It is based on the non-fiction book The Man Who Rocked the Boat, an autobiography by William Keating, played by Egan in the film.

In the portion of the book depicted in the film, Keating pursued a murder prosecution for a waterfront hit despite widespread corruption that stretched all the way into the district attorney's office.

The plot line of the movie has no relation to the play, but the composition by Rodgers is indeed heard in the film, in an adaptation by Herschel Burke Gilbert (under the direction of music supervisor Joseph Gershenson) that was praised as "magnificent".

[2] Thugs working for union boss Al Dahlke ambush and shoot Solly Pitts, an honest man who hires longshoremen on the docks.

Witnesses are intimidated and discredited by attorney John Jacob Masters in court, and Bill and Daisy receive an anonymous death threat on their wedding day.