THE PREVIEW MURDER MYSTERY (1936)

When a string of murders threatens to shut down his studio, a wise-cracking PR man (Reginald Denny) sets out to find the killer in this sprightly comic mystery. His investigation via closed-circuit television provides a behind-the-scenes look at studio operations and their personnel, like the film’s cinematographer Karl Struss. The English-born Denny had become a silent star by playing all-American types in a series of profitable comedies for Universal, but with the coming of sound, his British accent temporarily derailed his career until he re-invented himself as a character actor. In this film, however, he gets to play a smart debonair similar to the silent roles that had once made him a star. The picture is directed by Robert Florey, a stylish French director best known for the horror films Murders in the Rue Morgue (1932) and The Beast with Five Fingers (1946).

d. Robert Florey, 61m, 35mm

Courtesy of Universal Pictures.