1955 in film

The year 1955 in film involved some significant events.

Events
January 7 - U.K. release of the Halas and Batchelor film animation of George Orwell's Animal Farm (completed April 1954), the first full-length British-made animated feature on general theatrical release.[1][2] March 20 - The film adaptation of Evan Hunter's novel Blackboard Jungle premieres in New York City, featuring the single "Rock Around the Clock" by Bill Haley & His Comets over the opening credits, the first use of a rock and roll song in a major movie. Teenagers jump from their seats to dance to it. June 1 - Premiere of Billy Wilder's film of The Seven Year Itch featuring an iconic scene of Marilyn Monroe standing on a New York City Subway grating as her white dress is blown above her knees.[3] June 16 - Lady and the Tramp, the Walt Disney company's 15th animated film, premieres in Chicago, the first animated feature filmed in the CinemaScope widescreen process. Peggy Lee co-writes and sings the songs. June 27 - The last ever Republic serial, King of the Carnival, is released. July 18 - Disneyland opens to the public in Anaheim, California. September 30 - American actor James Dean dies in an automobile collision near Cholame, California, age 24. On October 27, the film Rebel Without a Cause, in which he stars, is released. October 11 - Theatrical release in the United States of the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical film Oklahoma!, the first feature photographed in the Todd-AO 70 mm widescreen process. November 3 - The musical film Guys and Dolls, starring Marlon Brando and Frank Sinatra, is premiered in New York City.

Top-grossing films (U.S.)
Rank

Title

Studio

Actors

Gross

1. Cinerama Holiday Cinerama Productions John Marsh, Betty Marsh, Fred Troller $10,000,000 2. Mister Roberts Warner Bros. Henry Fonda, James Cagney, William Powell, Jack Lemmon $8,500,000 3. Battle Cry Warner Bros. Van Heflin, Aldo Ray, James Whitmore, Mona Freeman $8,000,000 4. Oklahoma! RKO Gordon MacRae, Shirley Jones, Gloria Grahame, Eddie Albert $7,100,000 5. Guys and Dolls MGM Marlon Brando, Jean Simmons, Frank Sinatra, Vivian Blaine $6,900,000 6. Lady and the Tramp Walt Disney Productions Barbara Luddy, Larry Roberts, Peggy Lee $6,500,000 7. Not as a Stranger United Artists Olivia de Havilland, Robert Mitchum, Frank Sinatra $6,200,000 8. Strategic Air Command Paramount Pictures James Stewart, June Allyson $6,000,000 To Hell and Back Universal Audie Murphy, Marshall Thompson, Charles Drake The Sea Chase Warner Bros. John Wayne, Lana Turner The Seven Year Itch 20th Century Fox Marilyn Monroe, Tom Ewell The Tall Men 20th Century Fox Clark Gable, Jane Russell 9. Blackboard Jungle MGM Glenn Ford, Anne Francis, Sidney Poitier, Richard Kiley $5,200,000 10. A Man Called Peter 20th Century Fox Richard Todd, Jean Peters $4,700,000

Awards
Academy Awards: Best Picture: Marty - Hecht-Lancaster, United ArtistsBest Director: Delbert Mann - MartyBest Actor: Ernest Borgnine - MartyBest Actress: Anna Magnani - The Rose TattooBest Supporting Actor: Jack Lemmon - Mister RobertsBest Supporting Actress: Jo Van Fleet - East of Eden Golden Globe Awards: Drama:Best Picture: East of EdenBest Actor: Ernest Borgnine – MartyBest Actress: Anna Magnani – The Rose TattooMusical or comedy:Best Picture: Guys and DollsBest Actor: Tom Ewell – The Seven Year ItchBest Actress: Jean Simmons – Guys and DollsOtherBest Director: Joshua Logan – PicnicBest Foreign Film: Ordet (The Word), DenmarkBest Foreign Film: Stella, GreeceBest Foreign Film: Sons, Mothers, and a General, West GermanyBest Foreign Film: Eyes of Children, Japan Palme d'Or (Cannes Film Festival): Marty, directed by Delbert Mann, United States Golden Lion (Venice Film Festival): Ordet (The Word), directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer, Denmark Golden Bear (Berlin Film Festival): Die Ratten (The Rats), directed by Robert Siodmak, West Germany

Top ten money making stars
Rank

Actor/Actress

1. James Stewart 2. Grace Kelly 3. John Wayne 4. William Holden 5. Gary Cooper 6. Marilyn Monroe 7. (tie) Dean Martin Jerry Lewis 8. Marlon Brando 9. Humphrey Bogart 10. Clark Gable

Notable films released in 1955

 * 1) Rebel Without a Cause

Serials
The Adventures of Captain Africa King of the Carnival Panther Girl of the Kongo

Short film series
Looney Tunes (1930–1969) Terrytoons (1930–1964) Merrie Melodies (1931–1969) Popeye (1933–1957) Donald Duck (1934–1956) The Three Stooges (1934–1959) Tom and Jerry (1940–1958) Bugs Bunny (1940–1962) Mighty Mouse (1942-1955) Chip 'n' Dale (1943–1956) Droopy (1943–1958) Yosemite Sam (1945–1963) Ranger Don (1953–1956) Speedy Gonzales (1953–1968)

Cartoon: Good Will to Men (MGM Cartoon Series) (Frederick Quimby, William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, producers; MGM) The Legend of Rockabye Point (Walter Lantz Productions; Universal-International) No Hunting (Donald Duck Series) (Walt Disney Productions; RKO Radio) Speedy Gonzales (Merrie Melodies Series) (Warner Bros. Cartoons, Inc.; Warner Bros.)

One-Reel: Gadgets Galore (Warner Varieties Series) (Robert Youngson, producer; Warner Bros.) Survival City (Movietone CinemaScope Series) (Edmund Reek, producer; Twentieth Century-Fox) 3rd Ave. El (Carson Davidson Productions; Ardee Films) Three Kisses (Topper Special Series) (Justin Herman, producer; Paramount)

Two-Reel: The Battle of Gettysburg (Dore Schary, producer; MGM) The Face of Lincoln (University of Southern California Presentation; Cavalcade Pictures, Inc.) On The Twelfth Day…(United Kingdom Series) (Go Pictures, Inc.; George Brest and Associates) Switzerland (People and Places Series) (Walt Disney Productions; Buena Vista) 24-Hour Alert (Cedric Francis, producer; Warner Bros.)

Film Debuts
James Cromwell - Daddy Long Legs Clint Eastwood - Revenge of the Creature Dennis Hopper - Rebel Without a Cause Shirley MacLaine - The Trouble with Harry Jayne Mansfield - Female Jungle Walter Matthau - The Kentuckian Melina Mercouri - Stella Elizabeth Montgomery - The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell