''The Great Gambini'' is a 1937 American

mystery film A mystery film is a genre of film that revolves around the solution of a problem or a crime. It focuses on the efforts of the detective, private investigator or amateur sleuth to solve the mysterious circumstances of an issue by means of clues, i ...

directed by Charles Vidor and written by

Frederick J. Jackson Frederick J. Jackson, also known professionally as Fred Jackson and Frederick Jackson and under the pseudonym Victor Thorne, (September 21, 1886 – May 22, 1953) was an American author, playwright, screenwriter, novelist, and producer fo ...

, Frank Partos and

Howard Irving Young Howard Irving Young (April 24, 1893 – February 24, 1952) was an American screenwriter and playwright.Marshall p.297 During the 1930s and 1940s he worked on a number of British films. Selected filmography * '' A Million A Minute'' (1916) * '' Mi ...

. The film stars Akim Tamiroff,

Marian Marsh Marian Marsh (born Violet Ethelred Krauth; October 17, 1913 – November 9, 2006) was a Trinidad-born American film actress and later an environmentalist. Early life Violet Ethelred Krauth was born on October 17, 1913, in Trinidad, British ...

, John Trent, Genevieve Tobin, Reginald Denny, Roland Drew and

William Demarest Carl William Demarest (February 27, 1892 – December 27, 1983) was an American character actor, known especially for his roles in screwball comedies by Preston Sturges and for playing Uncle Charley in the sitcom '' My Three Sons'' Demarest, ...

. The film was released on June 25, 1937, by Paramount Pictures.

Plot

Grant Naylor is unhappy because the woman he loves, Ann Randall, wants to instead marry Stephen Danby, a scoundrel. All are surprised during a performance of The Great Gambini when the magician predicts Ann and Danby will never be wed. His prediction comes true when Danby's dead body is found. Sgt. Kirby questions all of Ann's family and Grant, and a piece of evidence points them to a man who was using a disguise. Grant believes the detective has the wrong man and discovers it's been Gambini himself all along. Gambini confesses on stage, but remains confident because Kirby's handcuffs might not be able to hold him.

Cast

* Akim Tamiroff as The Great Gambini *

as Ann Randall * John Trent as Grant Naylor * Genevieve Tobin as Nancy Randall * Reginald Denny as William Randall * Roland Drew as Stephen Danby *

as Sergeant Kirby * Edward Brophy as Butch *Alan Birmingham as Lamb *

Lya Lys Lya Lys (born Nathalie Margoulis; May 18, 1908 – June 2, 1986) was a German-born American actress. Biography Lya Lys was born in Berlin on May 18, 1908U.S. Naturalization Records August 7, 1933 to a Russian banker and French pediatrician who ...

as Luba *Ralph Peters as Bartender

References

External links

* 1937 films American mystery films 1937 mystery films Paramount Pictures films Films directed by Charles Vidor Films produced by B. P. Schulberg American black-and-white films 1930s English-language films 1930s American films {{mystery-film-stub