I know I say this just about every month I post one of these Upcoming Television Mystery Movies entries, but really, where has the time gone? Can you believe we’re already starting the fifth month of 2014? I can’t!
I have to tell you that when I go through my TCM Now Playing guide and find movies that I really want to see, I wish my DVR would go out further than just a two week time frame. I have recently started taping movies that I have seen already, but I know I’m going to want to see again.
Anyway, here are the TCM mystery movies that I was able to find for the month of May 2014, plus I am telling you about some others that you just might enjoy.
***** ***** ***** *****
May 2014 Turner Classic Movies Channel Mystery Movies (Central time zone):
***** ***** ***** *****
Friday – May 2, 2014
1:00 AM
THE CATERED AFFAIR (1956)
A working-class mother fights to give her daughter a big wedding whether the girl wants it or not.
Dir: Richard Brooks Cast: Bette Davis Ernest Borgnine Debbie Reynolds
BW-94 mins, CC, Letterbox Format
***OK, I know I shouldn’t start an upcoming mystery movie list with a non-mystery movie, and I also know I have told you about this movie before, but I have got to repeat that it really is a good movie.***
5:00 PM
THE ANGRY HILLS (1959)
A World War II correspondent fights to get strategic information out of occupied Greece.
Dir: Robert Aldrich Cast: Robert Mitchum, Stanley Baker, Elisabeth Mueller.
BW-105 mins, CC, Letterbox Format
***** ***** ***** *****
Saturday – May 3, 2014
3:00 AM
ROAD GAMES (1981)
A truck driver’s attempt to find a vanished hitchhiker leads police to suspect him of her murder.
Dir: Richard Franklin Cast: Jamie Lee Curtis, Marion Edward, Grant Page.
C-101 mins
7:30 AM
HE WALKED BY NIGHT (1948)
After killing a cop, a burglar fights to evade the police.
Dir: Alfred Werker Cast: Richard Basehart, Scott Brady, Roy Roberts.
BW-79 mins
3:00 PM
THE PINK PANTHER (1964)
In the first Inspector Clouseau film, the bumbling French police detective tries to stop a notorious jewel thief from nabbing a princess’ diamond.
Dir: Blake Edwards Cast: David Niven, Peter Sellers, Capucine.
C-115 mins, CC, Letterbox Format
5:00 PM
ANOTHER THIN MAN (1939)
Not even the joys of parenthood can stop married sleuths Nick and Nora Charles from investigating a murder on a Long Island estate.
Dir: W. S. Van Dyke II Cast: William Powell, Myrna Loy, Virginia Grey.
BW-103 mins, CC
7:00 PM
IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT (1967)
A black police detective from the North forces a bigoted Southern sheriff to accept his help with a murder investigation.
Dir: Norman Jewison Cast: Sidney Poitier, Rod Steiger, Warren Oates.C-110 mins, CC, Letterbox Format
***** ***** ***** *****
Sunday – May 4, 2014
1:15 AM
THE DOLL SQUAD (1973)
A squad of beautiful government agents tries to catch saboteurs.
Dir: Ted V. Mikels Cast: Michael Ansara, Francine York, Anthony Eisley.
C-91 mins, Letterbox Format
***”Beautiful government agents”: only in the ’60s and ’70s!***
2:50 AM
MATCH YOUR MOOD (1968)
Westinghouse shows women how to improve their lives by decorating their refrigerators in this short film.
C-6 mins
***Let’s take a look at how Westinghouse improved the lives of 1960s’ women!)***
3:00 AM
TEN VIOLENT WOMEN (1982)
Women miners get fed up with their line of work and turn to a life of crime.
Dir: Ted V. Mikels Cast: Sherri Vernon, Dixie Lauren, Georgia Morgan.
C-97 mins
5:00 PM
WAIT UNTIL DARK (1967)
A blind woman fights against drug smugglers who’ve invaded her home.
Dir: Terence Young Cast: Audrey Hepburn, Alan Arkin, Richard Crenna.
C-108 mins, CC, Letterbox Format
9:15 PM
A KISS BEFORE DYING (1956)
A college student tries to get rich quick by wooing two wealthy sisters.
Dir: Gerd Oswald Cast: Robert Wagner, Jeffrey Hunter, Virginia Leith.
C-95 mins, CC, Letterbox Format
***** ***** ***** *****
Monday – May 5, 2014
5:30 PM
D.O.A. (1950)
The victim of a slow-acting poison tracks down his own killer.
Dir: Rudolph Maté Cast: Edmond O’Brien, Pamela Britton, Luther Adler.
BW-84 mins, CC
***** ***** ***** *****
Tuesday – May 6, 2014
7:00 AM
SCARLET PAGES (1930)
A female attorney makes a startling discovery about the woman she’s defending from murder charges.
Dir: Ray Enright Cast: Elsie Ferguson, John Halliday, Marion Nixon.
BW-63 mins
10:15 AM
A STUDY IN SCARLET (1933)
Sherlock Holmes is called in to solve the case when secret society members start dropping like flies.
Dir: Edwin L. Marin Cast: Reginald Owen, Anna May Wong, June Clyde.
BW-72 mins
1:15 PM
SCARLET STREET (1945)
A middle aged would be painter falls into the clutches of an unscrupulous woman.
Dir: Fritz Lang Cast: Edward G. Robinson, Joan Bennett, Dan Duryea.
BW-102 mins
3:15 PM
THE SCARLET CLUE (1945)
Charlie Chan tracks down a spy ring that has stolen plans for a new radar system.
Dir: Phil Rosen Cast: Sidney Toler, Mantan Moreland, Ben Carter.
BW-65 mins
***** ***** ***** *****
Friday – May 9, 2014
5:30 AM
BEFORE DAWN (1933)
Detectives compete to solve the murders at a mysterious mansion.
Dir: Irving Pichel Cast: Stuart Erwin, Dorothy Wilson, Warner Oland.
BW-61 mins
4:00 PM
JOHNNY ALLEGRO (1949)
A reformed hoodlum gets mixed up with counterfeiters and a deadly manhunt.
Dir: Ted Tetzlaff Cast: George Raft, Nina Foch, George Macready.
BW-81 mins, CC
9:00 PM
THE LAST WAVE (1977)
A Sydney lawyer defends five Aborigines in a ritualized murder and in the process learns disquieting things about himself.
Dir: Peter Weir Cast: Richard Chamberlain, Olivia Hamnett, David Gulpilil.
C-106 mins, CC, Letterbox Format
***** ***** ***** *****
Saturday – May 10, 2014
6:00 AM
BORDERLINE (1950)
A policewoman goes undercover to infiltrate a drug smuggling ring.
Dir: William A. Seiter Cast: Fred MacMurray, Claire Trevor, Raymond Burr.
BW-88 mins, CC
7:30 AM
CRACK-UP (1946)
An art critic risks his reputation and his life to track down a forgery racket.
Dir: Irving Reis Cast: Pat O’Brien, Claire Trevor, Herbert Marshall.
BW-93 mins, CC
10:30 PM
MURDER, MY SWEET (1944)
Detective Philip Marlowe’s search for a two-timing woman leads him to blackmail and murder.
Dir: Edward Dmytryk Cast: Dick Powell, Claire Trevor, Anne Shirley.
BW-95 mins, CC
***** ***** ***** *****
Sunday – May 11, 2014
1:00 AM
BLUE SUNSHINE (1979)
Tainted LSD leads to a series of shocking murders.
Dir: Jeff Lieberman Cast: Zalman King, Deborah Winters, Mark Goddard.
C-95 mins, Letterbox Format
6:45 AM
THE CATERED AFFAIR (1956)
A working-class mother fights to give her daughter a big wedding whether the girl wants it or not.
Dir: Richard Brooks Cast: Bette Davis, Ernest Borgnine, Debbie Reynolds.
BW-94 mins, CC, Letterbox Format
***I guess TCM thinks this is a really good movie, also! Second airing in the same month…***
10:30 AM
GYPSY (1962)
A domineering mother pushes her two daughters to burlesque stardom.
Dir: Mervyn LeRoy Cast: Rosalind Russell, Natalie Wood, Karl Malden.
C-143 mins, CC, Letterbox Format
***Everyone in this movie is exceptional! Not a mystery.***
***** ***** ***** *****
Monday – May 12, 2014
5:00 AM
LITTLE WOMEN (1933)
The four March sisters fight to keep their family together and find love while their father is off fighting the Civil War.
Dir: George Cukor Cast: Katharine Hepburn, Joan Bennett, Paul Lukas.
BW-116 mins, CC
***I’m not sure if this is my favorite Little Women movie, or if the one TCM will be airing later this month (see below) is my favorite. Not a mystery.***
3:00 PM
WOMAN OF THE YEAR (1942)
Opposites distract when a sophisticated political columnist falls for a sportswriter.
Dir: George Stevens Cast: Spencer Tracy, Katharine Hepburn, Fay Bainter.
BW-114 mins, CC
***Tracy and Hepburn at their best! Not a mystery.***
***** ***** ***** *****
Tuesday – May 13, 2014
10:30 AM
THE PITFALL (1948)
A married insurance man falls for a criminal’s girlfriend.
Dir: Andre DeToth Cast: Dick Powell, Lizabeth Scott, Jane Wyatt.
BW-86 mins
3:30 PM
CRIMINAL LAWYER (1951)
An alcoholic lawyer sobers up to defend his friend in a murder case.
Dir: Seymour Friedman Cast: Pat O’Brien, Jane Wyatt, Carl Benton Reid.
BW-74 mins
***** ***** ***** *****
Wednesday – May 14, 2014
5:00 AM
THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE (1946)
Illicit lovers plot to kill the woman’s older husband.
Dir: Tay Garnett Cast: Lana Turner, John Garfield, Cecil Kellaway.
BW-113 mins, CC
7:00 AM
THE STRANGE LOVE OF MARTHA IVERS (1946)
Years after a murder drove them apart, an heiress tries to win back her lost love.
Dir: Lewis Milestone Cast: Barbara Stanwyck, Van Heflin, Lizabeth Scott.
BW-116 mins, CC
***Yow! Barbara Stanwyck! That’s about all I can say.***
9:00 AM
DARK PASSAGE (1947)
A man falsely accused of his wife’s murder escapes to search for the real killer.
Dir: Delmer Daves Cast: Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Bruce Bennett.
BW-106 mins, CC
11:00 AM
THE UNFAITHFUL (1947)
While her husband is away, a woman gets mixed up in murder.
Dir: Vincent Sherman Cast: Ann Sheridan, Lew Ayres, Zachary Scott.
BW-109 mins
1:00 PM
IMPACT (1949)
After surviving a murder attempt, an auto magnate goes into hiding so his wife can pay for the crime.
Dir: Arthur Lubin Cast: Brian Donlevy, Ella Raines, Charles Coburn.
BW-111 mins
3:00 PM
A FEVER IN THE BLOOD (1961)
A former governor is murdered and his killer’s trial is sensationalized in the media.
Dir: Vincent Sherman Cast: Efrem Zimbalist Jr., Angie Dickinson, Jack Kelly.
BW-117 mins, CC
5:00 PM
TWILIGHT OF HONOR (1963)
A struggling lawyer takes on a controversial murder case that could make or break him.
Dir: Boris Sagal Cast: Richard Chamberlain, Joey Heatherton, Nick Adams.
BW-104 mins, Letterbox Format
7:00 PM
LITTLE WOMEN (1949)
The four daughters of a New England family fight for happiness during and after the Civil War.
Dir: Mervyn LeRoy Cast: June Allyson, Peter Lawford, Margaret O’Brien.
C-122 mins, CC
***I know this is supposed to be a list of just the mystery movies, but when I see the really great ones I just can’t stop myself! Again, I’m just not sure which of the two Little Women TCM is playing this month is my favorite. Which is yours?***
***** ***** ***** *****
Thursday – May 15, 2014
5:00 PM
THE NIGHT OF THE HUNTER (1955)
A bogus preacher marries an outlaw’s widow in search of the man’s hidden loot.
Dir: Charles Laughton Cast: Robert Mitchum, Shelley Winters, Lillian Gish.
BW-93 mins, CC, Letterbox Format
***** ***** ***** *****
Saturday – May 17, 2014
7:45 AM
JOHNNY ANGEL (1946)
A sailor sets out to solve his father’s murder.
Dir: Edwin L. Marin Cast: George Raft, Claire Trevor, Signe Hasso.
BW-79 mins, CC
5:00 PM
THE CAREY TREATMENT (1972)
A doctor uncovers a hotbed of corruption when he tries to clear a colleague of a murder charge.
Dir: Blake Edwards Cast: James Coburn, Jennifer O’Neill, Pat Hingle.
C-101 mins, CC, Letterbox Format
***** ***** ***** *****
Monday – May 19, 2014
9:00 PM
84 CHARING CROSS ROAD (1987)
A shut-in’s correspondence with a London book dealer leads to a close friendship.
Dir: David Jones Cast: Anne Bancroft, Anthony Hopkins, Judi Dench.
C-99 mins, CC, Letterbox Format
***This is not a mystery movie, but I remember seeing it years ago, and also remember that I really enjoyed it.***
***** ***** ***** *****
Tuesday – May 20, 2014
11:15 AM
THE BIG SLEEP (1946)
Private eye Philip Marlowe investigates a society girl’s involvement in the murder of a pornographer.
Dir: Howard Hawks Cast: Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, John Ridgely.
BW-114 mins, CC
***** ***** ***** *****
Wednesday – May 21, 2014
6:15 AM
WE’RE ON THE JURY (1937)
A jury member sets out to prove a murder defendant innocent.
Dir: Ben Holmes Cast: Victor Moore, Helen Broderick, Philip Huston.
BW-70 mins
1:15 PM
IT HAPPENED ON 5TH AVENUE (1947)
Two homeless men move into a mansion while its owners are wintering in the South.
Dir: Roy Del Ruth Cast: Don DeFore, Ann Harding, Charlie Ruggles.
BW-115 mins, CC
***I doubt anyone is DVR-ing their Christmas movies this early, but if you are, this takes place during the Christmas holiday. Not a mystery.***
7:00 PM
TWO GIRLS AND A SAILOR (1944)
Singing sisters create a World War II canteen and become rivals for the same man.
Dir: Richard Thorpe Cast: June Allyson, Gloria DeHaven, Van Johnson.
BW-124 mins, CC
***OK, even though these movies were made before I was born, I love the June Allyson/Van Johnson duo movies. Oh, they aren’t mysteries.***
***** ***** ***** *****
Thursday – May 22, 2014
12:45 AM
TOO YOUNG TO KISS (1951)
A grown woman poses as a child prodigy to advance her career as a concert pianist.
Dir: Robert Z. Leonard Cast: June Allyson, Van Johnson, Gig Young.
BW-89 mins, CC
***June Allyson/Van Johnson duo movie. Not a mystery.***
2:30 AM
THE BRIDE GOES WILD (1948)
A womanizing author of children’s books borrows a son to woo his illustrator.
Dir: Norman Taurog Cast: Van Johnson, June Allyson, Butch Jenkins.
BW-98 mins, CC
***June Allyson/Van Johnson duo movie. Not a mystery.***
4:15 AM
HIGH BARBAREE (1947)
A downed pilot looks back on his life as he awaits rescue in the South Pacific.
Dir: Jack Conway Cast: Van Johnson, June Allyson, Thomas Mitchell.
BW-91 mins, CC
***June Allyson/Van Johnson duo movie. Not a mystery.***
12:00 PM
PUBLIC HERO NO. 1 (1935)
An undercover G-man helps with a jailbreak to learn the mob’s secrets.
Dir: J. Walter Ruben Cast: Lionel Barrymore, Jean Arthur, Chester Morris.
BW-90 mins, CC
1:30 PM
THE EX-MRS. BRADFORD (1936)
A detective teams with his ex-wife to solve a murder.
Dir: Stephen Roberts Cast: William Powell, Jean Arthur, James Gleason.
BW-82 mins, CC
7:00 PM
THE HOUSE ON 92ND STREET (1945)
An FBI agent infiltrates a Nazi spy ring.
Dir: Henry Hathaway Cast: William Eythe, Lloyd Nolan, Signe Hasso.
BW-88 mins, CC
8:45 PM
THE HOUSE ON 56TH STREET (1933)
A woman loses her family after being falsely convicted of a crime.
Dir: Robert Florey Cast: Kay Francis, Ricardo Cortez, Gene Raymond.
BW-68 mins, CC
***** ***** ***** *****
Friday – May 23, 2014
1:30 AM
MRS. O’MALLEY AND MR. MALONE (1950)
A lawyer and a widow encounter murder on a train ride.
Dir: Norman Taurog Cast: Marjorie Main, James Whitmore, Ann Dvorak.
BW-69 mins, CC
5:00 AM
DODSWORTH (1936)
A husband whose wife left him looks for new love in Europe.
Dir: William Wyler Cast: Walter Huston, Ruth Chatterton, Paul Lukas.
BW-101 mins, CC
***This movie based on Sinclair Lewis’ novel is well worth watching. Not a mystery.***
?????5:45 PM
TALK ABOUT A STRANGER (1952)
Small-town gossips rage over the arrival of a mysterious stranger.
Dir: David Bradley Cast: George Murphy, Nancy Davis, Billy Gray.
BW-65 mins, CC
***If this Nancy Davis is the one I’m thinking about, she’s former First Lady Nancy Reagan. I have the question marks because I’m not sure if the movie is a mystery, or not.***
?????9:00 PM
THE PLUMBER (1979)
The arrival of a mysterious plumber upsets a doctor’s wife.
Dir: Peter Weir Cast: Judy Morris, Robert Coleby, Ivar Kants.
C-77 mins, Letterbox Format
***I’m not sure if this is a mystery movie, or not.The description makes it look like it is, however, I don’t know.***
***** ***** ***** *****
Tuesday – May 27, 2014
9:00 PM
LAURA (1944)
A police detective falls in love with the woman whose murder he’s investigating.
Dir: Otto Preminger Cast: Gene Tierney, Dana Andrews, Clifton Webb.
BW-88 mins, CC
***** ***** ***** *****
Wednesday – May 28, 2014
7:00 AM
FRISCO JENNY (1932)
A district attorney prosecutes his own mother for murder.
Dir: William A. Wellman Cast: Ruth Chatterton, Louis Calhern, Helen Jerome Eddy.
BW-71 mins
12:15 PM
SHADOW OF THE THIN MAN (1941)
High society sleuths Nick and Nora Charles run into a variety of shady characters while investigating a race-track murder.
Dir: Major W. S. Van Dyke II Cast: William Powell, Myrna Loy, Barry Nelson.
BW-97 mins, CC
***** ***** ***** *****
Thursday – May 29, 2014
9:45 AM
SEVEN KEYS TO BALDPATE (1935)
A mystery writer runs into the real thing when he holes up at a deserted inn.
Dir: William Hamilton Cast: Gene Raymond, Margaret Callahan, Eric Blore.
BW-69 mins
9:15 PM
F FOR FAKE (1973)
Director Orson Welles examines the career of a notorious art forger.
Dir: Orson Welles Cast: Orson Welles, Oja Kodar, Joseph Cotten.
C-88 mins, Letterbox Format
***** ***** ***** *****
Friday – May 30, 2014
10:00 AM
SCARLET STREET (1945)
A middle aged would be painter falls into the clutches of an unscrupulous woman.
Dir: Fritz Lang Cast: Edward G. Robinson, Joan Bennett, Dan Duryea.
BW-102 mins
2:00 PM
THE BLUE GARDENIA (1953)
A telephone operator kills in self-defense but can’t remember the details of the encounter.
Dir: Fritz Lang Cast: Anne Baxter, Richard Conte, Ann Sothern.
BW-88 mins, CC
5:15 PM
WHILE THE CITY SLEEPS (1956)
Reporters compete to catch a serial killer.
Dir: Fritz Lang Cast: Dana Andrews, Rhonda Fleming, George Sanders.
BW-100 mins, CC, Letterbox Format
***** ***** ***** *****
Saturday – May 31, 2014
7:30 AM
BERLIN EXPRESS (1948)
Allied agents fight an underground Nazi group in post-war Europe.
Dir: Jacques Tourneur Cast: Merle Oberon, Robert Ryan, Charles Korvin.
BW-87 mins, CC
11:30 PM
BORN YESTERDAY (1950)
A newspaper reporter takes on the task of educating a crooked businessman’s girlfriend.
Dir: George Cukor Cast: Judy Holliday, Broderick Crawford, William Holden.
BW-102 mins, CC
***Each time a Judy Holliday movie is on, I’m reminded how much I like her! Not a mystery.***
***** ***** ***** *****
(All of the above descriptions were copied from the TCM site. There were a few mystery movies that appeared in my monthly TCM Now Playing that didn’t show up on TCM’s schedule online, so I didn’t add them to the list.)
If you know of any other mystery movies that are going to be aired on television during April 2014, please post a comment.
If you would like to see more Television and Movies ideas, click on this link.
TCM will be celebrating both its 20th Anniversary as well as John Wayne during April. If you happen to be a John Wayne fan, you should be excited about the 58 movies TCM will be airing. (I know my younger brother is looking forward to those movies. they will be airing them (mostly?) during April 21 and the 25th, which explains the fact that I don’t have very many mystery movies showing that week.
So, what mystery movies will air on TV during March 2014?