The Cozy Mystery List Blog

Since next month will be December, there will be quite a few Christmas movies, which I will be listing if they are some of my personal favorites. They’ll be marked as Christmas movies, and unless noted otherwise, are not particularly “mysterious”.

It’s also worth mentioning, though they aren’t quite mysteries, TCM will (again) be showing the Thin Man movies on New Year’s Eve.

So, let’s get started!

December 2017 Turner Classic Movies Channel Mystery Movies (Central time zone):

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

Friday – December 1, 2017

9:15 AM
ARSENIC AND OLD LACE (1944)
A young man about to be married discovers the two aunts who raised him have been poisoning lonely old men.
Dir: Frank Capra Cast: Cary Grant, Priscilla Lane, Raymond Massey.
BW- 118 mins, CC

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

Saturday – December 2, 2017

2:00 AM
A NIGHT AT THE MOVIES: MERRY CHRISTMAS! (2011)
Star interviews and film clips trace the history of Christmas movies.
Dir: Laurent Bouzereau
C- 58 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

3:00 PM
KIND HEARTS AND CORONETS (1949)
An ambitious young man sets out to kill everyone who stands between him and a fortune.
Dir: Robert Hamer Cast: Alec Guinness, Dennis Price, Joan Greenwood.
BW- 106 mins, CC

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

Sunday – December 3, 2017

9:00 AM
PUSHOVER (1954)
A police detective falls for the bank robber’s girlfriend he is supposed to be tailing.
Dir: Richard Quine Cast: Fred MacMurray, Phil Carey, Kim Novak.
BW- 88 mins, CC, Letterbox Format

11:00 AM
THE SHOP AROUND THE CORNER (1940)
Feuding co-workers don’t realize they’re secret romantic pen pals.
Dir: Ernst Lubitsch Cast: Margaret Sullavan, James Stewart, Frank Morgan.
BW- 99 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

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

Tuesday – December 5, 2017

5:00 AM
M (1931)
The mob sets out to catch a child killer whose crimes are attracting too much police attention.
Dir: Fritz Lang Cast: Theo Lingen, Peter Lorre, Otto Wernicke.
BW- 110 mins

7:00 AM
THE TESTAMENT OF DR. MABUSE (1933)
A crime wave grips the city and all clues seem to lead to the nefarious Dr. Mabuse.
Dir: Fritz Lang Cast: Rudolf Klein-Rogge, Gustav Diesel, Otto Wernicke.
BW- 121 mins

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

7:00 PM
THEY WON’T FORGET (1937)
Bigotry flares when a teacher is accused of killing a small-town girl in the South.
Dir: Mervyn LeRoy Cast: Claude Rains, Gloria Dickson, Edward Norris.
BW- 95 mins, CC

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

Friday – December 8, 2017

7:00 PM
A CHRISTMAS CAROL (1951)
Ghosts visit a miser during the holidays to teach him the errors of his ways.
Dir: Brian Desmond-Hurst Cast: Alastair Sim, Kathleen Harrison, Mervyn Johns.
BW- 86 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

8:45 PM
SCROOGE (1935)
The legendary miser searches his past, present and future to discover the true meaning of Christmas.
Dir: Henry Edwards Cast: Seymour Hicks, Donald Calthrop, Maurice Evans.
BW- 78 mins
****Christmas, not Cozy****

10:15 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 Cast: Robert Montgomery, Audrey Totter, Lloyd Nolan.
BW- 103 mins, CC

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

Saturday – December 9, 2017

12:15 AM
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 Cast: Deanna Durbin, Ralph Bellamy, David Bruce.
BW- 94 mins

3:45 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 Cast: Edward G. Robinson , Jane Wyman , Broderick Crawford .
BW- 95 mins, CC

5:30 AM
THE MALTESE FALCON (1931)
In the first screen version of The Maltese Falcon, detective Sam Spade investigates the theft of a priceless statue.
Dir: Roy Del Ruth Cast: Bebe Daniels, Ricardo Cortez, Dudley Digges.
BW- 78 mins, CC

1:00 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 Cast: Don DeFore, Ann Harding, Charlie Ruggles.
BW- 115 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

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

Sunday – December 10, 2017

1:00 AM
PRIVATE PARTS (1972)
A young girl moves into her estranged aunt¿s hotel when she begins to suspect that a guest was murdered.
Dir: Paul Bartel Cast: Ayn Ruymen, Lucille Benson, John Ventantonio.
C- 86 mins, CC

4:45 AM
A VISIT TO SANTA (1963)
Two children dreaming of Christmas visit Santa at the North Pole in this short film.
C- 12 mins
****Christmas, not Cozy****

11:00 AM
HOLIDAY AFFAIR (1949)
A young widow is torn between a boring businessman and a romantic ne’er-do-well.
Dir: Don Hartman Cast: Robert Mitchum, Janet Leigh, Wendell Corey.
BW- 87 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

12:45 PM
MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS (1944)
Young love and childish fears highlight a year in the life of a turn-of-the-century family.
Dir: Vincente Minnelli Cast: Judy Garland, Margaret O’Brien, Mary Astor.
C- 113 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

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

Monday – December 11, 2017

3:00 AM
FEAR (1954)
The wife of a prominent scientist is blackmailed after her extramarital affair is discovered.
Dir: Roberto Rossellini Cast: Ingrid Bergman, Mathias Wieman, Renate Mannhardt.
BW- 79 mins,

5:45 PM
A NIGHT AT THE MOVIES: MERRY CHRISTMAS! (2011)
Star interviews and film clips trace the history of Christmas movies.
Dir: Laurent Bouzereau
C- 58 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

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

Tuesday – December 12, 2017

10:00 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 Cast: Edward G. Robinson , Vivienne Osborne , Guy Kibbee .
BW- 67 mins

2:00 PM
A SLIGHT CASE OF MURDER ( 1938)
A gangster finds the straight life ain’t so simple.
Dir: Lloyd Bacon Cast: Edward G. Robinson , Jane Bryan , Allen Jenkins .
BW- 85 mins, CC

7:00 PM
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

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

Wednesday – December 13, 2017

2:15 PM
SLIGHTLY DANGEROUS (1943)
A small-town girl changes her identity to make it in New York, leaving her boyfriend a suspect in her “disappearance.”
Dir: Wesley Ruggles Cast: Lana Turner, Robert Young, Walter Brennan.
BW- 94 mins, CC

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

Thursday – December 14, 2017

12:30 PM
COMPLIMENTS OF THE SEASON (1930)
In this short film, a criminal attempting to go straight stops a young lady on Christmas eve from committing suicide. Vitaphone Release 1094-1095.
Dir: Arthur Hurley Cast: Eric Dressler, Lenita Lane, Pat O’Brien.
BW- 14 mins
****Christmas, not Cozy****

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

Friday – December 15, 2017

7:00 PM
THE SHOP AROUND THE CORNER (1940)
Feuding co-workers don’t realize they’re secret romantic pen pals.
Dir: Ernst Lubitsch Cast: Margaret Sullavan, James Stewart, Frank Morgan.
BW- 99 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

9:00 PM
HOLIDAY AFFAIR (1949)
A young widow is torn between a boring businessman and a romantic ne’er-do-well.
Dir: Don Hartman Cast: Robert Mitchum, Janet Leigh, Wendell Corey.
BW- 87 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

10:45 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 Cast: Don DeFore, Ann Harding, Charlie Ruggles.
BW- 115 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

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

Saturday – December 16, 2017

1:00 AM
THE MAN WHO CAME TO DINNER (1941)
An acerbic critic wreaks havoc when a hip injury forces him to move in with a midwestern family.
Dir: William Keighley Cast: Bette Davis, Ann Sheridan, Monty Woolley.
BW- 113 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

11:15 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 Cast: Reginald Owen, Gene Lockhart, Kathleen Lockhart.
BW- 69 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

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

Sunday – December 17, 2017

7:45 AM
A NIGHT AT THE MOVIES: MERRY CHRISTMAS! (2011)
Star interviews and film clips trace the history of Christmas movies.
Dir: Laurent Bouzereau
C- 58 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

9:00 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

11:15 AM
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 Cast: Barbara Stanwyck, Dennis Morgan, Sydney Greenstreet.
BW- 101 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

1:15 PM
THE BISHOP’S WIFE (1947)
An angel helps set an ambitious bishop on the right track.
Dir: Henry Koster Cast: Cary Grant, Loretta Young, David Niven.
BW- 109 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

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

Monday – December 18, 2017

1:00 PM
OUT OF THE PAST (1947)
A private eye becomes the dupe of a homicidal moll.
Dir: Jacques Tourneur Cast: Robert Mitchum, Jane Greer, Kirk Douglas.
BW- 97 mins, CC

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

Tuesday – December 19, 2017

7:30 AM
THE SAINT TAKES OVER (1940)
Reformed jewel thief Simon Templar tries to help a police inspector who’s been framed on bribery charges.
Dir: Jack Hively Cast: George Sanders, Wendy Barrie, Jonathan Hale.
BW- 70 mins, CC

8:45 AM
RAGE IN HEAVEN (1941)
A jealous man plots to fake his death and incriminate his wife’s suspected lover.
Dir: W. S. Van Dyke II Cast: Robert Montgomery, Ingrid Bergman, George Sanders.
BW- 85 mins, CC

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

Friday – December 22, 2017

7:00 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 Cast: Barbara Stanwyck, Dennis Morgan, Sydney Greenstreet.
BW- 101 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy. One of the best Christmas movies.****

9:00 PM
REMEMBER THE NIGHT (1940)
An assistant D.A. takes a shoplifter home with him for Christmas.
Dir: Mitchell Leisen Cast: Barbara Stanwyck, Fred MacMurray, Beulah Bondi.
BW- 94 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy. What a treat for Christmas!****

11:00 PM
MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS (1944)
Young love and childish fears highlight a year in the life of a turn-of-the-century family.
Dir: Vincente Minnelli Cast: Judy Garland, Margaret O’Brien, Mary Astor.
C- 113 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

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

Saturday – December 23, 2017

4:00 PM
KING OF KINGS (1961)
Epic retelling of Christ’s life and the effects of his teachings on those around him.
Dir: Nicholas Ray Cast: Jeffrey Hunter, Siobhan McKenna, Robert Ryan.
C- 160 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

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

Sunday – December 24, 2017

4:45 AM
A VISIT TO SANTA (1963)
Two children dreaming of Christmas visit Santa at the North Pole in this short film.
C- 12 mins
****Christmas, not Cozy****

7:00 AM
THE MAN WHO CAME TO DINNER (1941)
An acerbic critic wreaks havoc when a hip injury forces him to move in with a midwestern family.
Dir: William Keighley Cast: Bette Davis, Ann Sheridan, Monty Woolley.
BW- 113 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

9:00 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 Cast: Don DeFore, Ann Harding, Charlie Ruggles.
BW- 115 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

1:15 PM
HOLIDAY AFFAIR (1949)
A young widow is torn between a boring businessman and a romantic ne’er-do-well.
Dir: Don Hartman Cast: Robert Mitchum, Janet Leigh, Wendell Corey.
BW- 87 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

3:00 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 Cast: Barbara Stanwyck, Dennis Morgan, Sydney Greenstreet.
BW- 101 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

5:00 PM
MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS (1944)
Young love and childish fears highlight a year in the life of a turn-of-the-century family.
Dir: Vincente Minnelli Cast: Judy Garland, Margaret O’Brien, Mary Astor.
C- 113 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

7:00 PM
THE BISHOP’S WIFE (1947)
An angel helps set an ambitious bishop on the right track.
Dir: Henry Koster Cast: Cary Grant, Loretta Young, David Niven.
BW- 109 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

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

Monday – December 25, 2017

1:00 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 Cast: Reginald Owen, Gene Lockhart, Kathleen Lockhart.
BW- 69 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

5:00 AM
STAR IN THE NIGHT (1945)
In this short film, three cowboys see a bright light in the distance and decide to investigate on Christmas Eve. Vitaphone Release 1401A.
Cast: Lynne Baggett,
BW- 22 mins
****Christmas, not Cozy****

9:30 AM
SCROOGE (1935)
The legendary miser searches his past, present and future to discover the true meaning of Christmas.
Dir: Henry Edwards Cast: Seymour Hicks, Donald Calthrop, Maurice Evans.
BW- 78 mins
****Christmas, not Cozy****

5:00 PM
THE SHOP AROUND THE CORNER (1940)
Feuding co-workers don’t realize they’re secret romantic pen pals.
Dir: Ernst Lubitsch Cast: Margaret Sullavan, James Stewart, Frank Morgan.
BW- 99 mins, CC
****Christmas, not Cozy****

7:00 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 Cast: James Stewart, Grace Kelly, Wendell Corey.
C- 112 mins, CC

9:00 PM
NORTH BY NORTHWEST (1959)
An advertising man is mistaken for a spy, triggering a deadly cross-country chase.
Dir: Alfred Hitchcock Cast: Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint, James Mason.
C- 136 mins, CC

11:30 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 Cast: Ray Milland, Grace Kelly, Robert Cummings.
C- 105 mins, CC

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

Tuesday – December 26, 2017

3:45 AM
VERTIGO (1958)
A detective falls for the mysterious woman he’s been hired to tail.
Dir: Alfred Hitchcock Cast: James Stewart, Kim Novak, Barbara Bel Geddes.
C- 128 mins, CC, Letterbox Format

6:00 AM
SHADOW OF A DOUBT (1943)
A young girl fears her favorite uncle may be a killer.
Dir: Alfred Hitchcock Cast: Teresa Wright, Joseph Cotten, MacDonald Carey.
BW- 108 mins, CC
****yow-zee!****

8:00 AM
STRANGERS ON A TRAIN (1951)
A man’s joking suggestion that he and a chance acquaintance trade murders turns deadly.
Dir: Alfred Hitchcock Cast: Farley Granger, Ruth Roman, Robert Walker.
BW- 101 mins, CC

10:00 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 Cast: Edmund Gwenn, John Forsythe, Mildred Natwick.
C- 99 mins, CC, Letterbox Format

4:45 PM
THE MAN WHO KNEW TOO MUCH (1956)
International spies kidnap a doctor’s son when he stumbles on their assassination plot.
Dir: Alfred Hitchcock Cast: James Stewart, Doris Day, Brenda de Banzie.
C- 120 mins, CC, Letterbox Format

7:00 PM
MADAME X (1966)
A fallen woman on trial for murder is defended by the son she abandoned years earlier.
Dir: David Lowell Rich Cast: Lana Turner, John Forsythe, Ricardo Montalban.
C- 100 mins, CC

9:00 PM
PORTRAIT IN BLACK (1960)
A woman and her lover kill her husband and are targeted by someone who knows of their crime.
Dir: Michael Gordon Cast: Lana Turner, Anthony Quinn, Richard Basehart.
C- 113 mins, CC

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

Saturday – December 30, 2017

10:00 AM
THE WINDOW (1949)
A boy who always lies witnesses a murder but can’t get anyone but the killer to believe him.
Dir: Ted Tetzlaff Cast: Barbara Hale, Arthur Kennedy, Paul Stewart.
BW- 73 mins, CC

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

Sunday – December 31, 2017

7:00 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 Cast: William Powell, Myrna Loy, Maureen O’Sullivan.
BW- 91 mins, CC

8:45 PM
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 Cast: William Powell, Myrna Loy, James Stewart.
BW- 112 mins, CC

10:45 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

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

Monday – January 1, 2017

12:45 AM
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

2:30 AM
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 Cast: William Powell, Myrna Loy, Lucile Watson.
BW- 101 mins, CC

4:15 AM
SONG OF THE THIN MAN (1947)
Society sleuths Nick and Nora Charles investigate a murder in a jazz club.
Dir: Edward Buzzell Cast: William Powell, Myrna Loy, Keenan Wynn.
BW- 86 mins, CC

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