The Underworld Story (1950)

After a story he wrote gets someone killed, a reporter (Dan Duryea) is fired and finds himself blacklisted from all the major newspapers in a big city. So he moves to a small town where he becomes a partner in a small newspaper. But when the daughter in law of a prominent newspaper publisher (Herbert Marshall) is murdered and her black maid (Mary Anderson) is arrested, he finds himself involved in the biggest story of his career. Directed by Cy Endfield (ZULU). Dan Duryea's sleazy and unethical reporter who'll exploit anyone for a big story and do anything to ensure he comes out on top is a precursor by a year to Kirk Douglas's character in ACE IN THE HOLE (1951). This B&W B noir-ish crime film is a tight little thriller. Dismissed at the time of its release, it plays better today than it probably did in 1950. Dealing with corruption in the press, small town class systems and racism (but not with a heavy hand), the film has one disturbing flaw. The role of the black maid is played by a white actress, Mary Anderson who is best remembered as the other female in Hitchcock's LIFEBOAT. Thankfully, she doesn't play it in blackface but she's obviously white and if she's supposed to be bi-racial (which might explain her appearance), the movie doesn't address it. With Gale Storm, Michael O'Shea, Howard Da Silva, Frieda Inescort and Melville Cooper.