The Lone Wolf Takes a Chance

"Mad ADVENTURE! Gay INTRIGUE!"

1941 1h 14m EN

😐

6.1

MID

★6.1TMDB · 7

Mystery

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A reformed jewel thief fights to clear his name when he's framed for murder.

“Mad ADVENTURE! Gay INTRIGUE!”

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Cast

Warren William
Michael Lanyard
June Storey
Gloria Foster
Henry Wilcoxon
Frank Jordan
Eric Blore
Jamison
Thurston Hall
Inspector Crane
Don Beddoe
Sheriff Haggerty
Evalyn Knapp
Evelyn Jordan
Fred Kelsey
Detective Dickens

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Sidney Salkow
Writers: Sidney Salkow, Sidney Salkow, Earl Felton
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

Tight 74-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

85 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Lone Wolf Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Sidney Salkow, shot by John Stumar. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Viola Lawrence shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Warren William and June Storey and Henry Wilcoxon carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Mad ADVENTURE! Gay INTRIGUE!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0033849 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Sidney Salkow directs. John Stumar behind the camera. Viola Lawrence cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Tight 74-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.
285 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Part of the "Lone Wolf Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
4Directed by Sidney Salkow, shot by John Stumar. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Editor Viola Lawrence shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Warren William and June Storey and Henry Wilcoxon carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "Mad ADVENTURE! Gay INTRIGUE!".
8IMDB entry: tt0033849 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Only 7 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: John Stumar
Editing: Viola Lawrence
Runtime: 74 min · 1h 14m
Status: Released
Original language: EN
IMDB: The Lone Wolf Takes a Chance (1941)

Part of

Lone Wolf Collection

Louis Joseph Vance's MICHAEL LANYARD, better known as THE LONE WOLF, didn't start out as a private eye, but as a criminal. However, like Jack Boyle's Boston Blackie, thanks to his numerous re-creations in film, radio and television, The Lone Wolf is now best remembered these days, if at all, chiefly as a sort of gentleman thief turned private eye.

Also by

Sidney Salkow

Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2023-11-30
★ 6/10
Warren William is the eponymous trouble maker for poor old "Insp. Crane" (Thurston Hall) who bets him that he can't behave himself for just one day! Well, of course he can't - indeed pretty sharpish he and stalwart "Jamison" (Eric Blore) are up to their necks in the theft of some US treasury plates from a supposedly impenetrable car invented by "Baker" (Lloyd Bridges). That's only the half of it - there's a killer afoot too and our not so wily policeman only has one suspect. What now ensues is an entertaining, if formulaic, join-the-dots mystery as June Storey provides an adequate damsel in distress ("Gloria") and the dialogue some fun and mischievous quips for Blore to raise the odd smile. There's a bit more meat on the bones of the adventure element to this with plenty of daft fisticuffs before the baddie is suitably apprehended. It's a bit too long - takes a while to get up an head of steam, but it does get there and ultimately it's a watchable little story that begs the question. When will "Crane" ever learn to trust in the "Wolf"?

Production companies