One Thrilling Night

One Thrilling Night

Original film poster
Directed by William Beaudine
Produced by A.W. Hackel
Written by Joseph Hoffman (original screenplay)
Starring John Beal
Cinematography Marcel Le Picard
Edited by Martin G. Cohn
Distributed by Monogram Pictures
Release dates
  • June 5, 1942 (1942-06-05)
Running time
 69 minutes
Country United States
Language English

One Thrilling Night is a 1942 American film directed by William Beaudine. The film is also known as Horace Takes Over (American TV title) with working titles being Do Not Disturb and Army Bride.[1]

Plot summary

One Thrilling Night opens as the newlywed country bumpkin Connecticut couple, Mr. and Mrs. Horace Jason ( John Beal and Wanda McKay), check into the Hotel Clarke in New York City, prepared to spend their first night together as a married couple; their first and last night before Horace joins the army.

Once in the room, the couple decides to buy some champagne and celebrate. Horace goes down to buy the champagne and Millie dims the lights and changes in the other room. Meanwhile, Pete Mooney ( Ernie Adams (actor) ) and Joe Richmond ( Lynton Brent ) enter the room through the window, and pull the unconscious body of Duke Keesler ( Pierce Lynden ) out from under the bed and frisk him on the mattress until Horace returns. Mooney and Richmond hurriedly cover the body, and duck under the bed. Horace and Millie discover the body and run down the hall to enlist the help of the hotel detective, Pat Callahan ( Warren Hymer ). While they are gone, Mooney and Richmond stuff the body into Millie’s empty trunk, and escape out the window. When Horace and Millie return again, the body appears to be gone, and Callahan leaves them to their evening.

Horace opens the trunk and the body of Duke Keesler falls out. While Horace and Millie run to get Callahan, Keesler comes to, and escapes out of the window. Millie and Horace re-create what they found, and accidentally lock Horace in the trunk. Callahan and Millie then leave to get spare keys and an axe to get Horace out. While they are away, Richmond and Mooney reappear and take the trunk away.

Mooney and Richmond take the trunk to Frankie Saxton ( Tom Neal ), a gangster looking for Duke Keesler regarding a stolen $50 thousand. Mooney and Richmond leave Saxton with the case, thinking Keesler is still in it. The trunk is opened and Horace tries to explain a mistake has been made. Saxton, along with Skinny (Gene O’Donnell), Tubby (Jim O’Gatty), and Dotty ( Barbara Pepper ), think that Horace is Duke playing a disguise. In a moment of opportunity, Horace escapes and runs down the street, only to be arrested for indecency and returned to the hotel.

While following Callahan to their room, Millie and Horace are snagged and coaxed to get into a car. They dodge the gangsters, and hide in a movie theater, catching the tail end of the film with the lights coming on for a contest. Horace wins a prize before the audience departs, and as he’s on stage, Millie is taken away by the gangster team. Dotty meets up with a frantic Horace and takes him to the rest of the gangster group, where they discover Horace really isn’t the Duke. They tie and gag he and Millie. In order to get attention, Horace turns the radio on which happens to be turned to a gangster show, which alerts the neighbors to their situation when they think the mayhem and threats are for real. The police arrive and take the couple back to their hotel room once more. Prior to their arrival, the real Duke’s body is stuffed into the closet. Horace discovers it as he puts his robe away, along with the $50 thousand in his robe pocket. Frankie Saxton and the gang enter the room, only to be taken out by Millie and Horace. Saxton and his group are taken to jail, and Millie and Horace are left, finally, to be alone in their room. Right before calling it a night, their 6 AM wakeup call arrives. As Horace makes haste to get ready to take the train, Millie closes the video with a nod towards the war with her quote “Darn those Japs”.

Cast

References

  1. ↑ http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/17255/One-Thrilling-Night/notes.html
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