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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   283 votes
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Director:
Writers:
Contact:
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Release Date:
9 September 1939 (USA) more
Genre:
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:
User Comments:
The old-fashioned charm of the Keene novels is missing... more (14 total)

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:
Language:
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (Vitaphone)
Certification:

Fun Stuff

Quotes:
Carson Drew: Here's a check for the butcher. Tell him he's been cutting the meat so thin lately it only has one side.
Effie Schneider, the Housekeeper: Yes sir, shall I tell him which side?
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FAQ

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5 out of 13 people found the following comment useful.
The old-fashioned charm of the Keene novels is missing..., 15 September 2003
Author: Neil Doyle from U.S.A.

Warner Bros. filmed several of these Nancy Drew stories in the late 1930s with Bonita Granville, Frankie Thomas and John Litel top-billed and this one is probably the best--and the only one actually based on one of the early Carolyn Keene novels.

But the script is a hapless, far-fetched one and really stretches credibility and patience when viewed today. Only a certain nostalgia for these kind of B-films that played the lower half of a double bill can have any appeal for modern viewers.

The actors aren't to blame. Bonita Granville as Nancy does an excellent job, as does Frankie Thomas as her All-American boyfriend Ted, and John Litel as her lawyer father. All of it, however, is weakened by a poor script and a weak storyline. Only the last twenty minutes or so maintains any real suspense.

Most of it is pretty uninvolving but appeals more as a curiosity piece than anything else.

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