{{Short description|1968 film by Russell S. Doughten}} {{Use mdy dates|date=February 2026}} {{Infobox film | name = Fever Heat | image = Fever Heat poster.jpg | alt = | caption = Theatrical release poster | director = Russell S. Doughten | producer = Russell S. Doughten | screenplay = Henry Gregor Felsen | based_on = novel by Felsen | starring = Nick Adams<br>Jeannine Riley<br>Norman Alden<br>Vaughn Taylor<br>Daxson Thomas<br>Robert Broyles | music = Jaime Mendoza-Nava | cinematography = Gary Young | editing = Tom Boutross | studio = Heartland Productions | distributor = Paramount Pictures | released = {{Film date|1968|5|}} | runtime = 109 minutes | country = United States | language = English | budget = | gross = }}

'''''Fever Heat''''' is a 1968 American drama film directed by Russell S. Doughten and written by Henry Gregor Felsen. The film stars Nick Adams, Jeannine Riley, Norman Alden, Vaughn Taylor, Daxson Thomas and Robert Broyles. It was released in May 1968 by Paramount Pictures.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/74763/fever-heat |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924154146/http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/74763/Fever-Heat/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=September 24, 2015 |title=Fever Heat (1968) - Overview |publisher=Turner Classic Movies |date=1968-05-01 |access-date=2015-07-12}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/movies/movie/91230/Fever-Heat/overview |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140422234901/http://www.nytimes.com/movies/movie/91230/Fever-Heat/overview |url-status=dead |archive-date=2014-04-22 |title=Fever-Heat - Trailer - Cast - Showtimes |department=Movies & TV Dept. |work=The New York Times |publisher=Baseline & All Movie Guide |author=Dan Pavlides |date=2014 |access-date=2015-07-12}}</ref><ref>FEVER HEAT Monthly Film Bulletin; London Vol. 35, Iss. 408, (Jan 1, 1968): 156.</ref>

==Plot== Ace Jones is a talented but hot-tempered former stock car driver who's been banned from professional racing after a dangerous incident. Drifting through a small Iowa town, he stops at a rundown garage for truck repairs and meets Sandy Richards, a young widow struggling to keep the business afloat after her husband's death in a racing accident. With the help of Sandy's brother-in-law and an eccentric mechanic named Toad, Ace gets drawn into the local dirt-track stock car racing scene.

As Ace works on cars and starts racing again on a small scale, he develops a romance with Sandy while navigating rivalries, unscrupulous competitors, and the high-stakes dangers of the track. The story builds around his efforts to turn the garage into a success, redeem himself, and confront the risks of the racing world he can't escape.

== Cast == *Nick Adams as Ace Jones *Jeannine Riley as Sandy Richards *Norman Alden as Herbert Herpgruve *Vaughn Taylor as Toad Taplinger *Daxson Thomas as Ronnie Richards *Robert Broyles as Loren Peale *Al Ruscio as Al Demarco *Skip Nelson as Track Announcer *Walt Reno Jr. as Makin *Ron Foreman as Duke Ossman *Mary Walker as Irma Peale *Alvin Meyer as Customer *John Doughten as Driver #1 *Art Breese as Bob Towner *Cliff Carr as Cliff *Matt Moro as Matt *Lon Parsons as Chip Van *Sharon Baum as Lois Towner *Dwayne Bacon as Driver #2 *Robert McClelland as Driver #3 *Art Greco as Jensen

==Production== The screenplay was written by Henry Gregor Felsen, based on his novel of the same name originally published under the pen name Angus Vicker.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Commire |first=Anne |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Something_about_the_Author/hSAbErVWIwYC?hl=en&gbpv=1 |title=Something about the Author: Facts and Pictures about Contemporary Authors and Illustrators of Books for Young People |date=1971 |publisher=Gale Research |isbn=978-0-8103-0050-7 |pages=89–90 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Annals_of_Iowa/hjEUAAAAYAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1 |title=Annals of Iowa |date=2003 |publisher=Iowa State Historical Department, Division of Historical Museum and Archives |pages=52 |language=en}}</ref>

The film was shot in Dexter, Iowa.<ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=Variety|date=June 3, 1970|page=7|title=Carvel's Iowa Film Set With Rory Calhoun}}</ref>

==See also== *List of American films of 1968

==References== {{reflist}}

===Sources=== * {{cite book|last1 = Knepper|first1 = Marty|last2 = Lawrence|first2 = John|date = 2014|title = The Book of Iowa Films|publisher = The Book of Iowa Films Press|location = Sioux City, Iowa|isbn = 978-0-9904289-1-6|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=EDDuBgAAQBAJ}} * {{Cite book |last=Lentz |first=Harris M. III |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Feature_Films_1960_1969/UXiPEQAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1 |title=Feature Films, 1960–1969: A Filmography of English-Language and Major Foreign-Language United States Releases |date= |publisher=McFarland |year=2009 |isbn=978-1-4766-0934-8 |language=en}} * {{Cite book |last=Lindvall |first=Terry |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Celluloid_Sermons/LJ0UCgAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1 |title=Celluloid Sermons: The Emergence of the Christian Film Industry, 1930-1986 |last2=Quicke |first2=Andrew |date=2011 |publisher=NYU Press |isbn=978-0-8147-5324-8 |language=en}} * {{Cite book |last=Scheuer |first=Steven H. |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Movies_on_TV_1984_1985/FO-kIntaV2sC?hl=en&gbpv=1 |title=Movies on TV, 1984-1985 |date=1983 |publisher=Bantam Books |isbn=978-0-553-23644-6 |language=en}} * {{Cite book |last=Weaver |first=Tom |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Science_Fiction_Confidential/p3ePEQAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1 |title=Science Fiction Confidential: Interviews with 23 Monster Stars and Filmmakers |date= |publisher=McFarland |year=2010 |isbn=978-1-4766-1677-3 |language=en}} * {{Cite book |last=Williams |first=Mark |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Road_Movies/jw0nAQAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1 |title=Road Movies |date=1982 |publisher=Proteus Books |isbn=978-0-86276-053-3 |language=en}}

== External links == * {{IMDb title|0061660|Fever Heat}}

Category:1968 films Category:Paramount Pictures films Category:American auto racing films Category:American drama films Category:1968 drama films Category:Films produced by Russell S. Doughten Category:Films scored by Jaime Mendoza-Nava Category:Films shot in Iowa Category:1968 English-language films Category:1968 American films Category:English-language drama films