In 1949, reporter Malcolm Johnson received a Pulitzer Prize for 24 articles published in the New York Sun. The articles detailed the violence and corruption then rampant along the docks. Budd Schulberg turned them into a fictionalized story and received an Oscar for the screenplay for On the Waterfront. Made in 1954, the movie exposed the seamy side of the longshoreman’s union during the years following the Second World War.

Marlon Brando was cast in the lead role as Terry Malloy, and Rod Steiger appeared as Charley Malloy. The union leader with mob ties, Johnny Friendly, was portrayed by Lee J. Cobb. The character of Glover was played by Leif Erickson, Eva Marie Saint debuted as Edie Doyle, and Karl Malden was cast as Father Barry. Former heavyweights Tami Mauriello, Abe Simon, and Tony Galento appeared in the film as some of the muscle commanded by Friendly.

Before the time frame covered by the film, dockworker Terry Malloy had been a pugilist who showed promise. His brother, Charley, had obeyed orders from Friendly to convince Terry to deliberately lose a match. Friendly planned to use Terry’s fight to win some large bets, and Charley, his attorney, wanted to make sure his position was secure. Terry threw the fight, but he still has regrets over the incident.

In the opening minutes of the movie, Friendly uses Terry to help set up a murder. Doyle is a longshoreman who plans to testify against Friendly. Without knowing that Friendly plans to have the man murdered, Terry lures him into the ambush. Terry resents the way Friendly used him, but follows the waterfront code of keeping silent. However, Terry falls for the dead man’s sister, Edie, and his feelings of guilt and shame began to take a toll on him. Edie has convinced Father Barry, a waterfront priest, to fight against the violent tactics employed by the union. Edie and Father Barry launch a campaign to convince Terry to present testimony against Friendly. Charley warns his brother and urges him to leave town, for which Friendly orders Charley killed. Eventually, Friendly is defeated by Terry’s refusal to back down.

The character of Terry Malloy was widely acknowledged to be based on longshoreman Anthony DiVincenzo. DiVincenzo suffered some ostracism for testifying before the Waterfront Commission on corruption among the union leaders. He eventually sued and received a settlement from Columbia Pictures. Father Barry was also based on a real person, Father John Corridan. Father Corridan’s biography, Waterfront Priest, was later written by Allen Raymond.

The film won the Academy Award for Best Motion Picture and seven additional Oscars. Kazan won as Best Director, while Schulberg won in the Best Story and Screenplay category. Brando took the award for Best Actor and Eva Marie Saint was honored with the Best Supporting Actress Oscar. Best Supporting Actor was won by Edmond O’Brien for The Barefoot Contessa, but Malden, Steiger, and Cobb were all nominated in the category. Editor Gene Milford and cinematographer Boris Kaufman won two more of the Oscars given to On the Waterfront. Best Art Decoration and Set Decoration for Black and White was won by Richard Day. Leonard Bernstein received a nomination for music, but the award went to Dimitri Tiomkin for his music in The High and The Mighty.

One notable piece of trivia involving the film is that it is the only appearance in a movie by the ill fated Italian liner Andrea Doria. The ship went down crossing the Atlantic in 1956 after colliding with another vessel. Toward the end of the movie, Terry, on the rooftop where his pigeons have been killed, looks toward the Hudson. As the camera pans, audiences can see the Andrea Doria sailing downriver.

On the Waterfront came shortly after the McCarthy inspired hearings on Communism. Director Elia Kazan had testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee. He was severely criticized for naming alleged Communists in the Hollywood film industry. Many view this film as an attempt by Kazan to prove that sometimes, testifying against colleagues is both necessary and noble.

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