ENTERTAINMENTS

Manawatu Standard, Volume LIX, Issue 69, 18 February 1939, Page 3

ENTERTAINMENTS

METEOR THEATRE. “MANHATTAN MELOLTAMA.” Now York in the early -years of the century when “Diamond Jim” Brady was a familiar figure and Lillian Russell was the toast of the town, lives briefly on the screen in “Manhattan Melodrama,” now showing at the Meteor ’Theatre, which co-stars Clark Gable, William Powell and Myrmi Loy. As a sort of prologue to the principal action, which is laid in 1934, the picture recreates one of tlie most horrible disasters in the big city’s history—the fire and beaching of flic excursion steamer General Slocum, a tragedy that cost more than 1000 lives. Metro-Goldwyn-Maycr studio technicians reenacted tiie entire disaster in and around the studio's stages, and made it one of tlie most spectacular scenes ever filmed. Recreated also is tho famous Winter Garden roof, long since torn down where, in 1906, Harry Thaw killed Stamford White. A brief sequence of the picture takes place there. Tiie Dempscy-Firpo fight in 1923 is still another of tiie big moments ol metropolitan history that comes to life in “.Manhattan Melodrama,” forming a background for one of tiie dramatic scenes.

KOSY THEATRE, “MR WONG, DETECTIVE.” Boris Karloff as “Mr Wong. Detective.” Thrills! Thrills! And more thrills in the first series of baffling detective mystery dramas. The meet seasoned follower of the adventures of screen sleuths will gel a real thrill out of “Mr Wong, Detective,” which is now showing at the KoFy Theatre, for not only is it clever mystery drama, full of action and suspense, but it serves to introduce a new screen detective in the person of that ex-horror man and master of eerie characterisation, Boris Karloff. F’or this first in a series of mystery films, based on the popular Hugh Wiley stories, Karloff dons the celestial raiment of James Lee Wong, a hero well known to magazine fans. Wong, educated at Oxford and scientifically schooled in crime detecting, begins his career at Monogram by unravelling a triple murder that baffles San Francisco's police. Three partners of the Dayton Chemical Company arc killed, each alone in a room which Ims no access. Wong is called in to help to solve the crime and work with his friend, Captain Street, of the San Francisco Police Department. With the help of test tubes and a physics book, Wong discovers the murderer’s methods—the use of poison gas in a glaze receptacle which is shattered by vibration —but it is not until after the third murder that he learns how the. glass was made to break. With this dangerous secret in his hands, Wong sets off' for police headquarters, but walks into tiie killer s trap, where ids two friends have preceded him. “SHE ASKED FOR IT.” The associate feature, “She Asked for It.” is a now mystery comedy with William Gargan and a beautiful new star, Orion Heyward, in the leading roles.