Directed by:
Lesley SelanderCinematography:
Gordon AvilComposer:
Paul DunlapCast:
Ralph Meeker, Marla English, J. Carrol Naish, John Carradine, Ron Randell, John Smith, Keith Larsen, Lita Milan, Peter Mamakos, Mort Mills, Nico Minardos (more)VOD (2)
Plots(1)
Although the French Foreign Legion became increasingly anachronistic in the 1950s, films like Desert Sands helped to perpetuate the glamorous legend of this mercenary aggregation. Ralph Meeker heads the cast as a bold legionnaire who falls in love with gorgeous Arab girl Marla English. Alas, Marla is the daughter of shiek John Carradine and the sister of vengeful Keith Larsen, both of whom have vowed to kill all Legionnaires within shouting distance. Larsen eventually discovers that his real enemy is not Meeker, but the duplicitous Carradine. Director Lesley Selander staged most of the action scenes in the manner of his western films, with excellent results. One of the scriptwriters of Desert Sands was Danny Arnold, later the prime mover of TV's Barney Miller. (official distributor synopsis)
(more)Cast
Ralph Meeker
USA
Best movies:
Paths of Glory (1957)
The Name of the Game (1968) (series)
The Dirty Dozen (1967)
Marla English
USA
Best movies:
Rear Window (1954)
Shield for Murder (1954)
The She-Creature (1956)
J. Carrol Naish
USA
Best movies:
Captain Blood (1935)
Anthony Adverse (1936)
The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936)
John Carradine
USA
Best movies:
Captains Courageous (1937)
The Invisible Man (1933)
Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
Ron Randell
Australia
Best movies:
The Longest Day (1962)
To Have and Have Not (1944)
Kiss Me Kate (1953)
John Smith
USA
Best movies:
We're No Angels (1955)
The Bells of St. Mary's (1945)
Going My Way (1944)
Keith Larsen
USA
Best movies:
Whitewater Sam (1977)
War Paint (1953)
Flying Leathernecks (1951)
Lita Milan
USA
Best movies:
Duel on the Mississippi (1955)
The Ride Back (1957)
The Violent Men (1955)
Peter Mamakos
USA
Best movies:
The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (1968)
The Ten Commandments (1956)
The People Against O'Hara (1951)
Mort Mills
USA
Best movies:
Psycho (1960)
The Name of the Game (1968) (series)
Touch of Evil (1958)
Nico Minardos
Greece
Best movies:
The Name of the Game (1968) (series)
The Ten Commandments (1956)
Monkey Business (1952)
Ben Wright
UK
Best movies:
Witness for the Prosecution (1957)
Judgment at Nuremberg (1961)
My Fair Lady (1964)
Marc Cavell
USA
Best movies:
Cool Hand Luke (1967)
The Man from the Alamo (1953)
California Split (1974)
Otto Waldis
Austria-Hungary
Best movies:
Judgment at Nuremberg (1961)
Letter from an Unknown Woman (1948)
Call Northside 777 (1948)
Albert Carrier
Canada
Best movies:
Scarface (1983)
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)
The Wreck Of The Mary Deare (1959)
Terence de Marney
UK
Best movies:
Spartacus (1960)
The Ten Commandments (1956)
The Wreck Of The Mary Deare (1959)
Philip Tonge
UK
Best movies:
Witness for the Prosecution (1957)
Miracle on 34th Street (1947)
Horrible Horror (1986) - a.f.
Rudy Germane
USA
Best movies:
Sunset Boulevard (1950)
Citizen Kane (1941)
Spartacus (1960)
Aaron Saxon
USA
Best movies:
Lust for Life (1956)
Spartacus (1960)
Party Girl (1958)
Joseph Waring
Best movies:
Julius Caesar (1953)
Billy Rose's Jumbo (1962)
Rogue Cop (1954)