The Outsider (1967) A Late Tail Fin (TV) Noir

Wow!   

A nice surprise. A pre cable NBC TV movie with a lot of verbal and visual STYLE. How did this ever happen. It's the exception rather than the rule. I've seen too many crappy made for TV films.

As for The Outsider, I never saw this pilot film back in the day. I guess I just remember some of the subsequent series episodes. I remember liking them but honestly don't remember anything past that. This was quite impressive for 1967. It's also a missing piece in the Hard Boiled Detective filmology and a late Tail Fin Noir, our P.I. David Ross (McGavin) runs around in a black 1960 Ford Galaxy Starliner.

The Noir Connections...

The film's producer and writer Roy Huggins wrote the screenplays for Film Noirs I Love Trouble (1948), The Lady Gambles (1949), Too Late For Tears (1949), Woman in Hiding (1950), and Pushover (1954). It was stylishly directed by Michael Ritchie (Prime Cut (1972), The Candidate (1972)), it was his first real TV movie, Bravo!

 The cinematographer was Bud Thackery he also shot a lot of Hollywood "B" films both Westerns and of interest to AficioNoirdos back burner Film Noirs such as, No Man's Woman (1955), The Man Is Armed (1956), Accused of Murder (1956), A Strange Adventure (1956), Terror at Midnight (1956). Thackery then segued into TV spending  most of the rest of his career there filming  McGavin also a few episodes of  the Mike Hammer TV series. The believable sounding sixties era funk and jazz club music was credited to Pete Rugolo.

The film stars Darren McGavin (The Man with the Golden Arm, The Case Against Brooklyn, Mike Hammer TV, The Night Stalker, The Night Strangler) as private detective David Ross. Noir Veterans Edmond O'Brien as Marvin Bishop, Audrey Totter as Mrs. Bishop, Ann Sothern as Mrs. Kozzek.  Nancy Malone (Fright (1956), and the "juvie" delinquent The Violators (1957)) as Honora "Nora" Dundas, Joseph Wiseman (Detective Story (1951) Twilight Zone, and [layed Dr. No in Dr. No (1962)) as Ernest Grimes, Ossie Davis (two film Noir, No Way Out, and Fourteen Hours, as Lt. Wagner, Madame Spivy  in Transitional Noir Requiem for a Heavyweight (1962), The Manchurian Candidate (1962) and All Fall Down (1962) as Della, Sean Garrison  (Splendor in the Grass (1961)) as Collin Kenniston III, Shirley Knight (Sweet Bird of Youth (1962)) as Peggy Leydon, Mario Alcaldeas Sgt. Delgado, Anna Hagan as Carol Dorfman, and Kent McCord who played Officer Jim Reed opposite Jack Webb's Sergeant Joe Friday in Dragnet 1967 (TV Series) and the same character in Adam-12 (1968–1975) as Officer Dutton.

The film. of course back then in 1967, was shot with a 1.33 : 1 Aspect ratio for TV so it has the Classic Film Noir Era type compositions, it has a total runtime of 120 min

The Story

We see a sort of kaleidoscope effect multiple image shots of city traffic at night, THE OUTSIDER appears followed by the rest of the credits, McGavin we see billed first, then the newbies, then the Noir Veterans, O'Brien, Sothern, Wiseman, Davis, and Totter.

We cut to a sea of lights followed by two cars driving on Mulholland Drive.

David Ross:  [Voice Over narration] This is the largest city in area in the United States, unless you happen to live in Oklahoma, the North half is called The Valley, it's the sixth largest city in area in the United States, unless you happen to live in Oklahoma. The city is Los Angeles, split in half by this mountain range those cars are on Mulholland Drive, I'm in the one flashing its headlights. I'm the man you're seeing now.... but not this man, this one.

 not this man, this one.

We watch as David Ross is pulled unconscious from the back seat of a 1960 Ford Galaxy Starliner. He's put into the driver's seat, his hands placed on the wheel, the car put into neutral and see the second car push it off the road. Ross awakes as it tips off the edge and rolls out of control down the hillside. Ross frantically pumping the brakes and trying to steer, it flips and rolls.

David Ross:  [Voice Over narration continuing] By the way my name is David Ross and you may be wondering how I got into a situation like this.....

Talent Agent Marvin Bishop (Edmund O'Brien)

Our story now goes into flashback mode. Ross has an appointment with Mr. Marvin Bishop, a Hollywood Agent. Marvin tell Ross that he thinks one of his secretaries Carol Dorfman is embezzling the company.  He wants Ross to find out. Ross begins to tail her. A sequence has Ross sitting stakeout outside her Vista Mare apartment, we see her come out, get in her Corvair, back out in the street and drive off. Ross follows, we fade out and into a Jazz Club in a nice stylistic sequence.

David Ross (McGavin)

'56 Olds and a '62 Corvair

Colin (Garrison) and Carol (Hagan)

Ross is seated at the bar watching the woman he's tailing

The next day Bishop shows up in Hollywood.  At 6533 Hollywood Blvd. He spots Ross' miniscule shingle, angled at a 45 degrees so it can be read from the sidewalk.

He goes to Ross' office on the fourth floor the building. The outside door is open there is no secretary, Ross is asleep on his office couch. Bishop slams the door to wake Ross.

David Ross: At times like this I wish I had a secretary.
Marvin Bishop: You always sleep in the daytime?

Have a seat.

David Ross: [still laying on couch] No sometimes I stay awake all day. [he sits up, grabs the seat cushion that his legs have been propped on and throws it over to an easy chair, it misses] Have a seat.
Marvin Bishop: [walks to the chair picks up the cushion off the floor places it on the seat he grabs his handkerchief and brushes to dust off the chair] There can't be much money in your line of work.
David Ross: Well money isn't everything Mr. Bishop.

So after offering Marvin a drink to "take the sting out of living" Ross gives him a preliminary report. He tells Marvin that she is just like any health american girl what she makes a week she spends. Only one thing odd about it he tells Marvin. She leaves the office at 5:30 every afternoon, spends an hour getting changed, leaves, goes to some private residence on the strip, goes in and comes out with a guy named Colin Kenniston.

David Ross: Name mean anything to you?
Marvin Bishop: Colin Kenniston, ya I think I've heard it.
David Ross: Ya. You've read it, in the idiot column, [reaches for a file] They always refer to him as Colin Kenniston the third.
Marvin Bishop:Yea yea, sure.
David Ross: Anyway they get into his car and go out and  have dinner, never anyplace close by, and she always drives back to her place alone.
Marvin Bishop:Is that all?
David Ross: No today I spent checking up on Kenniston, He has no known means of support.
Marvin Bishop:Yes but with a name like that...
David Ross: No one's ever heard of Colin Kenniston the first or second. [handing a photo to Marvin] He's very pretty, lots of capped teeth, and big blond hair.
Marvin Bishop:Couldn't he have some money of his own?
David Ross: The police don't think so. They suspected him of being involved once with one of the nastiest rackets there is shaking down homosexuals. The Vice Squad put a scare into him and he quit. They think.
Marvin Bishop:You had something to report all right.

Any comment on the odd part?

David Ross: Any comment on the odd part?
Marvin Bishop:What odd part?
David Ross: They don't want to be seen together Mr. Bishop.
Marvin Bishop:You think she's paying his bills?
David Ross: Well That's one possibility. Isn't it?
Marvin Bishop:You don't really know anything do ya?
David Ross: Do you want me to stay on the case?
Marvin Bishop:Ya finish the week you really do need the money.
David Ross:  Ya.

Jaguar XKE

His next tail of Carol and Colin is to Chinatown, where Colin ambushes Ross and getting a garotte wire around his neck.

garotted

Colin tells Carol to frisk him. Ross has no gun or identification. Colin lets up the pressure and Ross seemingly falls unconscious to gutter. Carol screams and runs. Colin chases after her. Ross meanwhile scoots under a van and hides. When Colin with Carol in tow gets back to the scene, he sees Ross gone. Colin and Carol split.

Ross goes first to Colin, where he can't get in then heads to Carols. There he finds her door open and her dead with a stab wound on her bed.

Carol is dead, stabbed. 

Ross call the police and then is about to leave when the phone rings. he picks it up. Someone asks for Carol, Ross hears background Funk music and glass tinklings, sort of like you'd would hear at a club or bar.

Nora (Knight)

The call gives Ross an idea. He calls his gal pal Nora. He tells her that he needs her. He tells her that a guy just called him from "one of those "watusi joints" and he wants to find it. She replies that there's gotta be over a hundred of them in the city. He tells her its gotta be one of the places like The Galaxy or The Scene, whichever one is "in" at the moment. She agrees to help.

They find Colin at The Trip. Ross tells Nora to call the police about a fight outside the club. Ross approaches Colin and lures him outside. Once outside Ross announces that he's making a citizen's arrest. Colin is unimpressed. They fight and Ross knocks him out. Ross splits just before the cops show up and haul Colin away.

Della (Madame Spivy)

Ross heads back to his flop at The Hollywood Versailles Apartments alongside the Hollywood Freeway. He's met by the police and gets taken down for questioning. Both Ross and Colin are released. Ross now begins to shadow Colin. He spots him at The Trip with another of Marvin's secretaries Peggy Leydon. Ross begins to question Peggy about Carol and Colin. Peggy invites Ross to her apartment and there it all goes Noirsville as Peggy drugs Ross in a great visual sequence.

Noirsville

Mrs Bishop (Audrey Totter) 

Lt. Wagner (Ossie Davis)

Peggy (Shirley Knight)

Mrs. Kozzek (Ann Sothern)

Guru Grimes (Joseph Wiseman)

Tail Fins  1960 Ford Galaxy Starliner.

This film has excellent performances by veteran actors McGavin and O'Brien, equally good are Southern, Knight, and Wiseman in their supporting parts. The rest Davis, Malone, and Garrison are quite believable. Totter though, is surprisingly underused. Again I was impressed with it's picaresque humour and visual style. Needs a restoration and an official DVD. 8/10