
While America Sleeps
1939-04-14 · 21 min · ★ 6.7
An episode in the "Crime Does Not Pay" series. Dave Miller, an aircraft plant worker, is actually selling secret bomber plans to foreign agents. United States Intelligence Department agents plan to trap him and the spies he works for.
Trailers are previews, not full movies.
No authorized playback source configured. Use the legal watch options below.
Production details
- Directors
- Fred Zinnemann
- Production companies
- Unavailable
- Countries
- Unavailable
- Status
- Released
Top Cast
Dick PurcellDave Miller
Lenita LaneMary Miller
Egon BrecherKlaus
Frederick VogedingSpy ChiefTitle information and images are supplied by TMDb. Explore our discovery guide for advice on comparing metadata and legal viewing options.
Where to watch
Availability provided by JustWatch via TMDb. Offers can change. Provider links are listed on TMDb; full playback requires a separately authorized source.
Availability not listed for this country.
Seasons & episodes
Recommendations

Set in a gritty and decadent 1970s America, American Boogeyman follows the elusive and charming killer and the manhunt that brought him to justice involving the detective and the FBI rookie who coined the phrase ‘serial killer’.

A DEA agent and an undercover Naval Intelligence officer who have been tasked with investigating one another find they have been set up by the mob -- the very organization the two men believe they have been stealing money from.

He’s a Wardriver: a hacker who steals from banks, not people—until he’s noticed. Now the money turns violent, and the woman caught in it could save him or kill them both.

Alex is going through a midlife crisis and it has become a very difficult time for him. His marriage is struggling, he's worried about his son, and his job of killing people for his family has become the most stressful part of his life. He seeks the help of a therapist and meets a woman in the waiting room that he connects with.

When up-and-coming District Attorney Mitch Brockden commits a fatal hit-and-run, he feels compelled to throw the case against the accused criminal who was found with the body and blamed for the crime. Following the trial, Mitch's worst fears come true when he realizes that he acquitted a guilty man, and he soon finds himself on the hunt for the killer before more victims pile up.

Legendary journalist Gay Talese unmasks a motel owner who spied on his guests for decades. But his bombshell story soon becomes a scandal of its own.

An undercover DEA agent and his partner embark on a game of cat and mouse with an audacious, and surprising group of thieves – their own rebellious teenagers, who have begun robbing from a dangerous cartel, using their parents' tactics and top-secret intel to do it.

A crime photographer gets involved in a conspiracy.

After a heist, four criminals lay low in a remote safehouse, waiting for orders. As paranoia builds, one thing becomes clear — the real threat may not be outside, but among them.

Collin must make it through his final three days of probation for a chance at a new beginning. He and his troublemaking childhood best friend, Miles, work as movers, and when Collin witnesses a police shooting, the two men’s friendship is tested as they grapple with identity and their changed realities in the rapidly-gentrifying neighborhood they grew up in.

When an upwardly mobile couple find themselves unemployed and in debt, they turn to armed robbery in desperation.

A crooked cop, a mob boss and the young girl they abuse are the denizens of a city's criminal underworld. It's a world that ordinary Arthur Poppington doesn't understand and doesn't belong in, but is committed to fighting when he changes into a vigilante super-hero of his own making, Defendor. With no power other than courage Defendor takes to the streets to protect the city's innocents.

Eddie Rico, the erstwhile bookkeeper for a big Mafia boss, is now making a living as an honest merchant in Florida with his family. Things go sour when the police start a search for his syndicate-linked brothers who are on the lam after a big hit, forcing Eddie to get involved with the Mafia again.

Mike Fallon, the Accident Man, is a stone cold killer. When a loved one is murdered by his own crew, Fallon is forced to avenge the one person who actually meant something to him.

A teen slams her car into a building, killing her boyfriend and his friend. What seems like a tragic accident becomes a murder case.

Based on true events. A disgraced police detective seeking redemption goes undercover to expose a violent crime syndicate. But as he sinks deeper into the mob, the price for absolution may be higher than he can afford.

When penniless con-artist Marge Bouvier is sent to Italy to convince wealthy sap Seymour Skinner to come home, she's tempted by the trappings of his affluent lifestyle. But there’s a big fat fly in the ointment: Skinner's clingy, dim-witted mooch of a houseguest, Homer Simpsley. Lies, lust and Italian lira are abound.

Caught in the middle of a bank robbery, a slacker and a bank employee become the ones who arbitrate the intense situation.

A stroke of good luck turns lethal for Sam Phelan and his wife Leslie when they are faced with a life-changing decision that brings strange and sinister Pyke Kubic to their doorstep. As Pyke leads Sam and Leslie on a tumultuous adventure through the streets of Chicago, each are pulled deeper and deeper into a desperate spiral of deception and violence – all in the name of money.

Tommy Bundy and Sincere are best friends as well as infamous and ruthless criminals and shot-callers in the hood. Respected by many but feared by all. As the police are closing in on them and new players are looking for a come up, will their reign last?
Similar titles

Part of MGM's "Crime Does Not Pay" series, this short film focuses on crimes revolving around pension scams.

This MGM Crime Does Not Pay series short tells the fictitious story of a bill counterfeiting ring and explores the government's attempt to curb counterfeiting.

This entry in the Crime Does Not Pay series focuses on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's effort to ensure that drugs are fully tested before they are sold to consumers. Two unscrupulous investors market the drug 'Diabulin' as a substitute for insulin after preliminary tests show good results. After a short time, however, users start dying from the drug. The FDA and the state attorney general's office then go after the drug marketers.

An embezzler who expects to serve his time in prison and then pick up his buried loot is in for a surprise.

How police interrogation cracks the "airtight" alibi of a criminal.

In this Crime Does Not Pay series short, a young woman wants to save her baby, but is afraid of telling her parents and has no money to pay the hospital costs involved. She falls prey to a baby-for-sale racket with quack doctors performing their services.

This MGM Crime Does Not Pay series short features a big city crime boss's attempt to use his crime "machine" to fraudulently win reelection for the current corrupt mayor. By using several illegal tactics, and aided by voter apathy, the crime boss nearly continues his control of the city.

In this MGM Crime Does Not Pay series short, a man destroys his life through gambling debts and stealing company funds.

A young man graduates from the police academy at the top of his class. He then teams up with some local thieves and uses his knowledge of police procedures to pursue a career of undetected crime.

This MGM Crime Does Not Pay series short looks at the U.S. Department of Immigration's efforts to halt the smuggling of illegal aliens into the country. Desperate immigrants, tired of waiting for legal entry, pay exorbitant fees and risk a grisly death to enter by illegal means.

The MGM crime reporter introduces Norman Kennedy, District Attorney of a large city, he who talks about the general want for money, and the extraordinary lengths some will go to to get it. The loan sharking business has that want for money on both sides. He tells the story of one such loan shark, Stephen Hanley, who tried to pass his company off as a legitimate loan business, but who charged exorbitant rates, and used extortion and fraud to get out of his customers even more than what they may have owed on paper.

Two young people get married and run away, even though their parents advise them to build up their savings first. After they get settled they can barely make ends meet. When opportunity suddenly presents itself, they start on a downward spiral of crime.

Episode 13 of the Crime Does Not Play series from MGM.

In this MGM Crime Does Not Pay series short, police go after a fraud operation that stages automobile accidents to collect insurance money.

From MGM's "Crime Does Not Pay" series. Mobsters convince a meat packing company employee to help them hijack a truckload of beef.

This entry in MGM's "Crime Does Not Pay" series deals with racketeers shaking down small grocers and horning in on the relief tickets, forcing prices up with the consumers paying the freight.

This entry in the Crime Does Not Pay series focuses on charity fraud. Two scam artists set themselves up as 'philanthropists' to help raise money for a local clinic, but the funds they raise never get to help the people who need it.

In this MGM Crime Does Not Pay series short, a young woman, wanting a life of luxury, takes the "easy" way, and winds up in jail.

A man runs over a young couple on a deserted road, then leaves the scene and tries to cover up the incident.

Starts with "Anderson Family" court trial where wife testifies on the murder of her husband, while the police investigation finds some interesting twists to the crime. Part of the Crime Does Not Pay series