Colorized Detective/Mystery Movies

Episode 3 of 8. Produced in 2009. In a remote Russian province in the late nineteenth century, Bishop Mitrofanii must deal with a family crisis. After learning that one of his great aunt’s beloved and rare white bulldogs has been poisoned, the Orthodox bishop knows there is only one detective clever enough to investigate the murder: Sister Pelagia. The bespectacled, freckled Pelagia is lively, curious, both extraordinarily awkward and astute, and as well as persistent. At the estate in question, she finds a whole host of suspects, any one of whom might have benefited if the old lady (who changes her will at whim) had expired of grief at the pooch’s demise. There’s Pyotr, the matron’s grandson, a nihilist with a grudge who has fallen for the maid; Stepan, the penniless caretaker, who has sacrificed his youth to the care of the estate; Miss Wrigley, a mysterious Englishwoman who has recently been named sole heiress to the fortune; Poggio, an opportunistic and freeloading “artistic” photographer; and, most intriguingly, Naina, the old lady’s granddaughter, a girl so beautiful she could drive any man to do almost anything. As Pelagia engages the mystery and intuits her way to its heart among people with faith only in greed and desire, she must bear in mind the words of Saint Paul: “Beware of dogs–and beware of evil-doers.”

Episode 4 of 8. Produced in 2009. In a remote Russian province in the late nineteenth century, Bishop Mitrofanii must deal with a family crisis. After learning that one of his great aunt’s beloved and rare white bulldogs has been poisoned, the Orthodox bishop knows there is only one detective clever enough to investigate the murder: Sister Pelagia. The bespectacled, freckled Pelagia is lively, curious, both extraordinarily awkward and astute, and as well as persistent. At the estate in question, she finds a whole host of suspects, any one of whom might have benefited if the old lady (who changes her will at whim) had expired of grief at the pooch’s demise. There’s Pyotr, the matron’s grandson, a nihilist with a grudge who has fallen for the maid; Stepan, the penniless caretaker, who has sacrificed his youth to the care of the estate; Miss Wrigley, a mysterious Englishwoman who has recently been named sole heiress to the fortune; Poggio, an opportunistic and freeloading “artistic” photographer; and, most intriguingly, Naina, the old lady’s granddaughter, a girl so beautiful she could drive any man to do almost anything. As Pelagia engages the mystery and intuits her way to its heart among people with faith only in greed and desire, she must bear in mind the words of Saint Paul: “Beware of dogs–and beware of evil-doers.”

Episode 5 of 8. Produced in 2009. In a remote Russian province in the late nineteenth century, Bishop Mitrofanii must deal with a family crisis. After learning that one of his great aunt’s beloved and rare white bulldogs has been poisoned, the Orthodox bishop knows there is only one detective clever enough to investigate the murder: Sister Pelagia. The bespectacled, freckled Pelagia is lively, curious, both extraordinarily awkward and astute, and as well as persistent. At the estate in question, she finds a whole host of suspects, any one of whom might have benefited if the old lady (who changes her will at whim) had expired of grief at the pooch’s demise. There’s Pyotr, the matron’s grandson, a nihilist with a grudge who has fallen for the maid; Stepan, the penniless caretaker, who has sacrificed his youth to the care of the estate; Miss Wrigley, a mysterious Englishwoman who has recently been named sole heiress to the fortune; Poggio, an opportunistic and freeloading “artistic” photographer; and, most intriguingly, Naina, the old lady’s granddaughter, a girl so beautiful she could drive any man to do almost anything. As Pelagia engages the mystery and intuits her way to its heart among people with faith only in greed and desire, she must bear in mind the words of Saint Paul: “Beware of dogs–and beware of evil-doers.”

Episode 6 of 8. Produced in 2009. In a remote Russian province in the late nineteenth century, Bishop Mitrofanii must deal with a family crisis. After learning that one of his great aunt’s beloved and rare white bulldogs has been poisoned, the Orthodox bishop knows there is only one detective clever enough to investigate the murder: Sister Pelagia. The bespectacled, freckled Pelagia is lively, curious, both extraordinarily awkward and astute, and as well as persistent. At the estate in question, she finds a whole host of suspects, any one of whom might have benefited if the old lady (who changes her will at whim) had expired of grief at the pooch’s demise. There’s Pyotr, the matron’s grandson, a nihilist with a grudge who has fallen for the maid; Stepan, the penniless caretaker, who has sacrificed his youth to the care of the estate; Miss Wrigley, a mysterious Englishwoman who has recently been named sole heiress to the fortune; Poggio, an opportunistic and freeloading “artistic” photographer; and, most intriguingly, Naina, the old lady’s granddaughter, a girl so beautiful she could drive any man to do almost anything. As Pelagia engages the mystery and intuits her way to its heart among people with faith only in greed and desire, she must bear in mind the words of Saint Paul: “Beware of dogs–and beware of evil-doers.”

Episode 7 of 8. Produced in 2009. In a remote Russian province in the late nineteenth century, Bishop Mitrofanii must deal with a family crisis. After learning that one of his great aunt’s beloved and rare white bulldogs has been poisoned, the Orthodox bishop knows there is only one detective clever enough to investigate the murder: Sister Pelagia. The bespectacled, freckled Pelagia is lively, curious, both extraordinarily awkward and astute, and as well as persistent. At the estate in question, she finds a whole host of suspects, any one of whom might have benefited if the old lady (who changes her will at whim) had expired of grief at the pooch’s demise. There’s Pyotr, the matron’s grandson, a nihilist with a grudge who has fallen for the maid; Stepan, the penniless caretaker, who has sacrificed his youth to the care of the estate; Miss Wrigley, a mysterious Englishwoman who has recently been named sole heiress to the fortune; Poggio, an opportunistic and freeloading “artistic” photographer; and, most intriguingly, Naina, the old lady’s granddaughter, a girl so beautiful she could drive any man to do almost anything. As Pelagia engages the mystery and intuits her way to its heart among people with faith only in greed and desire, she must bear in mind the words of Saint Paul: “Beware of dogs–and beware of evil-doers.”

Episode 8 and conclusion. Produced in 2009. In a remote Russian province in the late nineteenth century, Bishop Mitrofanii must deal with a family crisis. After learning that one of his great aunt’s beloved and rare white bulldogs has been poisoned, the Orthodox bishop knows there is only one detective clever enough to investigate the murder: Sister Pelagia. The bespectacled, freckled Pelagia is lively, curious, both extraordinarily awkward and astute, and as well as persistent. At the estate in question, she finds a whole host of suspects, any one of whom might have benefited if the old lady (who changes her will at whim) had expired of grief at the pooch’s demise. There’s Pyotr, the matron’s grandson, a nihilist with a grudge who has fallen for the maid; Stepan, the penniless caretaker, who has sacrificed his youth to the care of the estate; Miss Wrigley, a mysterious Englishwoman who has recently been named sole heiress to the fortune; Poggio, an opportunistic and freeloading “artistic” photographer; and, most intriguingly, Naina, the old lady’s granddaughter, a girl so beautiful she could drive any man to do almost anything. As Pelagia engages the mystery and intuits her way to its heart among people with faith only in greed and desire, she must bear in mind the words of Saint Paul: “Beware of dogs–and beware of evil-doers.”

Episode 2 of 8. Produced in 2009. In a remote Russian province in the late nineteenth century, Bishop Mitrofanii must deal with a family crisis. After learning that one of his great aunt’s beloved and rare white bulldogs has been poisoned, the Orthodox bishop knows there is only one detective clever enough to investigate the murder: Sister Pelagia. The bespectacled, freckled Pelagia is lively, curious, extraordinarily clumsy, and persistent. At the estate in question, she finds a whole host of suspects, any one of whom might have benefited if the old lady (who changes her will at whim) had expired of grief at the pooch’s demise. There’s Pyotr, the matron’s grandson, a nihilist with a grudge who has fallen for the maid; Stepan, the penniless caretaker, who has sacrificed his youth to the care of the estate; Miss Wrigley, a mysterious Englishwoman who has recently been named sole heiress to the fortune; Poggio, an opportunistic and freeloading “artistic” photographer; and, most intriguingly, Naina, the old lady’s granddaughter, a girl so beautiful she could drive any man to do almost anything. As Pelagia bumbles and intuits her way to the heart of a mystery among people with faith only in greed and desire, she must bear in mind the words of Saint Paul: “Beware of dogs–and beware of evil-doers.”

Episode 2 of 8. Produced in 2009. In a remote Russian province in the late nineteenth century, Bishop Mitrofanii must deal with a family crisis. After learning that one of his great aunt’s beloved and rare white bulldogs has been poisoned, the Orthodox bishop knows there is only one detective clever enough to investigate the murder: Sister Pelagia. The bespectacled, freckled Pelagia is lively, curious, both extraordinarily awkward and astute, and as well as persistent. At the estate in question, she finds a whole host of suspects, any one of whom might have benefited if the old lady (who changes her will at whim) had expired of grief at the pooch’s demise. There’s Pyotr, the matron’s grandson, a nihilist with a grudge who has fallen for the maid; Stepan, the penniless caretaker, who has sacrificed his youth to the care of the estate; Miss Wrigley, a mysterious Englishwoman who has recently been named sole heiress to the fortune; Poggio, an opportunistic and freeloading “artistic” photographer; and, most intriguingly, Naina, the old lady’s granddaughter, a girl so beautiful she could drive any man to do almost anything. As Pelagia engages the mystery and intuits her way to its heart among people with faith only in greed and desire, she must bear in mind the words of Saint Paul: “Beware of dogs–and beware of evil-doers.” The bespectacled, freckled Pelagia is lively, curious, extraordinarily clumsy, and persistent. At the estate in question, she finds a whole host of suspects, any one of whom might have benefited if the old lady (who changes her will at whim) had expired of grief at the pooch’s demise. There’s Pyotr, the matron’s grandson, a nihilist with a grudge who has fallen for the maid; Stepan, the penniless caretaker, who has sacrificed his youth to the care of the estate; Miss Wrigley, a mysterious Englishwoman who has recently been named sole heiress to the fortune; Poggio, an opportunistic and freeloading “artistic” photographer; and, most intriguingly, Naina, the old lady’s granddaughter, a girl so beautiful she could drive any man to do almost anything. As Pelagia bumbles and intuits her way to the heart of a mystery among people with faith only in greed and desire, she must bear in mind the words of Saint Paul: “Beware of dogs–and beware of evil-doers.”

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson (Russian: Приключения Шерлока Холмса и доктора Ватсона) is a series of Soviet television films portraying Arthur Conan Doyle's fictional English detective, starting in 1979. They were directed by Igor Maslennikov. Overview Between 1979 and 1986, Soviet television produced a series of five films at the Lenfilm movie studio, split into eleven episodes, starring Vasily Livanov as Sherlock Holmes and Vitaly Solomin as Dr. Watson. Later, a cinematic adaptation was made based on the 1986 episodes. This film was called The Twentieth Century Approaches. Episode #1 and #2 1979 Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson 1st episode: "Acquaintance" (based on "The Adventure of the Speckled Band"). 2nd episode: "Bloody Inscription" (based on A Study in Scarlet). Jauniela street, in old Riga, doubles as Baker Street in the series. The script was written by Julius Dunsky and Valery Frid on their own initiative. Igor Maslennikov was not a big fan of Conan Doyle's work, but he liked the idea of a future TV movie. In addition, there was an interesting juxtaposition of characters in the script Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, which was supposed to attract the viewer and what, according to the director, previous film adaptations lacked. "Holmes is opposed to the official police system of Scotland Yard, because the main thing for him is to help, not just to punish. This, it seems to me, is the secret of the enduring love of readers and viewers for Sherlock Holmes, the living personification of loyalty and reliability — qualities that people have always needed so much. That was the reason why we were so willing to work on these films." --- Igor Maslennikov Unlike some of their Western counterparts, the films are very close to the literary source. Some of the departures include Holmes' easy-going and humorous demeanor, as well as comic relief provided by some of the characters (most notably that of Sir Henry Baskerville and his butler Barrymore in The Hound of the Baskervilles episode). Vasily Livanov and Vitaly Solomin met at the auditions, and they immediately formed friendly relations: As the lead Vitaly Livanov commented: "In relation to life, we coincided in many ways. Vitaly shared with me deeply personal experiences, and I think he did not share these experiences with anyone else… Love can be played on the screen. And friendship is impossible to play. You need to be friends." A street in old Riga doubles as Baker Street (the same street was used for exterior locations of Tsvetochnaya street in "Seventeen Moments of Spring").[4][5] Many scenes were filmed in Saint Petersburg and Tallinn. "The role" of the Reichenbach Waterfall was "performed" by Circassian waterfall in Abkhazia.[6] Regular cast Vasily Livanov as Sherlock Holmes Vitaly Solomin as Dr. Watson Rina Zelyonaya as Mrs. Hudson Borislav Brondukov as Inspector Lestrade Igor Dmitriev as Tobias Gregson Boris Klyuyev as Mycroft Holmes Viktor Yevgrafov as Professor Moriarty — Vasily Livanov[1]

Private Detective 62 is a 1933 American pre-Code detective film directed by Michael Curtiz and starring William Powell as a private detective who falls for a woman whom he has been hired to frame in a scandal. Plot In France, U.S. State Department employee Donald Free is caught trying to steal French state papers. Free is released from his job and is deported. Back in the U.S., Free finds difficulty finding another job during the Great Depression. He convinces Dan Hogan, a crooked and incompetent private detective, to become his partner. Without Free's knowledge, Hogan is financed by gangster Tony Bandor and business booms. Bandor complains that society woman Janet Reynolds is winning too much at his gambling tables and then hires Hogan to uncover some sort of scandal that he can use to prevent Reynolds from collecting her winnings. Hogan engages Free without telling him the true purpose of the request. While keeping an eye on Reynolds, Free falls in love with her. When Reynolds informs Bandor that she wants to collect her winnings, Hogan suggests to Bandor that they fool Reynolds into thinking that she has killed Bandor under suspicious conditions. Hogan double-crosses Bandor by hiring a thug to shoot him after Reynolds leaves the apartment. Reynolds seeks Free's assistance. Free learns the identity of Bandor's actual killer and traces him back to Hogan. Meanwhile, Hogan tries to blackmail Janet. After Free has Hogan arrested, he is offered his old job again, but tells Reynolds that it is not the sort of life that he could ask anyone to share with him, so he leaves. As he is departing, Reynolds proposes marriage to him and he accepts. Cast William Powell as Free Margaret Lindsay as Reynolds Ruth Donnelly as Amy Gordon Westcott as Bandor Arthur Hohl as Hogan Natalie Moorhead as Helen James Bell as Whitey Hobart Cavanaugh as Burns Irving Bacon as Taxi Driver Charles Lane as Process Server

A couple of murderous crooks try to smuggle the famous Stanhope diamonds into New York but they’re double-crossed and killed before reaching New York. Joseph Henabery directs the 12th and final installment in series of two-reel pre-code shorts written by S. S. Van Dine and starring Donald Meek as the forensic specialist Dr. Amos Crabtree. This time the setting is a luxury ocean liner called the Hellenic, which is making its way from Europe to America. Two jewel thieves, Miller and Waite, hope to fence the stolen Stanhope Diamonds in New York for $150,000. They have a plan to smuggle the gems past customs by using a journalist called Deeks as an accomplice. However, even before boarding the ship in England, Waite (Ray Collins) shoots and kills Miller and, with the help of the dead man's valet Dodge (Walter Kingsford), he assumes Ben Miller's identity before learning that an angry woman named Daisy (Betty Pierce) is gunning for Miller, too. The Hellenic's captain (Harry T. Morey) is informed by Lord Stanhope that the jewels may be aboard his ship, but he is unwilling to trouble passengers with a search without some hard evidence. Stanhope says he will have to take care of matters himself. And again, nobody knows Daisy is on board with a gun and an ax to grind. As we see the Hellenic approach New York City, Deeks is preparing to board the ship using a quarantine pass and bringing a gun with him, just in case there's trouble. At NYPD's Homicide Division, Inspector Carr (John Hamilton) receives a cablegram from Scotland Yard asking him to detain Lord Stanhope upon arrival and question him about the murder of an unidentified man in Ben Miller's home. Miller was suspected of the jewel theft and Stanhope had threatened him. Carr asks Dr. Crabtree to accompany him to the docks to meet the ship. But even before the Hellenic arrives, the man thought to be Miller has been found dead in his cabin, shot in the back of the head. A gun is found on the floor. The Captain says New York has jurisdiction over the case. He invites Carr and Crabtree to investigate. They question Stanhope and examine his gun, which was too big to have killed the victim. Dodge has an alibi confirmed by the purser of changing currency at the time of the homicide. Then, Daisy's name comes up. She admits the gun they found was hers, but says it had been stolen from her purse. We learn Daisy was the former Mrs. Miller. And when she sees the body, she immediately claims its not her ex at all. Of course, Car and Crabtree solve the mystery within a couple of minutes as always, with the help of a confession this time. But there will be no arrest. The culprit commits suicide rather than be taken into custody.

Philo Vance's Secret Mission is a 1947 American mystery film directed by Reginald Le Borg and starring Alan Curtis, Sheila Ryan and Tala Birell. It was part of a series of films featuring the detective Philo Vance made during the 1930s and 1940s. The film's sets were designed by the art directors Edward C. Jewell and Perry Smith. Plot Philo Vance is approached by the head of a publishing company to become an advisor on a series of crime novels they are releasing. Before long he is embroiled in a case about the mysterious killing of one of the partners in the company. Cast Alan Curtis as Philo Vance Sheila Ryan as Mona Bannister Tala Birell as Mrs. Elizabeth Phillips Frank Jenks as Ernie Clark James Bell as Sheriff Harry Madison Frank Fenton as Paul Morgan Paul Maxey as Martin Jamison Kenneth Farrell as Joe, the Photographer Toni Todd as Louise Roberts aka Mrs. Paul Morgan David Leonard as Carl Wilson William Newell as Deputy Tom Quinn as Haddon Phillips Harry Strang as Ship's Purser Frank Wilcox as Thaddius Carter

The Case of the Perfect Husband is the 27th episode of the 1954-1955 TV series Sherlock Holmes starring Ronald Howard as Sherlock Holmes and Howard Marion-Crawford as Dr. Watson. Aired on 2 may 1955 on MPTV (USA). Black & White. 26 min. Russell Partridge, a rich and respectable art collector, threatens to kill his wife at nine o'clock on their first wedding anniversary. She doesn't know if she believes him, and Lestrade doesn't either. Holmes takes the threat seriously and is able to thwart an attempt on her life. He also makes a gruesome discovery in a secret hiding place.

Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon (1942) is the fourth in the Basil Rathbone/Nigel Bruce series of 14 Sherlock Holmes films which updated the characters created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle to the then present day. The film is credited as an adaptation of Conan Doyle's 1903 short story "The Adventure of the Dancing Men," though the only element from the source material is the dancing men code. Rather, it is a spy film taking place on the background of the then ongoing Second World War with an original premise. The film concerns the kidnapping of a Swiss scientist by their nemesis Professor Moriarty, to steal a new bomb sight and sell it to Nazi Germany. Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson have to crack a secret code in order to save the country. The film is one of four films in the series which are in the public domain. [1] Plot Sherlock Holmes (Basil Rathbone) pretends to be a Nazi spy to aid scientist Dr. Franz Tobel (William Post Jr.) and his new invention, a bombsight, in escaping a Gestapo trap in Switzerland. Holmes and Franz fly to London, where Holmes places him under the protection of his friend, Dr. Watson (Nigel Bruce). The scientist slips away against Holmes' instructions for a secret reunion with his fiancee, Charlotte Eberli (Kaaren Verne), and gives her an envelope containing a coded message. He tells Charlotte to give it to Holmes if anything should happen to him. German spies' attempt to abduct Tobel as he leaves Charlotte's apartment is foiled by a passing London bobby. Tobel successfully demonstrates the bombsight for Sir Reginald Bailey (Holmes Herbert) and observers from Bomber Command. Tobel, now under the protection of Inspector Lestrade (Dennis Hoey) and Scotland Yard, tells Sir Reginald that, although willing to provide the British with his bombsight, only he will know its secret and has a complex plan for its manufacture to keep the secret safe. He separates his invention into four parts and gives one to each of four Swiss scientists, known only to him and not to each other, to construct separately. Soon after, Holmes receives a call from Lestrade telling him that Tobel has disappeared. Holmes goes to Charlotte's flat, where he receives Tobel's envelope. Rather than the coded message, the message inside is from Holmes' nemesis, master criminal Professor Moriarty (Lionel Atwill), who is now working for the Germans. Disguising himself as Ram Singh, one of Moriarty's old henchmen, Holmes searches the Soho district for information. He encounters two henchmen Peg Leg (Harold De Becker) and Jack Brady (Harry Cording), but is captured by Moriarty. Holmes is put into the false bottom of a sea chest, but is rescued when Watson and Lestrade observe the henchmen struggling with its unusual weight. Holmes returns to Charlotte's flat to search for clues to the message's contents. He finds impressions of the message left on a notepad page by immersing it in "fluorescent salts... and then photograph(ing) it by ultraviolet light." Holmes breaks the first three lines of a cunningly modified substitution cipher, which are the identities and locations of three of the scientists, but cannot break the fourth line, which has been altered as an added precaution. He soon learns that Moriarty has murdered all three scientists and stolen their parts. Meanwhile, Moriarty, also unable to break the fourth line, tortures Tobel for the name of the fourth scientist. Holmes deduces the change in the code and breaks the fourth line, identifying the scientist as Professor Frederick Hoffner (Henry Victor). Moriarty accidentally deciphers the code. He sends agents to abduct Hoffner, who has the brilliance to put the four parts together should Tobel not recover from torture. The German agents bring the scientist, who is actually Holmes in disguise again, to Moriarty's seemingly undetectable stronghold. Unknown to Moriarty, Holmes had the real Hoffner attach an apparatus to their car that drips luminous paint (which Watson helped prepare) at regular intervals. To stall for time, Holmes uses Moriarty's vanity and pride to trick him into slowly bleeding Holmes to death "drop by drop". Holmes is saved at the last minute by Watson and Lestrade, who, with Hoffner's help, successfully followed the luminous paint trail. Scotland Yard apprehends the spies, but Moriarty escapes. When he attempts to complete his escape through a secret passageway, he falls sixty feet to his death; Holmes has discovered the criminal's hidden trap door and left it open. With Tobel saved and the bombsight recovered, Watson notes that things "are looking up... this little island is still on the map". Cast Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes Nigel Bruce as Doctor Watson Lionel Atwill as Professor Moriarty Kaaren Verne as Charlotte Eberli William Post Jr. as Dr Franz Tobel Dennis Hoey as Inspector Lestrade Holmes Herbert as Sir Reginald Bailey Mary Gordon as Mrs. Hudson Henry Victor as Dr. Frederick Hoffner

Philo Vance Returns is a 1947 American mystery film directed by William Beaudine and starring William Wright, Vivian Austin and Leon Belasco. It is one of a series of films featuring private detective Philo Vance. Plot Vance investigates the murders of a newly engaged couple. Cast William Wright as Philo Vance Vivian Austin as Lorena Blendon Simms Leon Belasco as Alexis Karnoff Clara Blandick as Stella Blendon Ramsay Ames as Virginia Berneaux Damian O'Flynn as Larry Blendon Frank Wilcox as George Hullman Iris Adrian as Maggie McCarthy Blendon Ann Staunton as Helen Varney Blendon Tim Murdock as The Policeman Mary Scott as Mary, the Maid

The Shanghai Cobra is a 1945 mystery film directed by Phil Karlson and starring Sidney Toler as Charlie Chan. Plot When three bank employees are killed with cobra venom, Detective Chan recalls an oddly similar case ten years earlier in Shanghai. In Shanghai in 1937, criminal Jan Van Horn was badly burned when the Japanese bombed Shanghai. After plastic surgery, he escaped custody and nobody knows what he looks like today. Inspector Davis, in charge of the case, is an old friend of Chan's who calls him in. Chan has a second reason to be interested...the bank is the central depository for radium distribution for a good part of the United States. The special vault holding the radium is a monster that seems impregnable from street level. But Charlie discovers a network of underground tunnels and sewer pipes beneath the bank. Tommy Chan and Birmingham, usually against orders, spend a goodly amount of time prowling these tunnels. At least until they discover a fourth body. Detective Larkin, an undercover officer posing as the bank's janitor, apparently found out too much. Another puzzle is how the murders were committed. There was no actual snake, and all the victims died out of reach of the nearest human being. Charlie discovers the first three victims all favored the same inexpensive restaurant. When he learns their expensive jukebox came from "an anonymous donor", he tracks down the control room booth for the jukebox. Oddly, it is concealed behind a bookcase on the second floor of the bank building...in an office housing a full chemical laboratory. The woman running the booth is arrested, but she has never seen her boss. Charlie discovers that when you touch the coin return button on the jukebox, a poisoned needle pops out. Charlie plants a false rumor that the radium will be moved to a safer location the next day. This forces the criminals to strike that night. But Chan hadn't counted on the use of explosives. He, Tommy, and Birmingham are trapped in an underground cave-in. Charlie taps into the underground phone lines and sends a morse code message. Police swarm the underground tunnels and arrest the robbery gang. Freed from the cave-in, Charlie exposes two identities. Chief Bank Guard John Adams is revealed to be the escaped Jan Van Horn. But it turns out he really was innocent. The detective who framed the case against Van Horn also disappeared from Shanghai at the same time. He is revealed to be Mr. Jarvis, owner of the chemical laboratory. And on his person is a cigarette lighter with a poison needle attatchment, which he used to murder Detective Larkin. Cast Sidney Toler as Charlie Chan Mantan Moreland as Birmingham Brown Benson Fong as Tommy Chan James Cardwell as Ned Stewart Joan Barclay as Paula Webb (alias of Paula van Horn, daughter of Jan van Horn) Addison Richards as John Adams (alias Jan van Horn), Sixth National Bank guard Arthur Loft as Bradford Harris (alias Special Agent Hume) Janet Warren as Record Machine Operator Gene Stutenroth as Morgan, a gangster Cyril Delevanti as Detective Larkin, a police undercover officer at the Sixth National Bank George Chandler Joe Nelson, coffee shop proprietor James Flavin H.R. Jarvis, chemical engineer John Goldsworthy as Inspector Mainwaring Walter Fenner as Inspector Davis Mary Moore as Clerk in Laundry Stephen Gregory as Samuel Black, the third victim

The Jade Mask is a 1945 film featuring Sidney Toler as Charlie Chan and the only appearance of Number Four Son, Eddie Chan, played by Edwin Luke, the real-life younger brother of Keye Luke, who had depicted Number One Son throughout the 1930s. Plot Charlie Chan, along with #4 son Eddie and chauffeur, Birmingham Brown, looks into the apparent murder of an eccentric scientist in a spooky mansion. Although the scientist had been shot with a silenced pistol, further murders are committed with poison darts, with one narrowly missing Chan. Later, Chan discovers the dead scientist's huge collection of ventriloquist dummies are the key to the murders. Cast Sidney Toler as Charlie Chan Edwin Luke as Eddie Chan Mantan Moreland as Birmingham Brown Hardie Albright as Walter Meeker Frank Reicher as Harper Janet Warren as Jean Kent Cyril Delevanti as Roth Alan Bridge as Sheriff Mack Dorothy Granger as Stella Graham

The Scarlet Clue is a 1945 American film directed by Phil Rosen.[ The film is also known as Charlie Chan in the Scarlet Clue (American informal title) and Charlie Chan: The Scarlet Clue in Australia. The film is in the public domain due to the omission of a valid copyright notice on original prints. Plot Charlie Chan is working for the United States Government tracking down the theft of radar secrets. When the man they are tailing is murdered, the only clue is a footprint in blood. Chan. His "Number Three Son" Tommy and their chauffeur Birmingham Brown's investigation leads to a radio station. Birmingham runs into his old friend Ben Carter at the station with other suspects including the radio station staff, stars and cleaning woman. The closer Chan gets to solving the mystery, the more mysterious murders happen. The science lab where the radar secrets are developed shares the same skyscraper floor with a radio soap opera studio, the program apparently under the thumb of its tyrannical sponsor, Mrs. Marsh. The lab also has a weather chamber that can create below zero blizzards or extreme heat. Tommy Chan and Birmingham spend a great deal of time comically trapped in it. It is quickly established that the station manager, Ralph Brett, is part of the spy ring. But he only communicates with the Master Spy by a clever series of telephone relays. The leader has invented a clever poison that causes death in conjunction with lighting a cigarette. Blackmailing actress Gloria Bayne and genial ham actor Willie Rand meet death by this device. When the Leader judges Brett to be a liability, he is lured to a freight elevator with a trap-door floor that drops him seven stories to his death. Unnerved by the murders, another member of the ring offers to lure the Leader into the open with a false distress message. During an in-and-out corridor chase on the 7th floor, the Leader is revealed to be Mrs. Marsh...who dies when she panics and accidentally steps into her own elevator trap. Cast Sidney Toler as Charlie Chan Benson Fong as Tommy Chan Mantan Moreland as Birmingham Brown, Chauffeur Virginia Brissac as Mrs. Marsh Ben Carter as Ben Carter Robert Homans as Capt. Flynn Jack Norton as Willie Rand Janet Shaw as Gloria Bayne Helen Deverell as Diane Hall Victoria Faust as Hulda Swenson / Janet Carter Leonard Mudie as Horace Karlos I. Stanford Jolley as Ralph Brett Emmett Vogan as Hamilton of the Hamilton Laboratory

Black Magic, later retitled Meeting at Midnight for television, is a 1944 mystery film directed by Phil Rosen and starring Sidney Toler as Charlie Chan. It was the third Charlie Chan film made by Toler at Monogram Pictures. Plot Charlie postpones his trip home from service with the government to Honolulu to help with the investigation of murder involving Number One Daughter (Frances Chan) and an easily spooked chauffeur (Mantan Moreland). Mr. William Bonner is murdered in the middle of a seance with a total of 8 witnesses, seen and unseen, present. Charlie Chan's daughter Frances Chan (real name Chan) is one of the witnesses and is detained. When police learn of Frances's true identity as Charlie Chan's daughter, he is summoned to police headquarters. The police offer the case to the famous Chinese Detective and he reluctantly agrees in order to get his daughter released. The police cannot find a gun anywhere in the house. Police then learn from the coroner that Mr. Bonner was shot and the bullet did not go all the way thorough, yet it is not lodged anywhere in the body. The seance room is supported by a gadget room to assist in the various ghostly appearances. Birmingham Brown's comedy with the various seance gadgets serve to link the movie audience with a "me too" bond which is very warm and human. Since there was no gun and no bullet, Charlie Chan has the Coroner perform an experiment to determine what might have happened. The case is solved when the murderer brushes up against Charlie Chan in a reenactment of the crime with Charlie Chan sitting where the murdered man was sitting. Cast Sidney Toler as Charlie Chan Mantan Moreland as Birmingham Brown Frances Chan as Frances Chan Joseph Crehan as Police Sgt. Matthews Helen Beverly as Norma Duncan / Nancy Wood (as Helen Beverley) Jacqueline deWit as Justine Bonner Geraldine Wall as Harriet Green Ralph Peters as Officer Rafferty Frank Jaquet as Paul Hamlin Reception The Los Angeles Times said the climax was "unusually absorbing".[2] See also List of American films of 1944 References Black Magic Monthly Film Bulletin; London Vol. 12, Iss. 133, (Jan 1, 1945): 2. Chan Solves New Crime Los Angeles Times 1 Sep 1944: 10. External links Black Magic at Charlie Chan Family Complete film at Internet Archive Black Magic at IMDb Edit this at Wikidata Black Magic at the TCM Movie Database Black Magic at AllMovie Black Magic at the American Film Institute Catalog

The Chinese Cat (also titled Murder in the Funhouse) is a 1944 mystery film starring Sidney Toler as Charlie Chan. Plot Mr. Manning is murdered in his study while the door is locked from the inside. Police close the case after 6 months. A girl contacts Charlie Chan to have a look before he leaves in 48 hours. Twins are involved in a diamond-smuggling ring after the Kohinoor Diamonds are stolen; one twin is killed and the other living twin masquerades as a ghost tricking Birmingham Brown. Mr. Manning had the largest stone stored in the secret compartment of a Chinese cat statue, and doublecrossed his associates. Movie ends in a carnival funhouse with police arresting the diamond-smuggling ring for three murders. Rival author of Manning Murder Solved book must now pay $20,000 to Chinese War Relief after a lost bet with Charlie Chan about the murderer's identity. Cast Sidney Toler as Charlie Chan Mantan Moreland as Birmingham Brown, Taxi Driver Joan Woodbury as Leah Manning Benson Fong as Tommy Chan, #3 Son Ian Keith as Dr. Paul Recknik Sam Flint as Thomas Manning Betty Blythe as Mrs. Manning Cy Kendall as Webster Deacon John Davidson as twins Karl Karzos/Kurt Karzos Weldon Heyburn as Detective Lt. Harvey Dennis Anthony Warde as Catlen Jack Norton as hotel desk clerk Luke Chan as Wu Sang, curio shop owner George Chandler as hotel doorman (uncredited) Daisy Bufford as Carolina, the maid (uncredited) Production The film was the second Charlie Chan movie from Monogram. It was originally called Charlie Chan and the Perfect Crime and filming started on 4 January 1944.[1] This is the film where Birmingham Brown is permanently hired as Charlie Chan's chauffeur. He is looking for a new job after the guilty criminals blow up his taxicab with a bomb.

Dressed to Kill is a 1946 American mystery film directed by Roy William Neill. Released by Universal Pictures, it is the last of fourteen films starring Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes and Nigel Bruce as Doctor Watson.[1] It is also known by the alternative titles Prelude to Murder (working title) and Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Code in the United Kingdom.[2] The film has an original story, but combines elements of the short stories "The Adventure of the Six Napoleons" and "A Scandal in Bohemia." It is one of four films in the series which are in the public domain and is available online.[3][4] Plot John Davidson, a convicted thief in Dartmoor prison, embeds code revealing the hidden location of extremely valuable stolen Bank of England currency printing plates in the melody notes of three music boxes that he crafts to be sold at auction. Each box plays a subtly different version of an Australian tune, "The Swagman". At the auction each is purchased by a different buyer. Dr. Watson's friend, Julian Emery, a music box collector, pays him and Sherlock Holmes a visit and tells them of an attempted burglary in his house the previous night of a plain cheap box (similar to the one he bought at auction) while leaving other much more valuable ones. Holmes and Watson ask to see and are shown Emery's collection. After they leave, Emery welcomes a female acquaintance, Hilda Courtney, who tries unsuccessfully to buy the auctioned box. When Emery declines, a male friend of Courtney's who has sneaked in murders Emery. At this murder Holmes becomes even more curious and learns to whom else the boxes were auctioned off. Holmes and Watson arrive at the house of the person who bought the second one, just as a strange maid (Courtney in disguise) is on her way "to go shopping". They later realize it was not a maid: she locked a child in a closet in order to steal the box from the child. Holmes is able to buy the third box, and upon examination discovers that its variant musical notes' numbers correlate to letters of the alphabet. Scotland Yard fills him in on the stolen bank plates to which the music boxes connect, but all three are needed to decipher the message. Back at home, their flat is found ransacked, and a cigarette with a distinct type of tobacco is the sole clue. Holmes tracks down the woman who bought the tobacco, Courtney. While confronting her, Holmes is ambushed by her accomplices, handcuffed, taken to a warehouse, hung by a rafter, and left with poison gas filling the room. While Holmes is narrowly escaping death, Courtney visits the flat and steals the box from Watson. Holmes manages to make it back in one piece and, while conversing with him, Watson offhandedly mentions a quote from Dr. Samuel Johnson. Thinking about this quote, Holmes makes a connection as to where the stolen plates may be hidden. Having stolen all the boxes and deciphered their message, Courtney and gang join a tour group at Dr. Samuel Johnson's house, now a museum, where they slip away and find the plates hidden within a bookshelf. Courtney is stealing the plates when Holmes ambushes the group. Scotland Yard officers arrest them, and the plates are returned to the bank. Cast Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes Nigel Bruce as Dr. John H. Watson Patricia Morison as Hilda Courtney/Charwoman Edmund Breon as Julian "Stinky" Emery (as Edmond Breon) Frederick Worlock as Colonel Cavanaugh (as Frederic Worlock) Carl Harbord as Inspector Hopkins Patricia Cameron as Evelyn Clifford Holmes Herbert as Ebenezer Crabtree Harry Cording as Hamid Leyland Hodgson as Tour Guide Mary Gordon as Mrs. Hudson Ian Wolfe as Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis Anita Sharp-Bolster as the Schoolteacher on a Museum Tour Cyril Delavanti as John Davidson (uncredited) Harry Allen as William Kilgour (uncredited) Topsy Glyn as The Kilgour Child (uncredited)

Pursuit to Algiers (1945) is the twelfth entry in the Basil Rathbone/Nigel Bruce Sherlock Holmes film series of fourteen. Elements in the story pay homage to an otherwise unrecorded affair mentioned by Dr. Watson at the beginning of the 1903 story "The Adventure of the Norwood Builder", notably the steamship Friesland.[1] Off-camera, Watson also recounts to his audience another unrecorded affair mentioned in the 1924 story "The Adventure of the Sussex Vampire", that of the Giant Rat of Sumatra,[2] "a story for which the world is not yet prepared". Plot About to leave London for a much-needed holiday, Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson receive a cryptic invitation. Intrigued, Holmes accepts and is met by the prime minister of Rovenia [Rovinia], who begs him to escort Prince Nikolas home. His father has been assassinated, and, as his heir, Nikolas is now king. Holmes agrees. Arrangements have already been made for an airplane. When it develops engine problems, a smaller replacement has room only for the prince and Holmes, leaving Watson behind. When Watson protests, Holmes suggests that he follow on a passenger ship bound for Algiers. On the voyage, Watson reads that the airplane has crashed in the Pyrenees and that it is unlikely that there are any survivors. Holmes, however, has an aversion to plans made by others and is aboard the ship with Nikolas. He instructs Watson to introduce the prince to the other passengers as his nephew. Though Watson suspects everyone, from singer Sheila Woodbury to exercise fanatic Agatha Dunham to a secretive pair who later turn out to be archeologists, of being killers, it is not until the ship makes an unscheduled stop at Lisbon that the real Soviet agents come aboard: Gregor, circus knife-thrower Mirko, and a hulking mute named Gubec. First, Mirko tries to kill Holmes by throwing a knife through a porthole, then Gregor substitutes an explosive party favor, but Holmes foils both attempts. Finally, the villains succeed in kidnapping the prince when they dock at Algiers, only for Holmes to reveal that the "prince" was a decoy; the real prince had been posing as a steward, hidden in plain sight the whole time. The decoy Nikolas is later recovered unharmed. Cast Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes Nigel Bruce as Dr. Watson Marjorie Riordan as Sheila Woodbury Rosalind Ivan as Agatha Dunham Morton Lowry as Steward Leslie Vincent as Prince Nikolas, a.k.a. "Nikolas Watson" Martin Kosleck as Mirko Rex Evans as Gregor John Abbott as Jodri Gerald Hamer as Kingston William 'Wee Willie' Davis as Gubec Tom Dillon as Restaurant Owner Frederick Worlock as Prime Minister Sven Hugo Borg as Johansson

Terror by Night is a 1946 Sherlock Holmes crime drama directed by Roy William Neill and starring Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce. The story revolves around the theft of a famous diamond aboard a train. The film's plot is a mostly original story not directly based on any of Arthur Conan Doyle's Holmes tales, but it uses minor plot elements of "The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle," "The Adventure of the Empty House," "The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax," and The Sign of Four.[1] The film is one of four films in the series which are in the public domain.[2] Plot In London, Vivian Vedder verifies that a carpenter has completed a coffin for her recently deceased mother's body, which she is transporting to Scotland by train. She boards the train that evening, as do Lady Margaret Carstairs, who owns and is transporting the famous Star of Rhodesia diamond; Lady Margaret's son, Roland; Sherlock Holmes, whom Roland has hired to protect the diamond; Inspector Lestrade, who is also worried about the diamond's safety; and Dr. Watson and Watson's friend Major Duncan-Bleek. Holmes briefly examines the diamond. Shortly afterward, Roland is murdered and the diamond is allegedly stolen. Lestrade, Holmes, and Watson learn nothing conclusive in questioning the other passengers. At one point during the investigation, Watson believes an elderly couple is guilty of the crime but the only crime that they have committed is stealing a teapot from a hotel. While searching the train, Holmes is pushed out of the train, nearly to his death, but climbs back into the day coach and discovers a secret compartment in the coffin carrying Miss Vedder's mother. He suspects that one of the people on the train is the notorious jewel thief Colonel Sebastian Moran. Upon further questioning, Miss Vedder admits that a man paid her to transport the coffin. As Watson and Duncan-Bleek join the group, Holmes reveals that he swapped the diamond with an imitation while examining it. Lestrade ostensibly takes possession of the real diamond. In the luggage compartment, Holmes and Watson find a train guard murdered with a poisoned dart. Meanwhile, a street criminal named Sands incapacitates the conductor. Sands was hidden inside the coffin, and is in cahoots with Duncan-Bleek, who is, in fact, Colonel Moran. Sands and Moran go to Lestrade's room, where Sands knocks Lestrade unconscious and steals the diamond from him; but Moran double-crosses Sands, shooting him dead with the same dart gun he used to kill Roland and the guard. The train makes an unexpected stop to pick up several Scottish policemen, led allegedly by Inspector McDonald. Holmes informs McDonald that Duncan-Bleek is really Moran, and McDonald arrests Moran and finds the diamond in his vest, but Moran seizes a policeman's gun and pulls the emergency cord to stop the train. During a scuffle in which the lights are turned off, Holmes subdues and handcuffs Moran, then secretly hides him under a table. When the lights are turned on again, the officers leave the train with Lestrade, his coat covering his face, believing he is Moran. As the train departs, Lestrade captures the thieves in the railway station, and Holmes reveals to Watson and Moran that he recognized McDonald as an impostor and recovered the diamond from him during the fight. Cast Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes Nigel Bruce as Dr. Watson Alan Mowbray as Major Duncan-Bleek/Colonel Sebastian Moran Dennis Hoey as Inspector Lestrade Renee Godfrey as Vivian Vedder Frederick Worlock as Professor Kilbane Mary Forbes as Lady Margaret Carstairs Skelton Knaggs as Sands Billy Bevan as Ticket Collector Geoffrey Steele as The Honourable Roland Carstairs Harry Cording as Mock the coffin maker

Who Killed Doc Robbin is a 1948 film directed by Bernard Carr and starring Larry Olsen, Billy Gray, and Renee Beard. It was produced by Hal Roach and Robert F. McGowan as a reimagining of their Our Gang series. The film was one of "Hal Roach's Streamliners" features of the 1940s, running only 55 minutes, and was designed as a B-movie. Like most of Roach's latter-day output, Who Killed Doc Robbin, the sequel to 1947's Curley, was shot in Cinecolor. The film was released to theatres on April 9, 1948 by United Artists. When Hal Roach sold Our Gang to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1938, he was contractually bound not to produce anymore kids comedies. When Roach decided that he wanted to produce Curley, he got MGM's permission by giving up his right to buy back the name Our Gang. Both Curley and Who Killed Doc Robbin, performed poorly at the box office (as a result, Roach discontinued theatrical film production, turning his studio's efforts towards television), and when Roach bought back the rights to the 1927-1938 Our Gang shorts in 1949, he had to re-christen the series as The Little Rascals. Plot Local scientist Dr. Hugo Robbin dies. Curley and his "gang" happen to have been key witnesses to several of the events, and the children's testimonies are told in flashback during the court case. A group of people find themselves trapped in a creepy mansion, complete with secret passageways, a mad doctor and a murderous gorilla. When Dr. Hugo Robbin's laboratory is blown up, his nurse Ann Loring is charged with murdering the doctor. During her trial, a group of children continually disrupts the courtroom, claiming to have important evidence. The children are finally allowed to testify, but as a result of their testimony, their friend Dan, who runs a repair shop, is now charged with the crime instead of the nurse. The children are now determined to prove Dan's innocence, and they go to the abandoned laboratory to look for evidence, leading to a series of hazardous adventures.

Charlie Chan in the Secret Service is a 1944 mystery film starring Sidney Toler as Charlie Chan. It is the first film made by Monogram Pictures after the series was dropped by 20th Century Fox, and it marks the introduction of Number Three Son (Benson Fong) and taxi driver (later Chan's chauffeur), Birmingham Brown (Mantan Moreland). Plot In the two years since the last Charlie Chan feature film (Castle in the Desert), Charlie Chan is now an agent of the U.S. government working in Washington DC and he is assigned to investigate the murder of the inventor of a highly advanced torpedo. Aiding Chan is his overeager but dull-witted Number Three son Tommy (Benson Fong) and his Number Two Daughter Iris Chan (Marianne Quon). Also involved in the case is the bumbling and easily frightened Birmingham Brown (Mantan Moreland) who works as a limo driver for one of the suspects. Cast Sidney Toler as Charlie Chan Mantan Moreland as Birmingham Brown, Taxi Driver Arthur Loft as Inspector Jones, Secret Service Gwen Kenyon as Inez Arranto Sarah Edwards as Mrs. Hargue, Housekeeper George J. Lewis as Paul Arranto (as George Lewis) Marianne Quon as Iris Chan Benson Fong as Tommy Chan Muni Seroff as Peter Laska Barry Bernard as David Blake Gene Roth as Luis Philipe Vega aka Von Vegon (as Gene Stutenroth) Eddy Chandler as Lewis, Secret Service (as Eddie Chandler) Lelah Tyler as Mrs. Williams Production 20th Century Fox stopped making Charlie Chan films in 1941. In May 1943 Monogram Pictures announced they had purchased the rights to the character from Fox and would make two Charlie Chan films a year. Sidney Toler would reprise his performance as Chan.[2] Keye Luke was reportedly unable to reprise his role as Number One Son, so a search started for an actor to portray Chan's son. In June 1943 Monogram Pictures announced Charlie Chan and the Secret Service would be one of 24 movies and 16 Westerns the studio would make over the following year. This was eight less than the previous year as Monogram said they wanted to make "fewer and higher budgeted pictures". The film was to star Sidney Toler and also include Iris Wong from the Fox movies. In July 1943 Benson Fong was signed to play Chan's son. Wong eventually was replaced by Marianne Quon. Filming started 10 September 1943.