Footsteps in the Dark (1941)

A respected investment advisor has a double life as a mystery writer and becomes involved in the real murder of a shady client.

Director:

Lloyd Bacon

Writers:

Ladislas Fodor (play), Bernard Merivale (play),

Stars:

Errol Flynn, Brenda Marshall, Ralph Bellamy

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Errol Flynn	...	Francis Monroe Warren II
Brenda Marshall	...	Rita Warren
Ralph Bellamy	...	Dr. R.L. Davis
Alan Hale	...	Police Insp. Charles M. Mason
Lee Patrick	...	Blondie White
Allen Jenkins	...	Mr. Wilfred
Lucile Watson	...	Mrs. Agatha Archer
William Frawley	...	Det. 'Hoppy' Hopkins
Roscoe Karns	...	Monahan
Grant Mitchell	...	Wellington Carruthers
Maris Wrixon	...	June Brewster
Noel Madison	...	Leopold Fissue
Jack La Rue	...	Ace Vernon (as Jack LaRue)
Turhan Bey	...	Ahmed
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
George Campeau	...	Burlesque Patron (scenes deleted)

Storyline

A high-society gent has a secret life - he writes murder mysteries and hangs out with the police attempting to solve crimes. This causes him no end of problems when his wife wants to know about his little disappearances and exceptionally late nights out.

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Plot Keywords:

murder | mystery writer | double life | police | yacht | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Mystery | Crime

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 March 1941 (USA)

Also Known As:

Pasos en la oscuridad

Filming Locations:

Warner Brothers Burbank Studios - 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The original play called "Katzenzungen" was written by Ladislas Fodor using the pseudonym W. George Selous. It was adapted into English by Bernard Merivale, with additional dialogue by Jeffrey Dell, and produced in London under the title "Blondie White."

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Goofs

On the label for the Novocain at the dentist's office, epinephrine is misspelled 'epinephin'.

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Quotes

Police Insp. Charles M. Mason: [Showing Francis the clue of a woman's broken high heel] What do you make of this, my omniscient friend?
Francis Monroe Warren II: Why don't you see a fortune teller?

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Connections

References The Maltese Falcon (1931)

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Soundtracks

"Love Me"
(uncredited)
Music by M.K. Jerome
Lyrics by Jack Scholl
Sung by Lee Patrick and chorus at the burlesque theater

User Reviews

A fun and delightful comedy/ murder mystery

Errol Flynn is a very underrated actor when it comes to comedy. People just see him as a swashbuckler, dashing action hero. Not as a actor who could do any role from any type of genre. In Footsteps in the Dark he's very amusing and witty in his role as a person who lives a double life. In the day he's a insurance investigator, who goes by the name of Francis Warren and to his lovely wife a man who spends late nights at representative meetings. But in reality by night he's a crime solver/ murder investigator who what he sees he writes into his novels, and his latest book called by the same name of the film has raised eyebrows all over town and everyone is wondering who is this F.X. Pettijohn. When Francis' wife finds out the truth the sparks really begin to fly. Errol Flynn is absolutely hilarious in this role and Alan Hale, Brenda Marshall, William Frawley, and Ralph Bellamy do a fine job in backing up Errol. The movie has a lot of funny moments. Some of these include how Francis explains his way out of a jam with his wife and mother in-law. Others include Francis portrayal as a rich Texan named Tex, who Errol Flynn plays with a hick accent and an amusing cowboy walk, which can't be missed. Absolutely funny, it had me in tears. There is wrong thing though that i don't like about the film, and that is it's lack of crime solving clues and interrogation of suspects. It's not like Charlie Chan with it's clever crime solving. Their are a couple of clues here and there, but nothing clever though. Still the film is very delightful to watch and funny and I think it's much more entertaining to watch then other the Errol/ Brenda film they did together the year before this, The Sea Hawk. **1/2 out of ****