The Pace That Kills (1935 film)
| The Pace That Kills | |
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| Directed by |
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| Produced by | Willis Kent |
| Starring | Lois January |
| Narrated by | Willis Kent (credited as presenter) |
| Cinematography | Jack Greenhalgh |
| Edited by | Holbrook N. Todd |
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Production
company |
Willis Kent Productions
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| Distributed by | "State Rights" |
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Release date
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Running time
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68 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
The Pace That Kills (also known as Cocaine Madness and The Cocaine Fiends) is a 1935 American exploitation film directed by William O'Connor. The film, starring Lois January, told the story of a woman called Jane Bradford, who gets involved with a drug dealer and becomes addicted to cocaine. Similar to other movies of the genre, the final film was a reissued work with additional scenes, mostly using footage from the earlier silent The Pace That Kills (1928).
Small-town girl Jane Bradford (Lois January) falls for Nick (Noel Madison), a guy from the big city who offers her the opportunity to get away from her small-town life. He also offers her "headache powder" that she is unaware is really cocaine--and that Nick is a drug dealer. By the time they get to the city, she is hooked on her new medicine. Jane's brother Eddie (Dean Benton) goes to the city to look for her, after he and their mother don't hear from her for over a year.
Eddie gets a job as a drive-in carhop and is befriended by waitress Fanny (Sheila Bromley). Fanny is one of Nick's customers, and Fanny soon gets Eddie hooked on the "headache powder." This vice soon ends Eddie's and Fanny's lives downhill: they're both fired and unable to find new jobs. On the periphery of both Eddie and Jane's lives is Dorothy Farley (Lois Lindsay), a customer at the drive-in. Dorothy, dating Dan, comes from a wealthy family and throws her money around easily, and she is willing to financially assist those in need.
Typical of the other films that Willis Kent produced during the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s was a string of low-budget westerns and exploitation films, thinly disguised as cautionary tales. The plot also dealt with amorality and prostitution. Production began November 9, 1935.
The Pace That Kills was released without a Code seal from the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America (MPPDA) and distributed via "State Rights" where local sales agents would then sell rights to individual theaters. The theater operators would then play the film as often as they desired in an attempt to make as much profit as possible.The Pace That Kills was re-issued in 1937 as The Cocaine Fiends.
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