''Confessions of Boston Blackie'' is a 1941 American

crime film Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combin ...

directed by

Edward Dmytryk Edward Dmytryk (September 4, 1908 – July 1, 1999) was an American film director. He was known for his 1940s noir films and received an Oscar nomination for Best Director for '' Crossfire'' (1947). In 1947, he was named as one of the Hollywoo ...

and starring

Chester Morris John Chester Brooks Morris (February 16, 1901 – September 11, 1970) was an American stage, film, television, and radio actor. He had some prestigious film roles early in his career, and received an Academy Award nomination for ''Alibi'' ( ...

and

Harriet Hilliard Harriet Nelson (formerly Hilliard; born Peggy Lou Snyder; July 18, 1909 – October 2, 1994) was an American actress and singer. Nelson is best known for her role on the sitcom ''The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet''. Early life and career Ne ...

. A woman consigns a family heirloom to a pair of unscrupulous art dealers in order to raise money to help her sick brother. This film is the second in the series of 14

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...

Boston Blackie Boston Blackie is a fictional character created by author Jack Boyle (1881–1928). Blackie, a jewel thief and safecracker in Boyle's stories, became a detective in adaptations for films, radio and television—an "enemy to those who make him ...

films, all starring Morris as the reformed crook. It was preceded by ''

Meet Boston Blackie ''Meet Boston Blackie'' is a 1941 crime film starring Chester Morris as Boston Blackie, a notorious, but honorable jewel thief. Although the character had been the hero of a number of silent films, this was the first talking picture. It proved po ...

'' (1941) and followed by '' Alias Boston Blackie'' (1942).

Plot

Diane Parrish (Harriet Hilliard) is impatient for the sale of her statue of Augustus Caesar, as she needs the money to help her sick brother. Joe Buchanan, one of the art dealers handling the auction, asks her to stay away, claiming that an emotional attachment to the work might cause her to make a scene. She shows up anyway, and notices that the statue is not hers, but a fake. When Buchanan pulls out a gun to silence her, Boston Blackie (Chester Morris) spots him and fires his own pistol. Parrish is only grazed, but Buchanan accidentally kills his partner and the replica's sculptor, Eric Allison. When Police Inspector Farraday ( Richard Lane) arrives, he automatically assumes that Blackie is guilty and takes him into custody. Buchanan hides in the hollow fake statue. Then when the coast is clear, he puts Allison's body (and the incriminating bullet) inside and makes his escape. The replica is purchased by Blackie's wealthy friend, Arthur Manleder (

Lloyd Corrigan Lloyd Corrigan (October 16, 1900 – November 5, 1969) was an American film and television actor, producer, screenwriter, and director who began working in films in the 1920s. The son of actress Lillian Elliott, Corrigan directed films, usually ...

). Despite lacking a corpse, Farraday keeps Blackie in jail, but not for long. Blackie switches places with an ice cream man (

William Benedict William Benedict (April 16, 1917 – November 25, 1999), was an American actor, perhaps best known for playing "Whitey" in Monogram Pictures' The Bowery Boys series. Early years Benedict was born in Haskell, Oklahoma, After his father's dea ...

) and escapes. He goes to see Diane in the hospital to obtain information. To get in undetected, he once again appropriates the unlucky ice cream man's uniform and pretends to be Diane's doctor. When he learns why she needs the money so badly, he arranges for his assistant, the "Runt" ( George E. Stone), to masquerade as an insurance adjuster to give her $6000 he borrowed from Manleder. The money had initially been intended to pay off a blackmailing Mona (

Joan Woodbury Joan Elmer Woodbury (December 17, 1915 – February 22, 1989) was an American actress beginning in the 1930s and continuing well into the 1960s. Early life Woodbury was born in Los Angeles, California on December 17, 1915. Her father was Elmer ...

), who claims she is Blackie's wife. When Mona shows up and demands the money, Diane realizes that Blackie is her benefactor. Buchanan arranges to buy the statue from an unsuspecting Manleder. Blackie learns about it, and sees a way to unravel the mystery. He follows the movers back to their lair. Sneaking inside, he overpowers Caulder ( Kenneth MacDonald), one of Buchanan's henchmen. However, Buchanan returns, with Diane as his prisoner, resulting a

Mexican standoff A Mexican standoff is a confrontation in which no strategy exists that allows any party to achieve victory. Any party initiating aggression might trigger its own demise. At the same time, the parties are unable to extricate themselves from the si ...

. Meanwhile, both Manleder and the Runt are picked up by the police. Farraday has them released, hoping they will lead him to their friend. The Runt is too experienced to be taken in, but Manleder does return to the crooks' secret underground workshop, where they copy artworks. In the ensuing gunfight, Buchanan is killed, but the shots destroy the electrical circuits controlling the only way in, trapping them all in the soundproof chamber. Blackie comes up with the idea to start a fire in the ventilation shaft, and firemen arrive to let them out.

Cast

as Boston Blackie *

as Diane Parrish *

Martin Spellman Martin Spellman IV (October 8, 1925 – May 6, 2020) was an American child actor active in films during the 1930s and 1940s. Career Martin Spellman IV was born in 1925 in Des Moines, Iowa. After his family moved to California, at the age of 9 ...

as Jimmy Parrish * Richard Lane as Inspector Farraday * George E. Stone as The Runt *

as Arthur Manleder *

as Mona * Walter Sande as Detective Mathews * Ralph Theodore as Joe Buchanan * Kenneth MacDonald as Caulder * Walter Soderling as Eric Allison *

as Ice Cream Man (as Billy Benedict)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Confessions Of Boston Blackie 1941 films 1941 crime films American crime films American black-and-white films Columbia Pictures films Films directed by Edward Dmytryk Boston Blackie films 1940s English-language films 1940s American films