The Cozy Mystery List Blog

December is upon us. Ordinarily, it would be the time for family gatherings – however, this year it’s going to be quite different. Because of this awful pandemic, we won’t be celebrating Christmas with our daughter this year. It will be the first time since she was born… and that includes the four years she interned at different jobs. Thank goodness we have our portal tv (I wrote about it a few months ago in another blog entry.) We have been able to watch our daughter’s family go from two to three – and have tremendously enjoyed watching our granddaughter go through her different growth changes. Our daughter has been great about portaling us twice a week for extended visits with her family – which is one time I am really happy my husband got us a rather large television. It’s almost like being right there in their living room!

Getting back to my Turner Classic Movie schedule for December…

There don’t seem to be an incredible amount of mystery movies this month. Of course, we can always rely on the fantastic Eddie Muller’s Noir Alley to bring us some classic noir mysteries – which are always a treat to watch. Also, for those of you who enjoy Laurel and Hardy (I’m not in this category – however much other people enjoy their movies) Mondays in December are dedicated to their movies. In the evening of Tuesday, December 8 Turner Classic Movies will be showing several Charles Dickens movies. Beginning Wednesday, December 16 you can catch a few Alfred Hitchcock mysteries – which probably most of you have already seen… several times!

And, it wouldn’t be New Year’s Eve at Turner Classic Movies without the classic Thin Man movies playing on December 31!

Along with the mystery movies, I’m going to go ahead and list several of the Christmas movies that I find on the TCM December 2020 roster. Some of them are truly classics.

***** ***** ***** *****

TURNER CLASSIC MOVIES CHANNEL MYSTERY MOVIES – December 2020

***** ***** ***** *****

Tuesday – December 1

11:45 AM
While the City Sleeps (1956)
Reporters compete to catch a serial killer.
Dir: Fritz Lang. Actors: Dana Andrews, Ida Lupino, Vincent Price.
Runtime: 100 mins

1:30 PM
Zero Hour! (1957)
When a flight crew falls ill, the only man who can land the plane is afraid of flying.
Dir: Hall Bartlett. Actors: Dana Andrews, Linda Darnell, Sterling Hayden.
Runtime: 81 mins
Genre: Suspense/Mystery

9:15 PM
Crossing Delancey (1988)
An aging woman hires a matchmaker to find her independent granddaughter a man.
Dir: Joan Micklin Silver. Actors: Amy Irving, Peter Riegert, Reizl Bozyk.
Runtime: 97 mins
*****This is not a mystery, but I think it’s a delightful film.*****

***** ***** ***** *****

Thursday – December 3

2:00 AM
The Magnificent Ambersons (1942)
A possessive son’s efforts to keep his mother from remarrying threaten to destroy his family.
Dir: Orson Welles. Actors: Tim Holt, Joseph Cotten, Agnes Moorehead.
Runtime: 88 mins
*****Not a mystery, but a really good period piece.*****

6:00 AM
On Dangerous Ground (1952)
A tough cop sent to help in a mountain manhunt falls for the quarry’s blind sister.
Dir: Nicholas Ray. Actors: Ida Lupino, Robert Ryan, Ward Bond.
Runtime: 82 mins

9:45 AM
D.O.A. (1950)
The victim of a slow-acting poison tracks down his own killer.
Dir: Rudolph Mate. Actors: Edmond O’Brien, Pamela Britton, Luther Adler.
Runtime: 84 mins

***** ***** ***** *****

Friday – December 4

12:45 AM
Two Seconds (1932)
In the last moments of his life, a criminal reviews the circumstances that led him to death row.
Dir: Mervyn LeRoy. Actors: Edward G. Robinson, Preston Foster, Vivienne Osborne.
Runtime: 67 mins

***** ***** ***** *****

Saturday – December 5

8:27 AM
Bulldog Drummond in Africa (1938)
Drummond, his girlfriend, and his butler try to free a high post of Scotland Yard who has been kidnapped.
Dir: Louis King. Actors: John Howard, Heather Angel, H.B. Warner.
Runtime: 58 mins

5:45 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. Actors: Don DeFore, Victor Moore, Gale Storm.
Runtime: 115 mins
*****Not a mystery. Christmas*****

8:00 PM
The Maltese Falcon (1941)
Hard-boiled detective Sam Spade gets caught up in the murderous search for a priceless statue.
Dir: John Huston. Actors: Humphrey Bogart, Mary Astor, Sydney Greenstreet.
Runtime: 100 mins

10:00 PM
The Thin Man (1934)
A husband-and-wife detective team takes on the search for a missing inventor and almost get killed for their efforts.
Dir: W.S. Van Dyke II. Actors: William Powell, Myrna Loy, Maureen O’Sullivan.
Runtime: 91 mins

***** ***** ***** *****

Sunday – December 6

12:00 AM
Tomorrow Is Another Day (1951)
A man who spent his formative years in prison for murder is released and struggles to adjust to the outside world.
Dir: Felix E. Feist. Actors: Ruth Roman, Steve Cochran, Lurene Tuttle.
Runtime: 91 mins

10:00 AM
Tomorrow Is Another Day (1951)
A man who spent his formative years in prison for murder is released and struggles to adjust to the outside world.
Dir: Felix E. Feist. Actors: Ruth Roman, Steve Cochran, Lurene Tuttle.
Runtime: 91 mins

2:00 PM
Little Women (1994)
With their father away at war, the March sister’s make the best out of life in 19th-Century New England.
Dir: Gillian Armstrong. Actors: Winona Ryder, Susan Sarandon, Claire Danes.
Runtime: 118 mins
*****Not a mystery. Christmas*****

4:15 PM
Holiday Affair (1949)
A young widow is torn between a boring businessman and a romantic ne’er-do-well.
Dir: Don Hartman. Actors: Robert Mitchum, Janet Leigh, Wendell Corey.
Runtime: 87 mins
*****Not a mystery. Christmas*****

6:00 PM
Christmas in Connecticut (1945)
A homemaking specialist who can’t boil water is forced to provide a family holiday for a war hero.
Dir: Peter Godfrey. Actors: Barbara Stanwyck, Dennis Morgan, Sydney Greenstreet.
Runtime: 101 mins
*****Not a mystery. A terrific Christmas movie.*****

***** ***** ***** *****

Tuesday – December 8

3:30 PM
Dial M for Murder (1954)
A straying husband frames his wife for the murder of the man he’d hired to kill her.
Dir: Alfred Hitchcock. Actors: Grace Kelly, Ray Milland, Robert Cummings.
Runtime: 105 mins

5:45 PM
Rear Window (1954)
A photographer with a broken leg uncovers a murder while spying on the neighbors in a nearby apartment building.
Dir: Alfred Hitchcock. Actors: James Stewart, Grace Kelly, Raymond Burr.
Runtime: 112 mins

8:00 PM
A Christmas Carol (1938)
In this adaptation of Charles Dickens’ classic tale, an elderly miser learns the error of his ways on Christmas Eve.
Dir: Edwin L. Marin. Actors: Reginald Owen, Gene Lockhart, Kathleen Lockhart.
Runtime: 69 mins
*****Not a mystery. Christmas*****

***** ***** ***** *****

Thursday – December 10

10:00 PM
Larceny, Inc. (1942)
An ex-convict and his gang try to use a luggage store to front a bank robbery, but business keeps getting in the way.
Dir: Lloyd Bacon. Actors: Edward G. Robinson, Jane Wyman, Broderick Crawford.
Runtime: 95 mins

***** ***** ***** *****

Friday – December 11

12:00 AM
Mr. Soft Touch (1949)
After being betrayed, a gangster hangs out in a settlement house while seeking revenge.
Dir: Gordon Douglas, Henry Levin. Actors: Glenn Ford, Evelyn Keyes, John Ireland.
Runtime: 93 mins

***** ***** ***** *****

Saturday – December 12

6:30 AM
The Case of the Curious Bride (1935)
Perry Mason helps a young woman whose supposedly dead husband suddenly returns to life.
Dir: Michael Curtiz. Actors: Warren William, Margaret Lindsay, Errol Flynn.
Runtime: 80 mins

8:32 AM
Bulldog Drummond’s Revenge (1937)
Captain Drummond travels to Switzerland in order to marry his girlfriend but the disappearance of a dangerous cargo of explosives makes him delay his plans.
Dir: Louis King. Actors: John Barrymore, John Howard, Louise Campbell.
Runtime: 55 mins

12:00 PM
A Christmas Carol (1938)
In this adaptation of Charles Dickens’ classic tale, an elderly miser learns the error of his ways on Christmas Eve.
Dir: Edwin L. Marin. Actors: Reginald Owen, Gene Lockhart, Kathleen Lockhart.
Runtime: 69 mins
*****Not a mystery. Christmas*****

5:45 PM
The Man Who Came to Dinner (1942)
An acerbic critic wreaks havoc when a hip injury forces him to move in with a midwestern family.
Dir: William Keighley. Actors: Bette Davis, Ann Sheridan, Monty Woolley.
Runtime: 113 mins
*****Not a mystery. Christmas*****

***** ***** ***** *****

Sunday – December 13

12:00 AM
The Burglar (1956)
A band of crooks robs a spiritualist.
Dir: Paul Wendkos. Actors: Dan Duryea, Jayne Mansfield, Martha Vickers.
Runtime: 90 mins

7:00 AM
The Mad Miss Manton (1938)
A daffy socialite gets her friends mixed up in a murder investigation.
Dir: Leigh Jason. Actors: Barbara Stanwyck, Henry Fonda, Sam Levene.
Runtime: 80 mins

10:00 AM
The Burglar (1956)
A band of crooks robs a spiritualist.
Dir: Paul Wendkos. Actors: Dan Duryea, Jayne Mansfield, Martha Vickers.
Runtime: 90 mins

***** ***** ***** *****

Tuesday – December 15

10:45 AM
The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946)
Illicit lovers plot to kill the woman’s older husband.
Dir: Tay Garnett. Actors: Lana Turner, John Garfield, Cecil Kellaway.
Runtime: 113 mins

***** ***** ***** *****

Wednesday – December 16

8:00 PM
Vertigo (1958)
A detective falls for the mysterious woman he’s been hired to tail.
Dir: Alfred Hitchcock. Actors: James Stewart, Kim Novak, Barbara Bel Geddes.
Runtime: 128 mins

10:15 PM
Marnie (1964)
A rich man marries a compulsive thief and tries to unlock the secrets of her mind.
Dir: Alfred Hitchcock. Actors: Tippi Hedren, Sean Connery, Diane Baker.
Runtime: 130 mins

***** ***** ***** *****

Thursday – December 17

12:45 AM
The Trouble with Harry (1955)
A corpse creates a world of trouble for several passersby who each believe they may have caused the death.
Dir: Alfred Hitchcock. Actors: Edmund Gwenn, John Forsythe, Shirley MacLaine.
Runtime: 99 mins

2:30 AM
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)
International spies kidnap a doctor’s son when he stumbles on their assassination plot.
Dir: Alfred Hitchcock. Actors: James Stewart, Doris Day, Brenda De Banzie.
Runtime: 120 mins

4:45 AM
The Wrong Man (1956)
A musician is mistaken for a vicious thief, with devastating results.
Dir: Alfred Hitchcock. Actors: Henry Fonda, Vera Miles, Anthony Quayle.
Runtime: 105 mins

6:45 AM
North by Northwest (1959)
An advertising man is mistaken for a spy, triggering a deadly cross-country chase.
Dir: Alfred Hitchcock. Actors: Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint, James Mason.
Runtime: 136 mins

9:15 AM
Night Nurse (1931)
A nurse discovers that the children she’s caring for are murder targets.
Dir: William A. Wellman. Actors: Barbara Stanwyck, Ben Lyon, Clark Gable.
Runtime: 72 mins

11:45 AM
Angel Face (1953)
An unscrupulous woman murders her loved ones for profit.
Dir: Otto Preminger. Actors: Robert Mitchum, Jean Simmons, Herbert Marshall.
Runtime: 91 mins

1:30 PM
Sworn Enemy (1936)
A law student poses as a fight promoter to catch a notorious gangster.
Dir: Edwin L. Marin. Actors: Robert Young, Joseph Calleia, Florence Rice.
Runtime: 73 mins

2:45 PM
Downstairs (1932)
An evil chauffeur seduces and blackmails his way through high society.
Dir: Monta Bell. Actors: John Gilbert, Virginia Bruce, Paul Lukas.
Runtime: 78 mins

***** ***** ***** *****

Friday – December 18

8:30 AM
The Letter (1940)
A woman claims to have killed in self-defense, until a blackmailer turns up with incriminating evidence.
Dir: William Wyler. Actors: Bette Davis, Herbert Marshall, James Stephenson.
Runtime: 95 mins

12:00 PM
The Little Foxes (1941)
An ambitious woman takes on her corrupt brothers and honest husband in her drive for wealth.
Dir: William Wyler. Actors: Bette Davis, Herbert Marshall, Teresa Wright.
Runtime: 116 mins
*****Not a mystery. Excellent movie.*****

8:00 PM
Remember the Night (1940)
An assistant D.A. takes a shoplifter home with him for Christmas.
Dir: Mitchell Leisen. Actors: Barbara Stanwyck, Fred MacMurray, Beulah Bondi.
Runtime: 94 mins
***** Not a mystery. I love this Christmas movie!*****

***** ***** ***** *****

Saturday – December 19

12:00 AM
Desk Set (1957)
A computer expert tries to prove his electronic brain can replace a television network’s research staff.
Dir: Walter Lang. Actors: Katharine Hepburn, Spencer Tracy, Gig Young.
Runtime: 104 mins
***** Not a mystery. Christmas*****

4:00 AM
The Silent Partner (1978)
A Toronto bank teller stashes away a little money daily, but a Santa Claus bank robber doesn’t appreciate being short-changed.
Dir: Daryl Duke. Actors: Elliott Gould, Christopher Plummer, Susannah York
Runtime: 105 mins

8:00 AM
Alias Boston Blackie (1942)
A reformed thief tracks down an escaped convict so he can prove the man is innocent.
Dir: Lew Landers. Actors: Chester Morris, Adele Mara, Richard Lane.
Runtime: 67 mins

10:45 AM
A Night at the Movies: Merry Christmas! (2011)
Star interviews and film clips trace the history of Christmas movies.
Dir: Laurent Bouzereau. Actors: Michael Patrick Hearn, Joe Dante, Chevy Chase.
Runtime: 58 mins
***** Not a mystery. Christmas*****

4:00 PM
Desk Set (1957)
A computer expert tries to prove his electronic brain can replace a television network’s research staff.
Dir: Walter Lang. Actors: Katharine Hepburn, Spencer Tracy, Gig Young.
Runtime: 104 mins
***** Not a mystery. Christmas*****

6:00 PM
The Bishop’s Wife (1947)
An angel helps set an ambitious bishop on the right track.
Dir: Henry Koster. Actors: Cary Grant, Loretta Young, David Niven.
Runtime: 109 mins
***** Not a mystery. Christmas*****

10:00 PM
Lady on a Train (1945)
A young woman enlists a mystery writer to help her solve a murder when the corpse vanishes.
Dir: Charles David. Actors: Deanna Durbin, Ralph Bellamy, George Coulouris.
Runtime: 94 mins

***** ***** ***** *****

Sunday – December 20

 

12:00 AM
The Kiss of Death (1947)
An ex-con trying to go straight must face a crazed criminal out for revenge.
Dir: Henry Hathaway. Actors: Victor Mature, Brian Donlevy, Richard Widmark.
Runtime: 99 mins

2:00 AM
Lady in the Lake (1947)
Philip Marlowe searches for a missing woman in this mystery shot entirely from the detective’s viewpoint.
Dir: Robert Montgomery. Actors: Robert Montgomery, Audrey Totter, Lloyd Nolan.
Runtime: 103 mins

4:00 AM
Cover-Up (1949)
An insurance investigator smells something wrong when he looks into a small-town suicide.
Dir: Alfred E. Green. Actors: William Bendix, Dennis O’Keefe, Barbara Britton.
Runtime: 83 mins

5:30 AM
Backfire (1950)
A veteran tries to clear an old friend of a murder charge.
Dir: Vincent Sherman. Actors: Gordon MacRae, Virginia Mayo, Edmond O’Brien.
Runtime: 91 mins

7:00 AM
Kind Lady (1935)
A con artist and his criminal colleagues move in on a trusting old lady.
Dir: George B. Seitz. Actors: Basil Rathbone, Aline MacMahon, Mary Carlisle.
Runtime: 76 mins

10:00 AM
The Kiss of Death (1947)
An ex-con trying to go straight must face a crazed criminal out for revenge.
Dir: Henry Hathaway. Actors: Victor Mature, Brian Donlevy, Richard Widmark.
Runtime: 99 mins

12:00 PM
Little Women (1949)
The four daughters of a New England family fight for happiness during and after the Civil War.
Dir: Mervyn LeRoy. Actors: June Allyson, Elizabeth Taylor, Peter Lawford.
Runtime: 122 mins
***** Not a mystery. Christmas*****

4:00 PM
The Shop Around the Corner (1940)
Feuding co-workers don’t realize they’re secret romantic pen pals.
Dir: Ernst Lubitsch. Actors: Margaret Sullavan, James Stewart, Frank Morgan.
Runtime: 99 mins
***** Not a mystery. Terrific Christmas movie.*****

8:00 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. Actors: Don DeFore, Victor Moore, Gale Storm.
Runtime: 115 mins
***** Not a mystery. Christmas*****

10:15 PM
The Holly and the Ivy (1952)
A minister’s family torn apart by World War II reunites for the Christmas holidays.
Dir: George More O’Ferrall. Actors: Ralph Richardson, Celia Johnson, Margaret Leighton.
Runtime: 81 mins
***** Not a mystery. Christmas.*****

***** ***** ***** *****

Monday – December 21

12:00 AM
Christmas Past (1925)
A compilation of Christmas-themed short, silent films.
Runtime: 122 mins
***** Not a mystery. Christmas*****

9:00 AM
A Christmas Carol (1938)
In this adaptation of Charles Dickens’ classic tale, an elderly miser learns the error of his ways on Christmas Eve.
Dir: Edwin L. Marin. Actors: Reginald Owen, Gene Lockhart, Kathleen Lockhart.
Runtime: 69 mins
***** Not a mystery. Christmas*****

10:30 AM
Larceny, Inc. (1942)
An ex-convict and his gang try to use a luggage store to front a bank robbery, but business keeps getting in the way.
Dir: Lloyd Bacon. Actors: Edward G. Robinson, Jane Wyman, Broderick Crawford.
Runtime: 95 mins

2:00 PM
Mr. Soft Touch (1949)
After being betrayed, a gangster hangs out in a settlement house while seeking revenge.
Dir: Gordon Douglas, Henry Levin. Actors: Glenn Ford, Evelyn Keyes, John Ireland.
Runtime: 93 mins

***** ***** ***** *****

Tuesday – December 22

7:15 AM
Cover-Up (1949)
An insurance investigator smells something wrong when he looks into a small-town suicide.
Dir: Alfred E. Green. Actors: William Bendix, Dennis O’Keefe, Barbara Britton.
Runtime: 83 mins

2:00 PM
Lady in the Lake (1947)
Philip Marlowe searches for a missing woman in this mystery shot entirely from the detective’s viewpoint.
Dir: Robert Montgomery. Actors: Robert Montgomery, Audrey Totter, Lloyd Nolan.
Runtime: 103 mins

8:00 PM
Christmas in Connecticut (1945)
A homemaking specialist who can’t boil water is forced to provide a family holiday for a war hero.
Dir: Peter Godfrey. Actors: Barbara Stanwyck, Dennis Morgan, Sydney Greenstreet.
Runtime: 101 mins
*****Not a mystery. Terrific Christmas movie.*****

***** ***** ***** *****

Wednesday – December 23

12:00 AM
Holiday Affair (1949)
A young widow is torn between a boring businessman and a romantic ne’er-do-well.
Dir: Don Hartman. Actors: Robert Mitchum, Janet Leigh, Wendell Corey.
Runtime: 87 mins
*****Not a mystery. Christmas*****

1:45 AM
A Night at the Movies: Merry Christmas! (2011)
Star interviews and film clips trace the history of Christmas movies.
Dir: Laurent Bouzereau. Actors: Michael Patrick Hearn, Joe Dante, Chevy Chase.
Runtime: 58 mins
*****Not a mystery. Christmas*****

11:45 PM
The Man Who Came to Dinner (1942)
An acerbic critic wreaks havoc when a hip injury forces him to move in with a midwestern family.
Dir: William Keighley. Actors: Bette Davis, Ann Sheridan, Monty Woolley.
Runtime: 113 mins
*****Not a mystery. Christmas*****

***** ***** ***** *****

Thursday – December 24

11:45 AM
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. Actors: Don DeFore, Victor Moore, Gale Storm.
Runtime: 115 mins
*****Not a mystery. Christmas*****

6:00 PM
Christmas in Connecticut (1945)
A homemaking specialist who can’t boil water is forced to provide a family holiday for a war hero.
Dir: Peter Godfrey. Actors: Barbara Stanwyck, Dennis Morgan, Sydney Greenstreet.
Runtime: 101 mins
*****Not a mystery. Terrific Christmas movie.*****

8:00 PM
The Bishop’s Wife (1947)
An angel helps set an ambitious bishop on the right track.
Dir: Henry Koster. Actors: Cary Grant, Loretta Young, David Niven.
Runtime: 109 mins
*****Not a mystery. Christmas*****

10:00 PM
The Shop Around the Corner (1940)
Feuding co-workers don’t realize they’re secret romantic pen pals.
Dir: Ernst Lubitsch. Actors: Margaret Sullavan, James Stewart, Frank Morgan.
Runtime: 99 mins
*****Not a mystery. Christmas*****

***** ***** ***** *****

Friday – December 25

12:00 AM
A Christmas Carol (1938)
In this adaptation of Charles Dickens’ classic tale, an elderly miser learns the error of his ways on Christmas Eve.
Dir: Edwin L. Marin. Actors: Reginald Owen, Gene Lockhart, Kathleen Lockhart.
Runtime: 69 mins
*****Not a mystery. Christmas*****

7:15 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. Actors: Katharine Hepburn, Joan Bennett, Paul Lukas.
Runtime: 115 mins
*****Not a mystery. This is my favorite version of Little Women.*****

2:00 PM
The Man Who Came to Dinner (1942)
An acerbic critic wreaks havoc when a hip injury forces him to move in with a midwestern family.
Dir: William Keighley. Actors: Bette Davis, Ann Sheridan, Monty Woolley.
Runtime: 113 mins
*****Not a mystery. Christmas*****

4:00 PM
Holiday Affair (1949)
A young widow is torn between a boring businessman and a romantic ne’er-do-well.
Dir: Don Hartman. Actors: Robert Mitchum, Janet Leigh, Wendell Corey.
Runtime: 87 mins
*****Not a mystery. Christmas*****

***** ***** ***** *****

Sunday – December 27

12:15 AM
Detour (1945)
A hitchhiker takes on a dead man’s identity only to face blackmail by an unscrupulous woman.
Dir: Edgar G. Ulmer. Actors: Tom Neal, Ann Savage, Claudia Drake.
Runtime: 68 mins

4:00 AM
Mara Maru (1952)
A salvage diver is accused of murder while hunting a mysterious treasure.
Dir: Gordon Douglas. Actors: Errol Flynn, Ruth Roman, Raymond Burr.
Runtime: 98 mins

10:00 AM
Detour (1945)
A hitchhiker takes on a dead man’s identity only to face blackmail by an unscrupulous woman.
Dir: Edgar G. Ulmer. Actors: Tom Neal, Ann Savage, Claudia Drake.
Runtime: 68 mins

8:00 PM
Ocean’s 11 (1960)
A group of friends plot to rob a Las Vegas casino.
Dir: Lewis Milestone. Actors: Frank Sinatra, Peter Lawford, Sammy Davis, Jr..
Runtime: 127 mins

10:15 PM
The Thomas Crown Affair (1968)
A bored tycoon turns to bank robbery and courts the insurance investigator assigned to bring him in.
Dir: Norman Jewison. Actors: Steve McQueen, Faye Dunaway, Paul Burke.
Runtime: 102 mins

***** ***** ***** *****

Wednesday – December 30

11:00 AM
Evil Under the Sun (1982)
A detective trying to solve a case finds himself on an exclusive island frequented by the rich and famous.
Dir: Guy Hamilton. Actors: Peter Ustinov, James Mason, Maggie Smith.
Runtime: 117 mins
*****An Agatha Christie Poirot mystery.*****

8:00 PM
The Birds (1963)
In a California coastal area, flocks of birds unaccountably make deadly attacks on humans.
Dir: Alfred Hitchcock. Actors: Rod Taylor, Tippi Hedren, Jessica Tandy.
Runtime: 119 mins

10:15 PM
Psycho (1960)
A woman on the run gets mixed up with a repressed young man and his violent mother.
Dir: Alfred Hitchcock. Actors: Anthony Perkins, Janet Leigh, Vera Miles.
Runtime: 109 mins

***** ***** ***** *****

Thursday – December 31

12:15 AM
Cape Fear (1962)
An ex-convict plots to destroy the district attorney who sent him to prison.
Dir: J. Lee Thompson. Actors: Gregory Peck, Robert Mitchum, Polly Bergen.
Runtime: 106 mins

2:15 AM
Sisters (1972)
A small-time reporter tries to convince the police she saw a murder in the apartment across from hers.
Dir: Brian De Palma. Actors: Margot Kidder, Jennifer Salt, Charles Durning.
Runtime: 92 mins

5:45 AM
The Bride Wore Black (1968)
A woman seeks revenge on the five men who murdered her fiance.
Dir: Francois Truffaut. Actors: Jeanne Moreau, Jean-Claude Brialy, Michel Bouquet.
Runtime: 108 mins
*****In French*****

9:15 AM
The Thin Man (1934)
A husband-and-wife detective team takes on the search for a missing inventor and almost get killed for their efforts.
Dir: W.S. Van Dyke II. Actors: William Powell, Myrna Loy, Maureen O’Sullivan.
Runtime: 91 mins

11:00 AM
After the Thin Man (1936)
Married sleuths Nick and Nora Charles try to clear Nora’s cousin of a murder charge.
Dir: W.S. Van Dyke II. Actors: William Powell, Myrna Loy, James Stewart.
Runtime: 112 mins

1:00 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. Actors: William Powell, Myrna Loy, C. Aubrey Smith.
Runtime: 103 mins

2:45 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: W.S. Van Dyke II. Actors: William Powell, Myrna Loy, Donna Reed.
Runtime: 97 mins

4:30 PM
The Thin Man Goes Home(1945)
On a trip to visit his parents, detective Nick Charles gets mixed up in a murder investigation.
Dir: Richard Thorpe. Actors: William Powell, Myrna Loy, Lucile Watson.
Runtime: 100 mins

6:15 PM
Song of the Thin Man (1947)
Society sleuths Nick and Nora Charles investigate a murder in a jazz club.
Dir: Edward Buzzell. Actors: William Powell, Myrna Loy, Keenan Wynn.
Runtime: 86 mins

***** ***** ***** *****

If you’re really looking forward to these or other mystery-themed tv specials coming up in December, be sure to leave a comment below!

In case you’re interested in seeing the rest of this month’s television mystery movies, here’s the November 2020 television mystery movies schedule:

Upcoming Television Mystery Movies for November 2020 on Turner Classic Movies channel

And here is the page on my site with plenty of entries about movies and television shows you may enjoy:

Cozy Mystery List TV and Movie Section – all you have to do is click on the link to go to that page on my site.