Starring Milton Berle, Brenda Joyce, John Shelton, John Carradine, Willie Best
Directed by Alfred Werker
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)
The star of a radio show tackling unsolved crimes investigates the death of a sea captain aboard an old ship, where he and his valet encounter old ghosts and others after the captain's treasure.
This film hasn't aged well, with Best's antics as an easily scared servant, and Berle's jokes regarding his skin color of definite offense to modern audiences. Berle, starring here years before his success on television, keeps his zingers coming so fast I didn't pick up on some of them, but did laugh at a few. However, the best element of the film is the spooky atmosphere aboard the derelict ship, with shadows, fog, and gloomy themes from composers Leigh Harline & Emil Newman heightening the mystery and suspense. There aren't really any ghosts in the film, with Carradine and Rene Riano playing actors posing as ghosts as a prank on Berle's character, but interestingly Berle calls Carradine "Dracula" some years before the performer took on that role on film. Overall, the film's mystery is engaging, but I'd have to say the attempts at comedy largely fall flat.
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