Destination Unknown
Cast & Crew
Ray Taylor
William Gargan
Irene Hervey
Sam Levene
Turhan Bey
Keye Luke
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
After murdering a Chinese agent on the streets of Japanese-occupied Shanghai, Karl Renner, a German, fights with his beautiful girl friend, Elena Varnoff, who then goes to Col. Suyakawa, the local head of Japanese military intelligence, and tells him that she has information concerning the whereabouts of the missing St. Petersburg jewels. Upon leaving the Japanese officer, Elena is followed to her hotel by persistant American Briggs Harrison. Meanwhile, Renner is tortured by Suyakawa, who wants information about the jewels, despite the fact that he is a Japanese agent. At the same time, Briggs catches Elena searching Renner's room, and the two become momentary partners while they search for the jewels. In Renner's room, they find a picture of the Peking garden of Sun Wat Lin, the last man known to have possessed the St. Petersburg jewels, which Briggs says is a key to finding them. After she leaves with the picture, however, Briggs takes the clock that bears the true secret message. On the train to Peking, Briggs is joined in his compartment by Renner. Briggs later warns Elena of Renner's presence on the train, so she and her accomplices, Victor and Wellington, decide to get off at the next water stop. Unknown to them, Renner gets off there as well, but they are saved from the German by Briggs. After spending the night in a Chinese farmer's home, they ask the farmer to buy them horses. As they are leaving, they hear gunshots and ride back to discover that the farmer and his family have been killed by Japanese soldiers. The couple stays that night at the home of Briggs's friend, and Elena awakes the next day to learn that Briggs has gone to Peking without her. She then telephones Dutch dipolmat Van Hoven and orders him to arrest Briggs, but the American has disguised himself as an old Chinese farmer and meets with Chinese storekeeper and spy, Wing Fu. Wing Fu helps him break the clock's secret code, but Briggs is then arrested by Dutch marines before he has a chance to get the jewels. Meanwhile, Van Hoven turns the clock over to Elena, who also goes to Wing Fu, but he tells her that she is too late, as the jewels are already on their way to Chungking. Elena tells the merchant that she is with the Netherlands government and is attempting to guard the safety of the jewels, as they are meant as payment by the Chinese government for a shipment of European armaments. Wing Fu then tells her that Briggs is actually Terry Jordan, the noted American aviator and a close friend of Chinese leader General Chiang Kai-Shek. Wing Fu further informs her that Briggs, whom the Dutch have turned over to the Japanese, is in great peril, as the Japanese military commander of Peking, the brutal Capt. Muto, is well aware of Briggs's actions against the Japanese air force. Meanwhile, American diplomat Daniels is joined by Van Hoven in appealing to Muto for Briggs's release. Briggs escapes from the Japanese jail just in time to save Wing Fu and Elena from Renner and his men. Then, with the help of Chinese guerillas, they make their escape from Peking. Briggs and Elena later travel by plane to Chungking, with the jewels safely aboard. Elena offers to tell Briggs her real name, but he tells her it does not matter, as he plans to marry her and change it anyway.
Director
Ray Taylor
Cast
William Gargan
Irene Hervey
Sam Levene
Turhan Bey
Keye Luke
Felix Basch
Donald Stewart
Olaf Hytten
Edward Colebrook
Willie Fung
Charles Lung
Herbert Heyes
Edward Van Sloan
Hans Schumm
Fred Giermann
Fred Vogeding
Paul Bryar
Harry Strang
Paul Fung
Colin Kenny
Victor Wong
Tom Yoen
Spencer Chan
Jack Santos
Grace Lem
Luke Chan
Eddie Wong
Crew
John W. Boyle
Bernard B. Brown
Ralph M. Delacy
R. A. Gausman
Marshall Grant
Lawrence Hazard
Theodore Joos
John Kafka
Joe Lapis
Charles Maynard
John Meehan Jr.
Jack Otterson
Lynn Riggs
Edward R. Robinson
H. J. Salter
Vera West
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
The working title of this film was Peking Adventure. Hollywood Reporter production charts include Ludwig Stossel in the cast, but his appearance in the released film has not been confirmed.
