The Falcon's Alibi (1946) - Turner Classic Movies

The Falcon's Alibi


1h 2m 1946
The Falcon's Alibi

Brief Synopsis

A society sleuth sets out on the trail of a society matron's lost jewels.

Film Details

Genre
Suspense/Mystery
Crime
Release Date
Jul 1, 1946
Premiere Information
not available
Production Company
RKO Radio Pictures, Inc.
Distribution Company
RKO Radio Pictures, Inc.
Country
United States
Screenplay Information
Based on a character created by Michael Arlen.

Technical Specs

Duration
1h 2m
Sound
Mono (RCA Sound System)
Color
Black and White
Theatrical Aspect Ratio
1.37 : 1
Film Length
5,623ft

Synopsis

While watching horse races with her employer, Mrs. Gloria Peabody, beleaguered personal secretary Joan Meredith is admired by suave sleuth Tom Lawrence, commonly known as "The Falcon." When Joan discovers Tom's identity, she begs him to accept Mrs. Peabody's birthday party invitation. At the hotel party, Joan explains to Tom that ever since the flightly Mrs. Peabody made an insurance claim on a stolen necklace, she has been trailed by Metcalf, a zealous insurance investigator. Joan also confesses that, to protect herself, she took Mrs. Peabody's $100,000 pearl necklace to a jeweler to have a copy made and was told that it was a fake. Just after Tom agrees to help Joan find the real pearl necklace, Louie, a waiter at the hotel, is killed in Mrs. Peabody's suite.

Joan and Tom stumble on the body, and police inspector Blake discovers that Mrs. Peabody's pearls have been stolen. Later, while Tom's assistant, Goldie Lock, is giving Tom a massage in their hotel room, an unseen gunman takes a shot at the detective. As Tom digs the bullets out of the wall, Nick, a disc jockey operating out of the hotel, sneaks back into his studio, where his pre-recorded program is playing. The next day, Tom notices ambitious hotel nightclub singer Lola Carpenter wearing an expensive ring and is surprised when she claims it is phony. Tom then sends Goldie to set a trashcan fire in the room of Mrs. Peabody's friend, Harvey Beaumont, and spy on Beaumont from his closet. From Goldie's subsequent report, Tom discovers that Beaumont is hiding Mrs. Peabody's pearls inside a fake book. Tom takes the pearls, then approaches Bender, a fence and nightclub owner, about disposing of them. To prevent Bender's thugs from stealing the jewels, Tom mails them to his hotel room as he leaves the nightclub.

When Tom and Goldie return to their room, however, they are greeted by Blake, who arrests them after he finds both the pearls and Beaumont's dead body. Tom eventually convinces Blake to give him twenty-four hours to track down the murderer and then goes to Lola's dressing room. There Tom deduces that Lola and Nick are secretly married and learns that she is having an affair with Alex Olmstead, her manager. Before Lola can tell Nick that she is leaving him for Alex, however, Nick reveals that he has been stealing jewels for her and is in trouble. The distraught Nick begs Lola to leave with him that night, and suddenly fearful for her safety, she agrees to go with him in a few days.

A short time later, while Tom investigates Nick's studio and discovers his trick of pre-recording his programs, Nick overhears Lola and Alex discussing their affair in Lola's room. Enraged with jealousy, Nick shoots Lola after Alex leaves and sneaks out through her window. Tom finds Lola's body and is immediately cornered by the police. Joan, meanwhile, goes to Nick's studio looking for Tom and also finds Nick's studio trickery. At that moment, she is confronted by Nick and is about to be killed by him when Tom bursts into the studio. During the subsequent fight, Nick falls through a window to his death. After Tom and Joan are cleared of all suspicion, Blake reveals that Mrs. Peabody was working with Beaumont to swindle Metcalf and the insurance company.

Film Details

Genre
Suspense/Mystery
Crime
Release Date
Jul 1, 1946
Premiere Information
not available
Production Company
RKO Radio Pictures, Inc.
Distribution Company
RKO Radio Pictures, Inc.
Country
United States
Screenplay Information
Based on a character created by Michael Arlen.

Technical Specs

Duration
1h 2m
Sound
Mono (RCA Sound System)
Color
Black and White
Theatrical Aspect Ratio
1.37 : 1
Film Length
5,623ft

Quotes

Trivia

Notes

Production assistant Major Allen "Dry" Martini was a pilot with the famed Flying Fortress company. For more information on the "Falcon" series, consult the Series Index and for The Gay Falcon.

Miscellaneous Notes

Released in United States Summer July 1, 1946

Released in United States Summer July 1, 1946