Two Dollar Bettor

A family man loses everything in this horrifying tale of gambling addiction! John Hewitt (John Litel) is a straight-laced widower with two teenage daughters whom he "loves too deeply." One day he goes with friends to the race track and, as a lark, places a two dollar bet and wins. He becomes totally seduced by the rush of the race. Within weeks "JH," as John is known to his bookie, is cashing in his life savings and risking everything with long shot bets. Finding himself in a hole that grows deeper by the day, "JH" finds solace in the arms of grifter Mary Slate (femme fatale Marie Windsor), who along with her no good ex-con husband Rick (Steve Brodie), set him up for a twenty thousand dollar fall.

Two-Dollar Bettor is a classic '50s "problem picture" - part noir gangster exploitation and part campy morality play, filled with glittering production design that offers an insightful and now nostalgic window into America's past.

• drama