Suave amateur detective Tom Lawrence--aka Michael Arlen's literary hero The Falcon--arrives in Hollywood for some rest and relaxation, only to find himself involved in the murder of a movie actor. There's no shortage of suspects: the costume designer to whom he was married, a tyrannical director, a beautiful young French starlet, a Shakespeare-quoting producer, even a New York gangster. Helping The Falcon solve the crime is a cute, wise-cracking cab driver and a pair of bumbling cops.

Tom Lawrence

Peggy Callahan

Billie Atkins

Martin S. Dwyer

Louie Buchanan

Alec Hoffman

Inspector McBride

Lieutenant Higgins

Roxanna Miles

Lili D'Allio

Ed Johnson, studio guard

Perc Saunders - Assistant Director

Blonde Woman at Races (uncredited)

Apartment Manager (uncredited)

Art Department Runner (uncredited)
It's the persistent cabbie "Billie" (Veda Ann Borg) who steals the thunder in this quite entertaining and quickly paced outing for our eponymous sleuth (Tom Conway). He is dragooned into an investigation following a murder at an Hollywood studio and so for the next hour or so we are treated to loads of backstage photography, scantily clad dancers, an increasingly irate producer (John Abbott) and, of course, a diabolical curse of the Maharajah's ring. Is the picture doomed to end up on the outing room floor? It has no director and is rapidly becoming a celluloid albatross! There's a bit more of a story here, with a few realistic suspects and a bit of detail on just how films are made before a denouement that's hardly a shock, but results in a fun chase through the studio lot and a great big Super Trouper! Enjoyable enough afternoon stuff.
December 8, 1944

Tom Lawrence

Peggy Callahan

Billie Atkins

Martin S. Dwyer

Louie Buchanan

Alec Hoffman

Inspector McBride

Lieutenant Higgins

Roxanna Miles

Lili D'Allio

Ed Johnson, studio guard

Perc Saunders - Assistant Director

Blonde Woman at Races (uncredited)

Apartment Manager (uncredited)

Art Department Runner (uncredited)
It's the persistent cabbie "Billie" (Veda Ann Borg) who steals the thunder in this quite entertaining and quickly paced outing for our eponymous sleuth (Tom Conway). He is dragooned into an investigation following a murder at an Hollywood studio and so for the next hour or so we are treated to loads of backstage photography, scantily clad dancers, an increasingly irate producer (John Abbott) and, of course, a diabolical curse of the Maharajah's ring. Is the picture doomed to end up on the outing room floor? It has no director and is rapidly becoming a celluloid albatross! There's a bit more of a story here, with a few realistic suspects and a bit of detail on just how films are made before a denouement that's hardly a shock, but results in a fun chase through the studio lot and a great big Super Trouper! Enjoyable enough afternoon stuff.
