Who Is Hope Schuyler?
Cast & Crew
Thos. Z. Loring
Joseph Allen Jr.
Mary Howard
Sheila Ryan
Ricardo Cortez
Janis Carter
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
Special prosecutor Tom Mason, who has been appointed by the governor as the head of a special anti-crime commission, is trying former district attorney Anthony Pearce on charges of graft. Tom's witnesses do not help his case, however, as they testify that instead of giving protection money directly to Pearce, they gave it to an astrologist named Hope Schuyler. Hope then passed the money on to Pearce, but because she was wearing heavy veils during these transactions, no one can identify her. In court one day, Tom receives a message from Carl Spence, one of his investigators, that Pearce and Hope met at a secluded lodge. Telling the judge that he can find Hope within forty-eight hours, Tom obtains a recess and begins searching for Hope and the lodge with his assistant, Diane Rossiter, with whom Tom is infatuated. Diane is the daughter of influential Judge Rossiter, who warns Tom that unless he wraps up the case against Pearce quickly, the governor will fire him. Tom and Diane then investigate a secret room in Hope's studio, and the cozy nature of the room leads Tom to suspect that Hope and Pearce were having an affair. Tom's own romantic impulses are interrupted by newspaper reporter Lee Dale, who has a crush on Tom. Lee gives Tom a clue linking Pearce to airport owner Arthur Guerney, who admits that he periodically rented a plane to Hope, who would fly to a destination about one hundred miles away. Later that evening, Tom returns to Guerney's airfield, but arrives too late to question him, for Guerney has been killed in a fire. Tom finds a slipper monogrammed with the initials "AP," but when he confronts Pearce, Pearce's wife Alma provides an alibi for him. An attempt is made on Tom's life but he is not seriously injured, and the next day, he learns that Spence has been found dead in the apartment of Vesta Hadden, Pearce's secretary. At the apartment, Tom finds a clue leading him to the lodge, where he then goes with Diane and Lee. There they find Guerney's wife Phyllis, who used to go to the lodge with Pearce before he broke off their affair because of Hope. They also find Vesta, who is there to prevent Pearce and Hope from double-crossing her and pinning Spence's murder on her. After briefly accusing Lee of being Hope in order to distract the real culprit, Tom reveals that Diane is Hope Schuyler. Diane admits to killing Guerney and Spence out of love for Pearce, but before she can escape, she is shot by Alma. Soon after, Tom presents his evidence against Pearce and Hope in court while a proud Lee watches from the audience.
Director
Thos. Z. Loring
Cast
Joseph Allen Jr.
Mary Howard
Sheila Ryan
Ricardo Cortez
Janis Carter
Joan Valerie
Robert Lowery
Rose Hobart
Paul Guilfoyle
William Newell
Pat Flaherty
Charles Trowbridge
Frank Puglia
Ed Stanley
Edward Keane
Cliff Clark
Clara Horton
Harry Carter
Byron Foulger
Chuck Evans
Eddie Acuff
Jeff Corey
Bud Geary
Walter Sande
Freddie Walburn
Bobbie Hale
James Metcalf
Otto Hoffman
Crew
Harry Brand
Arnaud D'usseau
Richard Day
Chester Gore
Hal Herman
Herschel
Det. Lieut. Frank L. James
Oscar Lagerstrom
Harry M. Leonard
Thomas Little
Louis Loeffler
Virgil Miller
Emil Newman
Sol M. Wurtzel
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
The working title of this film was Hearses Don't Hurry. Actor Paul Guilfoyle's surname is misspelled "Guilfoil" in both the opening and ending credits. A September 4, 1941 Hollywood Reporter news item noted that the picture was originally scheduled to be part of Twentieth Century-Fox's "Michael Shayne" series, but was instead written as a separate feature. According to a January 13, 1942 Hollywood Reporter news item, wartime government regulations prohibiting the use of "established commercial and military airports for production purposes" resulted in Twentieth Century-Fox constructing the airfield shown in the picture on grounds of the studio golf course. Although the airfield was not designed to be fully functional, it did possess a hanger and runway. Who Is Hope Schuyler? was the first film directed by Thomas Z. Loring. According to a Hollywood Reporter news item, Loring, who was known as "Zolley," was a "former little theatre stage manager who has been serving an apprenticeship in film directing" at the studio.
