When Were You Born? (1938)

Starring Margaret Lindsay, Anna May Wong, Lola Lane, Anthony Averill, Charles Wilson
Directed by William McGann
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)

After an astrologer accurately predicts a wealthy art importer's death, the police bring her in for questioning, and discover her reasoning based on the date someone was born is uncannily accurate.

Although it's hard to imagine any astrologer would ever be as accurate as Wong's character is in this film, the screenplay offers an enjoyable mystery with more than enough suspects, Wong offers a very likable performance, and the filmmakers largely dispense with any Chinese stereotypes.  Nevertheless, Leonard Mudie, who is not Oriental in the least, plays another Chinese character, making Wong's scenes with him seem a little awkward.  What I found most intriguing however was the presence of Manly Hall, who provided the film's plot, and introduces us to the symbols of the horoscope and their meanings at the start of the picture.  Previously I had only known Hall for his presence in the trailer for the 1940 film Black Friday, in which he hypnotizes Bela Lugosi in an apparent publicity stunt.  According to Wikipedia, Hall was a reputed author with expertise in philosophy and the occult, and this movie marks his only foray into Hollywood moviemaking.

Sh! The Octopus (1937)

Starring Hugh Herbert, Allen Jenkins, Marcia Ralston, John Eldredge, George Rosener
Directed by William McGann
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)

A pair of bumbling detectives try to solve a mysterious murder at a lighthouse, which may be the work of "The Octopus," a criminal boss with real tentacles.  

Warner Brothers presents a very silly mystery-comedy, with several actors practicing their comedy shtick, most notably Herbert with an avalanche of puns and Jenkins playing his usual dimwitted persona.  Just when you think you can start to take the mystery plot seriously, some silly sight gag is unleashed on the audience, as when the long tentacles of an octopus grab one of the characters or Herbert disassembles a ladder trying to climb down it.  It's not a great comedy, but it is entertaining, and the team of Herbert and Jenkins are amusing enough.

The Case Of The Black Cat (1936)

Starring Ricardo Cortez, June Travis, Jane Bryan, Craig Reynolds, Carlyle Moore, Jr.
Directed by William McGann
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)

Famed attorney Perry Mason is hired to protect an ornery cat at the center of his latest case, who's been threatened by the heir to a wealthy man's estate.

This film offers a fun mystery based on the novel by Erle Stanley Gardner, creator of the Perry Mason character who would later become probably best known as portrayed by actor Raymond Burr in the classic 1960s television series.  Mason is portrayed by Ricardo Cortez here, who plays him differently than Burr, as more of a smooth operator with a sardonic sense of humor.  But fans of Burr's series should find much to like here with Gardner's familiarly twisting plot aided by a solid supporting cast who create some memorable characters.