"You let anything happen to him, you'll never wag that tail again," Nora Charles tells pet dog Asta in "The Thin Man" (1934) concerning husband Nick Charles. That sharp comment amidst rapid fire dialog revealed the love between the movies' all-time favorite husband and wife detective team. William Powell and Myrna Loy worked well and often together and were never better than as Nick and Nora Charles in "The Thin Man" and five sequels. The result was box office gold and Powell and Loy rising to the peak of their popularity.
The chemistry was smooth and compatible. There could not be a Nick without Nora and it is unimaginable for Powell to be without Loy. The often complicated mystery plots were secondary to the joys of observing Nick and Nora's interplay. Theirs was a lifestyle to be envied by downtrodden depression years audiences. The suave Nick is supported by the wealthy Nora and lives a lazy existence drinking and partying at nightclubs and sleeping all day.
"You'll make me a widow," says Nora.
"You wouldn't be a widow long, not with all your money," retorts Nick.
The only thing arousing the bored Nick's interest is the excitement of a baffling mystery. Playing detective is a diverting hobby. Nick is a bit of a rogue himself and during the Will Hays era of married couples sleeping in twin beds, the Charles existed on a more sophisticated and mature level where audiences knew they were fooling around.
At the conclusion of "The Thin Man," the Charles travel home on a sleeper train. Nora says, "Put Asta in here with me tonight." "Oh yeah!' answers Nick who unceremoniously tosses Asta onto the empty bunk. Asta covers his eyes with paws in regard to what is happening in the other bunk.
"They were both well aware of the other's faults," Loy described Nick and Nora in her autobiography, " and still loved each other in spite of them. I was hardly the perfect wife in the sense of being the chaste, virginal creature that seemed to be so much admired."
The success of "The Thin Man" caught MGM by surprise. Director W.S. Van Dyck II brought Dashiell Hammett's novel to MGM head Louis B. Mayer who was not keen on making another detective picture. Mayer objected to the casting of Powell and Loy. He feared Powell was associated with having played another movie detective, Philo Vance, and Loy, despite appearing in dozens of films, was not a major marquee name. Van Dyck prevailed and "One Take Woody," so nicknamed for his speed in finishing a picture, shot the film in three weeks. His directorial quickness is considered a major contribution because the film moved at an appropriate fast pace.
"The Thin Man" co-tarring Maureen O'Sullivan and Cesar Romero opened to rave reviews and huge box office. Hunt Stromberg produced the first four "Thin Mans" and screenwriters Albert Hackett and Frances Goodrich earned Oscar nominations for "The Thin Man" and "After the Thin Man." The plot concerned a missing eccentric inventor played by Edward Ellis (he was the Thin Man) who is suspected of murdering his secretary mistress. Nick gets on the case and unravels the tangled web to unmasking a crooked lawyer as the culprit. Nora asks Nick how he arrived at the complex solution. "I don't know," he says. "It's the only way it makes sense."
Audiences loved the witty exchanges and verbal sparring between Nick and Nora. They also loved the Charles' sidekick, the wire haired terrier Asta. The cowardly dog served as perfect foil for Nick. "Don't make a move," Nick warns, "or that dog will tear you to pieces." Asta is seen cowering under a bed.
"The Thin Man" received Oscar nominations for Best Picture, Director and Actor and sequels were inevitable. Powell, Loy and Van Dyck reteamed two years later in "After the Thin Man" (1936) picking up two weeks after the original ended. Nora's beautiful cousin Elissa Landi engages Nick to find missing husband Alan Marshal who turns up dead. Landi's jealous ex-suitor James Stewart is revealed to be the murderer. The revelation of Stewart was not "After the Thin Man's" final punchline. Nick catches Nora knitting a tiny garment and asks what is she doing. "And you call yourself a detective" is the answer.
Illness forced Powell off the screen for two years and "Another Thin Man" (1939) provided a surefire comeback. Dashiell Hammett wrote the screenplay and Van Dyck again directed. Ruth Hussey, Tom Neal, Marjorie Main and William Anthony Pulsen as Baby Nick Jr. supported the stars. C. Aubrey Smith invites the Charles for a weekend at his Long Island estate because he fears for his life. Somebody bumps off Smith and Nick sorts through a houseful of suspects to discover Smith's daughter Virginia Grey killed him for her inheritance.
The series began turning routine with "Shadow of the Thin Man" (1941) with Van Dyck directing and co-starring Donna Reed, Barry Nelson, Sam Levene and Dick Hall Jr. as Nick Jr. Nick investigates several racetrack murders committed by Henry O'Neill. Van Dyck died in 1943 so Richard Thorpe directed "The Thin Man Goes Home" (1944) with Nick and Nora visiting his parents Harry Davenport and Lucile Watson. Nick cracks a local murder case involving spies and stolen aircraft designs.
The Thin Man series concluded with "Song of the Thin Man" (1947) directed by Edward Buzzell. Gloria Grahame played a singer involved in blackmail and murder of a band leader. The usual bevy of suspects were rounded up for Nick to reveal the murderer. By now Nick Jr. had grown into a precocious miniature version of dad played by Dean Stockwell. All movie series progressively go downhill and this entry showed the Thin Man was no exception. Scripts became weaker and less care was taken. The magic of the 1930s did not work in the 1940a. Powell and Loy were getting too old to maintain the lively banter and spirited playfulness. The later films gave them less and less wit to work with and much of Nora's spark was gone as Loy's retreated further into her wife and mother typecast. The series grew old and stale.
In a rare moment of Hollywood wisdom, Nick and Nora have not been brought back to the screen since "Song of the Thin Man." Perhaps the less than memorable 1957 television series starring Peter Lawford and Phyllis Kirk has something to do with it. Powell and Loy as Nick and Nora are irreplaceable. Any new version of "The Thin Man" would face stern comparisons with the classic original and illustrate the characters belong to another time and era.
