In a series of flashbacks, shows that attorney John Morland has given a lift to a hitchhiker who turns out to be a murderer. As a result, Morland himself is implicated in a killing. A pair of detectives discover that Morland has been having business problems and no end of difficulties with his wife Catherine. The trail of clues leads to a surprising revelation.
Writing
Tight 66-minute structure—no fat, all shadows and suspicion.
Acting
Jean Rogers brings surprising depth to the wandering wife archetype.
Director
Eugene Forde
Jean Rogers
Catherine Morland
Richard Travis
Richard Conroy
Larry J. Blake
Detective Lieutenant Jerry McMullen
John Eldredge
John Morland
Leonard Strong
Willis, Caretaker
Robert Shayne
James O'Neil
Louise Currie
Marian Gordon
Douglas Fowley
Red Bailey
Sara Berner
Dorothy, Maid
Richard Benedict
Detective Sergeant Tom Carey
Stanley Blystone
Fire Warden at Car Wreck
Michael Chapin
Mike
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Poverty Row studios like Monogram pumped out dozens of these noirs annually, often shot in under a week with recycled sets—this one's a surviving example of disposable cinema that accidentally endures.
Director Eugene Forde was a Fox contract director who got demoted to B-pictures; this was one of his last theatrical features before television swallowed his career whole.
US
