''Dressed to Kill'', released in 1946, also known as ''Prelude to Murder'' (working title) and ''Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Code'' in the United Kingdom, is the last of fourteen films starring

Basil Rathbone Philip St. John Basil Rathbone MC (13 June 1892 – 21 July 1967) was a South African-born English actor. He rose to prominence in the United Kingdom as a Shakespearean stage actor and went on to appear in more than 70 films, primarily costume ...

Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a " consulting detective" in the stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with observation, deduction, forensic science and ...

and

Nigel Bruce William Nigel Ernle Bruce (4 February 1895 – 8 October 1953) was a British character actor on stage and screen. He was best known for his portrayal of Dr. Watson in a series of films and in the radio series ''The New Adventures of Sherlock H ...

Doctor Watson John H. Watson, known as Dr. Watson, is a fictional character in the Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Along with Sherlock Holmes, Dr. Watson first appeared in the novel ''A Study in Scarlet'' (1887). The last work by Doyle fe ...

. The film has an original story, but combines elements of the short stories "

The Adventure of the Six Napoleons "The Adventure of the Six Napoleons", one of the 56 Sherlock Holmes short stories written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is one of 13 stories in the cycle collected as ''The Return of Sherlock Holmes''. It was first published in ''Collier's'' in th ...

" and " A Scandal in Bohemia." It is one of four films in the series which are in the

public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work A creative work is a manifestation of creative effort including fine artwork (sculpture, paintings, drawing, sketching, performance art), dance, writing (literature), filmmaking, ...

Plot

John Davidson, a convicted thief in

Dartmoor prison HM Prison Dartmoor is a Category C men's prison, located in Princetown, high on Dartmoor in the English county of Devon. Its high granite walls dominate this area of the moor. The prison is owned by the Duchy of Cornwall, and is operated by ...

(played by an uncredited

Cyril Delevanti Harry Cyril Delevanti (23 February 1889 – 13 December 1975) was an English character actor with a long career in American films. He was sometimes credited as Syril Delevanti. Early years Delevanti was born in London to the Anglo-Italian mus ...

) embeds code revealing the hidden location of extremely valuable stolen Bank of England currency printing plates in the melody notes of three

music box A music box (American English) or musical box (British English) is an automatic musical instrument in a box that produces musical notes by using a set of pins placed on a revolving cylinder or disc to pluck the tuned teeth (or ''lamellae'') ...

es that he crafts to be sold at auction. Each box plays a subtly different version of "The Swagman". At the auction each is purchased by a different buyer.

Dr. Watson John H. Watson, known as Dr. Watson, is a fictional character in the Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Along with Sherlock Holmes, Dr. Watson first appeared in the novel ''A Study in Scarlet'' (1887). The last work by Doyle f ...

's friend Julian Emery, a music box collector, pays him and

a visit and tells them of an attempted burglary in his house the previous night of a plain cheap box (similar to the one he bought at auction) while leaving other much more valuable ones. Holmes and Watson ask to see and are shown Emery's collection. After they leave, Emery welcomes a female acquaintance, Hilda Courtney, who tries unsuccessfully to buy the auctioned box. When Emery declines, a male friend of Courtney's who has sneaked in murders Emery. At this murder Holmes becomes even more curious and learns to whom else the boxes were auctioned off. Holmes and Watson arrive at the house of the person who bought the second one, just as a strange maid (Courtney in disguise) is on her way "to go shopping". They later realize it was not a maid, she locked a child in a closet in order to steal the box from the child. Holmes is able to buy the third box, and upon examination, discovers that its variant musical notes' numbers correlate to letters of the alphabet. Scotland Yard fills him in on the stolen bank plates to which the music boxes connect, but all three are needed to decipher the message. Back at home, the flat is found ransacked, and a cigarette with a distinct type of tobacco is the sole clue. Holmes tracks down the woman who bought the tobacco, Courtney. While confronting her, Holmes is ambushed by her accomplices, handcuffed, taken to a warehouse, hung by a rafter, and left with poison gas filling the room. While Holmes is narrowly escaping death, Courtney steals the box from Watson. Holmes manages to make it back in one piece and while conversing, Watson offhandedly mentions a quote from Dr. Samuel Johnson. Thinking about this quote, Holmes makes a connection as to where the stolen plates may be hidden. Having stolen all the boxes and deciphered their message, Courtney and gang join a tour group at Dr. Samuel Johnson's house, now a museum, where they slip away and find the plates hidden within a bookshelf. Courtney is stealing the plates when Holmes ambushes the group. Scotland Yard officers arrest them, and the plates are returned to the bank.

Cast

as Dr. John H. Watson *

Patricia Morison Eileen Patricia Augusta Fraser Morison (March 19, 1915 – May 20, 2018) was an American stage, television and film actress of the Golden Age of Hollywood and mezzo-soprano singer. She made her feature film debut in 1939 after several years on ...

as Hilda Courtney/Charwoman *

Edmund Breon Edmund Breon (born Iver Edmund de Breon MacLaverty; 12 December 1882 – 24 June 1953) was a Scottish film and stage actor. He appeared in more than 130 films between 1907 and 1952. Life and career Born in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Br ...

as Julian "Stinky" Emery (as Edmond Breon) *

Frederick Worlock Frederick Worlock (December 14, 1886 – August 1, 1973) was a British-American actor. He is known for his work in various films during the 1940s and 1950s, and as the voice of Horace in '' One Hundred and One Dalmatians'' (1961). Career On st ...

as Colonel Cavanaugh (as Frederic Worlock) *

Carl Harbord Carl Harbord (26 January 1908 – 18 October 1958) was an English stage, film and television actor. Stage When he was 19, Harbord appeared in the play ''The Happy Husband'', which was presented at the Criterion Theatre in London, England. ...

as Inspector Hopkins * Patricia Cameron as Evelyn Clifford *

Holmes Herbert Holmes Herbert (born Horace Edward Jenner; 30 July 1882 – 26 December 1956) was an English character actor who appeared in Hollywood films from 1915 to 1952, often as a British gentleman. Early life Born Horace Edward Jenner, (some sou ...

as Ebenezer Crabtree *

Harry Cording Hector William "Harry" Cording (26 April 1891 – 1 September 1954) was an English-American actor. He is perhaps best remembered for his roles in the films '' The Black Cat'' (1934) and ''The Adventures of Robin Hood'' (1938). Life and career ...

as Hamid *

Leyland Hodgson Leyland Hodgson (5 October 1892 – 16 March 1949), also known as Leland Hodgson, was an English-born American character actor of the 1930s and 1940s. Born in London on 5 October 1892, Hodgson entered the theater in 1898. In his early 20s, Ho ...

as Tour Guide * Mary Gordon as Mrs. Hudson *

Ian Wolfe Ian Marcus Wolfe (November 4, 1896 – January 23, 1992) was an American character actor with around 400 film and television credits. Until 1934, he worked in the theatre. That year, he appeared in his first film role and later television, as ...

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* Anita Sharp-Bolster as the Schoolteacher on a Museum Tour *

Cyril Delavanti Harry Cyril Delevanti (23 February 1889 – 13 December 1975) was an English character actor with a long career in American films. He was sometimes credited as Syril Delevanti. Early years Delevanti was born in London to the Anglo-Italian mu ...

as John Davidson (uncredited) * Harry Allen as William Kilgour (uncredited) * Topsy Glyn as The Kilgour Child (uncredited)

References

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dressed To Kill (1946 Film) 1946 films 1946 mystery films American detective films American mystery films American black-and-white films Sherlock Holmes films Universal Pictures films Films directed by Roy William Neill Articles containing video clips 1940s English-language films 1940s American films