''I Wake Up Screaming'' (originally titled ''Hot Spot'') is a 1941 American

mystery Mystery, The Mystery, Mysteries or The Mysteries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters *Mystery, a cat character in ''Emily the Strange'' *Mystery, a seahorse that SpongeBob SquarePants adopts in the episode " My Pre ...

thriller Thriller may refer to: * Thriller (genre), a broad genre of literature, film and television ** Thriller film, a film genre under the general thriller genre Comics * ''Thriller'' (DC Comics), a comic book series published 1983–84 by DC Comics i ...

film noir Film noir (; ) is a style of Cinema of the United States, Hollywood Crime film, crime dramas that emphasizes cynicism (contemporary), cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of Ameri ...

. directed by H. Bruce Humberstone and starring

Betty Grable Elizabeth Ruth Grable (December 18, 1916 – July 2, 1973) was an American actress, pin-up girl, dancer, model, and singer. Her 42 films during the 1930s and 1940s grossed more than $100 million, and for 10 consecutive years (1942–1951) she p ...

Victor Mature Victor John Mature (January 29, 1913 – August 4, 1999) was an American stage, film, and television actor who was a leading man in Hollywood during the 1940s and 1950s. His best known film roles include '' One Million B.C.'' (1940), '' My Darli ...

and

Carole Landis Carole Landis (born Frances Lillian Mary Ridste; January 1, 1919 – July 5, 1948) was an American actress and singer. She worked as a contract player for Twentieth Century-Fox in the 1940s. Her breakout role was as the female lead in the 1940 ...

, and features one of Grable's few dramatic roles. It is based on the novel of the same name by Steve Fisher, adapted by Dwight Taylor. It was produced and distributed by

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film studio, film production and Film distributor, distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the ...

. This film was remade as '' Vicki'' in 1953 starring

Jean Peters Elizabeth Jean Peters (October 15, 1926 – October 13, 2000) was an American film actress. She was known as a star of 20th Century Fox in the late 1940s and early 1950s, and as the second wife of Howard Hughes. Although possibly best remembered ...

Plot

The story proceeds largely through a series of flashbacks, beginning with New York sports promoter Frankie Christopher being interrogated at a police station about the murder of a young actress, Vicky Lynn. Christopher recounts first meeting Vicky as a waitress at a restaurant when he was there with two friends, fading actor Robin Ray and

gossip columnist A gossip columnist is someone who writes a gossip column in a newspaper or magazine, especially in a gossip magazine. Gossip columns are written in a light, informal style, and relate opinions about the personal lives or conduct of celebrities fr ...

Larry Evans. Christopher takes up a dare from his friends to turn Vicky into a star with their help. Christopher succeeds, but Vicky betrays him by signing with a Hollywood producer. At the apartment she shares with her sister Jill, she finally tells Christopher she is leaving him while she is packing. Christopher reacts angrily, and the next morning Jill returns to the apartment to find her sister dead with Christopher standing by her body. Not having enough evidence to hold Christopher for the murder, detective Ed Cornell lets him go, but is absolutely certain of Christopher's guilt and vows to bring him to justice. Hounded by Cornell, who abuses his power, entering Christopher's home and other residences without warrants, Christopher turns to Jill, who had not liked him very much but does not think that he could have killed her sister. As Jill and Frankie begin to fall in love, they follow Vicky's previous movements and encounters to find the real killer. Eventually, they conclude that she had been killed by the apartment building's front desk manager, Harry Williams. Williams admits to the crime, but also tells Frankie that Cornell already knew of his guilt. Christopher, with the police close behind, goes to Cornell's apartment, which he discovers is plastered with posters of Vicky, leading to a final confrontation in which Cornell admits to trying to frame Christopher, due to jealousy over Vicky.

Cast

as Jill Lynn *

as Frankie Christopher *

as Vicky Lynn *

Laird Cregar Samuel Laird Cregar (known professionally as Laird Cregar, July 28, 1913December 9, 1944) was an American stage and film actor. Cregar was best known for his villainous performances in films such as '' I Wake Up Screaming'' (1941), ''This Gun Fo ...

as Ed Cornell *

William Gargan William Dennis Gargan (July 17, 1905February 16, 1979) was an American film, television and radio actor. He was the 5th recipient of the Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award in 1967, and in 1941, was nominated for the Academy Award for Be ...

as Jerry MacDonald *

Alan Mowbray Alan Mowbray MM (born Alfred Ernest Allen; 18 August 1896 – 25 March 1969) was an English stage and film actor who found success in Hollywood. Early life Mowbray was born in London, England. He served with distinction in the British Army ...

as Robin Ray *

Allyn Joslyn Allyn Morgan Joslyn"Real Name—and He Has Proof"
''Tulare Advan ...

as Larry Evans *

Elisha Cook, Jr. Elisha Vanslyck Cook Jr. (December 26, 1903 – May 18, 1995) was an American character actor famed for his work in film noir. According to Bill Georgaris of They Shoot Pictures, Don't They, Cook appeared in 21 films noir, more than any ...

as Harry Williams *

Chick Chandler Fehmer Christy "Chick" Chandler (January 18, 1905 – September 30, 1988) was an American film character actor who appeared in more than 130 films from 1925 through the mid-1950s. Chandler was known for his starring role as Toubo Smith in ...

as Reporter *

Cyril Ring Cyril Ring (December 5, 1892July 17, 1967) was an American actor. By the time of his final performance in 1951, he had appeared in more than 350 films, nearly all of them in small and/or uncredited bit parts. Ring is probably best known today for ...

as Reporter *

Morris Ankrum Morris Ankrum (August 28, 1897 – September 2, 1964) was an American radio, television, and film character actor. Early life Ankrum was born in Danville in Vermilion County in eastern Illinois, and pursued a career in law. After graduating ...

as Asst. District Attorney * Charles Lane as Mr. Keating, Florist *

Frank Orth Frank Orth (February 21, 1880 – March 17, 1962) was an American actor born in Philadelphia. He is probably best remembered for his portrayal of Inspector Faraday in the 1951-1953 television series ''Boston Blackie''. Career By 1897, Orth ...

as Caretaker *

Gregory Gaye Gregory Gaye (born Grigoriy Grigoryevich Ge; October 10, 1900 – August 23, 1993) was a Russian-American character actor. The son of an actor, he was born in St. Petersburg, Russia. He was the uncle of actor George Gaynes. He was a cad ...

as Headwaiter *

May Beatty May Beatty (4 June 1880–1 April 1945) was a New Zealand singer and stage and screen actress. She was born in Christchurch, New Zealand, on 4 June 1880. Biography Beatty began her performing career at age seven, touring with Pollard's Lill ...

as Mrs. Handel *

Stanley Blystone William Stanley Blystone (August 1, 1894 – July 16, 1956) was an American film actor who made more than 500 films appearances from 1924 to 1956. He was sometimes billed as William Blystone or William Stanley. Early years Blystone was born in ...

as Detective (uncredited) *

Heinie Conklin Heinie Conklin (born Charles John Conklin; July 16, 1880July 30, 1959) was an American actor and comedian whose career began in the silent film era. Early years Conklin was born Charles John Conklin on July 16, 1880, in San Francisco, Califor ...

as Pedestrian (uncredited)

Background

The movie was originally titled ''I Wake Up Screaming'' (source novel's title) before its title was changed to ''Hot Spot'' and then back to ''I Wake Up Screaming'', although it was released in some markets as ''Hot Spot''. It was Mature's first film under his contract with

20th Century-Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film production and distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the Disney Entertainment business segment of the Walt Disney Com ...

Alice Faye Alice Faye (born Alice Jeanne Leppert; May 5, 1915 – May 9, 1998) was an American actress and singer. A musical star of 20th Century-Fox in the 1930s and 1940s, Faye starred in such films as '' On the Avenue'' (1937) and ''Alexander's Ragtime ...

was originally cast as Jill but was replaced by Betty Grable. ''I Wake Up Screaming'' was rumored to be the first Hollywood picture for French actor

Jean Gabin Jean Gabin Alexis Moncorgé (born Jean-Alexis Moncorgé), known as Jean Gabin (; 17 May 190415 November 1976), was a French actor and singer. Considered a key figure in French cinema, he starred in several classic films, including '' Pépé le ...

, but he first had to learn English, which conflicted with the shooting schedule. Released one month before the

attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Empire of Japan on the United States Pacific Fleet at Naval Station Pearl Harbor, its naval base at Pearl Harbor on Oahu, Territory of ...

, the columnist character refers to a rumour of a Japanese spy with a

Kodak The Eastman Kodak Company, referred to simply as Kodak (), is an American public company that produces various products related to its historic basis in film photography. The company is headquartered in Rochester, New York, and is incorporated i ...

camera. The film was remade in 1953 as '' Vicki''.Mayer, Geoff and Brian McDonnell. ''Encyclopedia of film noir'' (2007: Greenwood Publishing Company). page 226.

Reception

Box office

The film earned a profit of $574,100.

Critical response

Film critic Dennis Schwartz gave the film a favorable review, writing:

Veteran Fox studio director H. Bruce Humberstone (''
Charlie Chan at the Opera ''Charlie Chan at the Opera'' is considered by many to be the best Warner Oland Charlie Chan film, probably due to the presence of Boris Karloff as the principal suspect, as well as faux operatic music composed by Oscar Levant. This is the 13th f ...
'' / ''
Sun Valley Serenade ''Sun Valley Serenade'' is a 1941 American musical film directed by H. Bruce Humberstone and starring Sonja Henie, John Payne, Glenn Miller, Milton Berle, and Lynn Bari. It features the Glenn Miller Orchestra as well as dancing by the Nichol ...
''), whose films ranged from
Charlie Chan Charlie Chan is a fictional Honolulu Police Department, Honolulu police detective created by author Earl Derr Biggers for a series of mystery novels. Biggers loosely based Chan on Hawaiian detective Chang Apana. The benevolent and heroic Chan ...
to
Tarzan Tarzan (John Clayton, Viscount Greystoke) is a fictional character, a feral child raised in the African jungle by the Mangani great apes; he later experiences civilization, only to reject it and return to the wild as a heroic adventurer. Creat ...
, puts forth his best effort in this thrilling film noir. ''I Wake Up Screaming'' was remade in 1953 as '' Vicki''. Dwight Taylor bases his screenplay on the book by pulp writer Steve Fisher. In a jarring move that works in an odd way, 'Somewhere Over the Rainbow' is nthe soundtrack that can be heard throughout. This early film noir, shot in a naturalistic style, showed how dark photography can increase a brooding mood and make the film more tense... The conclusion is filled with plot twists and surprise character revelations, as the marvelously sinister performance by Laird Cregar as the sicko detective dominates the screen.

Music

The film's score, supervised by Cyril J. Mockridge, contained "

Over the Rainbow "Over the Rainbow", also known as "Somewhere Over the Rainbow", is a ballad by Harold Arlen with lyrics by Yip Harburg. It was written for the 1939 film '' The Wizard of Oz'', in which it was sung by actress Judy Garland in her starring role ...

" (better associated with wholesome

MGM Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered ...

musicals) and the familiar theme from the 1931 film '' Street Scene'', written by

Alfred Newman Alfred Newman (March 17, 1900 – February 17, 1970) was an American composer, arranger, and conductor of film music. From his start as a music prodigy, he came to be regarded as a respected figure in the history of film music. He won nine Acad ...

.Beck, Jay and Tony Grajeda. ''Lowering the Boom: Critical Studies in Film Sound'' (2008: University of Illinois Press). page 114. Also heard in the background is "These Are the Things I Love", written by Harold Barlow and Lewis Harris, which became a popular ballad during the big-band era.

References

External links

* * *
''I Wake Up Screaming''
informational site and DVD review at DVD Beaver (including images) * {{H. Bruce Humberstone 1941 films 1940s crime thriller films 1940s mystery thriller films 20th Century Fox films American black-and-white films American crime thriller films American mystery thriller films 1940s English-language films Film noir Films based on American novels Films based on mystery novels Films directed by H. Bruce Humberstone Films scored by Cyril J. Mockridge 1940s American films English-language crime thriller films English-language mystery thriller films