What whodunits did you see/hear/read?

[greenbudgie]

I will join you in those episodes from the first series of JB's Sherlock Holmes and see what I make of them. I'll save the good ones that you've given verdict on till later and enjoy them once more.

I don't like the Campion reruns that they show on TV. Peter Davison is Campion and Brian Glover is his thuggish manservant. I would like to have seen a different cast. I don't know if they will get redone as Margery Allingham doesn't get much exposure nowadays. Perhaps people share your indifference to her works. I think some of her stories are OK. I look forward to finding 'The White Cottage Mystery.'

[kjrwe]

I will join you in those episodes from the first series of JB's Sherlock Holmes and see what I make of them. I'll save the good ones that you've given verdict on till later and enjoy them once more.

I watched The Naval Treaty just now. What a good episode/story!

I'm starting to miss my beloved 1930s mysteries. After a couple more Sherlock Holmes mysteries, I'm going back to the thirties. 

For sure I'll be skipping the episodes featuring Moriaty. I have never cared for the Holmes-Moriaty nonsense.

[greenbudgie]

I'll watch 'The Naval Treaty' tonight. I hadn't got your list hand so it was pot luck which one I picked last night. I opted for 'The Dancing Men' which doesn't get a mention from you. I'm not really surprised at that because I think the story is weak overall.

At first 'The Dancing Men' suggests a subtle supernatural influence like a lot of the Holmes stories. But the mystery soon turns more mundane with a fairly obvious cypher. Just a creepy little scene in it is when some apparent vagrant is drawing the dancing men on the Baker Street pavement as Cubitt has just taken his case to Holmes. But generally the interest doesn't sustain.

I look forward to your 1930s recommendations. And I'll keep trying to track down your reading recs too.

[kjrwe]

I'll watch 'The Naval Treaty' tonight. I hadn't got your list hand so it was pot luck which one I picked last night. I opted for 'The Dancing Men' which doesn't get a mention from you. I'm not really surprised at that because I think the story is weak overall.

At first 'The Dancing Men' suggests a subtle supernatural influence like a lot of the Holmes stories. But the mystery soon turns more mundane with a fairly obvious cypher. Just a creepy little scene in it is when some apparent vagrant is drawing the dancing men on the Baker Street pavement as Cubitt has just taken his case to Holmes. But generally the interest doesn't sustain.

Regarding The Dancing Men: it's a decent story, but I've always been a bit disturbed by who the victim is in this case. I know that these are thrillers and that sometimes there will be victims (or theft, or whatever), but somehow this one always hit a nerve with me.

I might try The Blue Carbuncle and The Greek Interpreter tonight. I seem to recall not enjoying those at one time, but I'm willing to give them another fair chance. I'm skipping The Speckled Band because I have a bizarre fear of snakes.

[greenbudgie]

I'll join you in 'The Blue Carbuncle' and 'The Greek Interpreter' tonight. Even though I was interested in 'The Naval Treaty' I fell asleep towards the end last night so I will have to run that one again some time.

I might run the Peter Cushing version of 'The Blue Carbuncle' as well. As I watch Jeremy Brett in the first series I can see a faint resemblance to Peter Cushing. Brett isn't so lantern-jawed as Cushing but there is a similarity. I think perhaps Brett would have studied Cushing's portrayals of Holmes even though he does predominately bring his own screen personality to the role.

It's a shame you have an aversion to snakes as 'The Speckled Brand' is a cracker. I've got the early 1930s version of that story with Raymond Massey on DVD. It's really creepy with the high-ceilinged rooms in an old gothic house.

[kjrwe]

I'll join you in 'The Blue Carbuncle' and 'The Greek Interpreter' tonight. Even though I was interested in 'The Naval Treaty' I fell asleep towards the end last night so I will have to run that one again some time.

I might run the Peter Cushing version of 'The Blue Carbuncle' as well. As I watch Jeremy Brett in the first series I can see a faint resemblance to Peter Cushing. Brett isn't so lantern-jawed as Cushing but there is a similarity. I think perhaps Brett would have studied Cushing's portrayals of Holmes even though he does predominately bring his own screen personality to the role.

It's a shame you have an aversion to snakes as 'The Speckled Brand' is a cracker. I've got the early 1930s version of that story with Raymond Massey on DVD. It's really creepy with the high-ceilinged rooms in an old gothic house.

Ugh...I can't stand The Blue Carbuncle. What on earth was Sir Arthur Conan Doyle thinking when he wrote that? Was it his feeble attempt at humor? Personally, I recommend you finish The Naval Treaty instead. It's a much better story.

Now I'm getting curious about those Peter Cushing Sherlock Holmes mysteries...

Maybe I should give that early 1930s version of The Speckled Band a chance. At least I'll know what to expect. I don't want to give up seeing an old gothic house with the high ceilings...that's what mysteries are all about!

[kjrwe]

I just finished the 1930s film Murder by Television. I have to admit that I liked it the best when I first saw it a few years ago. Since then, the film has seemed to be weaker and weaker each time I've tried to watch it.

The best part of it is the scene when the TV set is the main attraction. I've always enjoyed the glimpse into very early television. After that, unfortunately, the movie does go a bit downhill.

[greenbudgie]

You always surprising me by coming up with films that I have never heard of before. There is a huge wealth of 1930s films for me to discover.

I'm going to look at 'Murder By Television' when I get the chance. I've just checked it out on Wiki. I like watching Bela Lugosi and Hattie McDaniel anytime. I notice Hattie is a domestic again; a cook this time. Television was still a new medium at thAT time so I wonder if it was one of the first films to feature a TV?

[greenbudgie]

I watched 'The Blue Carbuncle' last night and I was actually repulsed this time. I'm a veggie and I love all birds so the sight of those poor geese has really offended my sensitivities for sure now. I'm blacklisting that story from my viewing from now on.

'The Greek Interpreter' is much better. The villain with the glasses seemed to be impersonating Peter Lorre. He had got Lorre's voice to a T.

I can't find my Peter Cushing set of the TV Holmes that still exist. I will give you a rundown of the stories that this set covers. And of course Cushing was also Holmes in Hammer's 'The Hound of the Baskervilles' in the late 1950s.

I hope you do give Massey's 'Speckled Band' a try. I grabbed it with glee when I saw it on a DVD set that also includes some Wontner Holmes versions. The sound is horrible on some of the films but that is worth enduring to see those early Holmes' movies.

[noirjoe]

I just finished the 1930s film Murder by Television. I have to admit that I liked it the best when I first saw it a few years ago. Since then, the film has seemed to be weaker and weaker each time I've tried to watch it.

The best part of it is the scene when the TV set is the main attraction. I've always enjoyed the glimpse into very early television. After that, unfortunately, the movie does go a bit downhill.

Murder by Television is the shortened feature film version of the 12 chapter Mascott serial THE WHISPERING SHADOW. I ordered it a few days ago, mainly because of Bela Lugosi who was good in a number of 30s serials. So I'll be finding out whether such a long telling of this story will be too much.

[kjrwe]

You always surprising me by coming up with films that I have never heard of before. There is a huge wealth of 1930s films for me to discover.

I'm going to look at 'Murder By Television' when I get the chance. I've just checked it out on Wiki. I like watching Bela Lugosi and Hattie McDaniel anytime. I notice Hattie is a domestic again; a cook this time. Television was still a new medium at thAT time so I wonder if it was one of the first films to feature a TV?

I listed a bunch of 1930s mysteries on the whodunit thread on the other forum when the boards were still around. I can certainly compile a list for this forum, too. 

Yes, Lugosi and McDaniel are always a treat to see in films. Unfortunately, the roles were limited for Hattie McDaniel and a number of other non-Caucasian actors of the time.

There are a couple of other films from the 30s which feature TV sets, but I forget their titles.

[kjrwe]

I watched 'The Blue Carbuncle' last night and I was actually repulsed this time. I'm a veggie and I love all birds so the sight of those poor geese has really offended my sensitivities for sure now. I'm blacklisting that story from my viewing from now on.

'The Greek Interpreter' is much better. The villain with the glasses seemed to be impersonating Peter Lorre. He had got Lorre's voice to a T.

The Blue Carbuncle is such an idiotic story. And didn't the author think that doing this to a goose would KILL the goose? Seriously. Usually I have no problems with far-fetched mystery plots, but this was just ridiculous.

I think the author should have stayed away from stories where animals play a big part of the plot. For example, in The Hound of the Baskervilles and The Copper Beeches, the characters should have just FED those beasts!

Interesting observation about the villain in The Greek Interpreter....

[kjrwe]

Murder by Television is the shortened feature film version of the 12 chapter Mascott serial THE WHISPERING SHADOW. I ordered it a few days ago, mainly because of Bela Lugosi who was good in a number of 30s serials. So I'll be finding out whether such a long telling of this story will be too much.

I had no idea that this is where Murder by Television came from! Thanks for the info!

 

[greenbudgie]

'The Whispering Shadow' sounds good. Any mystery serials are of interest. Watching them all at once is going to be full of cliff-hangers as each episode ends. I think that 'The Invisible Ghost' is an entertaining Lugosi thriller as a feature.

I think that Hattie McDaniel give up acting in the end because she was getting nothing but domestic parts. Clarence Muse is another non-Caucasian actor the gave entertaining performances. He appears in 'The Invisible Ghost.'

[greenbudgie]

I will have a look at 'The Copper Beeches' tonight. I don't like the way that animals are treated in the Holmes stories generally.

I had a look at 'The Eligible Bachelor' from one of the later series yesterday because it was being aired on TV. That's  a really creepy Brett episode.