Pay or Die!

The Threat...and The Picture...You'll Never Forget!

Pay or Die! — Plot

A beautifully rendered, fact-based crime film about a crusading Italian policeman battling Black Hand extortionists in New York’s Little Italy is back on the big screen. In addition to Ernest Borgnine’s brilliantly sensitive portrayal as Lieutenant Joseph Petrosino, this engrossing picture is deftly photographed by Lucien Ballard, beautifully scored by David Raksin with a stellar supporting cast including Zohra Lampert and Alan Austin. Literate, suspenseful and emotionally moving, this memorable film remains the definitive depiction about the emergence of the Mafia in America.

• Release date
• July 27, 1960
• Runtime
• 111 min
• Genres
• Crime
• Director
• Richard Wilson

Pay or Die! — Cast

Ernest Borgnine Police Lt. Joseph Petrosino Zohra Lampert Adelina Saulino

R

Renata Vanni Mama Saulino

B

Bruno Della Santina Papa Saulino

F

Franco Corsaro Vito Zarillo Robert F. Simon Police Commissioner Robert Ellenstein Luigi Di Sarno Howard Caine Enrico Caruso