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The Dummy Talks

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The Dummy Talks
Directed byOswald Mitchell
Written byMichael Barringer
Based onthe story by Jack Clifford & Con West
Produced byWallace Orton
Starring
CinematographyJames Wilson
Edited by
Music byKennedy Russell (uncredited)
Production
company
Distributed byAnglo-American Film Corporation (UK)
Release date
  • 25 October 1943 (1943-10-25) (UK)
Running time
85 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish

The Dummy Talks is a 1943 British crime film directed by Oswald Mitchell and starring Jack Warner, Claude Hulbert and Beryl Orde.[1] It marked the film debut of Jack Warner.[2]

Synopsis

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Set over the course of one night, the story takes place in and around a London theatre. A series of contemporary acts are seen both performing on stage and socialising backstage. The murder of a ventriloquist takes place and two policemen, who happen to be at the theatre tracking a banknote forger, set to work finding the culprit. Ultimately, the key suspects are rounded up and a mind-reader puts on a show to reveal the killer. He's helped by a midget dressed as the dummy, hence the title.

Cast

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  • Jack Warner as Jack
  • Claude Hulbert as Victor Harbord
  • Beryl Orde as Beryl
  • Evelyn Darvell as Peggy
  • Hy Hazell as Maya (credited as Derna Hazell)
  • Manning Whiley as Russell Warren
  • Charles Carson as Marvello ("The Man With the Radio Mind")
  • G. H. Mulcaster as Piers Harriman
  • John Carol as Jimmy Royce
  • Gordon Edwards as Marcus
  • Max Earl as Yates
  • Ivy Benson and her all Ladies Band as Themselves
  • Frederick Sylvester & Nephew (Eric Mudd also played the "dummy") as Themselves
  • Tommy Manley & Florence Austin ("Music Hath Charms") as Themselves
  • Cecil Ayres with the Skating Avalons as Themselves
  • Mann & Read ("Jugglers with Fun") as Themselves
  • Five Lai Founs (" Modern Chinese Wonders") as Themselves
  • Jeannie White and her Stepsisters as Themselves

Critical reception

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Britmovie noted "a number of genuine variety acts add a flavour of the period, although they provide rather too much of the film’s running time";[2] and TV Guide called it "a weird but engaging second feature."[3]

References

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  1. ^ "The Dummy Talks (1943)". Archived from the original on 17 January 2009.
  2. ^ a b "The Dummy Talks 1943 | Britmovie | Home of British Films". www.britmovie.co.uk. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015.
  3. ^ "The Dummy Talks".

Bibliography

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  • Murphy, Robert. Realism and Tinsel: Cinema and Society in Britain 1939-48. Routledge, 1989.
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