Midnight Mystery | |
---|---|
Directed by | George B. Seitz [1] |
Written by | Beulah Marie Dix [2] |
Based on | The play, Hawk Island by Howard Irving Young [3] |
Produced by | William LeBaron Bertram Millhauser (assoc) [1] |
Starring | Betty Compson [2] |
Cinematography | Joseph Walker [2] |
Edited by | Otto Ludwig |
Distributed by | RKO Pictures |
Release dates | |
Running time | 65 minutes [2] |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Midnight Mystery is a 1930 American pre-Code mystery film directed by George B. Seitz, from a screenplay by Beulah Marie Dix, which was adapted from the play Hawk Island by Howard Irving Young. Betty Compson starred, leading an ensemble cast which included Hugh Trevor, Lowell Sherman, Rita La Roy, Ivan Lebedeff, Raymond Hatton, June Clyde and Marcelle Corday.
Gregory Sloane is a millionaire who lives in an isolated mansion on Hawk Island, off the coast of New England. He invites a disparate group of people to his home, who are soon cut off from the mainland when a fierce storm blows in. While confined, tensions erupt among the guests, leading to the murder of Mischa Kawelin.
One of the other guests, Sally Wayne, an author who writes murder mysteries and Sloane's fiancée, takes it upon herself to solve the crime. Over the course of the evening, she uncovers and strategically puts together all the clues, culminating in her getting the murderer to confess.
(cast list is per AFI Database) [2]
The play Hawk Island, from which this film was adapted, played at the Longacre Theatre in 1929, starring Clark Gable in the role of Gregory Sloane. [4]
Wallace Fitzgerald Beery was an American film and stage actor. He is best known for his portrayal of Bill in Min and Bill (1930) opposite Marie Dressler, as General Director Preysing in Grand Hotel (1932), as Long John Silver in Treasure Island (1934), as Pancho Villa in Viva Villa! (1934), and his title role in The Champ (1931), for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor. Beery appeared in some 250 films during a 36-year career. His contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer stipulated in 1932 that he would be paid $1 more than any other contract player at the studio. This made Beery the highest-paid film actor in the world during the early 1930s. He was the brother of actor Noah Beery and uncle of actor Noah Beery Jr.
The year 1946 in film involved some significant events, including the release of the decade's highest-grossing film, The Best Years of Our Lives, which won seven Academy Awards.
With 1945 being the last year of World War II, the many films released this year had themes of patriotism, sacrifices, and peace. In the United States, there were more than eighteen thousand movie theatres operating in 1945, a figure that grew by a third from a decade earlier.
The year 1944 in film involved some significant events, including the wholesome, award-winning Going My Way plus popular murder mysteries such as Double Indemnity, Gaslight and Laura.
The year 1941 in film involved some significant events, in particular the release of a film consistently rated as one of the greatest of all time, Citizen Kane.
The following is an overview of 1930 in film, including significant events, a list of films released and notable births and deaths.
This is an overview of 1929 in film, including significant events, a list of films released and notable births and deaths.
The year 1916 in film involved some significant events.
Frank O'Connor was an American character actor and director, whose career spanned five decades and included appearances in over 600 films and television shows. Early in his career he was also billed as Frank A. Connor and Frank L.A. O'Connor. During the silent film era, he directed or was the assistant director on numerous films; he also penned several screenplays in both the silent and sound film eras. He is sometimes erroneously identified with the Frank O'Connor who was married to author Ayn Rand.
Climax! is an American television anthology series that aired on CBS from 1954 to 1958. The series was hosted by William Lundigan and later co-hosted by Mary Costa. It was one of the few CBS programs of that era to be broadcast in color, using the massive TK-40A color cameras pioneered and manufactured by RCA, and used primarily by CBS's rival network, NBC. Many of the episodes were performed and broadcast live, but, although the series was transmitted in color, only black-and-white kinescope copies of some episodes survive to the present day. The series finished at #22 in the Nielsen ratings for the 1955-1956 season and #26 for 1956-1957.
Francis Henry Durbridge was an English dramatist and author, best known for the creation of the character Paul Temple, the gentlemanly detective who appeared in 16 BBC multi-part radio serials from 1938 onward.
Olivia Joyce Compton was an American actress.
Raymond William Hatton was an American film actor who appeared in almost 500 motion pictures.
Ivan Lebedeff was a Russian film actor, lecturer and writer. He appeared in 66 films between 1926 and 1953. In 1940, his novel, Legion of Dishonor, was published.
The Cuckoos is a 1930 American Pre-Code musical comedy film released by RKO Radio Pictures and partially filmed in two-strip Technicolor. Directed by Paul Sloane, the screenplay was adapted by Cyrus Wood from the 1926 Broadway musical The Ramblers by Guy Bolton, Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby. The film stars Bert Wheeler and Robert Woolsey, and while they had appeared on Broadway and in other films together, this was their first time starring as a team. The success of this picture, combined with Rio Rita being their most successful film of 1929, convinced the studio to headline them as the comedy team Wheeler & Woolsey, through 1937.
The New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal was a commemorative medal awarded in New Zealand in 1990 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi, and was awarded to 3,632 people.
Cowboys from Texas is a 1939 American Western "Three Mesquiteers" B-movie directed by George Sherman.
Murder In the Fleet is a 1935 American murder mystery/comedy-drama film set aboard USS Carolina. Released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the film was directed by Edward Sedgwick and stars Robert Taylor and Jean Parker.
Conspiracy is a 1930 American pre-Code mystery melodrama film produced and distributed by RKO Pictures and directed by Christy Cabanne. It is the second adaptation of the play The Conspiracy by Robert B. Baker and John Emerson and stars Bessie Love and Ned Sparks.
The 2023 New Year Honours in New Zealand were appointments by Charles III in his right as King of New Zealand, on the advice of the New Zealand government, to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by New Zealanders, and to celebrate the passing of 2022 and the beginning of 2023. They were announced on 31 December 2022.