The Lone Wolf Meets a Lady

"The cleverest wolf.... still ends up as a fur coat!" A witticism from the long-suffering "Insp. Crane" (Thurston Hall) as he yet again finds himself accusing his constant antagonist "Lanyard" (Warren William) of being embroiled in (fake) jewellery theft and murder! This time though, he and loyal "Jamison" (Eric Blore) are taking the fall for "Joan" (Jean Muir) who had teed up an advantageous marriage with the son of a wealthy woman before she finds herself accused of murder. After an high-speed near miss with our sleuths, she finds her future is wrapped up with their's. With the police on their trail, "Lanyard" et al must rush to find out just what happened and who did what. This adventure provides some better examples of the quickly paced and engaging banter between William and Blore, with the latter frequently making observations that raise a smile and he juggles his innate curiosity with him "never denying his cowardice"... Sure, there's little jeopardy here but Muir has a bit more to her as the put-upon dame and there's actually more comedy to appreciate here, too.

I'd never heard of the Lone Wolf before watching this one but I ended up enjoying it a great deal. Much of that comes down to the unexpected comedy which makes this film a humorous treat. In particular, the witty interplay between the Wolf and his British manservant adds plenty of laughs to the proceedings. The film starts off with an involved little set up which sees an innocent woman getting framed for murder, and when the Lone Wolf gets drawn in when he vows to clear her name in any way he can. The plot twists and turns come thick and fast here and they never forget the laughs either. I'll watch more.

The Lone Wolf Meets a Lady from 1940 stars Warren William in the eponymous role, real name Michael Lanyard, costarring Eric Blore and Jean Muir.

Muir plays Joan Bradley, a secretary to the wealthy Mrs. Penyon (Georgia Caine), who becomes engaged to her son Bob (Warren Hull). She is gifted a $100,000 necklace, a family heirloom. When she returns home to get ready for a party, her husband, believed dead, shows up.

In the end, he's murdered, the necklace is stolen, and, terrified, she runs, nearly run over by Lanyard and his assistant Jamison (Blore).

Lanyard takes Joan under his wing and works on not only getting her out of trouble but solving both the murder and the theft.

William makes a terrific Wolf, and he and Jamison are hilarious together, with Jamison practicing his singing on a recording device which is used to help the case - until it's interrupted by a tune from Jamison. The exasperated police are well played by Thurston Hall and Fred Kelsey.

Very entertaining.

Always enjoy the great acting of Warren William, (Michael Lanyard/Lone Wolf) and his partner, Jamison, (Eric Blore) who were planning on a nice trip to Lake Placid, N.Y. for some fun in the snow. However, their trip is upset because they almost run over a young lady who ran in the front of their automobile. This lady was Joan Bradley, (Jean Muir) who is a pretty blonde socialite about to get married and is robbed of a diamond necklace worth a great deal of money. Joan witnessed a murder and tells Michael Lanyard the entire story and he decides to help her get out of this mess of a situation she got herself into by giving her an alibi. The plot thickens and there are many twists and turns. There are plenty of laughs and you will never be able to figure out just who is the killer until the very end of the film.

Enjoyable Lone Wolf film with plenty of twists in the plot and a hero who is suave and cunning. The witty one liners from the characters melds well with the snappy pace.