Ellery Queen and the Murder Ring ** (1941, Ralph Bellamy, Margaret Lindsay, Charley Grapewin, Mona Barrie, Paul Hurst, James Burke, George Zucco, Blanche Yurka) – Classic Movie Review 10,504

Director James P Hogan’s 1941 Ellery Queen and the Murder Ring stars Ralph Bellamy for the fourth and final time as ace amateur sleuth Ellery Queen, with Margaret Lindsay and Charley Grapewin also returning as Nikki Porter and Inspector Queen. The film also stars Mona Barrie, Paul Hurst, James Burke, George Zucco and Blanche Yurka.

Bellamy bows out with one last nice performance as Ellery, who joins his policeman dad (Grapewin) in a hospital murder by strangulation case, in which Wall Street widow Mrs Augusta Stack (Blanche Yurka), the rich but mean benefactor of the Stack Memorial Hospital, has mysteriously died at the time of an operation. A lot of ripe suspects wanted to see her dead.

Eric Taylor and Gertrude Purcell’s decent mystery script, loosely based on The Dutch Shoe Mystery, gives the exceptionally good cast of actors plenty of eagerly grabbed chances, though there’s too much comedy relief, all of it unwelcome.

The Larry Darmour Productions series, releasing through Columbia Pictures, carried on with Lindsay and Grapewin, but with William Gargan as Ellery Queen, in A Close Call for Ellery Queen (1942).

Also in the cast are Mona Barrie as Marian Tracy, Paul Hurst as Page, James Burke as Sergeant Velie, George Zucco as Dr Edwin L Jannery, Blanche Yurka as Mrs. Augusta Stack, Tom Dugan as Lou Thomas, Leon Ames as John Stack, Jean Fenwick as Alice Stack, Olin Howland as Dr Williams, Dennis Moore as Dr Dunn, Charlotte Wynters as Miss Fox and Pierre Watkin as Crothers.

Columbia Pictures released the film on 18 November 1941.

© Derek Winnert 2020 Classic Movie Review 10,504

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