for tv" movies back then. My husband remembers seeing this same movie on tv back when he was a young sprout also. What I can remember is that it was an early 'disaster' flick. The film begins with only one man left alive. Somehow everyone is gone, but the buildings are left standing and not in rubble. He spends his time looking for others that may be alive and clues to what happened. At a certain point in the film, he hears a telegraph click click click and thinks someone is alive and attempting to send a message. He traces the clicks to a city and finds someone has tied a shade to the telegraph machine, and when the wind blew, it resulted in those clicks he thought were communication attempts. This is my most vivid memory of the film. At some point in the movie, he discovers another left alive, a woman. I remember a scene where they are standing on a hilltop together overlooking the city wondering if they are the only ones left alive in the world. My husband thinks he remembers the man being African-American, but I cannot recall that. A google check of Harry Belafonte and Sidney Poitier turned up zilch. But he still thinks the man was African- American and the woman caucasian; which was very controversial back in those days. He also remembers that at the beginning of the film, the man was underground, why or how he got there, don't know, but when he emerges everyone is gone. I do not remember this part. It was a long time ago! Thanks for your help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ayresorchids Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 I think you may be remembering "The World, The Flesh and The Devil" from 1959, which starred Harry Belafonte. Check it out: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053454/ {POSSIBLE SPOILER AHEAD} It has been a long time since I've seen the movie, and I don't remember whether it has a telegraph scene like the one you mention, but I DO know that there is a scene like that in "On the Beach," wherein a submarine crew travels to a San Diego power station (after WWIII has wiped out humanity) and finds that the wind is blowing a window shade puller that has looped itself over a Coke bottle, tapping in a ghostly way upon the telegraph device. Both of these films have eerie scenes of absolutely empty city streets (because fallout killed the remaining populations, not bomb destruction): In TWTFATD, New York; in OTB, San Francisco and Melbourne. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kittykitty Posted January 8, 2008 Author Share Posted January 8, 2008 Thank you so very much! The World, the Flesh and the Devil is the one! Methinks I may have gotten the specific scene that I remembered in 'On the Beach' mixed up with the other. It was a long time ago! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CineSage_jr Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 Thermonuclear war will do that to a person's memory. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scsu1975 Posted January 8, 2008 Share Posted January 8, 2008 It is scheduled for January 21 on TCM ... unless the world is destroyed before then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CineMaven Posted January 9, 2008 Share Posted January 9, 2008 If only things were braver back then...Inger Stevens and Harry Belafonte were hot stuff. And they couldn't even kiss. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scsu1975 Posted January 9, 2008 Share Posted January 9, 2008 Well, she would have gotten tired of him singing that Banana Boat song ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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