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IMDb > Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase (1939)

Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase (1939) More at IMDbPro »


Overview

User Rating:
6.7/10   273 votes
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Director:
William Clemens
Writers:
Mildred Wirt Benson (novel)
Kenneth Gamet (writer)
Contact:
View company contact information for Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
9 September 1939 (USA) more
Genre:
Comedy | Crime | Mystery more
Plot:
Nancy helps two aging spinsters fulfill the byzantine provisions of their father's will, but the murder of their chauffeur complicates matters. full summary | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
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User Comments:
Fourth, final, delightful entry in the terrific "Nancy Drew' Series more

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)
Bonita Granville ... Nancy Drew
Frankie Thomas ... Ted Nickerson
John Litel ... Carson Drew
Frank Orth ... Captain Tweedy
Renie Riano ... Effie Schneider, the Housekeeper
Vera Lewis ... Miss Rosemary Turnbull
Louise Carter ... Miss Floretta Turnbull
William Gould ... Daniel Talbert
George Guhl ... Smitty, a Policeman
John Ridgely ... Reporter
William Hopper ... Reporter (as DeWolf Hopper)
Creighton Hale ... Reporter
Frank Mayo ... Tribune Photographer
Frederic Tozere ... District Attorney's Investigator
Don Rowan ... Phillips the Chauffeur
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Additional Details

Runtime:
60 min
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (Vitaphone)
Certification:
Australia:G | USA:Approved (PCA #3409)

Fun Stuff

Quotes:
Ted Nickerson: [frustratedly] Some day I'm gonna get psychoanalyzed and find out why I'm such a dope. more
Movie Connections:
Follows Nancy Drew -- Detective (1938) more

FAQ

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15 out of 16 people found the following comment useful:-
Fourth, final, delightful entry in the terrific "Nancy Drew' Series, 12 October 2002
10/10
Author: sdiner82 (sdiner82@aol.com) from New York City, USA

From 1938 to 1939, Warner Bros. produced four entries in its "Nancy Drew" series. Each is a perfect delight; why didn't the studio continue making more of them? Perky, blonde, vivacious Bonita Granville is perfection as the feisty teenaged sleuth. John Litel is equally solid and dependable as her tolerant dad. Rene Riano is a joy as the Drews' long-suffering but devoted housekeeper. And the underrated Frankie Thomas outshines them all with his droll, engaging, All-American-Boy niceness as Nancy's would-be boyfriend Ted, whom Nancy drags reluctantly into each of her outlandish crime-solving schemes. This final entry packs more fun, suspense, and twisty plot turns into a mere 60 minutes than most of today's bloated bombs manage to squeeze into two hours. The Drew's home, nestled on a cozy small-town American street, complete with picket fences and old-fashioned street lights, could be a block away from the Hardy family's domain. Although done on a B-budget, the production values of the entire Nancy Drew series are first-rate (craftily utilizing the sets of Warners' big-budget films of the era). Watch "Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase" (and spend the night in a "haunted" house, shivering along with Nancy and Ted) and I guarantee you'll be hooked--and searching TCM's listings for showings of the other three entries in the series. Mystery, wry comedy, spine-chilling suspense, first-rate writing, crisp direction, and endearing performances by actors with charisma to spare--movies of any generation don't get any better than this! The Drew series quartet is a fascinating forerunner of the teenagers-in-jeopardy genre revived in 1978 by "Halloween" (and a thousand imitators) for a more blood-thirsty generation. There's not one single drop of blood to be seen in the entire Nancy Drew series, but the suspense and chills are no less palpable. Catch these unsung classics as soon as possible. After 60-some years, they are still fresh as if newly minted, and thoroughly irresistible.

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Something to keep in mind when watching this movie: kahloesque
So is Ted Nancy's boyfriend or not? scopeforimagination
whats with ted wert07
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