Sun 20 Mar 2011
THE CRIMSON CANARY. Universal Pictures, 1945. Noah Beery Jr., Lois Collier, John Litel, Steven Geray, Claudia Drake, Danny Morton, Jimmie Dodd, Steve Brodie, John Kellogg, Arthur Space. Josh White, the Esquire All-American Band Winners with Coleman Hawkins, Oscar Pettiford. Director: John Hoffman.
Even though I love old B-movies, especially old B-for-budget detective films, I have to admit that most of the time I’m disappointed. Noir films made for the same amount of money got by on atmosphere. Detective films of the 1930s and 40s of the punch-them-out variety may have had atmosphere, but most of them don’t hold up as detective fiction.
The Crimson Canary is one that does, more or less, making it one of the “good†ones. Not one up to the standards of a Agatha Christie or a John Dickson Carr, but in comparison to its competitors, Canary stands out like an upraised thumb.
But atmosphere? That it’s got, and more. Noah Berry Jr. heads up a group of wartime buddies in a jazz band, and boy do they swing. Strictly small time stuff, stuck in a small town nightspot, but good enough to have hopes – and to have a good looking vocalist flirt with all the guys, and with Danny Brooks (Beery) with a steady girl friend yet.
When the girl’s found dead in a back room, the guys take it on the lam – joining up when the coast is clear, they think – but it’s not, not with a jazz-loving police detective (John Litel) breathing down their necks and watching every move they make.
The music is great, and the detective end of things (as I said up front) good. The only flaw is that there’s only a very limited number of suspects. In 64 minutes, with 20 of them taken up by musical numbers (my very rough estimate) there simply isn’t time enough to introduce anyone else who could have done it.
Highly recommended for fans of jumping and jiving 1940s pre-bop jazz.
Note: From the AFI page: “…the musicians who dubbed the quintette were Nick Cochrane and Eddie Parkers, trumpet; Stan Wrightsman, piano; Barney Bigard, clarinet; King Guion, tenor sax, and Mel Tormé, drums. Coleman Hawkins was supported by Howard McGhee, trumpet; Sir Charles Thompson, piano; Denzil Best, drums; and Oscar Pettiford, bass.†Check out this two minute clip from YouTube.
March 20th, 2011 at 11:01 pm
This is also interesting for being right on the cusp of the transition of Noah Berry Jr. from minor leading man in B films and character actor in A films and on television.
As you say, not a bad mystery considering how much of the film is spent on the music.
John Litel was always good in these roles, having been Nancy Drew’s father in the Bonita Granville series and specializing in rather sane fatherly figures.
If his face looks familiar to any sf fans, he was also a male model, and the one who posed for Hulbert Rogers famous portrait of E.E. ‘Doc’ Smith’s Kimbal Kinnison for the iconic cover of the October 1939 ASTOUNDING SF for Smith’s serial GREY LENSMAN.
The marketing of this film is also interesting: ‘Rhythm Cults Exposed.’ Shades of REEFER MADNESS — or at least Elisha Cook Jr.’s hophead drummer in PHANTOM LADY.
I was in a jazz quintet in high school and the worst thing we ever got up to was some dubious spiked Kool Aid, but then our ‘leader’ was the high school band director. Missed opportunities I suppose.
Damn nice covers for the dubbing — wouldn’t mind having a copy of the fake book for this score.
March 20th, 2011 at 11:20 pm
I was surprised by that line in huge letters on the poster myself. Rhythm Cults indeed. I wonder how many people were enticed in to see this movie and were disappointed. Not a cult in sight. Unless you count an upscale crowd in a nightclub sitting at their tables smiling and nodding their heads in time with the beat.
March 20th, 2011 at 11:32 pm
Just notice how long Berry’s hair is on the poster considering the period. The publicity department clearly was hoping to cash in on the seamier side of the jazz connection whether it was in the plot or not.
Not that it would be the first time the poster art had little or no relation to the film — a bit like paperback covers in that regard.
March 21st, 2011 at 2:51 pm
Um, Dave, old pal …
I’m hoping it’s just the slip of the fingers thst all of us are prone to, but …
You do know that it’s Noah BEERY Jr?
The son of Noah Beery and nephew of Wallace Beery?
It’s understandable of course, what with the E and the R right next to each other.
My problem is always with N and M.
As long as I’m here, what does Jimmie Dodd, the future dean of the Mouseketeers, do in this picture? Is he one of the hip musicians (I hope)?
March 21st, 2011 at 3:12 pm
Steve,
This movie sounds really interesting.
Director John Hoffman is really unknown. I had never heard of him, or any of his films.
David,
I had no idea of the John Litel connection to GREY LENSMAN.
This is really interesting.
No wonder Nancy Drew was so talented. She was one of the CHILDREN OF THE LENS!
Wonder who posed for Doc Savage…
March 21st, 2011 at 4:03 pm
Mike D.
According to one commenter on IMDB, the jazz group consisted of Noah Beery Jr on trumpet, Danny Morton on drums, John Kellogg on the piano, Jimmy Dodd on sax and Steve Brodie playing the clarinet.
Dodd was listed as James Dodd in the credits, which didn’t register with me, so while I was watching the movie, whenever he was on — and he didn’t have a major speaking role — I was wondering who he was.
I can’t speak for David, but that how I spell Beery when I’ve had too many berrs.
— Steve
March 21st, 2011 at 4:09 pm
Mike G.
Hoffman directed only a few films. Mostly he worked as a editor or did montages and special effects. Here’s a list of his directorships:
# I Killed Geronimo (1950)
# The Lone Wolf and His Lady (1949)
# The Wreck of the Hesperus (1948)
# The Crimson Canary (1945)
# Strange Confession (1945)
… aka “The Missing Head” – USA (reissue title)
# Moods of the Sea (1941)
… aka “Fingal’s Cave” – USA (informal alternative title)
As always, I’d have to watch the movie again to notice what the director’s doing — the first time through is just to watch the story — but I don’t remember seeing him do anything he shouldn’t have done.
March 21st, 2011 at 4:59 pm
Steve,
These film titles are all completely new to me.
One suspects that few people know them.
Have read Longfellow’s poem “The Wreck of the Hesperus”. Never knew they made a film of it.
Thank you!
March 21st, 2011 at 8:59 pm
I guess I was leery of Noah Beery …
Oh, by the by, the model for the original Doc Savage by Walter Baumhoffer was Clark Gable — the James Bama one was Steve Holland, frequent model for Norman Saunders men’s sweat mag covers, and star of the early sf television series FLASH GORDON.
Just a few others, the model for Harold Foster’s Tarzan was Henry Wilcoxin (making him also the model for Superman since Joe Shuster copied from Foster), and Clark Kent was Harold Lloyd. Fearless Fosdick was Jack Holt from BEHIND THE MASK.
The only films on that list that I’ve seen are STRANGE CONFESSION and THE LONE WOLF AND HIS LADY, the latter which killed off the series despite a pretty good cast with Ron Randell, June Vincent, William Frawley, Douglass Dumbrille, and Alan Mowbray (in the Eric Blore role). However, the STRANGE CONFESSION I’m familiar with from 1944 is directed by Julian Duvivier with Jean Gabin (but an American made film) and better known as THE IMPOSTER. Are there two films made that close together with the same name?