The Houston Story is a 1956 American film noir directed by William Castle starring Gene Barry, Barbara Hale and Edward Arnold.
The film went through a major casting change while in production. Originally set for the lead role was acclaimed character actor Lee J. Cobb. But Cobb suffered a heart attack after filming an exhausting fight sequence, in part due to the August heat in Texas, where the scene was shot. Cobb's part had to be recast and went to Barry. The film's director, William Castle wrote that the producer "insisted on a relatively new actor in pictures - Gene Barry, a fine actor, but as unlike Lee J. Cobb as anyone could be."Synopsis
Frank Duncan (Barry), a shrewd oil driller from Galveston, Texas, conceives a plan to sneakily siphon millions of dollars' worth of oil from the oil fields and sell it as his own. He goes through nightclub singer Zoe Crane (Hale) to insinuate himself with a Houston mobster, Paul Atlas (Arnold) to get financing for his scheme.
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