The Boston Strangler
Why did 13 women willingly open their doors to the Boston Strangler?
1968 | 116m | English
Popularity: 1 (history)
| Director: | Richard Fleischer |
|---|---|
| Writer: | Edward Anhalt, Gerold Frank |
| Staring: |
| Boston is being terrorized by a series of seemingly random murders of women. Based on the true story, the film follows the investigators path through several leads before introducing the Strangler as a character. It is seen almost exclusively from the point of view of the investigators who have very few clues to build a case upon. | |
| Release Date: | Oct 08, 1968 |
|---|---|
| Director: | Richard Fleischer |
| Writer: | Edward Anhalt, Gerold Frank |
| Genres: | Crime, Drama, Thriller |
| Keywords | detective, police brutality, double life, boston, massachusetts, strangle, surrealism, serial killer, strangulation, interrogation, lesbian, split screen |
| Production Companies | 20th Century Fox |
| Box Office |
Revenue: $0
Budget: $0 |
| Updates |
Updated: Feb 04, 2026 Entered: Apr 13, 2024 |
| Name | Character |
|---|---|
| Tony Curtis | Albert DeSalvo |
| Henry Fonda | John S. Bottomly |
| George Kennedy | Det. Phil DiNatale |
| Mike Kellin | Julian Soshnick |
| Hurd Hatfield | Terence Huntley |
| Murray Hamilton | Det. Frank McAfee |
| Jeff Corey | John Asgeirsson |
| Sally Kellerman | Dianne Cluny |
| William Marshall | Atty. Gen. Edward W. Brooke |
| George Voskovec | Peter Hurkos |
| Leora Dana | Mary Bottomly |
| Carolyn Conwell | Irmgard DeSalvo |
| Jeanne Cooper | Cloe |
| Austin Willis | Dr. Nagy |
| Lara Lindsay | Bobbie Eden |
| George Furth | Lyonel Brumley |
| Richard X. Slattery | Det. Capt. Ed Willis |
| William Hickey | Eugene T. O'Rourke |
| Eve Collyer | Ellen Ridgeway |
| Gwyda Donhowe | Alice Oakville |
| Alex Dreier | News Commentator |
| John Cameron Swayze | T.V. Narrator |
| Shelley Burton | David Parker |
| Elizabeth Baur | Harriet Fordin |
| James Brolin | Det. Sgt. Phil Lisi |
| George Tyne | Dr. Kramer |
| Dana Elcar | Luis Schubert |
| William Traylor | Arnie Carr |
| Carole Shelley | Dana Banks |
| Karen Ericson | Pat Bruner |
| Enid Markey | Edna |
| Dorothy Blackburn | Minnie Adams |
| Almira Sessions | Emma Hodak |
| Isabella Hoopes | Bertha Blum |
| Richard Krisher | Tom |
| Arthur Hanson | Commissioner |
| Walter Klavun | Chief of Police |
| Tim Herbert | Cedric |
| Matt Bennett | Harold |
| Penny Williams | Mae |
| Janis Young | Louise Parker |
| George Fisher | Mr. Taylor |
| David Lewis | Judge Schroeder |
| Pamela McMyler | Grace |
| Owen Orr | Dick Matheson |
| Tom Aldredge | Harold Lacey (uncredited) |
| David Armstrong | Suspect (uncredited) |
| Benjie Bancroft | Detective (uncredited) |
| Loren Brown | Police Officer (uncredited) |
| Robert Buckingham | Bailiff (uncredited) |
| Ron Burke | Man in Phone Booth (uncredited) |
| Violet Carlson | Woman (uncredited) |
| Harry Carter | Detective (uncredited) |
| James J. Casino | Suspect (uncredited) |
| Linda Clifford | Bystander (uncredited) |
| Kevin Coates | Boy (uncredited) |
| Barbara Collentine | Nurse (uncredited) |
| Bill Couch | Police Officer (uncredited) |
| Bob Courts | Detective (uncredited) |
| Dennis Cross | Steve (uncredited) |
| Yutta D'Arcy | Girl (uncredited) |
| Mark Dawson | Police Officer (uncredited) |
| Dick Dial | Driver (uncredited) |
| Bennie E. Dobbins | Police Officer (uncredited) |
| Edmund Donnelly | Bartender (uncredited) |
| Ken DuMain | Suspect (uncredited) |
| Larry Duran | Police Officer (uncredited) |
| Tommy Flanders | Minor Role (uncredited) |
| Eddie Frank | Michael DeSalvo (uncredited) |
| Nicci-Ann Frank | Judy DeSalvo (uncredited) |
| Cornelius Frizell | Bit Part (uncredited) |
| Jack Garner | Technician (uncredited) |
| Chance Gentry | Det. Doran (uncredited) |
| Gina Harding | Audri (uncredited) |
| Bob Harks | Suspect (uncredited) |
| Chuck Hicks | Cop (uncredited) |
| Alfred Hinckley | Manager at Charley's (uncredited) |
| George Holmes | Clerk (uncredited) |
| Shep Houghton | Detective (uncredited) |
| Brick Huston | Technician (uncredited) |
| Michael Jeffers | Courtroom Spectator (uncredited) |
| Hubie Kerns | Police Officer (uncredited) |
| Clint Kimbrough | Stanley Hodak (uncredited) |
| Mike Lally | Crime Scene Investigator (uncredited) |
| Sandy McPeak | Reporter (uncredited) |
| Paul Napier | Technician (uncredited) |
| Tom Noel | Cop (uncredited) |
| Victor Paul | Police Officer (uncredited) |
| John Pedrini | Detective (uncredited) |
| Jack Perkins | Cop Arresting Man Goosing Woman at Crosswalk (uncredited) |
| Nancie Phillips | Barbara Wise (uncredited) |
| Charlie Picerni | Driver (uncredited) |
| David Proval | Removalist (uncredited) |
| Jean Ransome | Worried Woman (uncredited) |
| John Richards | Mr. Barris (uncredited) |
| Hank Robinson | Police Officer (uncredited) |
| Alex Rocco | Lt. Lurie (uncredited) |
| Boyd Santell | Orderly #2 (uncredited) |
| George Sawaya | Police Officer (uncredited) |
| Walter Scott | Police Officer (uncredited) |
| Eddie Smith | Suspect (uncredited) |
| Hagen Smith | Suspect (uncredited) |
| Marie Thomas-Foster | Gloria (uncredited) |
| Rex Thompson | Nat (uncredited) |
| Meredith Vincent | Mrs. Taylor (uncredited) |
| Fiddle Viracola | Clara Lucia (uncredited) |
| Glenn R. Wilder | Driver (uncredited) |
| Edward Winter | Man in Hallway (uncredited) |
| Forrest Wood | Arthur Leary (uncredited) |
| Sally Yarnell | Worried Woman (uncredited) |
| Name | Job |
|---|---|
| Richard Fleischer | Director |
| Edward Anhalt | Screenplay |
| Glenn R. Wilder | Stunts |
| Charlie Picerni | Stunts |
| Gerold Frank | Novel |
| Richard Day | Art Direction |
| Marion Rothman | Editor |
| Jack Martin Smith | Art Direction |
| Raphael Bretton | Set Decoration |
| Don J. Bassman | Sound |
| Lionel Newman | Original Music Composer |
| Stuart A. Reiss | Set Decoration |
| Eric Stacey | Unit Production Manager |
| David Dockendorf | Sound |
| Walter M. Scott | Set Decoration |
| Dick Dial | Stunts |
| Richard H. Kline | Director of Photography |
| Walter Scott | Stunts |
| Edith Lindon | Hairstylist |
| Daniel C. Striepeke | Makeup Artist |
| Ben Nye | Makeup Artist |
| Richard Glassman | Second Assistant Director |
| Charles Ziarko | Assistant Director Trainee |
| Sam Bergman | Props |
| Pat O'Connor | Props |
| Benjamin Resella | Scenic Artist |
| Richard A. Villalobos | Leadman |
| Don MacDougall | Sound Re-Recording Mixer |
| L.B. Abbott | Visual Effects |
| John C. Caldwell | Visual Effects |
| Art Cruickshank | Visual Effects |
| Christopher Chapman | Visual Effects Designer |
| George Sawaya | Stunts |
| Victor Paul | Stunt Coordinator |
| Hubie Kerns | Stunts |
| Chuck Hicks | Stunts |
| Larry Duran | Stunts |
| Bennie E. Dobbins | Stunts |
| Bill Couch | Stunts |
| Ron Burke | Stunts |
| Armando Contreras | Grip |
| Al Baerthlin | Assistant Camera |
| Pat Blymyer | Electrician |
| Pat Campea Sr. | Grip |
| Thomas Del Ruth | Assistant Camera |
| Sam Fisher | Electrician |
| Alan Goldenhar | Electrician |
| Marvin L. Gunter | Camera Operator |
| Tom Hayes | Electrician |
| Harry R. Jones | Grip |
| Les Miller | Electrician |
| Kenneth Peach Jr. | Assistant Camera |
| Travilla | Costume Supervisor |
| Bill Venegas | Location Manager |
| Lou Dyer | Unit Publicist |
| Ralph M. Leo | Production Accountant |
| Name | Title |
|---|---|
| Robert Fryer | Producer |
| James Cresson | Associate Producer |
| Organization | Category | Person |
|---|
Popularity History
| Year | Month | Avg | Max | Min |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 4 | 17 | 23 | 12 |
| 2024 | 5 | 16 | 25 | 10 |
| 2024 | 6 | 16 | 28 | 9 |
| 2024 | 7 | 19 | 43 | 10 |
| 2024 | 8 | 17 | 38 | 10 |
| 2024 | 9 | 14 | 26 | 8 |
| 2024 | 10 | 12 | 21 | 8 |
| 2024 | 11 | 13 | 19 | 8 |
| 2024 | 12 | 12 | 21 | 6 |
| 2025 | 1 | 13 | 21 | 9 |
| 2025 | 2 | 9 | 13 | 3 |
| 2025 | 3 | 6 | 13 | 1 |
| 2025 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 1 |
| 2025 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 1 |
| 2025 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| 2025 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 2025 | 8 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| 2025 | 9 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| 2025 | 10 | 4 | 5 | 3 |
| 2025 | 11 | 3 | 4 | 1 |
| 2025 | 12 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
| 2026 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 1 |
| 2026 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
Trending Position
Impressive procedural skin crawler. It's a very impressive film from start to finish, the cast are excellent, George Kennedy & Henry Fonda portray the men pursuing the culprit with much believability, with enough moments of frustration and revulsion brought to life with style. Of course this i ... s Tony Curtis's show all the way, though, he is all bulked up and nothing like the handsome icon that people had grown accustomed to. He is convincingly menacing and handles the dual personality confusion scenes adroitly. One of the films' chief plus points is that the first hour only shows us the aftermath of the murders, it shows the desperate panic it creates among the people of Boston, and of course we get to know the detectives following this miserable trail. At the hour mark we are introduced to Tony Curtis as Albert De Salvo, here he is in his family home, his daughter all radiant around her father, it's a masterstroke from director Richard Fleischer, and it creates maximum impact. The use of multi screens to show various aspects of scenes is deft and manages to make the film seem all too real, which of course is given weight of impact since it is based on actual events. Smashing film that gnaws away at the skin some time after the silent credits have rolled. 9/10
A frighteningly unique film, made all the more frightening by it being a true story. This is hands down the best performance ever by Tony Curtis (in the title role), why he got snubbed by the academy at awards time is a complete mystery, he was not even nominated... ...