Character Relationship Map: No Down Payment

Characters

• Jerry Flagg (played by Tony Randall) — supporting

  Jerry is a car salesman who is frequently drunk, makes embarrassing advances toward other men's wives, and humiliates Isabelle. Deeply in debt, he spends beyond his means and pursues grand schemes, in...

• David Martin (played by Jeffrey Hunter) — supporting

  David is a skilled electrical engineer who has recently moved to Sunrise Hills with Jean Martin. Although Jean urges him to enter the more lucrative sales field, he prefers engineering despite their m...

• Troy Boone (played by Cameron Mitchell) — supporting

  Troy is an auto mechanic, war veteran, and Leola Boone's husband. Still focused on his wartime achievements, he seeks the police chief position and refuses to discuss children until it is secured. Aft...

• Herman Kreitzer (played by Pat Hingle) — supporting

  Herman is an appliance store manager, the husband of Betty Kreitzer, and president of the city council. He employs Iko and values his work, but must also inform Troy Boone that Troy cannot become poli...

• Iko (played by Aki Aleong) — supporting

  Iko is Herman Kreitzer's valued employee. He wants to move into Sunrise Hills with his wife and pursue the same suburban life as the other residents, but racial prejudice makes that difficult. Betty K...

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Herman Kreitzer → Iko (Professional Employer) — Herman is Iko's employer and controls whether he receives a useful reference.

  Herman has a valued employee named Iko, who wants to move into Sunrise Hills with his wife.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Troy Boone → Iko (Unknown Shared Community Context) — Their connection is contextual rather than based on a recorded direct interaction.

  Troy lives in Sunrise Hills while Iko seeks to move there, placing both within the film's central suburban social environment.

• Troy Boone → Jerry Flagg (Social Neighbor) — Their connection reflects the shared social setting of the subdivision.

  Troy Boone and Jerry Flagg are introduced as members of the same group of Sunrise Hills neighbors.

• Herman Kreitzer → Jerry Flagg (Social Neighbor) — They belong to the same interconnected suburban community.

  Herman Kreitzer and Jerry Flagg are both established as neighboring residents in Sunrise Hills.

• Herman Kreitzer → Troy Boone (Social Neighbor) — Their suburban connection is later complicated by Troy's failed police-chief application.

  Herman Kreitzer and Troy Boone are both presented as married residents of the Sunrise Hills neighborhood.

• David Martin → Jerry Flagg (Social Neighbor) — They share the same suburban social environment.

  Jerry Flagg is named among the Sunrise Hills neighbors who welcome David Martin and his wife.

• David Martin → Troy Boone (Social Neighbor) — Their relationship begins as neighboring residents before becoming hostile.

  Troy Boone is identified as one of the neighbors who welcomes the newly arrived David Martin family.

• David Martin → Herman Kreitzer (Social Neighbor) — They are connected through the suburban neighborhood and its initial welcome.

  David Martin and his wife are welcomed by Herman Kreitzer among the neighbors in Sunrise Hills.

Story Analysis

The film examines how financial pressure, prejudice, frustrated ambition, and violence undermine the promise of suburban stability.

Plot Progression

1. Welcome to Sunrise Hills — David Martin and his wife arrive in a suburban subdivision and receive a welcome from neighboring residents. The community initially appears orderly and promising.
2. Private Pressures Surface — Troy pursues authority, Jerry struggles with drinking and debt, and David faces financial pressure. Their domestic and professional frustrations expose weaknesses beneath suburban respectability.
3. The Suburban Boundary — Iko seeks a reference from Herman so his family can join the neighborhood. Racial prejudice and fear of community backlash reveal the limits of the promised suburban equality.
4. Violence After Rejection — Herman informs Troy that he cannot become police chief because he lacks education. Troy responds with drunken violence, attacking David's wife and then fighting David.
5. A Community Reconsiders — Troy's marriage breaks down, and he is fatally trapped beneath his car. After his death, Leola leaves town and the remaining residents reassess their lives.