The House on 92nd Street (1945)

Bill Dietrich becomes a double agent for the FBI in a Nazi spy ring.

Director:

Henry Hathaway

Writers:

Barré Lyndon (screenplay), Charles G. Booth (screenplay),

Stars:

William Eythe, Lloyd Nolan, Signe Hasso

Won 1 Oscar. Another 1 win.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
William Eythe	...	Bill Dietrich
Lloyd Nolan	...	Agent George A. Briggs
Signe Hasso	...	Elsa Gebhardt
Gene Lockhart	...	Charles Ogden Roper
Leo G. Carroll	...	Col. Hammersohn
Lydia St. Clair	...	Johanna Schmidt
William Post Jr.	...	Walker (as William Post)
Harry Bellaver	...	Max Cobura
Bruno Wick	...	Adolf Lange
Harro Meller	...	Conrad Arnulf
Charles Wagenheim	...	Gustav Hausmann
Alfred Linder	...	Adolf Klein
Renee Carson	...	Luise Vadja

Storyline

Preface: a stentorian narrator tells us that the USA was flooded with Nazi spies in 1939-41. One such tries to recruit college grad Bill Dietrich, who becomes a double agent for the FBI. While Bill trains in Hamburg, a street-accident victim proves to have been spying on atom-bomb secrets; conveniently, Dietrich is assigned to the New York spy ring stealing these secrets. Can he track down the mysterious "Christopher" before his ruthless associates unmask and kill him?

---

Plot Keywords:

nazi | fbi | double agent | spy | spy ring | 

---

Taglines:

These were the hunted... this is the house... this is the picture!

---

Genres:

Crime | Drama | Film-Noir | Mystery | Thriller

---

Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English German

Release Date:

10 September 1945 (USA)

Also Known As:

Now It Can Be Told

Filming Locations:

George Washington Bridge, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Many of the bit roles in this film were played by real FBI agents, and this was their only film.

---

Goofs

When the agents are preparing to do the first survey of the house they are wearing CD (Civil Defense) arm bands on their right arms. The next scene shows them approaching the house and the arm bands are now on their left arms.

---

Quotes

Bill Dietrich: How do I get in touch with Christopher?
Col. Hammersohn: Why?
Bill Dietrich: Well, he's my boss. I've never even met him.
Col. Hammersohn: Well, he's my boss too,
Bill Dietrich: Yeah?
Col. Hammersohn: I haven't met him either.

---

Crazy Credits

Opening credits are shown as someone flipping through the pages of a file.

---

Connections

Spin-off The Street with No Name (1948)

---

Soundtracks

"You Say the Sweetest Things (Baby)"
(uncredited)
Music by Harry Warren
Played as background music at the talent agent's office

User Reviews

Viewed as a period piece, semi-documentary about Nazi espionage still holds interest

This is the story of how the FBI supposedly cracked a Nazi espionage ring on the trail of Manhattan Project (the A-Bomb) in the early years of World War II. As a movie, its chief significance is that it kicked off a spate of semi-documentary movies paying tribute to one or another of the U.S. government's law enforcement agencies and celebrating Our Tax Dollars at Work. Such films became a staple of the noir cycle; a few of them even achieved distinction (T-Men, for instance).

William Eythe, a young American, is recruited by and trained in Germany to be a spy; in fact he works as a double agent for the FBI. The film, shot largely on location, traces the actions of the nest of vipers on New York's upper east side. Their unofficial master seems to be Signe Hasso, under cover of running a chic dress boutique. Her opposite number, who runs Eythe, is Lloyd Nolan (who was to reprise his role as Inspector Briggs in subsequent films).

The film's period flavor keeps it from seeming too dated, because the spying looks quite primitive to audiences spoiled by James Bond gimmickry and later, even more sophisticated, espionage thrillers. And, from a modern perspective, the smug boastfulness about the Bureau's -- and America's -- infallibility becomes a bit hard to swallow. There's little texture or nuance in the film, but, as a quasi-historical document, it exerts its own fascination.