Poster for the movie Champ for a Day

Champ for a Day

1953 • 90 minutes
CrimeComedyDrama

An up-and-coming heavyweight fighter, George Wilson, arrives in Vulcan City, a small mid-western town over-run by racketeers, to fight a heavily-favored Frankie Sebastian. George arrives but his manager Dolan is nowhere to be found. But Ma and Pa Karlsen, owners of Karlsen's Kozy Kottages motel and restaurant take him under their wing. He meets Miss Gormley who is also there to meet the no-show manager who is blackmailing her brother. Dolan still hasn't arrived by the date of the fight but, to the surprise of sports-promoters Tom Healy and Dominic Guido, George shows up and wins the fight. This wins him the friendship of trainer Al Muntz and the enmity of Willie Foltis, a punchy ex-fighter and a Healy henchman. This leads George to a fight with "Soldier" Freeman, whose manager Scotty Cameron has made arrangements for the favored-Freeman to take a dive, so he and Healy and Guido can clean up betting on the underdog. But Honest George has other plans.

Picture of Alex Nicol

Alex Nicol

George Wilson

Picture of Audrey Totter

Audrey Totter

Miss Peggy Gormley

Picture of Charles Winninger

Charles Winninger

Pa Karlsen

Picture of Hope Emerson

Hope Emerson

Ma Karlsen

Picture of Joseph Wiseman

Joseph Wiseman

Dominic Guido

Picture of Barry Kelley

Barry Kelley

Tom Healy

Picture of Harry Morgan

Harry Morgan

Al Muntz

Picture of Jesse White

Jesse White

Willie Foltis

Picture of Horace McMahon

Horace McMahon

Sam Benton

Picture of Grant Withers

Grant Withers

Scott Cameron

Picture of Dick Wessel

Dick Wessel

'Speedtrap' Calhoun

Picture of Hal Baylor

Hal Baylor

'Soldier' Freeman