What the hell is the theme to “The Whistler?” The completely counterintuitive signature music, by Wilbur Hatch, is warbled not only at the opening of the classic radio show, but also the start of the oddly enjoyable movie series featuring Richard Dix (a.k.a. Wooden Dix).
Dix couldn’t act his way out of a paper bag (one of cinema’s great mysteries is how he was nominated as Best Actor for “Cimarron” in 1931), but I have to admire his tenacity. He appears in seven of the eight “Whistler” films, playing a different character in each one. For some reason, he retired before the last. At that point, why bother?
“The Whistler” is obviously the poor man’s version of “The Shadow.” Each story follows the formula of a criminal undone by an overlooked detail, fate or his own stupidity. Irony is an essential element. The Whistler looks on as a dispassionate narrator, offering his commentary like a Greek chorus.
Turner Classic Movies: TCM is showing four installments of the series, tonight, beginning at 8 ET, including “The Whistler,” “The Power of the Whistler,” “The Voice of the Whistler” and “Mysterious Intruder.”
Several of the Whistler films were directed by William Castle, who would later earn notoriety for his outrageous showmanship, promoting B-horror classics like “The House on Haunted Hill,” “The Tingler” and “13 Ghosts” by offering life insurance policies or having a registered nurse on hand in the lobby in the unlikely event a viewer would suffer cardiac arrest from fright.
“I am the Whistler, and I know many things, for I walk by night.” What? Does one necessarily follow the other? Am I missing something?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ota-Tsg8IXg&index=2&list=PLr_0xy6Kk9yLeBYW-nz_Cvrf78JZag80D