Ann Sothern and director Busby Berkeley were beginning their contracts at MGM while Franchot Tone was ending his in the last of three films depicting the adventures of husband-and-wife book dealers who kept getting involved in murder. Though the tale of homicide at a beauty pageant was not in the same league as such classic 1939 releases as The Wizard of Oz or The Women, it still had the kind of breezy good humor that made the B-movies of Hollywood's golden age so much fun.
Joel and Garda Sloane first sleuthed in Marco Page's 1938 story Fast Company. At the time, the studio was looking for insurance in case the popular Thin Man series folded. Star William Powell had been off-screen for a year, first mourning the death of fiancÈe Jean Harlow, then recovering from cancer surgery. His on-screen partner, Myrna Loy, was in the midst of one of her many battles with the studio, so executives started looking for a new team that would click with fans. Originally, they planned to make a Thin Man film with Melvyn Douglas and Virginia Bruce, but fearing a bad audience reaction, they decided to try another series instead.
Director: Busby Berkeley
Screenplay: Harry Kurnitz
Cinematography: Ray June
Art Direction: Cedric Gibbons, Daniel B. Cathcart
Music: D. Amfitheatrof, C. Bakaleinikoff
Principal Cast: Franchot Tone (Joel Sloane), Ann Sothern (Garda Sloane), Ruth Hussey (Lily Cole), Lee Bowman (Mike Stevens), Allyn Joslyn (Ted Bentley) Source: tcm.com
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