While the City Sleeps (1956 film)

While the City Sleeps
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Fritz Lang
Screenplay by	Casey Robinson
Based on	The Bloody Spur 1953 novel by Charles Einstein
Produced by	Bert E. Friedlob
Starring	Dana Andrews Rhonda Fleming George Sanders Howard Duff Thomas Mitchell
Cinematography	Ernest Laszlo
Edited by	Gene Fowler Jr.
Music by	Herschel Burke Gilbert
Production company	Bert E. Friedlob Productions
Distributed by	RKO Radio Pictures
Release date	May 16, 1956 (1956-05-16) (United States)
Running time	100 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

While the City Sleeps is a 1956 American film noir directed by Fritz Lang and starring Dana Andrews, Rhonda Fleming, George Sanders, Howard Duff, Thomas Mitchell, Vincent Price, John Drew Barrymore and Ida Lupino. Written by Casey Robinson, the newspaper drama was based on The Bloody Spur by Charles Einstein, which was inspired by the case of Chicago serial killer William Heirens (a.k.a. the "Lipstick Killer"). (The film even alludes to the crimes of Heirens in the script's dialogue, suggesting that the film's antagonist, also known as the "Lipstick Killer", is a copycat killer.)^[1] Five decades after the film's release, critic Dennis Schwartz wrote, "Fritz Lang ('M') directs his most under-appreciated great film, more a social commentary than a straight crime drama."^[2]