Pier 13 (1940)

Lloyd Nolan is a new cop on the waterfront beat. A kid breaks a window, and he chases him into a restaurant where Lynn Bari is a waitress. He goes for her from the start. Her father (Oscar O'Shea) is a paraplegic who lives above the restaurant. Joan Valerie is her sister. Douglas Fowley is a notorious thief who is sneaking back into the country despite the watchful eyes of the cops. Nolan spots him, and is promoted to detective.

 Louis Jean Heydt is a sailor who is in love with Valerie. They throw an engagement party for them. Chick Chandler, Fowley's partner, crashes the party to tell Valerie that Fowley (an old flame) wants to see her. Nolan drops in on the party to calm it down, and it is obvious that he and Bari are hitting it off. After the party, Valerie confesses that she has seen Fowley, and that he pumped her for information about the store. Then the jewelry store where she worked is robbed by Chandler. Nolan comes up with evidence to link Fowley to the robbery, who in the meantime is buying tickets for a boat to get out of the country. He kills a cop, and come to Valerie for a hideout, telling her that she is hooked in on the robbery. Nolan is assigned strictly to the Fowley case, and after she agrees to marry him, he tells Bari that he figures a girl is the key. Valerie confesses to Bari that Fowley is hidden in the attic, and under his threats against Valerie, agrees not to turn him in for 24 hours.

Nolan discovers where Chandler's apartment was, and there he finds an ad for the store where Valerie worked, and puts two and two together regarding her relationship with Fowley. He stops by their apartment, while Fowley is waiting to come down the stairs to catch his boat. Bari's dog gives away Fowley's hiding place, and he and Nolan shoot it out. Nolan is hit, but he gets Fowley. He gets a $1000 reward from the newspaper and also the promotion.

Our old buddy Mantan Moreland has a bit part as an elevator operator, and as usual, steals the scene.

O'Shea


Bari