Blast of Silence

Blast of Silence is an American crime/thriller film released in 1961. It was written and directed by Allen Baron and produced by Merrill Brody who was also the cinematographer.

Characters and story

Frankie Bono (Allen Baron), a hitman from Cleveland, comes to New York City during Christmas week to kill a middle-management mobster, Troiano (Peter H. Clune). First he follows his target to select the best possible location, and orders a gun from rat-loving dealer Big Ralph (Larry Tucker). One night, he meets a former friend from the orphanage he grew up in, rattling his cool and putting his life in danger.

Production notes

According to Turner Classic Movies web site, the "fist fight" scene was filmed on Long Island during Hurricane Donna (September 10–12, 1960), the only hurricane of the 20th century to blanket the entire East Coast from south Florida to Maine.

DVD release

The Criterion Collection released Blast of Silence on DVD in 2008. The disc's special features include a new, restored digital transfer, a making-of featurette (Requiem for a Killer: The Making of Blast of Silence), rare on-set Polaroid photos, and images of locations as they existed in 2008. Also included is a booklet featuring an essay by film critic Terrence Rafferty and a four-page graphic novel by Sean Phillips (Criminal, Sleeper, Marvel Zombies).

Blast of Silence (Axed My Baby for a Nickel)

Blast of Silence is the third album by The Golden Palominos, released in 1986 by Celluloid Records.

Track listing

Personnel