''Super-Sleuth'' is a 1937 American mystery

comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...

directed by Ben Stoloff. It was an early lead role for Jack Oakie. ''Super Sleuth'' was a remade in 1946 as '' Genius at Work'', with comedy team of

Wally Brown Wallace Edgar Brown (October 8, 1904 – November 13, 1961) was an American actor and comedian. In the 1940s, he performed as the comic partner of Alan Carney. Early years Wallace Edgar Brown was born in Malden, Massachusetts, the son of Her ...

and Alan Carney.

Plot

A film detective believes he actually has the skills to solve a real life case. Bill Martin's ( Jack Oakie) boasts irritate the real detectives of the Los Angeles police, as well as studio publicist Mary Strand (

Ann Sothern Ann Sothern (born Harriette Arlene Lake; January 22, 1909 – March 15, 2001) was an American actress who worked on stage, radio, film, and television, in a career that spanned nearly six decades. Sothern began her career in the late 1920s ...

), who loves Bill but doesn't appreciate the actor's arrogance. A mysterious killer known as the "Poison Pen" decides to murder Bill, annoyed with his last movie. Bill and Mary go to amateur sleuth Professor Herman ( Eduardo Ciannelli) for advice, unaware that the professor and the murderer are one and the same. By mistake, film co-star Ralph Waring ( Bradley Page) is killed by the Poison Pen, and stand-in Larry Frank ( Alan Bruce) is suspected of the crime. To save Bill from the killer and from himself, Mary arranges for him to be locked up, but the gullible Bill gets Professor Herman to bail him out of jail. Mary and the cops come to his rescue just in time.

Cast

* Jack Oakie as Willard "Bill" Martin *

as Mary Strand * Eduardo Ciannelli as Professor Herman * Alan Bruce as Larry Frank *

Edgar Kennedy Edgar Livingston Kennedy (April 26, 1890 – November 9, 1948) was an American comedic character actor who appeared in at least 500 films during the silent and sound eras. Professionally, he was known as "Slow Burn", owing to his ability to por ...

as Lieutenant Garrison * Joan Woodbury as Doris Dunne * Bradley Page as Ralph Waring *

Paul Guilfoyle Paul Vincent Guilfoyle () (born April 28, 1949) is an American character actor. He was a regular cast member of the CBS crime drama '' CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'', on which he played Captain Jim Brass from 2000 to 2014. He returned for ...

as Gibbons *

Willie Best William Best (May 27, 1916 – February 27, 1962), known professionally as Willie Best or Sleep 'n' Eat, was an American television and film actor. Best was one of the first African American film actors and comedians to become well known ...

as Warts * William Corson as Beckett * Alec Craig as Eddie, doorman

References

External links

* * * 1937 films 1930s comedy mystery films American comedy mystery films American black-and-white films 1930s English-language films Films directed by Benjamin Stoloff Films produced by Edward Small 1937 comedy films 1930s American films English-language comedy mystery films {{mystery-film-stub