''Fast and Furious'' is a 1939 American mystery

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the old ...

directed by Busby Berkeley. The film stars

Franchot Tone Stanislaus Pascal Franchot Tone (February 27, 1905 – September 18, 1968) was an American actor, producer, and director of stage, film and television. He was a leading man in the 1930s and early 1940s, and at the height of his career was known ...

and Ann Sothern as Joel and Garda Sloane, a crime-solving married couple who are also rare book dealers. It is the last of a

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...

trilogy, along with ''

Fast Company ''Fast Company'' is a monthly American business magazine published in print and online that focuses on technology, business, and design. It publishes six print issues per year. History ''Fast Company'' was launched in November 1995 by Alan Web ...

'' (1938) and '' Fast and Loose'' (1939). However, different actors played the couple each time.

Plot

Joel and Garda Sloane, a husband and wife sleuthing duo, sell rare books in New York and dream of taking a vacation to escape the sweltering heat of the city. Joel decides to take Garda to Seaside City, where his pal, Mike Stevens, is managing a popular beauty pageant. In addition to his vacation plans, Joel, who has invested $5,000 in the pageant, plans to supervise the financial developments of the event and "keep an eye on" the contestants. Soon after arriving in Seaside City, Joel discovers that Eric Bartell, the unscrupulous promoter of the pageant, is duping Stevens. When Joel is made a beauty judge by Stevens, Garda balks at the appointment, especially when her husband begins to socialize with the contestants in the days prior to the pageant. Joel senses trouble when New York racketeer Ed Connors arrives to monitor Bartell's activities, and when Lily Cole, Bartell's publicity director, lashes out at contestant Jerry Lawrence for vying with her for Bartell's attentions. Joel is convinced that something foul is afoot in Seaside City when a detective tells him that Bartell will be arrested on swindling charges as soon as a warrant is issued. When Bartell is mysteriously murdered, Stevens, who was the last person seen with Bartell, is arrested. Stevens is suspected of the crime because he went to see Bartell to demand that he return all the money he loaned him. Although Joel and Garda are warned by Chief Miller not to get involved in the case, the duo, with the help of newspaper columnist Ted Bentley, begin to investigate the murder. Soon after, an attempt is made on their lives when a falling elevator nearly crushes them. Joel does not believe that Stevens was the murderer, but instead suspects Lily, because she and Bartell were involved in a dispute prior to the murder. Later, when Joel discovers that Jerry smokes the same brand of cigarettes as the one found smoldering at the scene of Bartell's murder, he interrogates her and she names Connors as the murderer. Connors, overhearing her accusation, attacks her and tells Joel that she is merely trying to frame him. When Jerry is found murdered, Joel deduces that the murderer must be Bentley, because he is the only person who knew that he had proof against Jerry. Joel tricks Bentley into confessing his guilt, but Bentley, in an attempt to silence Joel, tries to kill him. However, he is prevented from doing so by the police, who arrest him. Eventually, Joel learns that Bentley killed Bartell because Jerry threw him over for Bartell, and that he killed Jerry because she knew too much.

Cast

as Joel Sloane * Ann Sothern as Garda Sloane * Ruth Hussey as Lily Cole *

Lee Bowman Lee Bowman (December 28, 1914 – December 25, 1979) was an American film and television actor. According to one obituary, "his roles ranged from romantic lead to worldly, wisecracking lout in his most famous years". Career Born in Cincinnati, ...

as Mike Stevens * Allyn Joslyn as Ted Bentley *

John Miljan John Miljan (November 9, 1892 – January 24, 1960) was an American actor. He appeared in more than 200 films between 1924 and 1958. Biography Born in 1892, Miljan was the tall, smooth-talking villain in Hollywood films for almost four deca ...

as Eric Bartell *

Bernard Nedell Bernard Jay Nedell (October 14, 1898 – November 23, 1972) was an American film actor. He appeared in 50 films between 1916 and 1972. He was born in New York, New York and died in Hollywood, California. He was married to actress Olive Blak ...

as Ed Connors *

Mary Beth Hughes Mary Elizabeth Hughes (November 13, 1919 Katz, Ephraim (1979). ''The Film Encyclopedia: The Most Comprehensive Encyclopedia of World Cinema in a Single Volume''. Perigee Books. . P. 586. – August 27, 1995) was an American film, television, a ...

as Jerry Lawrence *

Cliff Clark Cliff Clark (June 10, 1889 – February 8, 1953) was an American actor. He entered the film business in 1937 after a substantial stage career and appeared in over 200 Hollywood films. In the last years of his life, he also played in a numb ...

as Sam Travers * James Burke as Clancy *

Frank Orth Frank Orth (February 21, 1880 – March 17, 1962) was an American actor born in Philadelphia. He is probably best remembered for his portrayal of Inspector Faraday in the 1951-1953 television series '' Boston Blackie''. Career By 1897, Ort ...

as Captain Joe Burke *

Margaret Roach Margaret Mae Roach (March 15, 1921 – November 22, 1964) was an American actress active in the 1930s and 1940s. She was born on March 15, 1921 in Los Angeles, California, the daughter of Hal Roach and Marguerite Nichols, and her brother was Hal ...

as Emmy Lou *

Gladys Blake Gladys Blake (born Gladys Timmons, May 12, 1910 – May 21, 1983) was an American character actress from the 1930s to the 1950s. Biography Blake was born on January 12, 1910 in Luray, Virginia. Her mother, Ada Timmons, died when Gladys was ...

as Miss Brooklyn *

Granville Bates Granville Bates (January 7, 1882 – July 8, 1940) was an American character actor and bit player, appearing in over ninety films. Biography Bates was born in Chicago in 1882 to Granville Bates, Sr., a developer and builder, and Adaline Bates ...

as Chief Miller * Inna Gest as Miss San Antonio

Reception

''TV Guide'' noted it as "an entertaining comedy/mystery". ''The New York Times'' wrote "the faintest shadow of ''

The Thin Man ''The Thin Man'' (1934) is a detective novel by Dashiell Hammett, originally published in a condensed version in the December 1933 issue of ''Redbook''. It appeared in book form the following month. A film series followed, featuring the main cha ...

''–and of two collateral predecessors–is being cast by the little mystery-comedy, now at Loew's Criterion...Metro seems to be stretching an original idea to infinity–a suspicion which is practically confirmed by the plot...It is a perfect specimen of unoriginal attenuation...A couple of murders, a couple of limp comedy situations and an interminable lot of chasing about leading nowhere. Mr. Tone and Miss Sothern banter through it in the manner of third-string substitutes who know that the game is hopelessly lost."

References

External links

* * * * {{Authority control 1939 films American comedy mystery films American black-and-white films Films directed by Busby Berkeley Films scored by Daniele Amfitheatrof Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films 1930s comedy mystery films Films with screenplays by Harry Kurnitz 1939 comedy films 1930s English-language films 1930s American films

Plot

Cast

Reception

See also

References

External links