LeonLouisRicci Billy "B-Movie" Beaudine Directed this Monogram Movie with about as Much Creativity as His other 300 Films. Competent and Quick the Man who went on to Helm..."Jesse James Meets Frankenstein's Daughter" (1966) and "Billy the Kid vs Dracula" (1966) along with many Others that "Bad Movie" Archaeologists have Dug Up and Poked Fun. This is a Transparent Plot Paraded Out for Non-Discerning Wartime Audiences. There are some Amusing Cultural References about Sinking the Japs and a Reference to "Superman" that made His Comic Book Debut only Three Years Earlier.Pop-Eyed and always Poking Fun at Himself and His Race, Mantan Moreland is On Hand for a while, "Feets don't fail me now!", but is Surprisingly Absent after a Brief Gin Guzzling Opening. John Hamilton (TV's Perry White) is the "Villain" along with Three Leading Actors that no one can or Should Remember, because They basically Show Up, Read Lines and Annoy the Audience.The Title is Better than the Movie and the Movie is Better than Being on the Bottom End of a Bomb Run.Note...A Title Card shown at the end of the Movie asks for 80,000,000 Theater Patrons to "Buy Bonds Now", and many did. Movie goers were generous Patriots throughout WWII and helped the War effort substantially.Note 2…Someone on IMDb should remove the poster on this title page. It is almost as embarrassing as this Movie.

dougdoepke As expected from Monogram, the sets are cheap, the comedy broad, and the acting erratic. Still, the premise is engaging. That is, how can deaf-mute Harrison (Hamilton) manage to be in two places at once. If we're to believe our eyes, he's emceeing big public events in one part of town, while in another part, he's wringing people's necks. Pretty good trick. So the movie's more a howsitdun than a whodunit.Hamilton's excellent in the pivotal role. Looks like he's been doing sign language for years. Plus there's that unblinking stare, while we wonder what's behind it. Happily, Woodbury (Barbara) injects needed spark as a girl Friday, while Moreland enlivens with his bug-eyed comedic bit. Too bad he soon disappears (as another reviewer points out). Now, if casting had kept Moreland and dumped the unfunny cop Hymer, things would have improved—but then Moreland probably had to get over to the Charlie Chan set. And who is Dick Purcell, the supposed leading man. I kept looking for him, but he's so recessive, he's hard to spot. I guess all the good B-leading men were away at war, but then neither the script nor director Beaudine throws much Purcell's way.Anyway, despite the drawbacks, there's enough suspense-- especially around the piano-- to keep up interest and maybe even reaffirm the laws of physics.

estabansmythe This is directed to the guy who gives the kudos in "Phantom Killer" to Jack Benny's valet/chef/chauffeur/right-hand-man Eddie "Rochester" Anderson. You got it wrong, fellow. That was not Rochester playing Nicodemus, the janitor who sees a man talk who can't talk. Nope. It was the great Mantan Moreland. BTW, this low budget Monogram 2-reeler is fun, especially if you're a fan of the dozens of Old Dark House mysteries that were produced in the 30s & 40s. Mantan, who died in 1973 at age 71, is probably best remembered these days as Birmingham Brown, Charlie Chan's driver and cohort to Charlie's Numbers One, Two & Three sons in 14 Charlie Chan movies from 1944-1949. Mantan also had solid roles in "King of the Zombies" (1941), "Dressed to Kill" (1941) with Lloyd Nolan as shamus Mike Shayne, "The Strange Case of Dr. RX" (1942) with another great, Lionel Atwill and many other fun films. He acted into the 1970s when he appeared in such TV series as "Love, American Style" and "Adam-12." Mantan has deservedly been remembered in beloved fashion by many and needs to be recognized here.

oscar-35 The film is a nice mystery piece. Well acted by the male and female leads playing a District Attorney and his news-reporter girlfriend. Their snappy dialog and colorful personalities keep this show moving and bright. The plot has a nice twist using a deaf mute and a twin gimmick. The show is very watchable and does fool the viewer in the best places. John Hamitlon aka TV Superman's 'Perry White' turns in a moderately menacing villain who likes the ladies and is very tricky. The rest of the cast is rounded out with police types and several character actors. One memorable performance was that of the courtroom witness played by 'Rodchester' of the Jack Benny Show. This show was contained in a three detective story DVD of the pre-war area. This was one of the best on this DVD for my likes. I can recommend it to anyone to enjoy.