The 1949 film "Intruder in the Dust" is based on the novel of the same title by William Faulkner. The story is set in modern-day Mississippi and is about the attempts of two young boys and an elderly woman to prove the innocence of a black man accused of shooting a white man. The film was mostly filmed in or near the city of Oxford, Mississippi but a disclaimer states that the events in the film are fictional. At one point, Lucas Beauchamp, the black man, rescues Chick Mallison, a young white man, from a creek and Chick attempts to pay Lucas for his "services" with some change, which Lucas and his wife refuse. Some film prop coins appear as coins, including one large prop coin. The large prop coin is a Prosperity Lucky Ship Good Luck Coin.

The first scene is the Lafayette County Courthouse in Oxford, Mississippi, which is standing in for the fictional town of Jefferson.

Some men and dogs are waiting at a Confederate monument.

The text on the monument reads:

Lucas Beauchamp, a past middle age black man, is arrested for the shooting murder of a white man, Vinson Gowrie, a member of a large local clan. Nub Gowrie is the father of fraternal twins Vinson and Crawford. Lucas asks Chick Mallison, a local white boy, to get his uncle, John Stevens, a lawyer.

Chick tells his uncle how he came to know Lucas. Chick and Aleck, a black relative of Lucas, had been hunting when Chick fell into a creek. Lucas came along, rescued Chick, took him to his house, and fed him. Chick attempted to pay Lucas for the dinner but was refused.

Chick has some coins in his hand.

The coins are film prop coins with eagles and other designs.

Lucas' wife Molly is in the chair and neither takes the change. A coin falls to the floor.

The prop coin is a Prosperity Lucky Ship Good Luck Coin.

White metal, 30 mm, 10.38 gm
Obverse:
Woman standing holding cornucopia, rising sun to right
PROSPERITY / 1932 / LUCKY COIN
Reverse:
Sailing ship facing right
LUCKY SHIP / SUCCESS TO YOU

For more about this coin please visit: Prosperity Lucky Ship Good Luck Coin

Chick finishes telling his uncle about meeting Lucas and then we are back in the present. Chick and John visit Lucas at the local jail. John agrees to defend Lucas but admits that it will be hard to save him as Lucas was found standing over the dead man holding a recently fired pistol. After John leaves, Lucas tells Chick that the dead man was shot with a different weapon than his pistol. Chick gets Aleck and Miss Eunice Haversham, an 80-year old white woman, and the three of them head out to the cemetery and to Vinson Gowrie's grave.

The two men open the grave and wooden coffin but find no body. They find John and head to the sheriff's office and talk to Sheriff Hampton.

The three tell their story to the sheriff who believes them. In the morning the sheriff and the others head out to the grave. Some members of the Gowrie family arrive, including Nub and Crawford. The Gowrie men excavate the grave and confirm that it is empty. The men discuss where someone could have hidden the body and head for a local quicksand pit. Nub Gowrie goes into the pit and finds the body, which is then removed and examined. A bullet from a caliber 30 rifle is found and this exonerates Lucas who had a caliber 41 pistol. The sheriff refuses to release Lucas, however.

People in cars and trucks have been arriving in the downtown area waiting for something to happen.

Sheriff Hampton believes that the real killer will try to kill Lucas and heads to Lucas' house where he starts a fire to make it look like Lucas is at home. Nub Gowrie shows up and the sheriff shows him the bullet.

The sheriff asks Nub if he knows anyone who owns a caliber 30 rifle. Nub's sad expression shows that he does. Crawford Gowrie, Vinson's brother, appears with the rifle.

Crawford and Vinson were partners in a lumber mill and Crawford shot Vinson in a dispute over money. Lucas is released from jail and the townspeople leave the downtown.

Lucas visits John's office and attempts to pay for his "services." John refuses as he didn't really do anything but accepts two dollars for "expenses." Lucas takes out a change purse and pays the two dollars in change, including a roll of pennies.

David Brian as John Gavin Stevens
Claude Jarman Jr. as Chick Mallison
Juano Hernandez as Lucas Beauchamp
Will Geer as Sheriff Hampton
Elizabeth Patterson as Miss Eunice Habersham
Director: Clarence Brown
Writers: Ben Maddow, William Faulkner (novel)