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.

---

Plot Keywords:

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

---

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]

---

Genres:

Comedy | Crime | Musical | Mystery

---

Did You Know?

Trivia

Gloria Grahame's singing was done by Carol Arden.

---

Goofs

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

---

Quotes

Tommy Edlon Drake: If you ask me, the guy's blown his top.
Fran Ledue Page: What do you expect after the pushing around we gave him.
Tommy Edlon Drake: Maybe you'd like to patch things up with him.
Fran Ledue Page: It would kind of make it convenient for you and those other dames you've been chasin' around with lately, wouldn't it?
Tommy Edlon Drake: Oh, you've been peeking.
Fran Ledue Page: I must have blown my top, kicking Buddy over for a road company Casanova like you.

---

Connections

Featured in It's Showtime (1976)

---

Soundtracks

You're Not So Easy to Forget
(1947)
By Herb Magidson and Ben Oakland
Played during the opening credits, as background music and at the end
Played by a band on the S.S. Fortune and sung by Gloria Grahame (uncredited) dubbed by Carol Arden (uncredited)
Played on clarinet by Don Taylor (uncredited) often
Reprised by Gloria Grahame (uncredited) at the ship reopening and on a record

User Reviews

The worst still better than most!

Did Nick and Nora's swan song, "Song Of The Thin Man," tries too hard to be hip and cool? Yep.

Are some of the bits a tad forced? Yep. Is this, the sixth adventure of Mr. & Mrs. Charles, the worst in the series? Yep.

You know what that means? Yes, it means that the worst Thin Man movie is still better than most.

For Nick and Nora's final bit of sleuthing and their first in a couple years (since the wonderful Thin Man Goes Home), they enter the ultra-hip, ultra-cool, slanged-out world of jazz, courtesy of their tour guide, reed-man Keenan Wynn, who couldn't put together a sentence of straight Queen's English to save his shoe bottom (soul). Who killed the band leader? All I can say is, it wasn't Nick or Nora or Asta.

By 1947, William Powell's waistline has expanded and Myrna Loy long ago gave up the sheer, slinky gowns that had us all drooling, but they can still cut it, rug and all.

Were six Thin Man movies enough? Not for me.

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