Amateur Crook is a 1937 American romantic comedy film directed by Sam Katzman.[1]

Amateur Crook
Joan Barclay and Bruce Bennett (Herman Brix) in Amateur Crook (1937)
Directed bySam Katzman
Written byBasil Dickey (story and screenplay)
Produced bySam Katzman (producer)
StarringSee below
CinematographyWilliam Hyer
Edited byHolbrook N. Todd
Production
company
Distributed byVictory Pictures
Release date
  • December 10, 1937 (1937-12-10)
Running time
60 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

The film is also known as Crooked But Dumb (in the United Kingdom) and Jewel Thief (American TV title).

Plot

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Betsy Cummings takes a job as a secretary, using the alias “Mary Layton”, only to find that her Father is being cheated by his brokers, Crone and Jan Jaffin.

She steals the diamond, worth fifty thousand dollars, her Father used as collateral for a loan, which the brokers plan to cheat him out of; and, the chase is on, with the crooked loan sharks and police after her.

Jimmy Baxter, an honest but broke artist, hides her as a mannequin, and helps her get away, in a stolen car.

They just have to keep ahead of everyone after them, until her Father can get back, if he can get back, with the brokers’ crooked henchmen trying to stop him.

Out of luck and almost out of time, they all end up in front of a Justice of the Peace, who tries to fathom out the facts, and whether to jail the pair or marry them, before his dinner gets cold.

 
Joan Barclay disguised as a mannequin, in Amateur Crook (1937)

Cast

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References

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  1. ^ "Amateur Crook". afi.com. Retrieved 2024-02-23.
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