This week’s mystery movie was the 1940 Universal film Seven Sinners, with Marlene Dietrich, John Wayne, Albert Dekker, Broderick Crawford, Anna Lee, Mischa Auer, Billy Gilbert, Richard Carle, Samuel S. Hinds and Oscar Homolka.
Screenplay by John Meehan and Harry Tugend.
Based on a story by Ladislas Fodor and Laslo Vadnai.
Photographed by Rudolph Mate.
Art direction by Jack Otterson. Associate Martin Obzina.
Edited by Ted Kent.
Assistant director Phillip Karlstein.
Miss Dietrich’s gowns by Irene.
Set decoration by R.A. Gausman.
Musical direction by Charles Previn
Musical score by Frank Skinner and H.J. Salter.
I’ve Been in Love Before, I Fell Overboard and The Man’s in the Navy, lyrics by Frank Loesser, music by Frederick Hollander.
Sound by Bernard B. Brown.
Technician Robert Pritchard.
A Joe Pasternak production.
Directed by Tay Garnett.
Further information about Seven Sinners is available from the AFI Catalog.
Seven Sinners is available on DVD from Critics’ Choice Video.
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Following last week’s The Devil Is a Woman, I thought I would look for another mystery film involving a temptress, which after several dead ends in search of a decent print brought me back to Marlene Dietrich. Despite the positive review in Harrison’s Reports, which panned Devil, Seven Sinners is as forgettable as Devil is memorable. Mostly notable for the off-screen affair between the two leads, as chronicled in Scott Eyman’s biography of John Wayne, Sinners is a mediocre program filler set in an exotic locale with numerous character actors to distract from the thin, trite plot. Dietrich touches off several barroom brawls, sings a few songs (though not I Can’t Give You Anything but Love, Baby, as claimed in Eyman’s book), wears a Navy uniform, and in the end leaves Wayne to his Navy career and sails off with a rough around the edges doctor, played by Albert Dekker.
I expect Bosley Crowther to hate this film. We’ll see.
Hm. He liked it—and he never liked anything. Wait. He thinks it’s a satire? (The New York Times, November 18, 1940):
Now that producer Joe Pasternak has shrewdly restored Marlene Dietrich to her eminent place in the gutter and has reestablished her as the queen of bedizened temptresses, we’ll be looking for her from now on in only those lurid locales where motion picture sin is wont to thrive. For, in last year’s Destry Rides Again, it was a rowdy frontier saloon which Miss Dietrich so combustively adorned with her floating plumes and silken graces; in this year’s Seven Sinners, which arrived Saturday at the Rivoli, it is a sleazy South Seas gin mill that she blisteringly calorifies — and in the back of Mr. Pasternak’s head there is obviously a purpose. And that, as we see it, is to have some good-natured, rough-and-tumble sport at the expense of all the purple sirens of the past, to present a conventional scarlet woman story with the finest edge of satire. Miss Dietrich’s Frenchy in Destry was an Arno sketch of countless sultry barroom belles; her Bijou Blanche in Seven Sinners is a delightfully subtle spoof of all the Sadie Thompsons and Singapore Sals that have ever stirred the hot blood of cool customers south and east of Manila Bay.
For Monday, we have a mysterious fellow.
Update: This is Billy Gilbert.
For Tuesday, we have another mystery chap.
Update: This is Antonio Moreno.
For “Hm Wednesday,” we have a mysterious fellow.
Update: This is Oscar Homolka.
And another mystery chap.
Update: This is Broderick Crawford channeling William Bendix minus a few brain cells.
Brain Trust roll call: Mary Mallory (mystery movie and mystery guests, plus mysterious co-production designer), Stacia (Tuesday’s mysterious guest), Allie (Tuesday’s mystery guest), Bob Hansen (Tuesday’s mystery guest) and Mike Hawks (mystery movie and both mystery fellows).
For “Aha Thursday,” we have two mysterious fellows.
Update: This is Albert Dekker, left, and Mischa Auer.
And two more mysterious guests.
Update: This is Anna Lee and Russell Hicks, famous promoter of the Beefsteak Mine.
Brain Trust roll call: Megan and Thom (mystery movie and all mystery guests), Mary Mallory (Wednesday’s mystery guests), Sarah (mystery movie and Monday’s and Wednesday’s mystery guests), Greg (mystery movie and all mysterious guests), Stacia (mystery movie and Monday’s and Wednesday’s mystery guests), Chrisbo (mystery movie and Wednesday’s mystery guests), Funky PhD (Wednesday’s mystery guest No. 2), Mike Hawks (Wednesday’s mystery guests), Allie (mystery movie and Wednesday’s mysterious fellow No. 2), L.C. (mystery movie and mysterious cast), Suz n Chaz (mystery movie and Wednesday’s mysterious fellows), Sylvia (mystery movie and all mysterious guests, plus Tuesday’s mystery guest’s previous appearance as a mystery guest), Roget-L.A. (mystery movie and all mystery guests) and Anne Papineau (mystery movie and Wednesday’s mystery guest No. 1).
For Friday, we have a mysterious Navy lieutenant.
Update: This is John Wayne.
And many mysterious Navy officers.
Update: This is Marlene Dietrich and various admirers.
Brain Trust roll call: Mary Mallory (Thursday’s mystery guests Nos. 1-3), Stacia (Thursday’s mystery guests Nos. 1-3), B.J. Merholz (mystery movie), Mike Hawks (Thursday’s mysterious guests), Chrisbo (all mystery guests and peering into the future for Friday’s guests) and Sylvia (Thursday’s mysterious guests Nos. 1-3).
ladailymirror.com 
Chris Pin Martin
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An excellent guess!! But, alas, I’m afraid not.
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Damn!
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SEVEN SINNERS. Billy Gilbert monday and Antonio Moreno today.
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And Marton Obzina, who I wrote about for Noir City, is co production dedigner on this. He worked on American Teopical at Olvera Street and on film noirs like THE KILLERS, BLACK ANGEL, and M, also Hitchcock TV. He had AA nominationd.
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At first I thought it might be Jay Novello, but this mystery guy’s eyebags aren’t nearly saggy enough. So I’m nixing that idea.
I’ll bet that he plays in Novello-type roles though. A barkeep, or nervous henchman for some bigwig, in humid exotic settings.
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Ooh Tuesday is Antonio Moreno! No idea what the film is yet, though.
I also thought Monday might be Chris Pin Martin!
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Antonio Moreno?
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I think Tuesday’s guy is Antonio Moreno. Don’t know the movie!
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Antonio Moreno.
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For Monday add Billy Gilbert in SEVEN SINNERS 1940.
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Our movie is Seven Sinners, with Oscar Homolka, Boderick Crawford, Antonio Moreno, and Billy Gilbert.
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Oscar Homolka and Broderick Crawford.
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It’s “Seven Sinners” (1949). Many thanks to Oscar Homolka and Broderick Crawford. I’ll guess Monday’s mystery gent is Billy Gilbert.
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Billy Gilbert, Antonio Moreno, Oscar Homolka and Broderick Crawford in Seven Sinners, 1940.
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Wednesday’s first mystery man is Oscar Homolka and the second mystery man looks like a soused Broderick Crawford, so I think this is SEVEN SINNERS! Monday must be hard-working character actor Billy Gilbert.
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Oscar Homolka and Broderick Crawford in Seven Sinners
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Wednesday’s mysterious fellow is Oscar Homolka.
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Oscar Homolka and Broderick Crawford.
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Seven Sinners and Brodrick Crawford?
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Seven Sinners (1940) w/Marlene Dietrich, John Wayne, Billy Gilbert, Oskar Homolka, Broderick Crawford, Mischa Auer, Anna Lee, Albert Dekker, Reginald Denny…
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“Seven Sinners” a 1940 Marlene Dietrich film….Oskar Holmoka and Broderick Crawford are today’s guests…..some where we’ll see John Wayne?
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Seven Sinners 1940
Will try for Monday’s guy later
Tuesday – Antonio Moreno (I think he appeared in a recent mystery puzzle as an older man, along with Ramon Navarro and one other guy – all 3 had formerly been in silent pictures as leading men, Latin Lover types. Cary Grant was in the movie, too. I’ll try to think of the title.)
Wednesday – Oskar Homolka and a young Broderick Crawford (my way into the puzzle this week)
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For “Hm Wednesday,” we have Oscar Homolka and Broderick Crawford in Seven Sinners (1940), with Billy Gilbert (Monday) and Antonio Moreno (Tuesday). I’ll guess Albert Dekker, Anna Lee and Mischa Auer for Thursday and, of course, our leads Marlene Dietrich and John Wayne for Friday.
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The previous mystery movie with Antonio Moreno was Crisis 1950 and starred Cary Grant as a doctor. I mainly remember it because of of all the publicity stills done to play up the 3 Latin Lover former silent movie stars, Moreno, Ramon Navarro and the 3rd guy was Gilbert Roland. Lots of images with the three eagerly holding cups of coffee, toasting with cups of coffee, etc.
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James Mason on Wed?
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Is our movie “Seven Sinners” with an unusually dapper Oscar Homolka?
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Albert Decker and Mischa Auer, Anna Lee and Samuel S. Hinds.
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Is that Mischa Auer in the hat on Thursday? Hilarious. I think that’s Albert Dekker with him.
Below them are Anna Lee and I think Samuel S. Hinds. I haven’t seen this one yet and now I want to after seeing all of Marlene’s insane gowns. There’s a couple of other recent mystery movies I want to see, too, I’m giving myself quite a to-do list.
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The less than magnificant seven.
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Albert Dekker, Mischa Auer, Anna Lee and Russell Hicks.
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Albert Decker and Mischa Auer, Anna Lee and Russell Hicks, Monday and Tuesday: Billie Gilbert and Antonio Moreno, Friday: Lili Marlene and the Duke.
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Thursday
Albert Decker and Mischa Auer
I guess the pair in the car are governor and daughter, which would make them Anna Lee and Samuel S. Hinds, but they look so different than their usual selves to me. I’ll keep checking.
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Russell Hicks on Thursday and John Wayne and Marlene Dietrich today.
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Friday – John Wayne and Marlene Dietrich
Maybe Monday’s guy is Billy Gilbert.
Maybe Thursday’s gent in the car is Russell Hicks? He just doesn’t look like Samuel S. Hinds to me, so I think my earlier guess is wrong.
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John Wayne, Marlene Dietrich and among the officers William Bakewell.
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