Blackmail

A private eye (William Marshall) is hired by a playboy as protection and soon lands in a murder case. Ricardo Cortez, Adele Mara, Grant Withers. Antoine: Richard Fraser. Spice: Roy Barcroft. Gomez: Bud Wolfe. Carla: Stephanie Bachelor., The all-purpose title Blackmail was again revived for this breezy Republic comedy-mystery. William Marshall (not the African American star of Blacula) plays private eye Dan Turner, assigned to shield playboy Ziggy Cranston (Ricardo Cortez) from a pair of clever blackmailers (Adele Mara, Richard Fraser). As a result of Turner’s interference, the extortionists up the ante from $50,000 to three times that amount. A few murders and plot twists later, Turner emerges triumphant; still, one wonders if Cranston wouldn’t have been better off handling his persecutors by himself. Originally 67 minutes, Blackmail was trimmed to 54 minutes for its earliest TV showings.