Source : MyKenora.com

I write this as I begin my fourth week without any fulltime work in front of me, waiting for the dear old Pogey (aka EI) to begin, and waiting for that magic phone call that may mark the beginning of my next illustrious career. It is the last week of January, and as David Suzuki told me recently “global warming is a tough sell in most of Canada in the wintertime”. There are blizzard warnings out for much of the country, and the Winnipeg area has received the most snow we’ve had since the winter that preceded the 1997 Flood.

With lots of time on my hands, I was thinking about scooting down the highway to visit my many wonderful friends in Kenora, but that will obviously have to wait for friendlier driving conditions. So how do I keep amused in the meantime? Well there has always been, and always will be for me …. The movies! In moments of joy, sorrow, boredom and frustration I can always rely on the mythical characters of the screen to lift my spirits and pass the time on a brutal Monday. And as luck would have it, the dear old CBC has come to the rescue with a series of Monday afternoon classics.

Today the programming Gods served up that venerable 1934 chestnut called “The Thin Man” from the classic detective novel by Dashiell Hammett. William Powell and Myrna Loy star as the husband and wife team of Nick and Nora Charles. Nick has been a legendary ‘gumshoe’ (that means ‘detective’ to those of you born after the Diefenbaker era) but his marriage to the wealthy Nora has allowed him to make drinking his number one pastime. There’s no suggestion that Nick has a ‘problem’, but you can count on one hand the number of scenes where he doesn’t have a glass in one hand and a cigarette in the other. Remember that when “The Thin Man” was first released, 70 years ago, Prohibition had just ended and the liquor merchants were probably trying to make up for lost time. I wouldn’t be surprised if Bill Powell was their Man of the Year.

The picture holds up remarkably well thanks to the strength of the two leads, a host of colourful supporting players, and a great script which was years ahead of its time. On Christmas morning we see Nick using an air gun to shoot ornaments off their tree while Nora doesn’t even flinch at her husband’s antics. Remember also that in 1934 Will Hays had just been installed as the industry’s very powerful censor, so writers had to lay it between the lines. An example is the scene where Nick asks Nora “Where were you on this date in 1902?” and she replies “I was but a gleam in my father’s eye”. In 2004 that’s a very tired old joke, but back then it was racy stuff indeed, as witness the startled look on Nick’s face.

The plot of “The Thin Man’ is neither here nor there. From this modern vantage point it looks a cross between Agatha Christie’s “The Mousetrap” and the board game CLUE. There are three murders and Nick is miles ahead of the Keystone Cops in solving all of them. And his detective methods are light years away from the boys and girls of “CSI”.

Among the featured players is Maureen O’Sullivan, mother of Mia Farrow. I almost didn’t recognize her with her clothes on (rim shot!). At that time she was making a name for herself opposite Johnny Weissmuller in the “Tarzan” movies. “The Thin Man” also featured the debut of Asta, the most famous wire hair terrier to ever appear on the screen. In Hammett’s novel, Asta was a Schnauzer, and dog fanciers claimed that Asta became so popular that wire hairs eventually suffered from overbreeding.

William Powell and Myrna Loy went on to make four other “Thin Man” movies, none of which were as good as the original. Powell was one of Hollywood’s brightest stars in 1934. At the time, he was married to Carole Lombard, and later wed Jean Harlow shortly before her death in 1937. He made his last film, “Mister Roberts” in 1955, and died in his early 90’s in 1984. Myrna Loy, who became famous on the screen as the perfect wife, had five husbands and died in 1993 at the age of 88. Both had severe health problems in their final years. But thru the miracle of celluloid and the technology of today which has restored classic films so beautifully, they live forever as the larger than life figures they were 70 years ago.

All in all, a great way to pass a wintry afternoon while waiting for phone calls, E mails and the mailman (I mean letter carrier). Thanks Mr. Rabinovich, where-ever you are.

© MyKenora.com