The Case Of The Howling Dog (1934)

The renowned attorney Perry Mason (Warren William) is contacted by an unstable and nervous millionaire (Gordon Westcott) about two things. Assistance in completing his will and the howling dog next door. The very next day he disappears. Based on the novel by Erle Stanley Gardner and directed by Alan Crosland (THE JAZZ SINGER). The first film incarnation of Gardner's famous literary creation would be followed by five more with Warren William playing the part in the next three. The mystery itself is rather convoluted and a major character is talked about but never seen. But for murder mystery fans, it should prove a satisfactory meal. I don't think the movie falls under the category of pre-code so I'm surprised by the inclusion of an unmarried couple living together as man and wife as well as the ambiguous ending where a murderer goes unpunished by the law, however justified they may have been in the killing. With Mary Astor, Allen Jenkins, Grant Mitchell, Dorothy Tree, Russelll Hicks and Helen Trenholme as Della Street.