On this day in movie and book history - The Gracie Allen Murder Case (1939)

The Gracie Allen Murder Case

directed by Alfred E. Green,

written by Nat Perrin, and based on the novel by S.S. Van Dine,

was released in the United States on June 2, 1939.

Music by Gerard Carbonara and Leo Shuken.

Cast:

Gracie Allen, Warren William, Ellen Drew, Kent Taylor, Judith Barrett, Donald MacBride, Jed Prouty, Jerome Cowan, H. B. Warner, William Demarest, Sam Lee, Al Shaw, Richard Denning, Irving Bacon, Lillian Yarbo.

Recommended reading:

The Gracie Allen Murder Case

a.k.a. The Smell of Murder

by S.S. Van Dine.

Filmed as The Gracie Allen Murder Case (1939), directed by Alfred E. Green.

Published by Felony & Mayhem Press.
First published 1938.

ISBN-10: 1631942069
ISBN-13: 9781631942068
 
Description:

“Mr. Van Dine’s amateur detective is the most gentlemanly, and probably the most scholarly snooper in literature.” – Chicago Daily Tribune.

Gracie Allen breaks the Philo Phormula in a number of ways. First is its title: this is the only book in the series to modify “Murder Case” with more than one word, much less with the name of a character. And then there’s that character: Gracie Allen was a very real, much-loved comedienne in the 1930s, famous for her double act with George Burns, and in fact the plot revolves around her. Gracie’s centrality is no accident: Van Dine wrote the story as a vehicle for Allen, and actually created the novel only after the film had come out. So, do all these departures pay off? We’d be lying if we said that Gracie hits every single mark, but Van Dine does a surprisingly entertaining job of translating Ms. Allen’s delicious Ditzy Blonde persona to the page, and she makes a charming foil for Philo’s evergreen erudition.

Born on this day – Gracie Allen:

 

Gracie Allen

Vaudevillian

Singer

Actress

Comedian

July 26, 1895 – August 27, 1964

Credits:

100% Service (1931); 50 Years of Funny Females (1995); 5th Annual TV Academy Hall of Fame (1989); A Damsel in Distress (1937); American Masters (1997–2017); America's Clown: An Intimate Biography of Red Skelton (2014); Biography (2002); Bob Hope's World of Comedy (1976); Classic Comedy Teams (1986); Classic Stand-Up Comedy of Television (1996); Climax! (1956); College Holiday (1936); College Humor (1933); College Swing (1938); Dumb, Dumber & Dumbest (1995); Fit to Be Tied (1930); Going Hollywood: The '30s (1984); Here Comes Cookie (1935); Hit Celebrity TV Commercials (2004); Hollywood and the Stars (1963); Hollywood Couples (2000); Hollywood on Parade No. A-2 (1932); Hollywood on Parade No. A-9 (1933); Honolulu (1939); International House (1933); Jack Benny's 20th Anniversary TV Special (1970); Lambchops (1929); Larry King Live (2003); Legends of Comedy (1992); Let's Dance (1933); Love in Bloom (1935); Many Happy Returns (1934); Meet the Stars #3: Variety Reel #1 (1941); Mel Blanc: The Man of a Thousand Voices (2008); Mr. and Mrs. North (1942); Murphy Brown (1989); Oh, My Operation (1931); Olympic Fund Telethon (1952); Once Over, Light (1931); Our World (1987); Patents Pending (1932); Paul Henning & The Hillbillies (2005); Paul Merton's Palladium Story (1994); Pioneers of Primetime (1995); Pioneers of Television (2014); Pulling a Bone (1931); Screen Snapshots Series 33, No. 10: Hollywood Grows Up (1954); Screen Snapshots: Memories of Famous Hollywood Comedians (1952); Shower of Stars (1955); Six of a Kind (1934); Stars in the Eye (1952); Startime (1959); Stu's Show (2023); Television (1988); Television: The First Fifty Years (1999); The 8th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards (1956); The Actor's Society Benefit Gala (1949); The Antique Shop (1931); The Babbling Book (1932); The Big Broadcast (1932); The Big Broadcast of 1936 (1935); The Big Broadcast of 1937 (1936); The Bob Cummings Show (1957); The Dawn of Sound: How Movies Learned to Talk (2007); The DuPont Show of the Week (1961); The Ed Sullivan Show (1957); The Factor (2008); The First Annual Comedy Hall of Fame (1993); The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show (1950–1958); The Gracie Allen Murder Case (1939); The Great Man: W.C. Fields (2005); The Great Radio Comedians (1972); The Great Standups (1984); The History of Comedy (2017); The Hollywood Palace (1982); The Jack Benny Program (1952–1964); The Jackie Gleason Show (1957); The World Our Stage (1957); This Is Your Life (1955); Two Girls and a Sailor (1944); Walking the Baby (1933); We're Not Dressing (1934); What's My Line? (1954); What's My Line? At 25 (1975); Your Hat (1932).