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Whistling in the Dark (1941)

 -  Comedy | Mystery  -  8 August 1941 (USA)
6.8
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Ratings: 6.8/10 from 398 users  
Reviews: 13 user | 5 critic

Radio crime show host 'The Fox' along with his fiancée and ex-girlfriend are kidnapped by a larcenous cult who demand that he help them plan a perfect murder.

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Writers:

(screenplay), (screenplay), 5 more credits »
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Title: Whistling in the Dark (1941)

Whistling in the Dark (1941) on IMDb 6.8/10

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Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
...
...
...
Virginia Grey ...
'Fran' Post
Rags Ragland ...
Sylvester (as 'Rags' Ragland)
Henry O'Neill ...
Philip Post
...
'Buzz' Baker
Paul Stanton ...
Jennings
Donald Douglas ...
Gordon Thomas (as Don Douglas)
Don Costello ...
'Noose' Green
William Tannen ...
Robert Graves
Reed Hadley ...
Beau Smith
Mariska Aldrich ...
Lloyd Corrigan ...
Harvey Upshaw
George M. Carleton ...
Deputy Commissioner O'Neill (as George Carleton)
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Storyline

The operators of 'Silver Haven', a cultish group bilking gullible rich people out of money, is set to inherit a large sum after the deceased woman's heir also dies. Leader Joesph Jones decides to hurry the process along and kidnaps Wally Benton, his fiance and a friend to further this goal. Wally is "The Fox", a radio sleuth who solves murders on the air. Jones wants him to devise a perfect murder and isn't above killing others sloppily along the way to get his foolproof murder plot. Written by Ron Kerrigan <mvg@whidbey.com>

Plot Summary | Add Synopsis

Plot Keywords:

murder | radio | fiance | murder plot | heir | See more »

Taglines:

with RED SKELTON, comic of "Lady Be Good" See more »

Genres:

Comedy | Mystery

Certificate:

Approved | See all certifications »
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Details

Country:

Language:

Release Date:

8 August 1941 (USA)  »

Also Known As:

Herdeiro em Apuros  »

Company Credits

Show detailed on  »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

(Western Electric Sound System)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1
See  »
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Did You Know?

Trivia

The play opened on Broadway in New York City, New York, USA on 19 January 1932 and had 265 performances. The opening night cast included Edward Arnold, Claire Trevor, Ernest Truex and Arthur Vinton. See more »

Quotes

Carol Lambert: Wally, this is no time to crack wise.
Wally 'The Fox' Benton: If I don't crack wise I'll crack up.
See more »

Connections

Followed by Whistling in Dixie (1942) See more »

Frequently Asked Questions

See more (Spoiler Alert!) »

User Reviews

 
Skelton makes promising debut as star but flat one-liners don't help...
23 October 2005 | by (U.S.A.) – See all my reviews

You have to be awfully patient to sit through a film with one-liners so flat and unfunny that you wonder what all the fuss was about when WHISTLING IN THE DARK opened to such an enthusiastic greeting from audiences in the 1940s.

On top of some weak one-liners and ordinary sight gags, the plot is as far-fetched as the tales The Fox (Red Skelton) tells his radio audience. You have to wonder why anyone would think he could come up with a real-life solution on how to commit the perfect crime and get away with it. But then, that's how unrealistic the comedy is.

But--if you're a true Red Skelton fan and enjoy a look back at how comedies were made in the '40s--you can at least enjoy the amiable cast supporting him. Ann Rutherford and Virginia Grey do nicely as his love interest and Conrad Veidt, as always, makes an interesting villain. One of his more amusing moments is his reaction to Skelton explaining the mysteries of wearing turbans. "I never knew that," he muses, impressed by a minor point that is cleverly introduced.

All in all, typical nonsense that requires you to accept the lack of credibility and just accept the gags as they are. Not always easy for a discriminating viewer as many of them simply fall flat, the way many comedies of this era do because the novelty of the sight gags and one-liners has simply worn off.


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