The Kirkland family home has been closed up for the last twenty years. It was closed after Nan Kirkland’s (Anne Gwynne) father died in what is called the Blue Room. Since then Nan’s mother Linda (Nella Walker) remarried. Her husband is Frank Baldrich (John Litel); Baldrich was, at one time, the family lawyer.
Now twenty years later the house has been opened and the Baldrich’s are having a birthday party for Nan. Among the guests are Nan’s former boyfriend Larry Dearden (Bill Williams), a mystery writer named Steve Randall (Donald Cook), Doctor Harry Carroll (Andrew Tombes) and of course the butler Edwards (Ian Wolfe). For entertainment Nan has some friends who belong to a trio called the Jazzybelles. They are Peggy (Grace McDonald, Betty (Betty Kean) and Jerry (June Preisser).
The blue room is the talk of the party. Many believe the house is haunted and that staying in the blue room will bring about one’s death. During the party the lights go out. Eventually everyone goes home except for those who will be staying the night at the mansion. Before going to bed Larry decides that he is going to spend the night in the blue room. Nan’s stepfather tries to talk him out of it but he is adamant.
In the morning Larry is missing. The room is locked from the inside and the window opens up on a cliff that ends in ragged rocks and pounding surf. The police are called. Inspector McDonald (Regis Toomey) shows up with his assistant Hannagan (Emmett Vogan). McDonald questions everyone, including the singing trio. With no clues as to what happened to Larry, McDonald orders that everyone must stay in the house until the mystery is solved.
McDonald orders that no one go into the blue room. That night Randall decides that he is going to spend the night in the blue room despite McDonald’s orders. The next day the call button for the blue room is pushed. The butler goes upstairs and tells McDonald. The door is barricaded so they break it down. Inside the find the body of Larry but now Randall is missing.
“Murder in the Blue Room” was released in 1944. It is a musical horror comedy and was directed by Leslie Goodwins. The film is a re-make of the 1933 pre-code murder mystery “Secret of the Blue Room”. It is the second re-make of the original film. The first re-make was in 1938 and was called “The Missing Guest”. All of the films are based on the 1932 German film “Secret of the Blue Room”.
At only about an hour long the film goes a little faster than the other versions of the film so that several musical numbers can be sandwiched in between the supposedly spooky parts. There were quite a few musicals done in the forties and most of them were comedies. A subset of them were also mysteries. The 1932 and 1938 films were straight mysteries. In the forties it was updated to add some boogie-woogie. This version is more comedy than mystery. The film was intended to be a Ritz Brothers film but they were replaced by the Jazzybelles.
Rarely remember by anyone, the movie is light entertainment and the blending of the genres is a little strange but not outrageous. There are amusing parts and there are spooky parts. Fans of forties musicals will enjoy it. Mystery fans also get a decent puzzle to figure out.
Bill Williams, who plays Larry, was married to Barbara Hale. Hale played Della Street in the Perry Mason television series with Raymond Burr. Williams and Hale are also the parents of William Katt. Katt played Paul Drake Jr. in the later Perry Mason television movies as well as starring in the television series “The Greatest American Hero”.