As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

Finally, for those who hate musical intrusions into their comedies, here is an early Abbott and Costello(A&C) comedy sans any musical number. As in their other early films, there is a romantic couple in progress, but virtually no time is spent on it.A&C are attendants at the snack bar in the building were a radio station(GBC) is located. Actually, their ambition is to have scripts for a murder mysteries program accepted for broadcast. Thus, they hope to meet an influential person or 2 at the bar who can help them get started. Lou has problems filling his orders correctly, especially one for a Limburger cheese sandwich. The smell knocks him out, so he dons a gas mask and clothespin over his nose. A smart aleck bellboy(Walter Tetley) shows up and bets Lou a nickel he can drink lemonade faster than Lou can fill up a new glass. He drinks five glasses before full, and it only cost a nickel. This becomes a running gag, as Walter makes a fool out of Lou several more times before disappearing from the story.The boys get an invitation to the broadcast of "Murder at Midnight". Before the show begins, the network president, Colonel Andrews, sitting in the back of the room(why?)has an announcement to make. He picks up the microphone and keels over, dead. Initially, it's thought he suffered a heart attack. But, it's noticed that the chair he was sitting on has an all metal frame, and that there is a wire leading from a high voltage outlet to a chair leg. Thus, when he picked up the microphone, that would produce an electrical circuit that would run through his body. Thus, it's concluded he was the victim of a very sneaky murder plot(or maybe a very clever and dramatic suicide?) Sounds highly contrived. Anyway, A&C decide they will try to solve the murder mystery and use that as the basis for a murder script. Unfortunately, the duo soon become prime suspects, at least in the minds of 2 detectives, played by the charismatic William Bendix, and by William Gargan. The remainder of the film largely consists of a cat and mouse chase involving these 2 duos, plus a search for the real murderer.Patric Knowles, a new staff writer for the program, and his newly reinstated girlfriend, played by Louise Allbritton, producer of the show, form another informal investigation team, snooping around in the deceased's office. Soon, Mr. Andrew's physician is found murdered in Andrews' closet. However, the main focus of the investigation remains directed at the murderer of Mr. Andrews. Knowles, with the approval of Louise, decides that a reenactment of the "Murder at Midnight" program might reveal the murderer(Makes no sense to me!). Well, this harebrained scheme actually works. Incredibly, the murderer is sitting in the 'electric chair' during the reenactment and dashes out at the appropriate time(Again, this makes no sense to me). A&C soon exit after him, but the cowards hope they are going in the opposite direction from the presumed murderer. If fact, they are following the murderer to the roof. A&C have quite a time trying to escape from or capture the murderer, with Lou 'out on a limb' in the last part.During one segment, where Lou is trying to escape the detectives, he suddenly is part of a gymnastics team practicing their routine, somewhere in the radio station building(Why would they be there?).When Lou jumps on a seesaw from a height, it breaks, and he goes through the floor. ...Then, Lou gets retarded detective Bendix to demonstrate on himself how his handcuffs work, and Lou won't use his key to open them...While traveling in the back of a van, the boys hear a radio announcement that Lou has won $10,000. from a radio program, if he calls Alexander 2222 within 5 min.(ridiculous). So, they hop out of the van, into the drug store across from the radio station. Lou is very frustrated trying to call from a pay phone, with busy signals and waiting for other users. So, they dash over to the radio station building and arrive just under the time limit(Surely, they took longer than 5 min. to do all this!). Before identified, the presumed murderer shows up as a shadowy figure periodically, taking on the aurora of a ghost, in the boys' minds...Then, Lou accidentally activates a record player that has a murder mystery recorded on the record. Lou thinks he is the intended victim.There are many other comical tidbits. I am disappointed that the initial murder scene, identification of the murderer, and certain other scenes important to the plot are so contrived. This film is 5-10 min. shorter than the other early A&C films, perhaps due to the absence of any musical numbers(were such deleted?).

Two soda jerks desperate to break into radio to have their murder mysteries produced end up investigating the real deal in this amusing slapstick comedy that is one of Abbott and Costello's funniest. Filled with gag after gag and some great comedy performances, this jump into slapstick from the start and never lets go. Lou's getting hoodwinked by a juvenile telegram boy, first losing five cents and a bunch of glasses of orange juice, and later tickets to a radio show he believed were for a previous performance, as well as falling for the old two dimes for a nickel gag. More comedy is provided by a young Mary Wickes as the radio station secretary, and there are also amusing gags involving various takes on the old "Who on First?", including one where Lou wins a radio, turns it on and hears the real Abbott and Costello doing the routine, and being turned off by having to hear this again over and over again. Unlike other Abbott and Costello movies, this one doesn't have any musical numbers, but it focuses more on plot for a change and that makes it a bit better than some of the musical comedies they had done up to that time.

When I plug this film into my list of Abbott and Costello films I've reviewed, it comes out Number #1 using IMDb's ranking system. That surprised me a bit because it beat out a couple of my favorites, "A&C Meet Frankenstein" and "Hold That Ghost". I enjoyed the movie but I didn't think it would have been that popular.Anyway, this was Abbott and Costello's ninth film and the first with no musical numbers. They portray a pair of soda jerks, operative word being jerks in Lou's case but I mean that in a good way. Aspiring to be mystery writers for a radio station, the boys quickly switch gears when an actual murder is committed during a live broadcast, and decide to play detective to investigate the crime before the homicide squad shows up. It turns out that the murder of Colonel J.R. Andrews (Thomas Gomez) resembles the plot of the radio's 'Steel Chair Murder Case' in which the victim was electrocuted when a switch was thrown on cue.You can tell Lou is having some genuine fun here, hamming it up with fellow players Patric Knowles, Mary Wickes, and especially Walter Tetley, the elevator boy who constantly outfoxes Lou's character Mervin Milgrim. William Bendix manages to fall victim to Lou's handcuff gag, possibly the only police detective in cinema history more clueless than Costello. Throughout, Bud and Lou offer up some of their zaniest routines, with a couple references to their famous 'Who's on First' bit, but with a twist so they didn't actually have to do it.Coming out prior to the Second World War, "Who Done It?' cemented Abbott and Costello's reputation as the most popular entertainers of the era. They were always favorites of mine growing up as a kid in the Fifties, the kind of comedians whose routines have a way of staying with you through the decades. There just weren't that many 'who done it' the way these guys did.

Abbott & Costello play two soda jerks(old-fashioned term) named Chick Larkin & Mervin Milgrim who have a great idea for a radio mystery show they are big fans of. Patrick Knowles and Louise Albritten play bickering love interests who can't come to an agreement over his employment, leaving a big opportunity for the guys. Unfortunately, the station manager is murdered in a live radio broadcast, and Chick & Mervin are prime suspects, so they decide to investigate the murder themselves, and unmask the real culprit. Very funny comedy is briskly paced, with no musical numbers for a (welcome) change; the focus is on the comedy, with many memorable and clever scenes, like "Volts & Watts", and the madcap chase finale.