''Key Witness'' is a 1947 American

film noir Film noir (; ) is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of American ' ...

crime film Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine ...

directed by D. Ross Lederman and starring John Beal,

Trudy Marshall Gertrude Madeline "Trudy" Marshall (February 14, 1920 – May 23, 2004) was an American actress and model. Early life Marshall was born in Brooklyn, New York, the daughter of Madeline (née Brennan) and Frederick Marshall. She studied drama ...

and Jimmy Lloyd.

Plot

A man runs away to avoid suspicion of murder and ends up in more trouble.

Cast

* John Beal as Milton Higby *

as Marge Andrews * Jimmy Lloyd as Larry Summers *

Helen Mowery Helen Emily Inkster (April 25, 1922 – July 14, 2008)Helen Emily Webster in the U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014, retrieved froAncestry.com/ref> was a former Miss Wyoming who acted on the stage, in films, and on television. Ea ...

as Sally Guthrie *

Wilton Graff Wilton Graff (born Wilton Calvert Ratcliffe; August 13, 1903 – January 13, 1969) was an American actor. Early years The son of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph P. Graff, he was born Wilton Calvert Ratcliffe in St. Louis, Missouri, US. He graduated ...

as Albert Loring *

Barbara Read Barbara French Read, also known as Barbara Reed, (December 29, 1917 – December 12, 1963) was a Canadian-American film actress of the 1930s and 1940s, who appeared in 21 films during her career. Early life Born Barbara French Read on Decembe ...

as Martha Higby *

Charles Trowbridge Charles Silas Richard Trowbridge (January 10, 1882 – October 30, 1967) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 230 films between 1915 and 1958. Biography Trowbridge was born in Veracruz, Mexico, where his father served in the ...

as John Ballin *

Harry Hayden Harry may refer to: TV shows * ''Harry'' (American TV series), a 1987 American comedy series starring Alan Arkin * ''Harry'' (British TV series), a 1993 BBC drama that ran for two seasons * ''Harry'' (talk show), a 2016 American daytime talk show ...

as Custer Bidwell

Reception

Critical response

When the film was released in 1947, critic

Bosley Crowther Francis Bosley Crowther Jr. (July 13, 1905 – March 7, 1981) was an American journalist, writer, and film critic for ''The New York Times'' for 27 years. His work helped shape the careers of many actors, directors and screenwriters, though his ...

, was sly in his negative review, "The moral of ''Key Witness'', which came to the Rialto yesterday, it says, is that 'no man can escape trouble by trying to run away from it.' This wisdom is demonstrated in the adventures of a desperate young man who attempts to get out of one involvement by changing his identity—and runs into others thereby ... There might also be drawn this moral from the evidence presented here: you can't often be sure of entertainment from that which is claimed to be."Crowther, Bosley
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', film review, July 30, 1947. Accessed: August 12, 2013.

References

External links

* * *
''Key Witness''
information site and DVD review at DVD Beaver (includes images) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Key Witness 1947 films 1940s thriller films American thriller films American black-and-white films Columbia Pictures films American detective films 1940s English-language films Film noir 1940s American films English-language thriller films