Ans: The Thin Man
Question: What has witty banter, double entendres, romance and Murder!!! With a capital M?
What theater patrons may have been shopping for at the time of this release-
Left- Vintage ads for Irresistible Beauty Aids circa mid ‘30s
Below — The Thin man trailer
You are all invited to Nick and Nora Charles annual Christmas party but make sure you have an alibi- an alibi for murder…!!!
The Thin Man - Starring William Powell and Myrna Loy and Asta. Dashiell Hammett’s iconic characters are brought to life in a brilliantly double entendre laden script featuring some of the most fun an adult could have at the cinema. Witty one liners and a “who done it “ that will have you guessing right up to the last piece of celluloid.
Powell and Loy have what you call screen chemistry. It helped that they had appeared on screen several times before this outing making each every film in the The Thin man franchise a like a family reunion. And never a forced scene or dialog. Loaded with charm and very risque humor. Nick and Nora Charles investigate a very quirky set of suspects a most dysfunctional family. Nick is a retired detective who has been managing his father-in-laws business affairs.
What happened to one of the most brilliant but scattered headed inventor.Did he just decide to disappear, did he run off with his mistress was it a case of foul play. Well for Nick Charles it seems to point to all. But is he on the case. Nick retired from solving cases..now he just finishes them off and with the help of his beautiful wife and of course Asta is not far behind. But never around when there is a burglar, she usually can be found hiding under the bed.
An incredible cast of characters and a excellent bit of casting in the supporting roles. Caesare Romero(Batman 60’s TV- Disneys’ Dexter Riley film series), a young Maureen O’Sullivan(pre Tarzan days), Edward Ellis, Edward Brophy ( known for his cop n gangster roles). Too many to list.
The Bluray has the original theatrical trailer and the Lux Radio Broadcast (Audio only) of the The Thin Man starring both the original starts of the film… great fun and making this a very nostalgic release.
The Thin Man(1934) upon release garnered several OSCAR nominations including Best Picture . The Thin Man was added in the US National Film Registry IN 1997. This is bestowed upon cinema that is considered culturally, aesthetically or historically significant.
Released in 1934, this comedy -mystery had the benefit of being a pre-Code. Prior to the Haye’s Code- censorship. This aloud for all the jokes featuring the witty banter and implied sexual connotations. It also featured Nick and Nora with a glass of something in their hands or sipping from throughout the film. Try counting how many times by just the Charles themselves. The average person would be snockered, probably within the first 20 minutes. The film also was the spark for 5 more in the series. All of them worthy of tribute.
Above -Drums of Fu Manchu starring Henry Brandon as the fiendish Dr and Myrna Loy as his loyal daughter. This is one to seek out. a rare performance by Myrna as a villainess…incredible sets loaded with atmosphere and plenty of scares-plus an array of stunt work.
Myrna Loy started out in silents before making the switch to sound. Her rise to fame was very evident during 1933- 1938 and making her a household name. She starred along and with the likes of Cary Grant& Shirley Temple (Bachelor and The Bobby- Soxer 1947)..The Best Years of Our Lives with Fredric March. And she was one with talent ..comic timing and very capable of playing straight dramatic roles… especially in John Steinbeck’s The Red Pony along side Robert Mitchum and the original Cheaper by the Dozen 1950 (Clifton Webb).
William Powell and Loy did radio in between films …perfecting their craft.
William was an actor who play a wide range of characters and roles. Comedy, drama and . He also started in silent films. After playing scoundrels and villains and gaining an ample amount of experience together with a soft spoken voice and excellent diction he graduated to starring roles and playing the leading man. Nominated for an OSCAR 3 times.
One could say that playing a detective was in his blood. Besides appearing as Nick Charles in the The Thin Man films Mr Powell was sleuthing his way through 5 films as Philo Vance. In fact the in joke can be found in the trailer for The The Thin Man in this very article(look above). Other films of mention include his final performance in 1955'’s Mister Roberts( a young Jack Lemmon and Henry Fonda), The Great Ziegfeld (Best Picture 1936), Life With Father and Mr Peabody and the Mermaid. He retired in 1955… early and enjoyed the next 29 years.
The production crew behind the scenes insured nothing but an instant classic for the times and beyond with Cinematography by James Wong Howe and marvelous direction by W.S Van Dyke.
Below- a very well written and brilliantly acted scene from The Thin Man- Nick using his wit and smarts to turn the tables on one of the possible suspects while being held at gunpoint. Funny and suspenseful
One of my favs bedside the first one is Song of the Thin Man . It was also the last sad to say. Their “swan song” . Set in the world of swing and late night jazz fests we are treated to a fun adventure with lots of music pieces and an iconic character actor Keenan Wynn showing Nick and Nora his world of jam parties, swirling smoke in backroom parlors filled with trumpets,horns and drums. All along the way in solving the latest case that Nick always says “look I’m retired, I just manage my father-in-laws’ money. Sit around and relax ..tip back a few.” or “I married for Money”We know Nora is going to drag Nick in to any case ..she just loves how he investigates…and gets to the bottom…But hey we know Nick loves Nora and she in turn loves Nick.. they are a most watchable couple.
Worthy to note beside the six Thin Man films in the series it also spawned a Television show in the late ’50s with Peter Lawford as Nick Charles. So visit Warner Archive @ the Warner Bros Shop. Currently the rest of the film franchise is available on DVD..hopefully soon to get Bluray releases as well … everyone is a gem.
- **Would love to see a new series of films or a TV show. I think the closest we have seen of this caliber is Moonlighting with Cybil Sheppard and Bruce Willis.
- *** Rotten Tomatoes rating — 97% and an audience rating of 93% …can’t lose with those odds….
So please make sure this is on your list of must haves ….It is one of my all time favorites and proudly in my personal collection. An excellent Thanksgiving matinee or have a marathon on Halloween night just make sure there plenty of glasses and a nice thunderstorm to set the mood…
Links to —
WB Shop -Warner Bros Studio/ Warner Archive/DC Comics
https://twitter.com/WarnerArchive
- ALSO digital copies available to stream/purchase via Amazon, Vudu and Fandango.
