The Secret of the Whistler

Last updated
The Secret of the Whistler
Secret of the whistler poster small.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by George Sherman
Screenplay by
Based on The Whistler
1942-55 radio series
by J. Donald Wilson
Produced by Rudolph C. Flothow
Starring
Narrated byOtto Forrest
Cinematography Allen G. Siegler
Edited by Dwight Caldwell
Music by Herschel Burke Gilbert
Production
company
Larry Darmour Productions
Distributed by Columbia Pictures
Release date
  • November 7, 1946 (1946-11-07)(United States)
Running time
65 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

The Secret of the Whistler is a 1946 American mystery film noir based on the radio drama The Whistler . Directed by George Sherman, the production features Richard Dix, Leslie Brooks and Michael Duane. [1] It is the sixth of Columbia Pictures' eight "Whistler" films produced in the 1940s, all but the last starring Dix.

Contents

Plot

Ralph Harrison (Richard Dix) is married to Edith (Mary Currier), a rich woman who has been suffering heart attacks. Upset by her condition, he finds consoling companionship with an artist's model, the unscrupulous gold-digger Kay (Leslie Brooks).

He falls in love with Kay. Edith's health then improves. Edith overhears Ralph professing his love for Kay. Edith threatens Ralph, saying she's going to take him out of her will. He decides to poison her, with her own medicine, before she can meet with her lawyers.

After Edith dies, Ralph marries Kay, who becomes suspicious of how Edith died and worried for her own fate. Finding incriminating diary pages and the medicine, she has the medicine analyzed, discovering that it was poisoned.

Ralph overhears the phone conversation with the lab. Pretending to embrace her, he strangles Kay to death, just as the police arrive and arrest him for murder — a murder he didn't need to commit because Edith hadn't taken the poisoned medicine after all, but died of a heart attack, before she could take it.

Cast

Reception

TV Guide rated it 3/5 stars and called it "engrossing as usual and well acted". [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emlyn Williams</span> Welsh writer, dramatist and actor

George Emlyn Williams, CBE was a Welsh writer, dramatist and actor.

<i>Mary of Scotland</i> (film) 1936 film by John Ford

Mary of Scotland is a 1936 American historical drama film starring Katharine Hepburn as the 16th-century ruler Mary, Queen of Scots. Directed by John Ford, it is an adaptation of the 1933 Maxwell Anderson play, with Fredric March reprising the role of Bothwell, which he also performed on stage during the run of play. The screenplay was written by Dudley Nichols. Ginger Rogers wanted to play this role and made a screen test, but RKO rejected her request to be cast in the part feeling that the role was not suitable to her image.

<i>Souls for Sale</i> 1923 film

Souls for Sale is a 1923 American silent comedy drama film written, directed, and produced by Rupert Hughes, based on the novel of the same name by Hughes. The film stars Eleanor Boardman in her first leading role, having won a contract with Goldwyn Pictures through their highly publicized "New Faces of 1922" contest just two years earlier.

<i>Reckless</i> (1935 film) 1935 American musical film directed by Victor Fleming

Reckless is a 1935 American musical film directed by Victor Fleming and starring Jean Harlow, William Powell, Franchot Tone, and May Robson. David O. Selznick wrote the story, using the pseudonym Oliver Jeffries, basing it loosely on the scandal of the 1931 marriage between torch singer Libby Holman and tobacco heir Zachary Smith Reynolds, and his death by a gunshot wound to the head.

<i>Redskin</i> (film) 1929 film

Redskin is a 1929 American film with a synchronized score and sound effects, filmed partially in Technicolor. Its final six minutes were shown in Magnascope, an enlarged-screen projection novelty. The film, directed by Victor Schertzinger, stars Richard Dix and was produced and released by Paramount Famous Lasky Corp. Though not well remembered among the general public, the film is regarded highly by film historians for presenting sympathetic portrayals of Native Americans in the silent film era.

<i>The Man with a Cloak</i> 1951 film by Fletcher Markle

The Man with a Cloak is a 1951 American film noir crime-thriller-drama directed by Fletcher Markle and starring Joseph Cotten, Barbara Stanwyck, Louis Calhern, and Leslie Caron, and based on "The Gentleman from Paris", a short story by John Dickson Carr.

<i>Murder on the Blackboard</i> 1934 film by George Archainbaud

Murder on the Blackboard is a 1934 American pre-Code mystery/comedy film starring Edna May Oliver as schoolteacher Hildegarde Withers and James Gleason as Police Inspector Oscar Piper. Together, they investigate a murder at Withers' school. It was based on the novel of the same name by Stuart Palmer. It features popular actor Bruce Cabot in one of his first post-King Kong roles, as well as Gertrude Michael, Regis Toomey, and Edgar Kennedy.

<i>Murder on a Honeymoon</i> 1935 film by Lloyd Corrigan

Murder on a Honeymoon is a 1935 American mystery film starring Edna May Oliver and James Gleason. This was the third and last time Oliver portrayed astute schoolteacher Hildegarde Withers; the two previous films were The Penguin Pool Murder (1932) and Murder on the Blackboard (1934). The film was directed by Lloyd Corrigan from a screenplay by Seton I. Miller and Robert Benchley based on the 1933 novel The Puzzle of the Pepper Tree by Stuart Palmer. Palmer's novel, however, did not include Inspector Piper, and has Withers doing the investigating on her own.

<i>Trade Winds</i> (film) 1938 film by Tay Garnett

Trade Winds is a 1938 American comedy murder mystery film directed by Tay Garnett written by Dorothy Parker, Alan Campbell, and Frank R. Adams, based on the story by Tay Garnett. The film stars Fredric March and Joan Bennett. It was distributed by United Artists, and released on December 28, 1938.

<i>Ever in My Heart</i> 1933 film

Ever in My Heart is a 1933 American pre-Code drama film directed by Archie Mayo and starring Barbara Stanwyck, Otto Kruger, and Ralph Bellamy. It portrays the tragic consequences of the virulent propaganda that spread false stories of atrocities and stigmatized anything German during the Great War.

<i>Voice of the Whistler</i> 1945 film by William Castle

Voice of the Whistler is a 1945 American mystery film noir directed by William Castle and starring Richard Dix, Lynn Merrick, and Rhys Williams. It was the fourth of Columbia Pictures' eight "Whistler" films produced in the 1940s, all based on the radio drama The Whistler.

<i>Wells Fargo</i> (film) 1937 film by Frank Lloyd

Wells Fargo is a 1937 American Western film directed by Frank Lloyd and starring Joel McCrea, Bob Burns and Frances Dee.

<i>The Return of the Whistler</i> 1948 film by D. Ross Lederman

The Return of the Whistler is a 1948 American mystery film noir based on the radio drama The Whistler. Directed by D. Ross Lederman, the production features Michael Duane, Lenore Aubert, and Dick Lane. This is the eighth and final entry in Columbia Pictures' "Whistler" series, produced in the 1940s. This was the only film in this series that did not star Richard Dix.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leslie Brooks</span> American actress (1922–2011)

Leslie Brooks was an American film actress, model and dancer.

<i>The Power of the Whistler</i> 1945 film by Lew Landers

The Power of the Whistler is a 1945 film noir thriller film based on the radio drama The Whistler. Directed by Lew Landers, the production features Richard Dix. It is the third of Columbia Pictures' eight "Whistler" films produced in the 1940s, seven starring Dix.

<i>The Whistler</i> (1944 film) 1944 film by William Castle

The Whistler is a 1944 American mystery film noir directed by William Castle and starring Richard Dix, Gloria Stuart and J. Carrol Naish. Based on the radio drama The Whistler, it was the first of Columbia Pictures' eight "Whistler" films starring Richard Dix produced in the 1940s. The film will be under copyright until 2040 due to renewal.

<i>Mysterious Intruder</i> 1946 film

Mysterious Intruder is a 1946 American mystery film noir based on the radio drama The Whistler. Directed by William Castle, the production features Richard Dix, Barton MacLane and Nina Vale. It is the fifth of Columbia Pictures' eight "Whistler" films produced in the 1940s, the first seven starring Dix.

The Thirteenth Hour is a 1947 American mystery film noir based on the radio drama The Whistler. Directed by William Clemens, the production features Richard Dix, Karen Morley and John Kellogg. It is the seventh of Columbia Pictures' eight "Whistler" films produced in the 1940s. This was the last of Dix's seven starring roles in the series, and one of only two that featured him in a sympathetic light. Suffering from heart disease, Dix was unable to continue his acting career and died in September 1949 at the age of 56.

<i>The Custard Cup</i> 1923 film directed by Herbert Brenon

The Custard Cup is a 1923 American drama film directed by Herbert Brenon and written by G. Marion Burton and Ralph Spence. It is based on the 1921 novel The Custard Cup by Florence Bingham Livingston. The film stars Mary Carr, Myrta Bonillas, Miriam Battista, Jerry Devine, Ernest McKay, and Peggy Shaw. The film was released on January 1, 1923, by Fox Film Corporation.

<i>The Cobra Strikes</i> 1948 film directed by Charles Reisner

The Cobra Strikes is a 1948 American mystery film directed by Charles Reisner and starring Sheila Ryan, Richard Fraser, and Leslie Brooks. In the UK, it was released as Crime Without Clues.

References

  1. The Secret of the Whistle at the TCM Movie Database.
  2. "Secret Of The Whistler". TV Guide . Retrieved February 20, 2015.