Torchy Gets Her Man | |
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![]() Theatrical release poster | |
Directed by | William Beaudine |
Screenplay by | Albert DeMond |
Produced by | Jack L. Warner Hal B. Wallis |
Starring | Glenda Farrell Barton MacLane |
Cinematography | Warren Lynch Arthur L. Todd |
Edited by | Harold McLernon |
Music by | Howard Jackson |
Production company | |
Release date |
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Running time | 63 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Torchy Gets Her Man is a 1938 American comedy-drama film directed by William Beaudine and starring Glenda Farrell as Torchy Blane and Barton MacLane as Detective Steve McBride. It was released on November 12, 1938.
It is the sixth film in a series of Torchy Blane films by Warner Bros. [1] [2] [3] The film is followed by Torchy Blane in Chinatown (1939).
Torchy Blane is in the police station when a secret service agent Charles Gilbert ask the police for help in catching "$100 Bailey", a counterfeiter who has eluded police capture for fifteen years and is passing hundred dollar bills. Charles tells detective Steve McBride that he suspects Bailey will pass the money at the racetrack. He recruits the police in a sting operation at the local racetrack to catch Bailey and convinces Steve to let him watch the $100 betting window.
Unknown to the police, Charles Gilbert is actually Bailey. He intends to use his position at the racetrack to pass off and launder his phony bills for the real thing, together with a number of his accomplices posing as horse bettors. Captain McTavish dispatches Sergeant Gahagan with a letter to confirm Charles Gilbert's identity. Charles switches Captain McTavish's letter with one written by a member of his gang, and his cover is maintained. Captain McTavish forbids Steve to tell Torchy about the investigation. She is annoyed at Steve when he keeps her in the dark about the counterfeit ring he is tracking down. Gahagan is at Hollywood Race Track with a foolproof system, involving higher mathematics, that he uses to almost break the track. This draws attention to him, by not only the counterfeiters and racetrack officials but also by Torchy, who's at the track tracking down Steve.
Determined to get her story, Torchy follows Charles from the racetrack. Charles notices her on his tail and loses her. Torchy writes the story in her newspaper, but her editor explains that they have been asked by the police not to publish anything on the subject, in order to keep the operation secret. Torchy is still suspicious of Charles and marks his automobile tire with creosote. She borrows a German Shepherd named Blitzen from a local pet store to track the scent. With Gahagan's help, Torchy discovers Charles's hideout, but they are spotted by Charles's men and kidnapped, and held captive by the counterfeit ring as a hostage. Torchy and Gahagan are tied up and a nitroglycerin bomb is set to go off after the criminals leave the house. Torchy sends the dog to get help. Meanwhile, Steve has begun to worry about Torchy and Charles' response makes him suspicious. Blitzen shows up at the police station and leads Steve, a squad of police and Charles to the gang's hiding place. Charles, not wanting to be at the house where he knows the bomb is set to go off, is exposed as Bailey and forced to reveal where the bomb and the captives are. Torchy and Gahagan are rescued by Steve and Charles are arrested.
Warner Archive released a boxed set DVD collection featuring all nine Torchy Blane films on March 29, 2011. [4]
Glenda Farrell was an American actress. Farrell personified the smart and sassy, wisecracking blonde of the Classic Hollywood films. Her career spanned more than 50 years, and she appeared in numerous Broadway plays, films and television series. She won an Emmy Award in 1963 for Outstanding Supporting Actress for her performance as Martha Morrison in the medical drama television series Ben Casey.
Allen Curtis Jenkins was an American character actor, voice actor and singer who worked on stage, film, and television. He may be best known to some audiences as the voice of Officer Charlie Dibble in the Hanna-Barbera TV cartoon series Top Cat (1961–62).
Barton MacLane was an American actor, playwright, and screenwriter. He appeared in many classic films from the 1930s through the 1960s, including his role as General Martin Peterson on the 1960s NBC television comedy series I Dream of Jeannie, with Barbara Eden and Larry Hagman.
Torchy Blane is a fictional female reporter, the main character of nine films produced by Warner Bros. between 1937 and 1939. The Torchy Blane series, which blend mystery, action, adventure and comedy, were popular second features.
John Ridgely was an American film character actor with over 175 film credits.
Thomas Aloyisus Kennedy was an American actor known for his roles in Hollywood comedies from the silent days, with such producers as Mack Sennett and Hal Roach, mainly supporting lead comedians such as the Marx Brothers, W. C. Fields, Mabel Normand, Shemp Howard, El Brendel, Laurel and Hardy, and the Three Stooges. Kennedy also played dramatic roles as a supporting actor. Today's viewers may know him from Warner Bros.' nine Torchy Blane features as Gahagan, the poetry-spouting cop whose running line was, "What a day! What a day!"
Francis Connolly Shannon was an Irish actor and writer.
Front Page Woman is a 1935 American comedy film directed by Michael Curtiz. The screenplay by Laird Doyle, Lillie Hayward and Roy Chanslor based on the novel Women Are Bum Newspapermen by Richard Macauley.
Havana Widows is a 1933 American pre-Code comedy film directed by Ray Enright, starring Joan Blondell and Glenda Farrell. It was released by Warner Bros. on November 18, 1933. Two chorus girls travel to Havana in search of rich husbands. Their target is Deacon Jones, a self-appointed moralist who cannot drink without getting drunk.
The Perfect Specimen is a 1937 American romantic comedy film directed by Michael Curtiz and starring Errol Flynn and Joan Blondell. The picture is based on a novel by Samuel Hopkins Adams.
Prison Break is a 1938 American crime-drama film directed by Arthur Lubin and starring Barton MacLane, Glenda Farrell and Paul Hurst. The film was based on the story "Walls of San Quentin" by Norton S. Parker. It was released by Universal Pictures on July 12, 1938.
Smart Blonde is a 1937 American mystery film directed by Frank McDonald. Starring Glenda Farrell as Torchy Blane, a fast-talking wisecracking female reporter, teaming up with her boyfriend detective Steve McBride, to solve the killing of an investor who just bought a popular local nightclub.
Fly-Away Baby is a 1937 American crime-mystery film starring Glenda Farrell as reporter Torchy Blane, along with her detective boyfriend, Steve McBride solving a murder and smuggling case during around-the-world flight.
The Well Groomed Bride is a 1946 American romantic comedy film directed by Sidney Lanfield and starring Olivia de Havilland, Ray Milland, and Sonny Tufts. Written by Claude Binyon and Robert Russell, the film is about a man and a woman who fight over the last bottle of champagne left in San Francisco—he wants it to christen a new aircraft carrier, and she wants it as the centerpiece for her upcoming wedding reception. During the course of their fierce battle over the bottle, the two fall in love. This was de Havilland's first film after a two-year legal battle she waged against Warner Bros. regarding her rights under her contract.
Torchy Blane in Chinatown is a 1939 American mystery film directed by William Beaudine and starring Glenda Farrell and Barton MacLane. Released on February 4, 1939, it is the seventh film in the Torchy Blane film series by Warner Bros. and is followed by Torchy Runs for Mayor (1939).
The Adventurous Blonde is a 1937 American comedy mystery film directed by Frank McDonald and starring Glenda Farrell, Barton MacLane and Anne Nagel. It was written by Robertson White and David Diamond. It was released on November 13, 1937.
Blondes at Work is a 1938 American comedy mystery film directed by Frank McDonald and written by Albert DeMond. The film stars Glenda Farrell and Barton MacLane. It is the fourth film in a series of Torchy Blane movies by Warner Bros. Released on February 6, 1938, it is followed by Torchy Blane in Panama (1938).
Torchy Blane in Panama is a 1938 American mystery film directed by William Clemens and starring Lola Lane, Paul Kelly, and Tom Kennedy. Released on May 7, 1938, the fifth film in a series of Torchy Blane movies by Warner Bros. It is followed by Torchy Gets Her Man (1938).
Torchy Runs for Mayor is a 1939 American drama-comedy film directed by Ray McCarey. It is the eighth film in the Torchy Blane film series by Warner Bros., and the last film starring Glenda Farrell and Barton MacLane as Torchy Blane and Steve McBride. It was released on May 13, 1939. The film is followed by Torchy Blane... Playing with Dynamite (1939).
Torchy Blane... Playing with Dynamite is a 1939 American mystery film directed by Noel M. Smith, written by Earle Snell and Charles Belden, and starring Jane Wyman, Allen Jenkins, and Tom Kennedy. It was released on August 12, 1939.