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Herbert J. Biberman

Herbert J. Biberman

Writer, director and producer · Died June 30, 1971, aged 71 · Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Herbert J. Biberman (March 4, 1900 – June 30, 1971), was an American screenwriter and film director. He may be best known for having been one of the Hollywood Ten as well as directing Salt of the Earth, a 1954 film about a zinc miners' strike in Grant County, New Mexico. He was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Joseph and Eva Biberman. Biberman's pre-blacklist career included writing such films as King of Chinatown, When Tomorrow Comes, Action in Arabia, The Master Race, and New Orleans, as well as directing such films as One Way Ticket, Meet Nero Wolfe, and The Master Race. He married actress Gale Sondergaard in 1930; the marriage endured until Biberman's death. Herbert Biberman died from bone cancer in 1971 in New York City. Brother of American artist, Edward Biberman. Description above from the Wikipedia article Herbert Biberman, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
March 4, 1900
Died
June 30, 1971 (aged 71)
From
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Works as
Writer, director and producer
Titles
6 on MovieCove · 10 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 39 days to Oct 28Down 37% in 30 days

What are Herbert J. Biberman's films like?

Across their 6 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Society and Morality.

Themes

share of theme weight
Society
29%
Morality
24%
Bonds
19%
Power
15%
Survival
8%
Self
6%
Community3 titles, browse their movies with this themeJustice2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 6 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Grounded: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their grounded movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 4 · Stylized 2 · Heightened 0

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 0 · Charged 4 · Intense 2

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 2 · Shifting 4 · Whiplash 0

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 5 · Some laughs 1 · Funny 0

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 3 · Even-paced 3 · Relentless 0

Engaged: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their engaged movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 0 · Engaged 6 · Full focus 0

Affecting: How much it costs you emotionally; whether you need recovery time. Browse their affecting movies.
Demand · Emotional cost
easyheavy

A split, not a type: Easy watch 2 · Affecting 1 · Heavy 3

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 6 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 0

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
5
Hopeful
4
Melancholic
2
Romantic
2
Thrilling
2

How their films linger

Hopeful3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteRousing2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end

  • Happy2
  • Bittersweet3
  • Ambiguous1

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Herbert J. Biberman's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 4 of their 6 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (3).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Herbert J. Biberman's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

10 credits, 6 with a MovieCove page; 5 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • Slaves(1969)

    Director · Writer

    Midcredits score: 18th percentile of all films

  • Salt of the Earth(1954)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films

  • New Orleans(1947)

    Associate Producer · Story

    Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all films

  • Abilene Town(1946)

    Associate Producer

    Midcredits score: 48th percentile of all films

  • Together Again (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1944)

    Story

  • The Master Race (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1944)

    Director · Writer

  • Action in Arabia(1944)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 42nd percentile of all films

  • King of Chinatown(1939)

    Story

    Midcredits score: 47th percentile of all films

  • Meet Nero Wolfe (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1936)

    Director

  • One Way Ticket (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1935)

    Director

Career shape

A full career of 10 titles from 1935 to 1969.

Highest rated

Salt of the Earth (1954)

Midcredits 89th

Most popular right now

Abilene Town (1946)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Directing5 of 10: 2 only directing, 3 with another roleWriting6 of 10: 3 only writing, 3 with another roleProducing3 of 10: 1 only producing, 2 with another role

10 titles, 4 with more than one role — writing and directing overlap on 2 of them.

By decade

1930s3 · crew1940s5 · crew1950s1 · crew1960s1 · crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it.

How do Herbert J. Biberman's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 48th percentile, the median of all 6; across their 6 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 49th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

49thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 6

Approval · how many liked their films

46thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 6

Reach · how many have seen their films

32ndpercentile
Typical film, the median of 6

Midcredits score across 6 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up1
  • 50th to 74th1
  • 25th to 49th3
  • Below 25th1

Shape of the crowd

3 of their 6 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Crowd Pleaser3
  • Broadly Agreed1
  • Mixed2

Most divisive · director, writer

Slaves (1969)

77th percentile spread · 40% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · director, producer

Salt of the Earth (1954)

Midcredits 89th · 77% liked

Reviewers score the dialogue 44/100 and the plot and story 46/100 in their films, across 6 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a writer.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Who does Herbert J. Biberman work with?

People who share at least 2 of Herbert J. Biberman's MovieCove titles; Gerard Carbonara shares the most, 2.