Of all the Michael Shayne films starring Lloyd Nolan that I have seen so far, Just Off Broadway has to be the noir-est. The film is still humorous and, yes, Phil Silvers plays Roy Higgins, a put-upon freelance photographer, for laughs. But there is more of a sense of danger in this film than in the previous Shayne detective films. When one of the characters, Rita Darling, is slapped across the face by another, George Dolphin, I almost wondered if she would get herself killed, too. That’s not something I have ever wondered about before in a Shayne film. That element of danger wasn’t the only difference from previous Michael Shayne films. The identity of the murderer came as a complete surprise to me, which is not always true of these short detective films.
Just Off Broadway is the sixth in a series of twelve films about the detective Michael Shayne. Lloyd Nolan starred as Shayne in seven of the films until the series was dropped by Twentieth Century Fox. These seven films were released from 1940 to 1942. When the series was picked up by Producers Releasing Corporation (PRC), Hugh Beaumont took over the role of Shayne for five more films, which were released in 1946 and 1947. Click on each film title below to see my blog post about the first five Michael Shayne films.
◊ Michael Shayne, Private Detective
Of course, some elements of Just Off Broadway are repeated from the first five films in the series. Michael Shayne is short on money and won’t be getting paid for his investigative work—again. His lack of finances is a running gag throughout the film and throughout the series. He and the female news reporter, Judy Taylor, who is working with him and wants the scoop, once had a romantic attachment, but Shayne is as short on luck in the romance department as he is with money. There’s no doubt, however, that he is a competent investigator, even if he does break the rules to find out the truth. As in the previous films, Shayne explains all the details of the murder and the case to end the film, this time to everyone in the courtroom at a murder trial.
The film starts with a chaotic crowd scene outside a criminal court building. Police officers hold back the crowd on the sidewalk while a car pulls up to the curb. When a woman, Rita Darling, gets out of the car, another woman asks for her autograph. Roy Higgins wants to take Darling’s photo, but a police lieutenant interferes. Others in the crowd rough her up a bit. One woman tries to steal her fur as a souvenir, and Rita belts her on the side of the head with her purse. Roy Higgins is still on scene, and he is happy to capture the purse-slinging moment on film.
Michael Shayne is a juror for the murder trial, and Rita Darling is a witness in the case. Lillian Hubbard is the suspect on trial for the murder of Harley Forsythe, a man who was involved with both women; thus, both had a motive to kill him.
Henry Randolph, a butler for one of Hubbard’s neighbors in her apartment building, is on the witness stand when someone throws a knife from the rear of the courtroom, Randolph is killed instantly. Michael Shayne jumps out of the jury box, takes the knife off the floor after it fell out of Randolph’s body, and hides it under the prosecution’s table. Judy Taylor sees what Shayne is up to and decides to find out what he knows.
The jury is sequestered and staying in a hotel. The night of Randolph’s murder in the courtroom, Shayne escapes the hotel via the fire escape to investigate the crime because he doesn’t believe Hubbard killed Forsythe or has anything to do with Randolph’s murder. Shayne returns to the courtroom to retrieve the knife that he hid, but Taylor is already there to retrieve it. They wrestle for the knife, which he gets away from her, but Taylor won’t let him leave without taking her along on his investigation.
(This blog post about Just Off Broadway contains spoilers.)
I know that these Michael Shayne films are really played for laughs, and calling them noir (or avant noir, a term I use instead of proto-noir) is a bit of a stretch. In addition, some of the plot details in Just Off Broadway stretch credulity, even if they are funny and make the film a joy to watch:
◊ Michael Shayne is a private detective serving on a jury. I don’t know what the legal ramifications would be in real practice or if the ramifications would depend on jurisdiction.
◊ Shayne escapes from jury sequestration to investigate the murder himself because he doesn’t believe the defendant is guilty.
◊ Shayne is the only one who notices that the knife that killed Henry Randolph has fallen on the floor. And he is the only one who has time to hide it under the district attorney’s desk. These details are a little easier to believe because Randolph is killed on the witness stand, and his murder creates shock and panic in the courtroom.
◊ Shayne and Judy Taylor escape from the police officers arriving on the scene at the Acme Storage Company by outrunning them and then jumping on a tour bus. These same officers seem to abandon the search for both of them, even though they were leaving the scene of a murder.
◊ Shayne, a juror, is allowed to question a witness on the stand, and that witness is defense attorney John Logan. Again, I don’t know what the legal ramifications would be or if the ramifications would depend on jurisdiction.
◊ Shayne solves the murder in one night, even though he visits several knife throwers, takes a tour bus ride, visits a nightclub, and interviews a jeweler, among other investigatory tasks.
So it’s true: You have to be willing to suspend disbelief several times to enjoy this film. But it really is so much fun, and none of these Shayne films were ever meant to be taken seriously.
I have seen Just Off Broadway twice already: It’s just over an hour long. While some of the plot details are predictable and others are preposterous, seeing it twice was well worth it. It helped me to catch some details that I had missed after a single viewing. Lloyd Nolan is great—as always—as Michael Shayne, and I have enjoyed all the Shayne films that I have seen so far. I’m glad I still have one more (Time to Kill) to see. And then I get to see the Shayne films starring Hugh Beaumont.
Although her role is uncredited, I am almost positive that Virginia Mayo is the elevator operator who makes her first appearance toward the end of the film. If anyone knows for sure, please do let me know.
September 25, 1942, release date • Directed by Herbert I. Leeds • Screenplay by Arnaud d’Usseau • Based on an idea by Jo Eisinger and the character of Michael Shayne created by Brett Halliday • Music by David Raksin • Edited by Louis R. Loeffler • Cinematography by Lucien N. Andriot
Lloyd Nolan as Michael Shayne • Marjorie Weaver as Judy Taylor, news reporter • Phil Silvers as Roy Higgins, photographer • Janis Carter as Lillian Hubbard • Richard Derr as John Logan, defense attorney • Joan Valerie as Rita Darling • Don Costello as George Dolphin • Chester Clute as Sperty, Shayne’s juror-roommate • Francis Pierlot as Sidney Arno, jeweler • Grant Richards as District Attorney John F. McGonagle • George M. Carleton as Judge Robert Walters • Alexander Lockwood as Count Edmond Telmachio • William Haade as the night watchman • Leyland Hodgson as Henry Randolph, the butler • Oscar O’Shea as Pop, the stage door security guard • Virginia Mayo as the elevator operator
Distributed by Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation • Produced by Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation
