A detective, his bee-obsessed sidekick, and a twin-switching blonde walk into a Nazi plot...
This final Carter film is a lot of fun, with Nick (unwillingly, at first) taking on a ring of Fifth Columnists (since this was filmed before the US entered the war, we're not told the villains are Nazis, but it's pretty clear anyway). Of course, the helpful and persistent Bartholomew is at his side--much to Nick's irritation. To further complicate things--and to make them still funnier--Joyce Compton is along for the ride too, as a delightfully brainless "detective" named Christine Cross.
Acting
Donald Meek's Bartholomew: beekeeping busybody who never knows when to leave.
Writing
"Fifth Columnists" code—Hollywood tiptoeing around Nazis while screaming about them.
Director
George B. Seitz
Walter Pidgeon
Nick Carter
Donald Meek
Bartholomew
Kaaren Verne
Pat Evans (as Karen Verne)
Edward Ashley
Cortland Grand
Joyce Compton
Christine Cross / Her Twin Sister
Tom Conway
Andrew Hendon
George Lessey
Senator Monrose
Dorothy Tree
Kathe
Frank Reicher
Dr. Crattan
Chill Wills
Sheriff Beckwith
Byron Foulger
Kuse
William Tannen
Gus
Milton Parsons
Brock
Tom Neal
Steve - Pilot
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Shot in summer 1940, months before Pearl Harbor—Hollywood's 'Fifth Column' euphemism let studios attack fascism without triggering isolationist backlash or the Hays Office.
Walter Pidgeon ditched Nick Carter immediately after this for Mrs. Miniver and never looked back—apparently one bee-obsessed sidekick was his limit.
US
