Call Northside 777

Call Northside 777 (1948) is a documentary-style film noir directed by Henry Hathaway. It is based on the true story of a Chicago reporter who proved that a man who has been in prison for murder, was wrongly convicted 11 years before. James Stewart stars as the persistent journalist. Richard Conte plays the imprisoned Frank Wiecek, a character based on Joseph Majczek, who was wrongly convicted of the murder of a Chicago policeman in 1932, one of ... more

Call Northside 777 (1948) is a documentary-style film noir directed by Henry Hathaway. It is based on the true story of a Chicago reporter who proved that a man who has been in prison for murder, was wrongly convicted 11 years before. James Stewart stars as the persistent journalist. Richard Conte plays the imprisoned Frank Wiecek, a character based on Joseph Majczek, who was wrongly convicted of the murder of a Chicago policeman in 1932, one of the worst years of organized crime during the Great Depression. This was the first Hollywood feature film to be shot on location in Chicago. Views of the Merchandise Mart as well as Holy Trinity Polish Mission can be seen throughout the film. It is 1932 in Chicago, and a policeman is killed inside a speakeasy. Frank Wiecek (Conte) and another man are sentenced to life imprisonment. Eleven years later, a newspaper ad by Wiecek's mother leads the city editor of the Chicago Times (Cobb) to assign reporter P.J. McNeal (Stewart) to look more... less