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

Dean Sockwell who played Nick Jr. is one of only a handful of child actors who remained active and successful throughout their lives.

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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

Nick Charles: Shall we go?
Clarence 'Clinker' Krause: Go? Oh, oh, the dust don't start risin' till deuce of bells.

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Connections

Referenced in Ebert Presents: At the Movies: Episode #1.13 (2011)

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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

An Often Amusing If Unremarkable Finale

While it probably doesn't offer as much as most of the earlier movies in the series, "Song Of the Thin Man" is nevertheless a pleasant finale to the classic series. It has the usual blend of wit, oddly assorted characters, and mystery, with a solid supporting cast led by Keenan Wynn.

The story uses the now-familiar setup of Nick getting drawn into a mystery against his will. This time, it uses the jazz scene as the backdrop, and while the setting is not always used to its potential, it does allow Wynn some good moments that he makes use of. Wynn usually plays off of Powell and Loy rather well. Most of the rest of the cast does well when they get the chance, and Don Taylor works as a more serious, troubled character who is important to the story.

You can tell that they were running out of truly new ideas for the series, yet in another sense the series got an impressive amount of mileage from the format. This last movie may offer little that is new, but it is enjoyable as light entertainment.