© 2026 The Couch Critic
Status
Released
Release
1957
Runtime
2h 5m
Available options inUS
"POWER! He loved it! He took it raw in big gulpfuls … he liked the taste, the way it mixed with the bourbon and the sin in his blood!"
The rise of a raucous hayseed named Lonesome Rhodes from itinerant Ozark guitar picker to local media rabble-rouser to TV superstar and political king-maker. Marcia Jeffries is the innocent Sarah Lawrence girl who discovers the great man in a back-country jail and is the first to fall under his spell.
22 Cast Members
Andy Griffith
Larry 'Lonesome' Rhodes
Patricia Neal
Marcia Jeffries
Anthony Franciosa
Joey DePalma
Walter Matthau
Mel Miller
Lee Remick
Betty Lou Fleckum
Percy Waram
General Haynesworth
Paul McGrath
Macey
Rod Brasfield
Beanie
Marshall Neilan
Senator Worthington Fuller
Alexander Kirkland
Jim Collier
Charles Irving
Mr. Luffler
Howard Smith
J.B. Jeffries
Kay Medford
First Mrs. Rhodes
Big Jeff Bess
Sheriff Big Jeff Bess
Henry Sharp
Abe Steiner
R.G. Armstrong
Teleprompter Operator (uncredited)
Lois Nettleton
Mr. Macey's Nurse (uncredited)
Diana Sands
Homeless Woman (uncredited)
Rip Torn
Barry Mills (uncredited)
Beverly Bentley
Page Girl (uncredited)
