The Falcon's Alibi

Plot synopsis:
Suave sleuth Tom Lawrence AKA The Falcon (Tom Conway) is enjoying a day at the racetrack but is equally enjoying the sight of attractive fellow race-goer Joan Meredith (Rita Corday). Meredith is the beleaguered personal secretary of her wealthy employer Mrs Gloria Peabody (Esther Howard). When Joan discovers the identity of her admirer she implores Tom to accept Mrs Peabody's invitation to a birthday party. Tom attends the swanky party at the Barbary Towers hotel where Joan explains that ever since Mrs Peabody made an insurance claim on a stolen necklace she has been trailed by an over-zealous insurance investigator called Metcalf (Emory Parnell). Joan also admits that in order to protect her employer she secretly took Mrs Peabody's famous $100,000 pearl necklace to a jeweller to have a copy made - but was stunned to be told by the jewellers that the necklace was fake. Tom agrees to help Joan find the real necklace but moments later the head waiter at the party Louie (Alphonse Martell) is killed in Mrs Peabody's suite. Joan and Tom stumble upon the body, and when the police arrive Inspector Blake (Al Bridge) discovers that the Peabody pearls have been stolen. Later, in his hotel room Tom is receiving a massage from his sidekick "Goldie" Locke (Vince Barnett) when someone takes a pot-shot at them. As Tom is digging the bullet out of the wall, we see Nick (Elisha Cook Jr.), a disc jockey operating out of the hotel, sneak back into his studio where we can hear his supposedly live broadcast is in fact a pre-recorded one.The following day Tom notices ambitious hotel nightclub singer Lola Campbell (Jane Greer) wearing an expensive ring and is surprised when she states that it is a phony. Tom sends Goldie to light a fire in a trashcan inside the hotel room of Harvey Beaumont (Jason Robarts Snr.), a friend of Mrs Peabody, and to then hide inside a closet to observe Beaumont's actions. Goldie reports back to The Falcon that Beaumont has hidden the Peabody pearls inside a fake book. Tom sneaks in and recovers the necklace, then visits Bender (Morgan Wallace), a fence and nightclub owner, to see about disposing of the pearls. However, Bender sends his men to follow Tom to try and steal the pearls from him - forcing The Falcon to mail the necklace back to his hotel room. Tom and Goldie return to their hotel room only to find Inspector Blake there, who promptly arrests them after finding both the missing pearl necklace and the corpse of Beaumont in their room. The Falcon eventually manages to persuade Blake to give him 24 hours to solve the case.Tom goes to Lola's dressing room and discovers that Lola and Nick are secretly married, but that Lola is having an affair with her manager Alex Olmstead (Paul Brooks). Before Lola can tell Nick that she is leaving him for Alex, Nick reveals to her that he has been stealing jewels for her and that he is now in serious trouble. A distraught Nick begs Lola to leave with him that night, but suddenly fearing for her safety, Lola manages to persuade Nick that she will go with him but in a few days time. Tom investigates Nick's studio and uncovers his secret trick of broadcasting pre-recorded programmes as live broadcasts in order to give himself an alibi. Nick eventually overhears Lola and Alex discussing their affair in Lola's room. He waits until Alex has left the room before confronting Lola and in a jealous rage shooting her and then sneaks out of the window. Tom comes to investigate the gunshot, finds Lola's body and is immediately cornered by the cops. Joan goes to Nick's studio in search of Tom and she too uncovers Nick's alibi providing deception. Nick bursts in but just as he is about to shoot her The Falcon bursts in and a fight ensues during which Nick plunges backwards out of the open window he had entered the studio through plummeting to his death. Tom and Joan are cleared by Blake of all crimes as it is revealed that Peabody and Beaumont were in league to defraud the insurance company Metcalf is working for.

Tags: murder

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