Ellery Queen, Master Detective

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Ellery Queen, Master Detective
Ellery Queen, Master Detective poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Kurt Neumann
Screenplay by Eric Taylor
Story by Ellery Queen
Produced by Larry Darmour
Starring Ralph Bellamy
Margaret Lindsay
Charley Grapewin
James Burke
Michael Whalen
Marsha Hunt
Cinematography James S. Brown Jr.
Edited by Dwight Caldwell
Music by Lee Zahler
Production
company
Larry Darmour Productions
Distributed by Columbia Pictures
Release date
  • November 30, 1940 (1940-11-30)
Running time
58 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Ellery Queen, Master Detective is a 1940 American mystery film directed by Kurt Neumann and written by Eric Taylor. The film stars Ralph Bellamy, Margaret Lindsay, Charley Grapewin, James Burke, Michael Whalen and Marsha Hunt. The film was released on November 30, 1940, by Columbia Pictures. [1] [2] [3]

Contents

Plot

John Braun, healthy and athletic model for his fitness enterprise, gets fatally ill and on the next day changes his will, leaving everything to his company. John locks himself up in his study, but Nikki goes to talk with him. She waits in the anteroom, but finds herself locked in and when they finally manage to open the door, they find Braun sitting at his desk, stabbed, and both the will and the murder weapon missing.

Cast

Related Research Articles

Ellery Queen is a pseudonym created in 1929 by American crime fiction writers Frederic Dannay and Manfred Bennington Lee and the name of their main fictional character, a mystery writer in New York City who helps his police inspector father solve baffling murders. Dannay and Lee wrote most of the more than thirty novels and several short story collections in which Ellery Queen appeared as a character, and their books were among the most popular of American mysteries published between 1929 and 1971. In addition to the fiction featuring their eponymous brilliant amateur detective, the two men acted as editors: as Ellery Queen they edited more than thirty anthologies of crime fiction and true crime, and Dannay founded and for many decades edited Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, which has been published continuously from 1941 to the present. From 1961, Dannay and Lee also commissioned other authors to write crime thrillers using the Ellery Queen nom de plume, but not featuring Ellery Queen as a character; several juvenile novels were credited to Ellery Queen, Jr. Finally, the prolific duo wrote four mysteries under the pseudonym Barnaby Ross.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ralph Bellamy</span> American actor (1904–1991)

Ralph Rexford Bellamy was an American actor whose career spanned 62 years on stage, film, and television. During his career, he played leading roles as well as supporting roles, garnering acclaim and awards, including a Tony Award for Best Dramatic Actor in Sunrise at Campobello and Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor for The Awful Truth (1937).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charley Grapewin</span> American circus performer and actor

Charles Ellsworth Grapewin was an American vaudeville and circus performer, a writer, and a stage and film actor. He worked in over 100 motion pictures during the silent and sound eras, most notably portraying Uncle Henry in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's The Wizard of Oz (1939), "Grandpa" William James Joad in The Grapes of Wrath (1940), Jeeter Lester in Tobacco Road (1941), and California Joe in They Died With Their Boots On (1941).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Margaret Lindsay</span> American actress (1910–1981)

Margaret Lindsay was an American film actress. Her time as a Warner Bros. contract player during the 1930s was particularly productive. She was noted for her supporting work in successful films of the 1930s and 1940s such as Baby Face, Jezebel (1938) and Scarlet Street (1945) and her leading roles in lower-budgeted B movie films such as the Ellery Queen series at Columbia in the early 1940s. Critics regard her portrayal of Nathaniel Hawthorne's Hepzibah Pyncheon in the 1940 film The House of the Seven Gables as Lindsay's standout career role.

<i>The Adventures of Ellery Queen</i>

The Adventures of Ellery Queen is the title of a radio series and four separate television series made from the 1950s through the 1970s. They were based on the fictional detective and pseudonymous writer Ellery Queen and the cases he solved with his father, Inspector Richard Queen.

Kurt Neumann was a German Hollywood film director who specialized in science fiction movies in his later career.

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<i>There Was an Old Woman</i> (novel)

There Was an Old Woman is a novel published in 1943 by Ellery Queen, byname of American writers Manfred B. Lee and Frederic Dannay. It is a mystery novel primarily set in New York City, US.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James Burke (actor)</span> American actor (1886–1968)

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Eric Taylor was an American screenwriter with over fifty titles to his credit. He began writing crime fiction for the pulps before working in Hollywood. He contributed scripts to The Crime Club, Crime Doctor, Dick Tracy, Ellery Queen, and The Whistler series, as well as six Universal monster movies.

Enemy Agents Meet Ellery Queen is a 1942 black-and-white thriller film, directed by James P. Hogan and written by Ellery Queen, the duo of Manfred Lee and Frederic Dannay.

<i>Meet the Wildcat</i> 1940 film

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<i>Eight Bells</i> (film) 1935 American adventure film directed by Roy William Neill

Eight Bells is a 1935 American adventure film directed by Roy William Neill and starring Ann Sothern, Ralph Bellamy and Catherine Doucet. Produced by Columbia Pictures, it is based on the 1933 play Eight Bells by Percy G. Mandley.

<i>Ellery Queen and the Perfect Crime</i> 1941 film by James P. Hogan

Ellery Queen and the Perfect Crime is a 1941 American mystery film directed by James P. Hogan and written by Eric Taylor. The film was loosely based on the 1938 novel The Devil to Pay by Ellery Queen. It stars Ralph Bellamy, Margaret Lindsay, Charley Grapewin, Spring Byington, H. B. Warner and James Burke. The film was released on August 14, 1941, by Columbia Pictures.

<i>A Close Call for Ellery Queen</i> 1942 film by James P. Hogan

A Close Call for Ellery Queen is a 1942 American mystery film directed by James P. Hogan and written by Eric Taylor and Gertrude Purcell. It is based on the 1939 novel The Dragon's Teeth: A Problem in Deduction by Ellery Queen. The film stars William Gargan, Margaret Lindsay, Charley Grapewin, Ralph Morgan, Kay Linaker, Edward Norris and James Burke. The film was released on January 29, 1942, by Columbia Pictures.

<i>A Desperate Chance for Ellery Queen</i> 1942 film by James P. Hogan

A Desperate Chance for Ellery Queen is a 1942 American mystery film directed by James P. Hogan and written by Eric Taylor. It is based on the 1940 play A Good Samaritan by Ellery Queen. The film stars William Gargan, Margaret Lindsay, Charley Grapewin, John Litel, Lilian Bond and James Burke. The film was released on May 7, 1942, by Columbia Pictures.

<i>Ellery Queen and the Murder Ring</i> 1941 film directed by James P. Hogan

Ellery Queen and the Murder Ring is a 1941 American mystery film directed by James P. Hogan and written by Eric Taylor and Gertrude Purcell. It is based on the 1931 novel The Dutch Shoe Mystery by Ellery Queen. The film stars Ralph Bellamy, Margaret Lindsay, Charley Grapewin, Mona Barrie, Paul Hurst and James Burke, George Zucco and Blanche Yurka. The film was released on November 18, 1941, by Columbia Pictures.

<i>Ellery Queens Penthouse Mystery</i> 1941 film directed by James P. Hogan

Ellery Queen's Penthouse Mystery is a 1941 American mystery film directed by James P. Hogan and written by Eric Taylor. It is based on the 1939 play The Three Scratches by Ellery Queen. The film stars Ralph Bellamy, Margaret Lindsay, Charley Grapewin, Anna May Wong, James Burke and Eduardo Ciannelli. The film was released on March 24, 1941, by Columbia Pictures.

References

  1. "Ellery Queen, Master Detective (1940) - Overview". TCM.com. Retrieved 2020-02-10.
  2. Hal Erickson. "Ellery Queen, Master Detective (1940) - Kurt Neumann". AllMovie. Retrieved 2020-02-10.
  3. "Ellery Queen, Master Detective". Catalog.afi.com. Retrieved 2020-02-10.