Curtain at Eight
Cast & Crew
E. Mason Hopper
Dorothy Mackaill
C. Aubrey Smith
Paul Cavanagh
Sam Hardy
Marion Shilling
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
Numerous women have fallen in love with matinee idol Wylie Thornton, including Anice Cresmer, who, with her sister Lola, is in the cast of his current play. Lola begs her sister to give Thornton up, but she refuses. Thornton plans to leave for New York with local heiress Doris Manning as his new leading lady. Thornton and his wife, who is hiding the fact of the marriage while posing as his secretary, Alma Jenkins, plan to split the money that Thornton stands to make from his association with Doris. After Anice learns of Thornton's infidelity and kills herself, Lola goes to a farewell party for Thornton on the theater's stage intent on killing him. After the lights go out in preparation for a surprise, Thornton is shot to death. The murder is investigated by Jim Hanvey, an elderly, kindhearted detective, Marty Gallagher, a cop somewhat lacking in discernment, and Gallagher's foil, wisecracking reporter Terry Mooney. Suspects include Thornton's wife, Doris' father, Major Manning, Doris' sweetheart, Carey Weldon, Lola, and a trained friendly chimpanzee, who appears in the play and has found his trainer's gun in the prop room. While Gallagher arrests everyone in sight and thinks he has solved the case, Hanvey proceeds in a thoughtful, methodical manner. Two other murders occur, including that of the chimp's trainer. After finding the missing gun up in the scenery and learning that Lola killed Thornton to avenge Anice's suicide, Hanvey, sympathizing with Lola's motive, allows the chimp, who did kill his trainer, to take the blame for Thornton's murder. Doris and Carey reconcile, due to Hanvey's efforts, and Mooney, who says that he knew all the time that the chimp was the murderer, takes credit for solving the mystery.
Director
E. Mason Hopper
Cast
Dorothy Mackaill
C. Aubrey Smith
Paul Cavanagh
Sam Hardy
Marion Shilling
Natalie Moorhead
Russell Hopton
Hale Hamilton
Ruthelma Stevens
Jack Mulhall
Sid Saylor
Herman Bing
Dot Farley
William Humphries
Jane Keckley
Cornelius O'keefe
Arthur Hoyt
Mathew Betz
Joe Girard
Crew
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
This film is presumed lost. Please check your attic.
Notes
Loew's, which bought the rights to this film for its New York circuit, changed the title to Backstage Mystery for its New York showings because of the similarity of the original title to its own Dinner at Eight. Sources disagree concerning the identity of Thornton's murderer. While most of the reviews state that it was Lola, Harrrison's Reports says that the chimp did it. Motion Picture Herald speculated "in the dialogue the frequent explosive 'Hells' might bring objections from patrons here and there." Bradley Page, Walter Brennan, Lafe McKee and Pat O'Malley were listed as cast members in a Hollywood Herald production chart, but their participation in the final film has not been confirmed.
