Three days ago a most exciting event happened....The Hildegarde Withers Mystery Collection was released as a Warner Archives DVD set. This fabulous mystery series was not available to the public since it was originally released in theatres back in the 1930s ( unless you managed to tape it off of a cable channel of course ). But now all six features can be seen on one beautiful looking set! Hooray for Hildegarde!! For those of you not familiar with the great Hildegarde Withers, she was a wise-cracking schoolmarm who aided the local New York police chief, Inspector Piper, in baffling mysteries. Withers was the creation of mystery writer Stuart Palmer, and she first graced the pages of a novel in the exciting "Penguin Pool Murder" written in 1931. Palmer followed it with 13 other Withers novels including numerous short stories of "riddles" she solved.
In 1932, the wonderful Edna May Oliver starred in the film adaption of The Penguin Pool Murder with James Gleason as Inspector Piper and co-starring Robert Armstrong and Mae Clarke. The film was so successful it spawned two sequels with Edna May Oliver, and then Helen Broderick took over the role as Miss Withers in Murder on a Bridal Path but only stayed for one outing. Zasu Pitts became the spinster sleuth in the final two films.
The Penguin Pool Murder ( 1932 )
Murder on a Blackboard ( 1934 )
Murder on a Honeymoon ( 1935 )
Murder on a Bridal Path ( 1936 )
The Plot Thickens ( 1936 )
Forty Naughty Girls ( 1937 )
We'll write a more in-depth look at Hildegarde Withers and this DVD set in autumn...a great season for watching mystery movies ( and for buying discount DVDs ).
No comments:
Post a Comment