What can you say about a murder mystery that begins with a detective summoned across the country, only to discover he's to solve the killing of a pet dog? The highly entertaining Muss 'Em Up (1936) then reveals secret affairs, a fake kidnapping and a real murder in a millionaire's mansion. Working from the James Edward Grant novel The Green Shadow, director Charles Vidor brings in rough-edged detective Tippecanoe 'Tip' O'Neil (Preston Foster) to solve a case that has no end of schemes, reverses and double-crosses. Character actors Alan Mowbray and Ralph Morgan play potential suspects, while Florine McKinney is a wealthy kidnap victim, Clarence Muse an unlucky chauffeur and Paul Porcasi an angry Mafia chieftain. A funny party scene sees the guests using live ammo to fire at balls bouncing atop a water fountain. Our impetuous detective Tip knocks big-time boxer Maxie Rosenbloom out cold, but the sleuth normally lets his sidekick Red (Guinn 'Big Boy' Williams) handle the frequent physical interrogations. Critic Frank Nugent opined that Tip O'Neil's method boils down to two words: bribery and intimidation. Confessions obtained through beatings are treated as good fun, and the shifty suspects include a mincing male secretary who does embroidery. Reviewers praised this breezy thriller despite its low-wattage cast (Margaret Callahan, John Carroll) and odd title. 'Muss 'em up' was a much-printed quote from the NYC police commissioner Lewis J. Valentine, a phrase he used when instructing his cops how to treat the city's gangsters.

By Glenn Erickson