''Smoky Cell'' is a
thriller play
Thriller may refer to:
* Thriller (genre), a broad genre of literature, film and television
** Thriller film, a film genre under the general thriller genre
Comics
* ''Thriller'' (DC Comics), a comic book series published 1983–84 by DC Comics i ...
by the British writer
Edgar Wallace first staged in 1930. In America a group of detectives hunt down a notorious racketeer.
It ran for 103 performances at
Wyndham's Theatre in the
West End from 16 December 1930 to 14 March 1931. The original cast included
Finlay Currie
William Finlay Currie (20 January 1878 – 9 May 1968) was a Scottish actor of stage, screen, and television.McFarlane, Brian (28 February 2014). ''The Encyclopedia of British Film: Fourth edition''. Oxford University Press. pp. 175-176; He re ...
,
Percy Parsons
Edward Percy Parsons (1878–1944) was an American actor and singer who worked largely in the British film industry.
Selected filmography
* ''Suspense (1930 film), Suspense'' (1930)
* ''Beyond the Cities'' (1930)
* ''Creeping Shadows'' (1931)
* ' ...
,
Charles Farrell,
Harold Huth,
Roy Emerton and
James Carew, and was directed by
Carol Reed. It marked Canadian actor
Alexander Knox's London stage debut.
It was an inspired by a visit Wallace had recently made to the United States, which also led him to write his even more successful play ''
On the Spot'' the same year. In 1935, following Wallace's death, his former assistant Robert Curtis wrote a novel of the same title based on the play.
[Wearing p.76]
References
Bibliography
* Kabatchnik, Amnon. ''Blood on the Stage, 1975-2000: Milestone Plays of Crime, Mystery, and Detection : an Annotated Repertoire''. Rowman & Littlefield, 2012.
* Wearing, J. P. ''The London Stage 1930–1939: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel''. Rowman & Littlefield, 2014.
1930 plays
Plays by Edgar Wallace
Plays set in the United States
West End plays
{{1930s-play-stub