Movie Quotes in Black and White: The '50s Quiz

Answer: A Face in the Crowd

In Elia Kazan's "A Face in the Crowd", Andy Griffith channels his dark side as Larry 'Lonesome' Rhodes, a manipulative populist at the center of a media empire. Made in 1957, this movie nonetheless seems disturbingly contemporary. In this delectable quote, Rhodes takes narcissistic delight in his own media appeal.

Answer: The Day the Earth Stood Still

Mr. Klaatu (Michael Rennie), of course, is the man from outer space in this sci-fi classic from 1951. He comes to Earth to give the human race this choice - "Join us and live in peace, or pursue your present course and face obliteration." Yikes! Don't sugarcoat it, Klaatu, give it to us straight! Klaatu does find a few allies on Earth, including Professor Barnhardt, an Albert Einstein-esque scientist who utters this beautiful and oh-so-true line of dialogue.

Answer: Harvey

James Stewart in one of his most iconic roles, Elwood P. Dowd, in the film adaptation of Mary Chase's Pulitzer-Prize winning play, "Harvey". Harvey is Elwood's best friend. Harvey is also an imaginary six-foot tall white rabbit. While the audience is delighted by Elwood's fantasy, his beleaguered sister and aunt think he's insane and they spend most of the film trying to have him committed to an asylum. But, as this movie reminds us, the line between madness and sanity is a thin one and, at times, Elwood seems to be the only sane character in the film.

In this quote he wins over the doctor and nurse who are supposed to be committing him but who are actually falling under his spell.

Answer: All About Eve

"All About Eve", 1950's Best Picture Oscar winner, stars Bette Davis in what is perhaps her greatest performance. She plays Broadway actress Margo Channing in this most backbiting of backstage dramas. This line comes to us courtesy of the oleaginous theater critic Addison DeWitt (George Sanders).

He speaks the line to Margo's nemesis, the titular Eve Harrington (Anne Baxter), an overly ambitious Broadway diva wannabe who doesn't care who she steps on as she ascends the show biz ladder. Great performances all around in this true classic.

Answer: A Place in the Sun

Elizabeth Taylor (as debutante Angela Vickers) utters this heartbreaking line to Montgomery Clift (as convicted murderer George Eastman) in a prison cell, not long before Monty takes that long walk down a 1951 version of the green mile. Based on Theodore Dreiser's masterful novel "An American Tragedy", this beautiful film takes full advantage of the chemistry between Taylor and Clift in this tragic tale of young love and lust. Director George Stevens' masterpiece.

Answer: From Here to Eternity

James Jones' blockbuster novel, "From Here to Eternity", tells the tale of soldiers stationed at Pearl Harbor in the months leading up to the fateful December 7, 1941 attack that brought the U.S. into World War II. It was adapted into this 1953 Best Picture Oscar winner.

Its stellar cast included Burt Lancaster, Montgomery Clift, Deborah Kerr, Donna Reed, and Frank Sinatra in his most iconic role. As Angelo Maggio, a scrappy private who gets himself into deep trouble with the Military Police, Sinatra gave the performance of a lifetime and was awarded with a best supporting actor Oscar. With this line, he makes a play for one of the young female escorts at the New Congress Club.

Answer: Strangers on a Train

This particular line is uttered by none other that Patricia Hitchcock, daughter of the film's director, Alfred Hitchcock. "Strangers on a Train" easily ranks as one of his great films of the 1950s - quite an endorsement when you consider that during that decade Hitch also gave us "Rear Window" and "Vertigo". "Strangers" tells the story of two men who meet by chance on a train. One proposes that they swap murders; the other laughs it off but... well, you can probably take it from there. If you can't, see the movie. You won't be sorry.

Pat Hitchcock was a wonderful actress in her own right and should have had a career beyond a few appearances in her father's films. Here, she plays the younger sister of Ruth Roman whose romantic interest, played by Farley Granger, is suspected of murdering his cheating ex-wife so he could be with Ruth. As you can see from the line (and from the mischievous grin on Pat's face when she delivers the line), she finds this wonderfully romantic. How Hitchcockian!

Answer: Invasion of the Body Snatchers

Remade numerous times, the 1956 "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" is still the gold standard of movies with the word "Snatchers" in the title. Dr. Miles Bennell (Kevin McCarthy) narrates this dark tale with all the requisite hyperbole of a '50s sci-fi/horror film.

This line is a perfect example. Here, Bennell explains his terrified reaction when he realizes that the bodies of the people of his small, close knit community are being taken over by mysterious pod-people from outer space. Sound corny? See the movie. Trust me, it's genuinely terrifying! "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" is one of the truly great films of any genre from the 1950s... or any decade!

Answer: Paths of Glory

An early Stanley Kubrick masterpiece, "Paths of Glory" is set in France during World War I. Under extraordinarily heavy fire, a French army battalion is unable to attack an enemy position. Outraged, the general in charge (George Macready) accuses the soldiers of cowardice.

Their commanding officer (Kirk Douglas, in a sensational performance) steps forward to defend them. He utters these desperate but eloquent words in his summation to the court.

Answer: A Streetcar Named Desire

Marlon Brando changed the face of American acting in this brilliant film version of the Tennessee Williams stage play. As Stanley Kowalski, the brutish yet charismatic husband of a fallen southern belle, Brando redefined the term "movie star". Gone was the studio imposed glamour, replaced by Brando's frank and smoldering sexuality and simmering emotional intensity.

His co-stars Vivien Leigh, Kim Hunter and Karl Malden all won Oscars for their performances but it's really Brando who stole this particular show. With this line, he stops his wife from putting on airs and brings her back down to his level.