This week’s mystery movie was the 1947 Universal film Singapore, with Fred MacMurray, Ava Gardner, Roland Culver, Richard Haydn, Spring Byington, Thomas Gomez, Porter Hall, George Lloyd and Maylia.
Screenplay by Seton I. Miller and Robert Thoeren.
Original story by Seton I. Miller.
Photography by Maury Gertsman.
Art direction by Bernard Herzbrun and Gabriel Scognamillo.
Orchestral arrangements by David Tamkin.
Sound by Charles Felstead and Jack A. Bolger Jr.
Set decoration by Russell A. Gausman and Oliver Emert.
Edited by William Hornbeck.
Miss Ava Gardner’s gowns by Michael Woulfe.
Hairstylist Carmen Dirigo.
Makeup by Bud Westmore.
Assistant director Harold Herman.
Technical advisor John Datu.
Special photography by David S. Horsley.
Music by Daniele Amfitheatrof.
Produced by Jerry Bresler.
Directed by John Brahm.
Further information on Singapore is available from the AFI Catalog.
Singapore is a bit difficult to obtain. It’s available on backorder from Critics’ Choice Video.
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I picked Singapore by going through the trades, where I saw that Fred MacMurray’s character is named Matt Gordon, the name of Elizabeth Short’s fiance. The photography is excellent, though the plot is a bit iffy.
Calling Bosley Crowther for a middling review.
Mr. Crowther hands off Singapore to one of the “alphabet critics,” TMP, probably Thomas M. Pryor (The New York Times, September 17, 1947):
The same old American adventurers and tourists are plodding around in the Orient now that the shooting war is over. In Singapore, which opened yesterday at the Winter Garden, Fred MacMurray runs the familiar gamut of fences, strong-arm boys and British customs agents in his quest of a fortune in gems which he secreted in his hotel room when the Japanese marched in. He even meets again the beautiful doll he left for dead in a bombed-out mission on what was to have been their wedding night. About the only new twist the plot has, and it can hardly be called new at that, has to do with the girl’s failure to remember her former fiance.
For Monday, we have an extremely mysterious guest!
Update: This is Fred MacMurray, and yes, he’s holding the semiautomatic in his left hand because it photographs better that way.
For Tuesday, we have a mysterious woman.
Update: This is Maylia.
For Wednesday, we have a mysterious fellow.
Update: This is George Lloyd.
Brain Trust roll call: B.J. Merholz (Tuesday’s mysterious woman).
Note to Sylvia: You have the right locale!
For “Aha Thursday,” we have a mysterious fellow.
Update: This is Tomas Gomez and a certain pearl necklace.
And a mysterious couple.
Update: This is Spring Byington and Porter Hall
Brain Trust roll call: Mary Mallory (Tuesday’s mysterious woman).
For Friday, we have our mysterious leads.
Update: This is Ava Gardner and Fred MacMurray.
Brain Trust roll call: Mary Mallory (mystery movie, all mysterious guests), Megan and Thom (mystery movie and all mysterious guests), Greg (mystery movie and Thursday’s mysterious guests), Sarah (Thursday’s mysterious man No. 1), L.C. (mystery movie and mysterious cast), Stacia (mystery movie and Tuesday’s and Thursday’s mysterious guests), Chrisbo (mystery movie, Wednesday’s and Thursday’s mystery guests), B.J. Merholz (mystery movie), Anne Papineau (mystery movie and all mystery guests), Sylvia (mystery movie, Monday’s, Tuesday’s and Thursday’s mysterious guests with extra points for tracking down the radio show) and Mike Hawks (mystery movie, Tuesday’s and Thursday’s mysterious guests).
ladailymirror.com 
I’ll start off with John Ridgely in The Big Sleep.
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An excellent guess! But, alas….
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Set in a place where mosquito netting is required. Maybe Southeast Asia? I don’t really think this is the movie but the stars in it wear those linen suits and white fedoras that ‘breathe’ and the era seems right.
Malaya 1949
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Or maybe it’s set in Burma. Some possibilities there.
Still on the hunt.
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Monday’s guy is giving me a Dan Duryea vibe.
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An excellent guess! But not this time!
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I’ll add Maylia to my fantasy mystery film.
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I’ll put down a WAG marker and say that it will turn to be either a Mr. Wong or a Mr. Moto movie.
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An interesting guess! But, alas, not this time!
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BOSTON BKACKIE’S CHINESE VENTURE, Maylia Tuesday.
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TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH. Dick Powell Monday, maylia atuesday, and Edgar barrier today.
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I salute your tip-of-the-hat to TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH, an excellent film worthy of more recognition than it receives.
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Third tome’s the Charm. CHINATOWN MURDWRS. Hurd Hatfield Monday and today, maylia yesterday.
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That doesn’t look look Hurd Hatfield but I’m guessing Chinatown at Midnight anyway.
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John Garfield hiding behind the newspaper on Wednesday?
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A very interesting guess! But, alas, not this time.
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SINGAPORE. Fred MacMurray Monday, thomas Gomez Spring Byington, today.
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Ronald Culver yesterday and Porter Hall today.
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Our movie is Singapore with Fred MacMurray, Maylia, George Lloyd, Thomas Gomez, Spring Byington, and Porter Hall.
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Thursday’s mystery folks are Thomas Gomez, Spring Byington and Porter Hall in ‘Singapore’, 1947.
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It’s Thomas Gomez on Thursday. I’ll guess the move is Macao (1952).
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Singapore (1947) w/Fred MacMurray, Ava Gardner, Richard Haydn, Spring Byington, Porter Hall, Roland Culver, Thomas Gomez, Maylia …
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Oh gosh, this really is SINGAPORE (1947) and Tuesday *is* Benson Fong’s wife Maylia! I thought it was her but I went through photos of SINGAPORE and decided it wasn’t the right movie, and I have a very low Fred MacMurray tolerance so I didn’t look too hard for the video. My mistake. Thursday’s first man is I believe Thomas Gomez and the couple in the second photo are fan faves Spring Byington and Porter Hall. Wednesday is probably Richard Haydn.
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Is that Thomas Gomez, Spring Byington and Porter Hall in Singapore? And perhaps George Lloyd on Wednesday?
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OK, Singapore.
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Thank you, Spring Byington! Here goes nothin’: Monday, Fred MacMurray?; Tuesday, Maylia; Wednesday, George Lloyd; Thursday, Thomas Gomez, Spring Byington and Porter Hall in “Singapore.”
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Ha! Thanks to Ms Byington.
Singapore 1947 ‘a city without a conscience’
(I think that subtitle is to make it sound more noir-ish than it actually is)
Mon – Fred MacMurray
Tues – Maylia Fong (wife of Benson Fong – #3 son of some of the Charlie Chan movies and co-founder of the Ah Fong restaurants that Mary has written about)
Wed – Richard Haydn. BIG surprise to me. Didn’t recognize him at all (even without the newspaper shield. Quite debonair in this film.
Thur – 1) Thomas Gomez
2) Spring Byington and Porter Hall
That leaves for Friday, Ava Gardner and the full reveal of Mr MacMurray.
I listened to the radio version of this story starring Mr MacMurray and Ms Gardner. They kept in the ‘Lux toilet soap’ commercials, including a plug by Ms Gardner. Fun.
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Maylia Fong, Thomas Gomez, Spring Byington and Porter Hall in SINGAPORE.
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George Lloyd must be our Wednesday guy.
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Fri – Ava Gardner and Fred MacMurray
I see why I was confused about George Lloyd as Sascha, the minion on Wednesday. He and Haydn (not included in the mystery movie images) are dressed similarly (still think that Haydn is more debonair than usual), but minion wears a bowtie and Haydn wears a long tie.
There are a number of George Lloyd actors in the 1940s and the image that comes up when you click on the IMDb actor links is NOT the guy in this movie.
IMDb should use one of the “Singapore” images instead for “Sascha”, since the guy only acted in this one movie apparently. However, IMDb does label him and Haydn correctly in the screenshots from the movie – this is a good thing.
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Fred MacMurray and Ava Gardner.
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What a “Draw Me” Profile!
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