''The Chance of a Lifetime'' is a 1943

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in Ca ...

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...

starring

Chester Morris John Chester Brooks Morris (February 16, 1901 – September 11, 1970) was an American stage, film, television, and radio actor. He had some prestigious film roles early in his career, and received an Academy Awards, Academy Award nomination ...

, Erik Rolf and

Jeanne Bates Jeanne Bates (May 21, 1918 – November 28, 2007) was a retired American radio, film and television actress. After performing in radio serials, she signed a contract with Columbia Pictures in 1942 which began her career in films both in bi ...

. It is one of 14 films made by

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...

involving detective Boston Blackie, a criminal-turned-crime solver. This was the sixth in the series and one of three that did not have his name in the title. The film is also

William Castle William Castle (born William Schloss Jr.; April 24, 1914 – May 31, 1977) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. Orphaned at 11, Castle dropped out of high school at 15 to work in the theater. He came to the attenti ...

's directorial debut. As with many of the films of the period, this was a flag waver to support America's efforts during World War II. The film is under copyright until 2039 due to renewal.

Plot

Boston Blackie (

) helps get prisoners with needed skills released on parole to help in the machine and tool plant of his friend, Arthur Manleder (

Lloyd Corrigan Lloyd Corrigan (October 16, 1900 – November 5, 1969) was an American film and television actor, producer, screenwriter, and director who began working in films in the 1920s. The son of actress Lillian Elliott, Corrigan directed films, usually ...

). Those chosen want to support America's war effort. All of the parolees have to stay in Blackie's apartment, all except robber Dooley Watson. Blackie allows him to see his wife and son. Watson goes after the payroll money he stole before he was captured. His wife Mary (

) convinces him to give it back, but his partners in crime, "Red" Taggart ( John Harmon) and "Nails" Blanton ( Douglas Fowley), have been waiting patiently for their share. When they threaten Dooley's family, Dooley fights back. Red is killed in the ensuing struggle. Nails runs off. If Boston Blackie is to save his project, he has to capture Nails and force him to confess the death was in self-defense, all while dodging Inspector Farraday ( Richard Lane).

Cast

as Boston Blackie * Erik Rolf as Dooley Watson *

as Mary Watson * Richard Lane as Inspector John Farraday * George E. Stone as The Runt *

as Arthur Manleder Uncredited: *

Arthur Hunnicutt Arthur Lee Hunnicutt (February 17, 1910 – September 26, 1979) was an American actor known for his portrayal of wise, grizzled, and old rural characters. He received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in ...

as Elwood "Tex" Stewart * Pierre Watkin as Gov. Rutledge * Douglas Fowley as "Nails" Blanton *

Sid Melton Sidney Meltzer (May 22, 1917 – November 2, 2011), known professionally as Sid Melton, was an American actor. He played the roles of incompetent carpenter Alf Monroe in the CBS sitcom '' Green Acres'' and Uncle Charlie Halper, proprietor ...

as "Sunny" Hines *

Walter Sande Walter Sande (July 9, 1906 – November 22, 1971) was an American character actor, known for numerous supporting film and television roles. Films Born in Denver, Colorado, he was one of those stern, heavyset character actors in Hollywood no pe ...

as Detective Sgt. Mathews *

Harry Semels Harry Semels (November 20, 1887 – March 2, 1946) was an American film actor. He appeared in over 315 film between 1917 and 1946. Career Semels appeared in his first film in 1917. He began to achieve fame after arriving at Columbia Pictu ...

as Jerome "Egypt" Hines *

Ray Teal Ray Elgin Teal (January 12, 1902 – April 2, 1976) was an American actor.The book ''Celebrities in Los Angeles Cemeteries: A Directory'' gives Teal's birth date as January 12, 1908. His most famous role was as Sheriff Roy Coffee on the televis ...

as Joe, a cop *

Marie De Becker Marie Kathleen De Becker (13 June 1880 – 23 March 1946) was an English-American stage and screen actress. Family She was born in Islington, London, the daughter of Benevenuto Nicola de Becker, a shipping clerk, and his wife Catherine (or Kate) ...

as Miss Bailey *

Minta Durfee Araminta Estelle "Minta" Durfee (October 1, 1889 – September 9, 1975) was an American silent film actress from Los Angeles, California, possibly best known for her role in '' Mickey'' (1918). Biography She met Roscoe Arbuckle when he was att ...

Production

William Castle wanted to direct. Harry Cohn gave him the chance with this film. Castle said it was a "lousy, dull, contrived, miserable script; the characters wooden and the dialogue unbelievably bad. My first picture and I had a turkey!" He tried to arrange for the script to be rewritten but

Irving Briskin Irving Briskin (1903–1981), was an American film producer of more than 200 films during the 1930s and 1940s. He was the brother of Samuel J. Briskin and Murray Briskin, both also film producers. Career Briskin's film career began in 1923 as a ...

refused and Castle was too scared to ask Cohn for a rewrite. The film was shot in twelve days. Castle says Chester Morris "tried to breathe some life into a part that died at birth" and Bates "hopelessly tried to play the femme fetale". Castle said Briskin disliked the film and rearranged its structure with extensive cutting making it, in Castle's words, "even more muddled and screwed up than it had been originally."

Reception

Reviews of the film were terrible but Castle says Cohn backed him and gave him another movie to direct, ''The Whistler'', which was a success.Castle p 76

References

Notes

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Chance Of A Lifetime, The 1943 crime drama films 1943 films American crime drama films American black-and-white films Columbia Pictures films 1943 directorial debut films Films directed by William Castle World War II films made in wartime Boston Blackie films