Finding box office information for movies made before 1980 is not an easy task. For somebody looking for box office information on 1961 it is very very frustrating. Over the years, we have researched and collected information on over 30,000 movies. So we figured we would show all the 1961 movies in our database.
To make this list a movie had to be made in 1961. This page will looks at 106 1961 Top Box Office Movies. The movies are listed in a massive table that lets you rank the movies from Best to Worst in six different sortable columns of information. This only represents about 25% of the movies made in 1961….but should cover the top box office movies.
Our UMR Top 50 of 1961
1961 Top Box Office Movies Can Be Ranked 6 Ways In This Table
The really cool thing about this table is that it is “user-sortable”. Rank the movies anyway you want.
- Sort 1961 Top Box Office Movies by movie titles and movie trailers
- Sort 1961 Top Box Office Movies by the stars or in some cases the director of the movie.
- Sort 1961 Top Box Office Movies by stars of the movie
- Sort 1961 Top Box Office Movies by domestic adjusted box office grosses using current movie ticket cost (in millions)
- Sort 1961 Top Box Office Movies how they were received by critics and audiences. 60% rating or higher should indicate a good movie.
- Sort by how many Oscar® nominations each 1961 Top Box Office Movies received and how many Oscar® wins each 1961 Top Box Office Movies received.
- Sort 1961 Top Box Office Movies by Ultimate Movie Ranking Score (UMR). Our UMR score puts box office, reviews and awards into a mathematical equation and gives each movie a score.
Top earners in 1961 for Adjusted USA Box Office:
My Main Sources
Source 1: Variety – January 10th, 1962 Pages 13 & 58
Source 2: Twentieth Century-Fox A Corporate and Financial History by Aubrey Solomon
Source 3: Wikipedia
Source 4: IMDb.com
Source 5: BoxOfficeMojo.com
Our Yearly Review Pages
- 1936 Yearly Review
- 1936 Worldwide Gross
- 1937 Yearly Review
- 1938 Yearly Review
- 1939 Yearly Review
- Quigley Top 25 1939
- 1940 Yearly Review
- 1941 Yearly Review
- 1942 Yearly Review
- 1943 Yearly Review
- 1944 Yearly Review
- 1945 Yearly Review
- 1946 Yearly Review
- 1947 Yearly Review
- 1948 Yearly Review
- 1949 Yearly Review
- 1950 Yearly Review
- 1951 Yearly Review
- 1952 Yearly Review
- 1953 Yearly Review
- 1954 Yearly Review
- 1955 Yearly Review
- 1956 Yearly Review
- 1957 Yearly Review
- 1958 Yearly Review
- 1959 Yearly Review
- 1960 Yearly Review
If you do a comment….please ignore the email address and website section.
These are the 127 1961 films I have seen from December 1992 when I saw film 8000 for me to end of December 2017. I saw West Side Story back in 1972 when it debuted on network television. Best movie from that year is El Cid.
Key – film, studio, stars (until 2012 when I stopped listing them), date seen and source (DVD, TV channel or tape); XX for a film’s stars meant they did not make Quinlan’s book of stars.
ALL HANDS ON DECK 1961 FOX PAT BOONE 5/26 2001 FXM
ANATOMY OF A PSYCHO 1961 UNITEL XXX XXX 12/26 2009 DVD
ANGEL BABY 1961 AA GEORGE HAMILTON MERCEDES MCCAMBRIDGE 3/8 2012 TCM
ARMORED COMMAND 1961 AA HOWARD KEEL TINA LOUISE 3/12 2001 ACTN
ASSIGNMENT: OUTER SPACE (IT.) 1961 AIP ARCHIE SAVAGE RIK VON NUTTER 5/31 2012 DVD
ATLAS AGAINST THE CYCLOPS (IT.) 1961 MEDALLION MITCHELL GORDON CHELA ALONSO 3/12 2009 DVD
ATTEMPT TO KILL (U.K.) 1961 ANGLO AMALGAMATED DEREK FARR 1/18 2016 DVD
BATTLE AT BLOODY BEACH 1961 FOX AUDIE MURPHY 2/11 1997 TMC
BEAST OF YUCCA FLATS 1961 XXX XXX 1/23 1995 COM
BEST OF ENEMIES (IT-U.K.) 1961 COL DAVID NIVEN 9/22 1993 TNT
BIG SHOW 1961 FOX ESTHER WILLIAMS CLIFF ROBERTSON 4/26 1996 TMC
BLAST OF SILENCE 1961 UNI ALLEN BARON MOLLY MCCARTHY 5/23 2009 TCM
BLOODLUST 1961 CROWN INTL. XXX XXX 5/24 1995 COM
BOY WHO CAUGHT A CROOK 1961 UA WANDA HENDRIX 11/5 2000 TCM
BRIDGE TO THE SUN 1961 MGM CARROLL BAKER 5/27 1993 TNT
CAT BURGLAR 1961 UA XXX XXX 9/15 2007 TCM
CHOPPERS, THE 1961 FAIRWAY INTL ARCH HALL JR. MARIANNE GABA 4/6 2013 DVD
CLEOPATAR’S DAUGHTER (IT.) 1961 MEDALLION DEBRA PAGET ROBERT ALDA 4/14 2008 DVD
CLUE OF THE NEW PIN (U.K.) 1961 ANGLO AMALGAMATED PAUL DANEMAN 1/14 2016 DVD
CLUE OF THE SILVER KEY (U.K.) 1961 ANGLO AMALGAMATED BERNARD LEE 1/17 2016 DVD
CRY FOR HAPPY 1961 CO L GLENN FORD DONALD O’CONNOR 7/10 2008 TCM
CURSE OF THE WEREWOLF (U.K.) 1961 UNI OLIVER REED 10/11 1995 SCI
DAY THE SKY EXPLODED (IT-FR.) 1961 EXCELSIOR 7/26 2017 DVD
DEADLY COMPANIONS 1961 PATHE AMERICA MAUREEN O’HARA BRIAN KEITH 3/22 2013 DVD
DEVIL’S MESSENGER 1961 HERTS-LION LON CHANEY KAREN KADLER 5/3 2013 DVD
DUEL OF CHAMPIONS (IT-SP) 1961 MEDALLION ALAN LADD FRANCO BETTAJA 5/12 2008 DVD
DUEL OF THE TITANS (IT.) 1961 PAR STEVE REEVES GORDON SCOTT 2/21 1993 TNT
EVERYTHING’S DUCKY 1961 COL MICKEY ROONEY BUDDY HACKETT 7/14 2008 TCM
EXILES, THE 1961 PATHE CONT. XXX XXX 9/20 2010 TCM
EXPLOSIVE GENERATION 1961 UA WILLIAM SHATNER 9/5 1993 TNT
FEVER IN THE BLOOD 1961 WB EFREM ZIMBALIST JR. ANGIE DICKENSON 7/12 2012 TCM
FIVE GUNS TO TOMBSTONE 1961 UA XXX XXX 6/16 2008 WEST
FIVE MINUTES TO LIVE 1961 SUTTON DONALD WOODS 4/10 2010 TCM
FLIGHT THAT DISAPPEARED 1961 UA PAULA RAYMOND 6/22 1995 TNT
FOUR HORSEMEN OF THE APOCALYPSE 1961 MGM GLENN FORD INGRID THULIN 6/26 1999 TCM
FOURTH SQUARE (U.K.) 1961 ANGLO AMALGAMATED CONRAD PHILLIPS 2/12 2016 DVD
FURY RIVER 1961 MGM KEITH LARSEN BUDDY EBSEN 4/3 2010 TCM
GENTLE TERROR (U.K.) 1961 UA XXX XXX 7/12 1997 TMC
GEORGE RAFT STORY 1961 AA RAY DANTON JAYNE MANSFIELD 5/18 2013 TCM
GIANTS OF THESSALY (IT.) 1961 MEDALLION ROLAND CAREY XXX 4/20 2008 DVD
GIDGET GOES HAWAIIAN 1961 COL XXX XXX 4/7 1996 FAM
GOLD OF THE SEVEN SAINTS 1961 WB CLINT WALKER ROGER MOORE 10/8 2001 WEST
GREEN HELMET (U.K.) 1961 MGM BILL TRAVERS 12/15 2004 TCM
GUN STREET 1961 UA XXX XXX 2/4 2008 WEST
HEAD, THE (W.GER) 1961 TRANS-LUX 7/18 2012 DVD
HERCULES AND THE CAPTIVE WOMEN (IT-FR.) 1961 WOOLNER BROS. XXX XXX 5/14 1994 COM
HERCULES IN THE HAUNTED WORLD (IT.) 1961 WOOLNER BROS. CHRISTOPHER LEE 4/30 1994 TAPE
INVASION QUARTET (U.K.) 1961 MGM BILL TRAVERS SPIKE MILLIGAN 1/20 2001 TCM
JUNGLE FIGHTERS (U.K.) 1961 CONTINENTAL RICHARD TODD LAURENCE HARVEY 8/20 2001 AMC
KING OF THE ROARING 20’S: THE STORY OF ARNOLD ROTHSTEIN 1961 AA DAVID JANSSEN DIANNE FOSTER 8/14 1993 TNT
KONGA 1961 AIP XXX XXX 10/6 1993 TBS
LADIES MAN 1961 PAR JERRY LEWIS 2/12 1996 AMC
LAST OF THE VIKINGS (IT.) 1961 MEDALLION CAMERON MITCHELL EDMUND PURDOM 4/9 2008 DVD
LITTLE SHEPHERD OF KINGDOM COME 1961 FOX JIMMIE RODGERS CHILL WILLS 6/18 2008 FXM
LONG ROPE 1961 FOX 10/31 2015 WEST
LOOK IN ANY WINDOW 1961 AA PAUL ANKA RUTH ROMAN 6/29 2012 TCM
LOSS OF INNOCENCE (U.K.) 1961 COL KENNETH MORE DANIELLE DARRIEUX 4/9 2008 TCM
MAD DOG COLL 1961 COL XXX XXX 3/26 1993 TNT
MAN AT THE CARLETON TOWER (U.K.) 1961 ANGLO AMALGAMATED MAXINE AUDLEY 1/16 2016 DVD
MAN DETAINED (U.K.) 1961 ANGLO AMALGAMATED BERNARD ARCHARD 1/20 2016 DVD
MARINES LET’S GO 1961 FOX TOM TRYON 6/10 1998 AMC
MARK, THE (U.K.) 1961 FOX STUART WHITMAN MARIA SCHELL 2/21 2014 TCM
MARY HAD A LITTLE… (U.K.) 1961 UA 12/16 2013 TCM
MASK, THE 1961 WB XXX XXX 12/14 1996 AMC
MISTY 1961 FOX XXX XXX 9/1 1995 DIS
MOLE MEN AGAINST THE SONS OF HERCULES (IT.) 1961 EMB MARK FORREST MAIRA ORFEI 12/7 2008 DVD
MOST DANGEROUS MAN ALIVE 1961 COL RON RANDELL DEBRA PAGET 9/26 1993 TNT
MR. SARDONICUS 1961 COL GUY ROLFE RONALD LEWIS 10/27 1993 TNT
MURDER SHE SAID (U.K.) 1961 MGM MARGARET RUTHERFORD ARTHUR KENNEDY 4/14 1996 21
NAKED EDGE 1961 UA GARY COOPER DEBORAH KERR 11/8 1993 7
NEVER BACK LOSERS (U.K.) 1961 ANGLO AMALGAMATED JACK HEDLEY 1/21 2016 DVD
NEVER TAKE SWEETS FROM A STRANGER (U.K.) 1961 ASTOR 6/18 2014 TCM
NIGHT TIDE 1961 AIP DENNIS HOPPER LINDA LAWSON 12/30 2009 DVD
NIKKI, WILD DOG OF THE NORTH 1961 BV XXX XXX 11/6 1995 DIS
OPERATION BOTTLENECK 1961 UA XXX XXX 1/19 2000 TCM
OPERATION EICHMANN 1961 AA XXX XXX 2/3 1993 TNT
PARTNERS IN CRIME (U.K.) 1961 ANGLO AMALGAMATED BERNARD LEE 1/12 2016 DVD
POSSE FROM HELL 1961 UNI AUDIE MURPHY JOHN SAXON 11/18 1995 AMC
POSTMAN’S KNOCK (U.K.) 1961 MGM SPIKE MILLIGAN BARBARA SHELLEY 1/20 2001 TCM
PURPLE HILLS 1961 FOX GENE NELSON JOANNA BARNES 8/12 2014 FXM
RAISIN IN THE SUN 1961 COL SIDNEY POITIER 4/8 1996 7
REPTILICUS 1961 AIP XXX XXX 2/19 1997 TMC
REVOLT OF THE SLAVES (IT-SP-W. GER) 1961 UA RHONDA FLEMING 12/17 1995 TNT
RIGHT APPROACH 1961 FOX FRANKIE VAUGHAN MARTHA HYER 5/4 2000 FXM
ROMULUS AND THE SABINES (IT-FR-YUGO) 1961 ROGER MOORE MYLENE DEMONGEOT 1/15 2009 DVD
RUNAWAY, THE 1961 CESAR ROMERO 3/8 2009 TCM
SAMSON AND THE SEVEN MIRACLES OF THE WORLD (IT-FR) 1961 AIP GORDON SCOTT YOKO TANI 9/15 2008 DVD
SAMSON VS. THE VAMPIRE WOMAN (MEX.) 1961 AZTECA XXX XXX 3/27 1995 COM
SANCTUARY 1961 FOX LEE REMICK YVES MONTAND 1/13 2002 FXM
SCREAM OF FEAR (U.K.) 1961 COL SUSAN STRASBERG RONALD LEWIS 7/7 2003 MYST
SHADOWS 1961 LION INTL. XXX XXX 2/11 1995 BRAVO
SILENT CALL 1961 FOX GAIL RUSSELL 12/11 2010 TCM
SILENT PARTNER (U.K.) 1961 MGM ? ? 4/1 2004 TCM
SINISTER MAN (U.K.) 1961 ANGLO AMALGAMATED JOHN BENTLEY 1/23 2016 DVD
SINS OF RACHEL CADE 1961 WB ANGIE DICKINSON PETER FINCH 6/23 1996 AMC
SNAKE WOMAN (U.K.) 1961 UA 10/13 2017 TCM
SNIPER’S RIDGE 1961 FOX XXX XXX 9/30 2001 AMC
SODOM AND GOMORRAH 1961 FOX STEWART GRANGER PIER ANGELI 12/15 1993 AMC
STEEL CLAW 1961 WB 11/29 2012 DVD
STOP ME BEFORE I KILL (U.K. – FR,) 1961 COL 10/27 2013 TCM
TERROR OF THE TONGS (U.K.) 1961 COL CHRISTOPHER LEE 9/25 2002 MYST
THE CANADIANS 1961 FOX ROBERT RYAN 8/8 1996 TMC
THE INNOCENTS (U.K.) 1961 FOX DEBORAH KERR 8/10 2003 FXM
THE MINOTAUR (IT.) 1961 UA XXX XXX 12/26 1994 TNT
THE MONGOLS (IT-FR.) 1961 COLORAMA JACK PALANCE ANITA EKBERG 7/17 2000 TAPE
THE TARTARS (IT-YUGO.) 1961 MGM VICTOR MATURE ORSONE WELLES 10/17 1998 TCM
THEN THERE WERE THREE 1961 PARADE REL. 10/22 2012 DVD
THREE SPARE WIVES (U.K.) 1961 UA XXX XXX 3/5 1996 TMC
TRIUMPH OF THE SON OF HERCULES (IT-FR.) 1961 EMB XXX XXX 7/7 2009 DVD
TWENTY PLUS TWO 1961 AA DAVID JANSSEN JEANNE CRAIN 9/18 2001 MYST
TWIST AROUND THE CLOCK 1961 COL XXX XXX 4/11 1995 55
TWO FACES OF DR. JEKYLL (U.K.) 1961 AIP 10/12 2013 TCM
TWO LITTLE BEARS 1961 FOX EDDIE ALBERT 3/6 1997 TMC
TWO LOVES 1961 MGM SHIRLEY MACLAINE LAURENCE HARVEY 12/11 2000 TCM
TWO WOMEN (IT.) 1961 EMB SOPHIA LOREN 9/21 2006 TCM
ULYSSES AGAINST THE SON OF HERCULES (IT.) 1961 EMB XXX XXX 10/17 2008 DVD
UNDERWORLD USA 1961 COL CLIFF ROBERTSON 8/5 1999 IFC
URSUS IN THE VALLEY OF THE LIONS (IT.) 1961 GOLDEN ERA XXX XXX 10/26 2008 DVD
URSUS, SON OF HERCULES 1961 UA XXX XXX 5/9 1994 55
VENGEANCE OF URSUS 1961 MEDALLION XXX XXX 1/18 2009 DVD
VICTIM (U.K.) 1961 PATHE AMERICA DIRK BOGARDE SYLVIA SIMS 6/11 1994 BRAVO
VULCAN, SON OF JUPITER (IT.) 1961 EMB XXX XXX 9/7 2009 DVD
WARRIOR EMPRESS (T-FR.) 1961 COL TINA LOUISE 12/20 1992 TNT
WATCH IT, SAILOR (U.K.) 1961 COL DENNIS PRICE 5/5 2009 TCM
WEEKEND WITH LULU (U.K.) 1961 COL LESLIE PHILLIPS 4/29 2007 TCM
WHEN THE CLOCK STRIKES 1961 UA MERRY ANDERS 1/25 2000 TCM
YOU HAVE TO RUN FAST 1961 UA XXX XXX 1/25 2000 TCM
I have actually added the leads for a few post 2012 seen films, leads taken from 1979 Broadcasting Yearbook I have that lists every film available to show on television in 1979 ( a lot of B westerns and films shown on TCM were no longer available to TV at that time).
Hey Dan
1. Your massive number of 1961 movies is tops on our tally contest.
2. Seems like West Side Story has been in my movie memory for all of my life…..my mom was a huge musical fan…and she liked that movie.
3. El Cid is your champ for the year….I like that pick….but I have to go for Guns of Navarone……though it is far from a normal Oscar Best Picture winner.
4. When I see your lists….I keep being amazed….I am having a hard time doing my Letterboxd account….and if I wanted….all I have to do is type in the movie name and date I watched it…yet I always fall behind.
Good stuff….as always.
Like Flora, I have seen 44 movies listed on this page with “West Side Story” being the highest rank movie I have seen while “Two Loves” is the lowest ranked film I have seen. Highest ranked film I have not seen is “King Of Kings”. My picks for the top ten movies of 1961 are “Judgement At Nuremberg”. “The Innocents”, “101 Dalmatians”, “Lover Come Back”, “One Two Three”, “The Parent Trap”, “Breakfast At Tiffany’s”, “The Hustler”, “Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea”, and “Paris Blues”. My personal picks for the Oscars in 1961 would have been as follows:
BEST PICTURE: “Judgment At Nuremberg”
BEST ACTOR: Spencer Tracy, “Judgment At Nuremberg”
BEST ACTRESS: Sophia Loren, “Two Women”
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Montgomery Clift, “Judgment At Nuremberg”
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Rita Moreno, “West Side Story”
BEST DIRECTOR: Stanley Kramer, “Judgment At Nuremberg”
Hey Greg.
1. 44 ties you with Flora….and bumps Steve and myself out of the medals….as Dan has the most…..tying Flora is pretty impressive in these parts….especially when talking about older movies.
2. I see West Side Story did not crack your Top 10……..I am right there with you.
3. Of your favorites…I also enjoyed One Two Three, The Hustler and Judgement.
4. You must really really like Judgement at Nuremberg…giving it 4 of the major Oscar wins….now that you have the Perry book….I will refrain from sharing that information.
5. Paris Blues is one Paul Newman movie that I have not watched.
Good feedback!
I have seen 44 films from this 1961 list.
The highest rated movie I have seen is West Side Story.
The highest rated film I have NOT seen is El Cid.
The lowest rated film I have seen is Two Loves.
My top 10 1961 Favourite Movies are:
The Guns of Navarone – my favourite movie period of any year
West Side Story
Breakfast at Tiffany’s
Two Rode Together
The Misfits
Pocketful of Miracles
Lover Come Back
Two Women
Blue Hawaii
The Secret Ways
Hey Flora.
1. Thanks for the comment, the visit and the tally count.
2. 44 movies is the current leader….but I have not read Dan’s comment yet.
3. Flora 44, Steve 28 and me at 21.
4. You have not seen El Cid? Steve is shaking his head somewhere.
5. I have seen 7 of your Top 10.
6. Mmmmm….I wonder why Two Rode Together made the Top 10…..could it be because of Richard Widmark?
7. Last night….WoC and I saw The Post in theaters….at one point….somebody is watching an old movie on television…..the star of the movie?….Mr. Richard Widmark…..I was not able to figure out what movie it was…..but I thought of you when it popped up on the screen.
8. I also enjoyed The Guns of Navarone and Blue Hawaii.
Good stuff as always.
Love these yearly breakdowns. Glad to see them appearing again. Never been a fan of West Side Story. Give me Guns of Navarone, One-Eyed Jacks or El-Cid anyday! Personally looking forward to a breakdown on 1966. Some of my all time favorites are there. The Birds, The Great Escape just to name a few.
Hey Christian…..glad you like these breakdowns….at some point I will return to the 1930s….and eventually have pages for every year from 1930 to 1969. I thought West Side Story was ok…but I am not a musical fan at all. I also enjoyed Guns of Navarone and El-Cid. The newly remastered version of One-Eyed Jacks looks awesome! The Birds and The Great Escape will be in our 1963 page. The Great Escape is one of my all-time favorite movies. Watch it over and over. Thanks for the visit and the comment.
I’ve seen 28 of the 103 films on this chart. hmm I think that’s about the same amount I saw from the 1960 chart.
Looking at my files I have 51 films from 1961 in my movie collection and I’ve seen 41 of those. Favorites from both charts include – El Cid. King of Kings, Mysterious Island, Blue Hawaii, The Comancheros, Curse of the Werewolf, Day the Earth Caught Fire, Guns of Navarone, The Innocents, 101 Dalmations, Pit and the Pendulum, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, West Side Story, Mothra and Yojimbo.
Looking at the adjusted domestic chart it’s good to see El Cid, Guns of Navarone and West Side Story were such huge hits. I’m guessing 101 Dalmations box office includes various successful reissues? Disney had an even bigger hit a few years later with The Jungle Book, but I’m thinking the Dalmations reissues helped it top Jungle Book’s grosses over the decades?
Good stuff as always Bruce. Vote Up!
Hey Steve
1. Congrats on being the first to comment on our newest page….I imagine with our 1961 page coming so closely behind our 1961 page….that it might not have seen like a new page.
2. A tally of 28….gotta count….I never count while putting the pages together….I am at….21…maybe 22…..but I barely remember seeing The Honeymoon Machine….so I am not counting that one.
3. You like El Cid? Shocked…I tell ya SHOCKED!….lol.
4. As for 101 Dalmations….you are correct that is all the re-releases….as well as the box office mojo number….I have stopped even trying to calculate that number….just check about one a year…and see what they have….and adjust our number…do that with all the Disney CLassics.
5. I am beginning to think ….1960 and 1970 might be more difficult to find box office numbers….as at least the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s had the ledgers and the Harrison Reports.
Good feedback as always.