I Love a Mystery

First of three B detective films from Columbia featuring Jack Packard (Jim Bannon) and his sidekick Doc Long (Barton Yarborough). The story here begins with the decapitation of a man named Jefferson Monk (what a name -- sounds like a superhero's secret identity). Through flashback, we find out Monk approached Packard and Doc for help earlier. He was told by a cult leader he would be dead within a year if he didn't sell them his head! Now the year is almost up. I can't even begin to describe anything else without ruining it for you.

This series was also a popular radio series back in the day. I listened to a lot of old time radio shows on satellite radio years ago. I don't remember ever hearing this program but I do remember Barton Yarborough quite well from other shows. Nobody who's heard his Huckleberry Hound accent is likely to forget it anytime soon. It's a little annoying but he's the comic relief sidekick so I tried to tolerate it. This is one of three films Nina Foch made with George Macready for Columbia in 1945. The most notable one being My Name Is Julia Ross.

Employs the dreaded "flashback-within-a-flashback" device but it doesn't hurt as the plot is simple enough to follow. Some nice atmosphere and creepy moments, such as when a peg-legged man with a mask attacks Monk on a foggy street. The decapitation angle seems pretty risqué for the time. It's a bizarre and enjoyable entry into a very crowded genre.

The "I Love A Mystery" radio series starred three heroes--Jack, played by Jim Bannon. Doc, played by Barton Yarbarough, and the British Reggie, played by an up and coming American radio voice actor named Tony Randall.

The three films that were based on the series starred the original actors who played Jack and Doc--but Reggie was nowhere to be seen. What happened? Maybe Bannon and Yarborough physical appearances resembled their radio voices, but poor Randall didn't and the radio show didn't want him in the movie because it might ruin what listeners imagined what Reggie looked like.

Whatever the cause, Tony Randall would have to wait about another ten years or say to get his movie fame,while Jim Bannon and Barton Yarborough would fade to nostalgic obscurity of what-ever-happened-to-land and answers to Trivial Pursuit Games.

BTW. in case you're wondering. I liked the movies. They're from an age of long ago when you based movies on pulp stories and radio shows. Cheese, you say? Well, I LOVE cheese! :) Class Dismissed!

"I Love a Mystery," based on the radio program of the same name, is a 1945 film starring Jim Bannon, Barton Yarborough, George Macready, and Nina Foch. Packard and Doc Long (Bannon and Yarborough) meet Macready in a nightclub with a woman - apparently he knows when he's going to die. A cult, whose ancient leader Macready resembles, wants his head, I guess to replace it on their leader's mummified body, and one of the members is following him. The detectives agree to follow Macready home to see if they can spot the man, and they do.

As preposterous as it sounds (and it is), this is actually a pretty neat mystery, done on New York set at Columbia. There's lots of dry ice and a dark, noirish atmosphere, as well as a few plot twists. It's quite entertaining as well as not being terribly long. And it's a good cast, with the highlights being Macready and Foch as his crippled wife. Growing up, Nina Foch to me was an older woman who did television and quiz shows; later on, I knew she became a big acting teacher in L.A. It's fun to see her as a young woman in films such as this one. It was also fun because I remember Bannon's son from "Lou Grant."

I Love a Mystery (1945)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

The first of three films from Columbia based around the popular radio program I Love a Mystery. In the film, detectives Jack Packard (Jim Bannon) and Doc Long (Barton Yarborough) meet a man (George Macready) who fears he's going to die in a matter of days because a secret cult wants his head to put on the body of their mummified master. The detectives begin to unravel clues that might lead to the man's wife (Nina Foch) who is also being stalked by the cult. Due to how they were showed on TCM I ended up watching the second film in the series, THE DEVIL'S MASK, first and hated it from start to finish so I really wasn't sure what to expect from this film. Turns out that it's one of the more unique murder/mysteries from this era due to dark, foggy streets, a rich atmosphere, interesting characters and a rather ugly subject matter. The word decapitation is used throughout this film and one of the biggest plot moves is that this man is going to have his head cut off. How this got past the censors is beyond me but it's these dark touches that really make this film stick out, especially when compared to other films like this. Director Levin does a very good job at building up the atmosphere as we get several classic touches from the dark streets, people hiding in shadows and of course one plot twist happening after another. The movie actually manages to be very believable in all the twists that happen and it's helped even more by the fact that the mystery itself is a good one. Bannon is very good in the role and his laid back approach makes for an interesting leading man. Yarborough, playing pretty much a country bumpkin, isn't too bad either. Macready does a real good job playing the scared man who feels he's about to die. The film belongs to the ladies though as Foch is terrific in her few scenes as the wife and we also get a great femme fatal in Carole Mathews playing a strange woman who Macready meets in a bar. At 69-minutes the film runs just long enough to get enough right and it doesn't over welcome itself by going for too long. Fans of this genre will want to check this out just for the darker than normal subject matter and the fun performances.

Despite the comments by the other reviewer, I thot this was one of THE most entertaining mysteries of the 30's - 40's! (And, I own over 700 films!). It contains MANY plot twists, and plot "twist-twists"; nothing is as it seems. The entire film gives a creepy, "something is about to happen" atmosphere and shows a VERY creative author, as Calton E. Morse was! A mystery you won't forget!

Norm