Dressed to Kill *** (1941, Lloyd Nolan, Mary Beth Hughes, Sheila Ryan) – Classic Movie Review 12,154

Private investigator Michael Shayne and his singer fiancée Joanne La Marr hear a woman screaming from a room in their hotel, where the maid has discovered two dead theatrical folk, one wearing a dog costume head.

Director Eugene Ford’s ingenious and entertaining 1941 detective thriller film Dressed to Kill brings Lloyd Nolan back as gumshoe Michael Shayne in a typical convoluted mystery, in which someone is bumping off theatrical folk. Shayne and his intended bride-to-de Joanne La Marr (Mary Beth Hughes) hear a woman screaming from a room in their hotel and rush to help.

The hotel maid Emily (Virginia Brissac) has found the bodies of producer Louis Lathrop, owner of the hotel and next-door theatre, and actress Desiree Vance, both dressed in medieval costumes, the man wearing a dog costume head. They are shot with different weapons. the woman with a gun and the man with a shotgun. It doesn’t take Michael Shayne too long to work out what has happened, and how, but it takes him much longer to unveil the killer, whose identity is pretty well hidden till the climax.

The good cast of actors helps this to soar above par for the B-movie series course, with a decent, far-fetched mystery, a fast pace, effectively moody noir cinematography and a little sting in the tale. The lame comedy is a bit of a drawback, sitting oddly with the fairly dark mystery thriller, and so is the slack work offered to Mantan Moreland as Rusty and Ben Carter as Sam. It is a shame that good actors William Demarest as investigating Inspector Pierson Henry Daniell as hammy actor Julian Davis are expected to play some silly scenes and lines.

The film is the third in Lloyd Nolan’s excellent 20th Century Fox series of seven Michael Shayne films. It is based on the mystery novel The Dead Take No Bows by Richard Burke. Mary Beth Hughes has a rather ungrateful role as Shayne’s intended Joanne La Marr, immediately after playing the different character of Helen Carlson in the previous episode Sleepers West (1941).

20th Century Fox had so little concern for their actors that Henry Daniell’s named is misspelt with one ‘l’ in the opening credits and Mantan Moreland is billed as ‘Manton Moreland’. Meanwhile Mantan Moreland plays Rusty but is credited in the end credits as playing Sam and Ben Carter plays Sam but is credited as playing Rusty, and Mary Beth Hughes plays JoAnne, but Michael calls her Joan and Joanie.

Ben Carter worked as a straight man with Mantan Moreland in routines in vaudeville. He was one of the first African Americans to sign a seven-year contract with 20th Century-Fox. He also opened a talent agency along Central Avenue, Los Angeles, to represent African American actors and film extras, claiming to have cast all the black support roles in Gone with the Wind (1939).

Dressed to Kill is directed by Eugene Ford, runs 74 minutes, is made and released by 20th Century Fox, is written by Stanley Rauh and Manning O’Connor, based on the novel The Dead Take No Bows by Richard Burke, is shot in black and white by Glenn MacWilliams, produced by Sol M Wurtzel, and scored by Cyril J Mockridge and Emil Newman (musical director). The sets are designed by Lewis Creber and Richard Day.

The cast are Lloyd Nolan as Michael Shayne, Mary Beth Hughes as Joanne La Marr, Sheila Ryan as Connie Earle, William Demarest as Inspector Pierson, Mantan Moreland as Rusty, Virginia Brissac as Lynne Evans aka the maid Emily, Erwin Kalser as Otto Kahn/ Carlo Ralph, Henry Daniell as Julian Davis, Dick Rich as Al, Milton Parsons as Max Allaron, Charles Arnt as Hal Brennon, Charles Trowbridge as David Earle, Hamilton MacFadden as Reporter, May Beatty as Phyllis Lathrop, Charles Wilson as Editor, and Ben Carter as Sam.

The film series is: Michael Shayne, Private Detective (1940), Sleepers West (1941), Dressed to Kill (1941), Blue, White and Perfect (1942), The Man Who Wouldn’t Die (1942), Just Off Broadway (1942), and notably Time to Kill (1942), the final Michael Shayne film starring Lloyd Nolan made at Fox, which then closed down their popular B-movie unit.

Dressed to Kill (1946).

Dressed to Kill (1980).

© Derek Winnert 2022 Classic Movie Review 12,154

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