“Work is the curse of the drinking class,” Oscar Wilde said, and it would seem that sleuthing twosome Nick and Nora Charles took this pronouncement to heart in the wildly popular “Thin Man” film series of the 1930’s and 40’s. The Driftwood Players’ Classic Movies series screens the first — and best — of them, “The Thin Man,” at 7 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 12 at the Wade James Theatre in Edmonds.
William Powell and Myrna Loy star in the 1934 detective comedy as a retired detective and his wealthy socialite wife who, along with their animated wirehaired terrier, Asta, lead a life of elegantly inebriated leisure. That is, until murder gets in the way. It begins with the daughter of an acquaintance (Maureen O’Sullivan) who appeals to Nick for help in locating her father, an eccentric inventor who fails to return from a long business trip. Pretty soon all manner of suspicious characters make their appearance — and a few meet their untimely demise. It’s up to Nick and Nora to get to the bottom of the case — a case of scotch, anyway, as Nora tells a reporter.
Happy hour may be a 24 hour occurrence in the Charles household, but this is a couple who obviously have a great deal of affection and respect for each other. A bit blase, always urbane, the characters of Nick and Nora are probably the silver screen’s first quick-witted, wisecracking crime fighting duo. “I’m a hero. I was shot two times in the Tribune,” Nick tells Nora about the news coverage of his narrow escape from serious injury. Nora replies, “I read where you were shot five times in the tabloids,” to which Nick retorts, “It’s not true. He didn’t come anywhere near my tabloids.”
“The Thin Man” is notable for being based on the last novel of one of the 20th century’s great mystery writers, Dashiell Hammett. It also stands as an intriguing relic of a pivotal year in the history of the motion picture industry. “The Thin Man’s” release in 1934 coincided with implementation of the Hays Code, the final nail in the coffin of creative expression in Hollywood that remained buried for 34 years. Like other films of that year such as “It Happened One Night” and “Twentieth Century,” “The Thin Man” reflects both the last vestiges of the open depiction of controversial moral issues on film, and the emergence of a new film genre that craftily side-stepped censorship, the screwball comedy.
Seventy years later (yes, seventy!), “The Thin Man” is still among one of the best comedies ever made. The chemistry that playfully smolders between Powell and Loy is unmatched. When Nora comments on the looks of the inventor’s daughter, Nick agrees with her. “Yes, she’s a very nice type,” he responds. “You got types?” Nora teases. “Only you, darling,” Nick suavely reassures her. “Lanky brunettes with wicked jaws.” It’s an intoxicating experience.
Tickets for “The Thin Man” are $5, available in advance by calling 425-774-9600 or at the door. The Wade James Theatre is located at 950 Main Street in Edmonds. The next film in the Classic Movies series is “The Bride of Frankenstein,” screening just in time for Halloween, at 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 30.
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