''Sinister Hands'' is a 1932 American

pre-Code Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the Cinema of the United States, American film industry between the widespread adoption of sound in film in 1929LaSalle (2002), p. 1. and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorshi ...

film directed by

Armand Schaefer Armand Schaefer (5 August 1898 – 26 September 1967) was a Canadian film producer and director. He produced more than 100 films between 1932 and 1953. He also directed 24 films between 1931 and 1946. He was born in Tavistock, Ontario, Canada. ...

Plot summary

A millionaire is murdered at a séance at a fortune-teller's home. Detective Capt Herbert Devlin, played by

Jack Mulhall John Joseph Francis Mulhall (October 7, 1887 – June 1, 1979) was an American film actor beginning in the silent film era who successfully transitioned to sound films, appearing in over 430 films in a career spanning 50 years. Early years Mu ...

, and Detective Watkins investigate the crime only to discover all attendees have a motive.

Cast

as Detective Capt. Herbert Devlin *

Phyllis Barrington Phyllis Barrington (February 7, 1904 – June 20, 1989) was an American actress. Born Clara Parry and raised in Salt Lake City, she was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. P. M. Parry. She was a graduate of Salt Lake's East High School. She attende ...

as Ruth Frazer *

Crauford Kent Crauford Kent (12 October 1881 – 14 May 1953) was an English character actor based in the United States. He has also been credited as Craufurd Kent

as Judge David McLeod *

Mischa Auer Mischa Auer (born Mikhail Semyonovich Unkovsky (Михаил Семёнович Унковский; 17 November 1905 – 5 March 1967) was a Russians, Russian-born American actor who moved to Hollywood in the late 1920s. He first appeared in fi ...

as Swami Yomurda *

Louis Natheaux Louis Natheaux (born ''Louis F. Natho''; December 10, 1894 – August 23, 1942) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than eighty films between 1919 and 1942. Born in Danville, Illinois, Natheaux performed in vaudeville and in a C ...

as Nick Genna *

Gertrude Messinger Gertrude Dolores Messinger (April 28, 1911 – November 8, 1995) was an American film actress known for her B-movie roles from the 1930s through the 1950s. She began as a child actor in silent films, but found her greatest fame in talkies of ...

as Betty Lang *

Lloyd Ingraham Lloyd Chauncey Ingraham (November 30, 1874 – April 4, 1956) was an American film actor and director. Biography Born in Rochelle, Illinois, Ingraham appeared in more than 280 films between 1912 and 1950, as well as directing more than 100 f ...

as John Frazer *

James P. Burtis James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

as Detective Watkins *

Phillips Smalley Wendell Phillips Smalley (August 7, 1865 – May 2, 1939) was an American silent film director and actor. Biography Born in Brooklyn, New York, he was the grandson of Wendell Phillips; he was the son of George Washburn Smalley, a war correspon ...

as Richard Lang * Helen Foster as Vivian Rogers *

Lillian West Lillian West (March 15, 1886 – April 23, 1970) was an American film actress. She appeared in more than 100 films between 1916 and 1958. She was born in New York, New York and died in Los Angeles, California. Partial filmography * ''Shad ...

as Mrs. Lang *

Fletcher Norton Fletcher Norton, 1st Baron Grantley, Privy Council of Great Britain, PC (23 June 1716 – 1 January 1789) was an England, English lawyer and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1756 to 1782 when he was raised to the peerage as Baron ...

as Monroe, the Butler *

Bess Flowers Bess Flowers (November 23, 1898 – July 28, 1984) was an American actress best known for her work as an extra in hundreds of films. She was known as "The Queen of the Hollywood Extras," appearing in more than 350 feature films and numerous ...

as Mary Browne

References

External links

* * * 1932 films American mystery films American black-and-white films Films directed by Armand Schaefer 1932 mystery films 1930s English-language films 1930s American films {{mystery-film-stub