Calling Dr Death *** (1943, Lon Chaney Jr, Patricia Morison, J Carrol Naish, Ramsay Ames) – Classic Movie Review 3751

Director Reginald Le Borg’s 1943 thriller is the first Inner Sanctum series entry starring Lon Chaney Jr as Dr Mark Steele who believes that he could have murdered his unfaithful, conniving wife Maria (Ramsay Ames) in a flash of insanity followed by amnesia, though her lover has been arrested for the crime.

He gets his helper nurse Stella (Patricia Morison) to put him under hypnosis to try to find out the truth.

It is cheaply made by Universal studios, but it is commendably short (63 minutes), crisp and amusing, and well written in an original screenplay by Edward Dein, and the acting is rich and enjoyable. Chaney Jr is a pleasure to watch and so is J Carrol Naish as Inspector Gregg.

Also in the cast are David Bruce (as Robert Duval), Fay Helm (as Mrs Duval), Holmes Herbert (as the butler), Alec Craig, Frederick Giermann, Lisa Golm, Charles Wagenheim, Mary Hale, George Eldredge, John Elliott, Al Ferguson, Paul Phillips and Jack Rockwell.

Earle Hodgins’s scenes as the bartender were deleted.

The series of six Inner Sanctum low-budget Universal movies starring Lon Chaney Jr and based on the popular radio show that aired from January 7 1941 to October 5 1952 was produced in the mid-Forties: Calling Dr Death (1943), Weird Woman (1944), Dead Man’s Eyes (1944), The Frozen Ghost (1945), Strange Confession (1945) and Pillow of Death (1945). Inner Sanctum was created by producer Himan Brown and 526 episodes were broadcast.

© Derek Winnert 2016 Classic Movie Review 3751

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