No Hands On The Clock (1941)
Director:
Frank McDonaldWriters:
Daniel Mainwaring (novel) (as Geoffrey Holmes), Maxwell Shane (screenplay)Stars:
Chester Morris, Jean Parker, Rose Hobart, Dick Purcell , Astrid Allwyn , Rod CameronDetective Chester Morris and his nosy wife Jean Parker set up housekeeping in a small Reno hotel room, whence Morris conducts his investigation of a kidnap case. It appears that the abduction has some tenuous connection with a recent bank robbery. As Morris digs deeper, he finds that virtually all of his neighbors either have something to do with cases at hand, or else they have something to hide. Its screenplay sticking fairly closely to the source novel by Daniel Mainwaring (writing under the pseudonym of Geoffrey Holmes), No Hands on the Clock is a rare foray into mystery for Paramount's action-picture production team of Pine and Thomas. The title refers to a handless clock hanging inside a Reno mortuary--which of course turns out to be a vital clue.
