Song of the Thin Man (1947)

Nick and Nora investigate the murder of a bandleader in New York.

Director:

Edward Buzzell

Writers:

Steve Fisher (screen play), Nat Perrin (screen play)

Stars:

William Powell, Myrna Loy, Keenan Wynn

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
William Powell	...	Nick Charles
Myrna Loy	...	Nora Charles
Keenan Wynn	...	Clarence 'Clinker' Krause
Dean Stockwell	...	Nick Charles Jr.
Phillip Reed	...	Tommy Edlon Drake (as Philip Reed)
Patricia Morison	...	Phyllis Talbin
Leon Ames	...	Mitchell Talbin
Gloria Grahame	...	Fran Ledue Page
Jayne Meadows	...	Janet Thayar
Ralph Morgan	...	David I. Thayar
Bess Flowers	...	Jessica Thayar
Don Taylor	...	Buddy Hollis
Warner Anderson	...	Dr. Monolaw
Bruce Cowling	...	Phil Orval Brant
Connie Gilchrist	...	Bertha

Storyline

Nick and Nora Charles are asked by Phil Brant and Janet Thayar, who have just eloped, to help them after band leader Tommy Drake is killed at a society dance which Nick and Nora also attended. The police are looking to arrest Brant for the murder and while he claims he's innocent, Nick isn't too keen on having him in the house and turns him over to the police. As they look into the case, Nick and Nora learn that Drake wasn't very well liked and there are actually several people who benefited from his death. Drake owed money to loan shark Al Amboy, and Janet's father disliked Brant and may have set him up. Drake's girlfriend may have been having a fling with clarinetist Buddy Hollis, and he and Drake had a fist fight on stage during the festivities. Nick arranges for another party on the same boat where Nora notices something quite peculiar about one of the guest's jewelry.

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Plot Keywords:

spanking | private detective | marriage | jazz | sixth part | 

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Taglines:

WILLIAM POWELL and MYRNA LOY and me too. We're all together again in a NEW MGM mystery comedy! [me too refers to their (Nick & Noras') dog in the film]

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Genres:

Comedy | Crime | Musical | Mystery

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

September 1947 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Canção dos Acusados

Filming Locations:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,670,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

86 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The sixth of six "Thin Man" movies released by MGM from 1934-47 starring William Powell and Myrna Loy, filmed early January-mid March 1947.

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Goofs

When Asta lifts his paw to his eye in the baggage car scene, the wire controlling his paw is visible.

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Quotes

Clarence 'Clinker' Krause: [utters impenetrable stream of jazz-cat hipster argot]
Nick Charles: Mrs. Charles always wears her mouth open with this outfit.

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Connections

Featured in Myrna Loy: So Nice to Come Home to (1991)

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Soundtracks

Oh Where, O Where Ish My Little Dog Gone?
Child's song composed by Septimus Winner in 1864 originally written in German
strains are part of background music

User Reviews

Tiresome story depends heavily on Loy/Powell chemistry...

It was inevitable that "The Thin Man" series would run out of steam eventually and this last entry is probably why both Powell and Loy never made another one. The background for this mystery is a gambling boat with jazz musicians giving the film a very dated look because of all the jive talk, circa 1940s.

And as usual, there are more suspects than there are murders, with Asta and Mrs. Charles trying to help Nick solve the crime. MGM spared no expense in giving the film a glossy, polished look and a sparkling supporting cast--PATRICIA MORISON, LEON AMES, GLORIA GRAHAME, KEENAN WYNN, DEAN STOCKWELL (then 11) and PHILIP REED.

The problem is the usual flaw in these Nick and Nora mysteries--the viewer never gets enough clues to solve the crime along with the two sleuths. You're just along for the ride as the two deal with a host of unpleasant characters, among whom is a murderer who invariably slips up in time for Nick to solve the crime.

Summing up: Good chemistry between Loy and Powell is still there, but they get little help from a tiresome script.