The Thirteenth Guest (1932)

Director:

Albert Ray

Writers:

Armitage Trail (book)
Frances Hyland (screenplay)
(more)

Release Date:

9 August 1932 (USA)

Genre:

Mystery

Tagline:

BAFFLING! BREATHTAKING! CHILLS-THRILLS! (original poster)

Plot:

13 years before the movie opens, there was a dinner party, at which the 13th guest failed to show up...

Plot Keywords:

Police | Guest | Dinner | Suspicion | Telephone

Cast

Ginger Rogers	...	Lela / Marie Morgan
Lyle Talbot	...	Phil Winston
J. Farrell MacDonald	...	Police Capt. Ryan
Paul Hurst	...	Detective Grump
Erville Alderson	...	Uncle John Adams
Ethel Wales	...	Aunt Jane Thornton
James Eagles	...	Harold 'Bud' Morgan
Crauford Kent	...	Dr. Sherwood (as Craufurd Kent)
Eddie Phillips	...	Thor Jensen
Frances Rich	...	Marjorie Thornton
Phillips Smalley	...	Uncle Dick Thornton
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Lynton Brent	...	Prisoner (uncredited)
Al Bridge	...	Policeman (uncredited)
Bobby Burns	...	Photographer (uncredited)
Allan Cavan	...	Uncle Wayne Seymour (uncredited)
William B. Davidson	...	Police Capt. Brown (uncredited)
Adrienne Dore	...	Winston's Date (uncredited)
Kit Guard	...	Prisoner (uncredited)
Henry Hall	...	Police Sergeant Jailer (uncredited)
John Ince	...	Uncle John Morgan (uncredited)
Robert Klein	...	John Barksdale (uncredited)
Isabel La Mal	...	Marie's Mother (uncredited)
Tom London	...	Detective Carter (uncredited)
Charles Meecham	...	Marie's Father (uncredited)
Tiny Sandford	...	Mike, Jailer (uncredited)
Harry Tenbrook	...	Cabby (uncredited)

Directed by
Albert Ray

Writing credits
Armitage Trail		(book)
Frances Hyland		(screenplay)
Arthur Hoerl		screenplay (uncredited)

Produced by
M.H. Hoffman	....	producer

Cinematography by
Tom Galligan		(photographed by)
Harry Neumann		(photographed by)

Film Editing by
Leete Renick Brown		(as Leete R. Brown)

Art Direction by
Eugene Hornboestel		(as Gene Hornbostel)

Production Management
Sidney Algier	....	production manager
Trem Carr	....	vice president in charge of production

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Gene Anderson	....	assistant director

Production Companies

• Monogram Pictures

Distributors

• Monogram Pictures (1932) (USA) (theatrical)
• Equity British Films (1932) (UK) (theatrical)

Other Companies

• Balsley-Philllips  sound recording

Also Known As:

Runtime:

69 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Filming Locations:

Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Monogram Pictures

Trivia:

During the impressive film career of Ginger Rogers - her Hollywood era totaling 73 feature appearances between 1930 and 1965 - only five of her movies failed to be rewarded with contemporary New York Times reviews: this picture, Rafter Romance (1933), the British-made Twist of Fate (1954), The First Traveling Saleslady (1956) and The Confession (1964).

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): Phil Winston (Lyle Talbot) is wearing a wedding ring throughout the film, despite playing an unmarried man.

Movie Connections:

Version of Mystery of the 13th Guest (1943)

Soundtrack:

Academic Festival Overture

"At the sound of the gong, the time will be......"

A millionaire Morgan invited 12 of his family members to his house for a dinner party (but only 11 showed up), but the host died in the middle of the event. Thirteen years later the house remains boarded up when Morgan's daughter Mary arrives, but is killed by a mysterious person walking in the house. Captain Ryan calls in investigator Phil Winston to help solve the case. Winston and Ryan suspect the family lawyer Barksdale, but later he is found murdered in the house. The two believe that one of the people invited to the party is the killer and question all the family members, but later Mary Morgan reappears and Winston finds out someone hired a woman to impersonate her in order to get her inheritance. Winston has to make sure all of the family members are watched, in order to make sure the real Mary Morgan doesn't become a victim. I was slightly disappointed by the movie considering it struggled to flow smoothly in terms of direction and script. Talbot was playing the role as if to get some scout from MGM to notice him. The rest of the cast (including Rogers) played their roles to the typical Old Dark House mystery movie stereotype. The film seemed to appear to be the first of a series with Talbot's character. It should have been better. Rating, 5.