User reviews

Mary Eldredge, a wealthy older woman, is prepared to make a substantial donation to the school Nancy Drew (Bonita Granville) attends. But when she disappears before the gift can be finalized, Nancy immediately suspects foul play. And when Nancy witnesses the local doctor being kidnapped, she's sure she's on the right track. Can Nancy, with the help of her friend Ted Nickerson (Frankie Thomas), find and rescue the old woman?

Honestly, I wasn't expecting to enjoy Nancy Drew - Detective quite as much as I did. Sure, I'm a fan of 1930s-style mysteries like the Charlie Chan or Falcon series, but from afar, I've always thought of the Nancy Drew movies too lightweight and fluffy in comparison (though when I think about it, there's nothing deep and meaningful about Chan or any of the other movies I've enjoyed for years). And though Nancy Drew - Detective is a breezy affair, it's still very enjoyable. I cannot come up with enough positives to write about Bonita Granville. She has an infectious charm that dominates the entire movie. It's hard to watch her and not have a smile on your face. You just naturally root for her. The supporting players, particularly John Litel as Carson Drew and Frankie Thomas as Ted Nickerson, also add a lot of enjoyment to the movie.

The mystery elements of Nancy Drew - Detective hardly matter. It's quite obvious from the start what has happened to the old woman Nancy is looking for. But none of that really matters. The important thing is watching Nancy and the gang get to the final solution. It's just a lot of fun!

Bonita Granville plays smart, courageous, spunky Nancy Drew in this programmer based on the novels by Caroline Keene. It's been a long time since I read any Nancy Drews, or since my mother read the books, but one remembers every detail. The roadster, her friend named George, her boyfriend named Ned, and the Drew housekeeper named Hannah. For reasons known only to the studio, Ned is now Ted (guess they didn't like the alliteration), there's no George (guess they didn't want a girl with a boy's name) and the housekeeper is named Effie (you tell me why). Nancy still has her roadster.

The Nancy Drew mysteries are wonderful reads, and this film was fun to watch, even with the little changes. Bonita Granville, who, as Bonita Granville Wrather became the producer of the "Lassie" TV series, certainly looks like Nancy (who in the books was always having "luncheon"). I had always envisioned while reading the books a more sophisticated, less madcap Nancy, but Granville's energetic (almost hyper) characterization fits a film portrayal well. Ned is a little bit of a goof, but a smart one. John Litel was right casting as Carson Drew, Nancy's father, a widower who didn't date.

The plot can be figured out in the first ten seconds, but these movies were for the teen-aged audience who knew the books. Very enjoyable, and a slice of '30s life which is no more.

I have never read a Nancy Drew book, I was more into the Hardy Boy books and the only exposure to Nancy Drew was a television series in the 70's. After seeing this very old version of Nancy Drew starring Bonita Granville, a familiar name involving a dog named Lassie, I vote this film as the best and most interesting story for someone that is unbiased. Granville plays Drew with excitement and girlish energy. A mind that is continuing thinking of "possibilities" when an old lady disappears. John Litel plays Carson Drew which I believe showcases the talent of Litel with poise, wits and fatherly love. Lastly, Ted Nickerson, a boy that Nancy likes and uses is played by Frankie Thomas. This is a solid mystery team for the whole film.

This was the first of the 4 Warner Brothers attempts at filming a Nancy Drew mystery in the '30's, all of them pretty much revolved around this standard and all taking liberties with the characters and original stories, where used. The series of books began to be published in 1930 following on from the success of the Hardy Boys and ghosted mostly by Mildred Wirt under the name of Carolyn Keene, until 1953 when other ghosts completely took over. Therefore it's always amused me that the first book chosen to (liberally) adapt for the big screen, The Password To Larkspur Lane from 1933 was one written by a man, Walter Karig. There weren't as many astounding plot co-incidences in his 3 books as with Wirt's and it shows in the screenplay here.

Nancy ably played by Bonita Granville is intuitively sure a nice rich old lady has been kidnapped for her money, her Dad's not too sure, but her beau Ted grumblingly followed her lead. This involves letting a message-bearing homing pigeon free and improbably following it by car to the nest of gangsters improbably led by otherwise sophisticated James Stephenson. It doesn't matter but it grates a little bit with Ned the confident proto-man changed to Ted the juvenile radio ham, Nancy is played slightly more immature than the stories at the time leading to the cops continually calling her a little girl, Effie was supposed to be 17 not middle aged, and Carson Drew although well played by John Litel never lost his temper like he did in here! But overall it's an engrossing pleasant mystery - good photography got the atmosphere of River Heights just right too.

Not recommended for the serious! Obviously they couldn't be as good as the books but they were all good efforts and solid family entertainment and imho miles better than the 1970's TV series. I wish Warners had made 14 of them not 4!

While not quite capturing the essence and old-fashioned charm of the original Nancy Drew novels, Warner Bros. turned out a series of pleasant programmers starring BONITA GRANVILLE as the teen-age sleuth who is a lot smarter at solving crimes than her elders.

The Nancy Drew of the original stories came across as a bit more sophisticated in her behavior than she is in any of the Nancy Drew films. And sometimes Granville's girlish behavior borders on brat territory and can be slightly annoying--but overall she's a bundle of teen-age energy in the role and FRANKIE THOMAS as Ted makes an appealing helpmate out of a rather colorless role.

JOHN LITEL, a reliable Warner contract player, is perfectly cast as Nancy's attorney father. The story involves the disappearance of a nice old lady who has contributed a good sum of money to Nancy's school and then promptly disappears from sight. Nancy takes a chance on tracking her down (in some highly improbable ways) and she and her boyfriend are able to solve the case in time for the predictable happy ending.

Based on "The Password to Larkspur Lane", it passes the time pleasantly enough in a modest running time, although it's not without its faults and is clearly aimed at younger viewers familiar with the Drew stories.

Summing up: A fairly good start to the series.

The "Brinwood School for Young Ladies" is buzzing about the arrival of wealthy sponsor Helena Phillips Evans (as Mary Eldredge). Pretty teenage sleuth Bonita Granville (as Nancy Drew) and the girls hope the woman's offer of $250,000 will be used to install a swimming pool. When the elderly woman disappears just before making the donation, Ms. Granville suspects foul play. Her father, lawyer John Litel (as Carson Drew), and others try to veer Granville of the case; but, she is determined to find the missing woman. Granville enlists help from young wavy-haired neighbor Frankie Thomas (as Ted Nickerson).

The "Carolyn Keene" characters were unfamiliar to this commenter, but this certainly seems like a satisfactory adaptation.

Granville, who made an impression in "These Three" (1936), is an attractive, determined, intelligent, and charming heroine. Unlike most early "teen" stars, Granville appears natural and endearing, even with expressions like "I'll bet you $23.80" and "I should say not!" Mr. Thomas, who made an impression in "Wednesday's Child" (1934), is similarly appealing and unaffected, for a 1930s movie juvenile. Thomas says "Let's keep it clean" and makes the "drag" scene. "Nancy Drew - Detective" shows how well a "small" genre film can be done. Granville and Thomas make a cute team.

****** Nancy Drew - Detective (11/19/38) William Clemens ~ Bonita Granville, Frankie Thomas, John Litel

First in the short series of Nancy Drew movies made in 1938/39. The mystery here has Nancy (Bonita Granville) searching for a missing wealthy dowager and tangling with crooks. Granville is dynamite in probably her most famous role. John Litel is good as Nancy's encouraging but protective father. Frankie Thomas plays her sidekick, best friend, and would-be boyfriend. Great female role model for young girls, way ahead of its time. I never read the books so I can't say how close to the source material these movies are, but I enjoy them. Fun script, likable characters,and short runtime make for an entertaining B detective movie. Not the best in the series but good.

In my opinion, the two best series of movie murder-mysteries adapted from books featuring an amateur female sleuth were the 'Miss Marple' treats of the early 1960s (with the unforgettable Margaret Rutherford) and the Nancy Drew comedy-thrillers of the late 1930s (with vivacious, lovely Bonita Granville as the constantly imperilled teenaged heroine). Unfortunately, only four entries were made in each series, and each and every one are to be cherished.

"Nancy Drew--Detective," the first of its quartet, is an unalloyed delight. A wealthy elderly woman donates her fortune to Nancy's highschool (to build a swimming pool) and then promptly disappears. Nancy, spurred to action by the beating of the woman's physician, enlists the reluctant aid of her athletic boyfriend (the extremely appealing and good-humored Frankie Thomas) to find out what happened to the missing lady. Clues are provided by a carrier pigeon, a breathtaking airplane expedition, an ominous gunman who breaks into the Drews' residence threatening them to keep quiet--or else!

Undeterred, Nancy drags Ted on a hair-raising adventure where they eventually track down the missing benefactor to a bogus nursing home on Larkspur Lane (password to anyone trying to enter the front gate is "blueberries"). What makes the film (and its successors) such delectable diversions is, besides the intricate plots, fast-paced direction, and splendid production design and cinematography, is the definitive performances by Ms. Granville, Thomas, John Litel (as Nancy's attorney father), Rene Riano (as the Drews' hyperventilating housekeeper), and a host of first-rate supporting actors.

The Nancy Drew films are as beguiling today as they were over 60 years ago (and, incidentally, depict family life in that era with a sassy sweetness that is truly enchanting).

Don't miss "Nancy Drew--Detective" or any of its three sequels, which TCM has been showing with regularity. These four treasures of yesteryear sparkle with wit, suspense, expert plotting and performances today's movies couldn't recapture if they tried to. The talent so abundant in the studio films of years gone by no longer exists.

Back in the 1930s and 40s, Hollywood made a ton of mystery films. Big studios, small studios and mircoscopic studios...they all churned out these pictures by the dozens. And, the Holy Grail of all these studios was finding a series that took off and resulted in an extended series...such as The Lone Wolf, The Falcon or Charlie Chan. Well, in the case of Warner Brothers, they tried something a bit different--to create two series in which the protagonists were women! Torchy Blaine and Nancy Drew were given the Warner Brothers gloss and when seen today they seem better than the average mystery films. "Nancy Drew: Detective" was the first of four films starring Bonita Granville. And, they all are worth your time.

The story begins with a nice rich lady promising to give Nancy's school a large endowment. However, before she can arrange this, she disappears...and her financial manager keeps making excuses as to where she went. Nancy smells a rat and decides to investigate. And, with the help of Ted (in drag), they take a huge risk by sneaking into an old mansion out in the country.

This film features good writing, an unusual story and nice acting....and like all four films is worth your time. Fortunately, they're often shown on Turner Classic Movies and they are currently on YouTube as well.

even thought this movie was made in 1938,the picture and sound quality are excellent.there are also subtitles,which was good.the movie itself is funny,fast paced,and well acted.Bonita Granville plays the title character,and brings some sassiness to the role.i also liked the supporting cast,particularly her Sidekick Ted.i thought he had some funny lines.the chief of police was also a funny character.i thought the writing was good and i liked the story.even though the movie is 66 minutes,it didn't feel rushed or incomplete.it was well paced.this is the first of four movies in which Bonita Granville portrays Nancy,and if this any indication,i can't wait to watch the other three.for me Nancy Drew--Detective is an 8/10

When I was a child, we males had "The Hardy Boys" and the girls had "Nancy Drew." At least it seemed that way. I had a fourth grade teacher who would read to us if we came in during lunch. Amazing how many kids showed up. One day she began a Nancy Drew novel. I couldn't tell my male friends, but I read several of them after that, in addition to the more typical male stuff (loved baseball novels). So I was just a bit disappointed when I watched this movie because my picture of Nancy was different. Nevertheless, the irrepressible Bonita Granville does a pretty decent job of making Nancy a role model for the girls of the time. This was escapist, but it has a good plot, a formidable villain, and some interesting twists and turns.

The first of the four Nancy Drew mysteries that Bonita Granville did for Warner Brothers finds her trying to find an old woman who donated some big bucks to her high school for a swimming pool and promptly disappears.

Our intrepid heroine to four generations of young girls goes into action to find what's happened to the old dame. The high school benefactor has fallen into the hands of a gang of crooks led by James Stephenson. They've got an interesting way of communicating by carrier pigeons.

When Nancy discovers that she and her ever helpful boyfriend Ted Nickerson go in hot pursuit of the bird. Of course as things developed in the series the biggest pigeon for Nancy was Ted as played by Frankie Thomas.

No heavy drama here, but Granville and Thomas are enormously appealing, though gloriously out of fashion with a new Nancy Drew coming to the silver screen.

Helena Phillips Evans pledges a large sum to Bonita Granville's girl's school and promptly disappears. The only clue seems to be a carrier pigeon, which Miss Granville and her browbeaten boyfriend Frankie Thomas follow, despite the warnings of danger from her father, John Litel, and the mutterings about these kids from police captain Frank Orth. William Clemens directs this, as he would its three sequels over the next couple of years, for speed.

It's harmless fun and was actually feminist for its era. Edward Stratemeyer came up with the idea for the book series after he discovered that a lot of girls were reading the Hardy Boys novels. He wrote an outline, assigned it to Mildred Wirt, and by 1933, Macy's was ordering 6,000 copies of the latest entry, and selling out within days. In one form or another, it's still going.

Nancy Drew--Detective (1938)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

The first of four films in Warner's Nancy Drew series has Bonita Granville playing the teenage detective. In this film the wannabe detective tangles with gangsters over a missing old woman who was about to donate money to Nancy's school. The only other one in the series that I've seen is the second one and I really enjoyed it more than this one. The 66-minute running time goes by fairly slowly due to the middle section that really drags. The story really isn't all that interesting and none of the supporting characters have any flair. Granville is terrific in the lead and the main reason for watching this.

Nancy Drew hopes to be a lawyer following her father's footsteps. Her alta mater's wealthy benefactor Miss Eldredge reneges on a promised donation. Nancy vows to find her and change her mind. Dr. Spires tells Nancy and her father about a kidnapping which is presumed to be Miss Eldredge. They go to police Captain Tweedy who seems ill equipped to help. With a strange car following them, her father tells her to drop the case. Dr. Spires is almost beaten to death. With neighbor boy Ted Nickerson in tow, Nancy sets off to solve the case following a carrier pigeon.

This Nancy Drew is not necessarily vastly smarter as much as more driven. She is female empowerment of her time. More than anything, her biggest skill seems to be pushing Ted to do her bidding. Poor Ted. That's some good comedy. It does get a bit too silly. I don't know why Ted has to be the one dressed as the nurse other than making him the butt of the joke. I don't think the guard would know who Nancy is although Ted does have a girlish face. I like this version of Nancy enough. She's not Sherlock Holmes but she strives to do right and she doesn't quit. She does have more girlie attributes than I hoped. This is the first of four early adaptations of the popular character.

I just watched "Nancy Drew Detective" from 1938. I thoroughly enjoyed it, although it was a bit silly in parts and every character was iconic- or maybe stereotypical. Critics would say it was a "formula film." Maybe so, but I sure liked it!

The plot: Nancy Drew (a teenager with her own car, whose father is a well-known attorney) and Ted Nickerson (her slightly older neighbor boy who loves her madly but won't ever show it) solve a kidnapping case of a wealthy elderly lady. Ted has to disguise himself as a nurse while Nancy becomes a widow in order to locate the lady they are rescuing.

There is much activity involving an idiot police chief, bad guys who catch Nancy and tie her up, and threaten to shoot her (but who never even thought about the possiblilty of doing what we'd expect bad guys to do these days,) racing about the countryside in a roadster following homing pigeons, even aerial mapping from a biplane (which cost $10 for the flight!)

It was well worth watching just for the scene where Nancy gets her hands on the bad guy's gun- a .45cal 1911- shuts her eyes and lets the bullets fly! The police chief, after he'd come out of the cover he leaped into to avoid being shot, remarked that he was surprised that she could even lift "that hand-cannon!" There are also hidden delights such as Ted's being a ham radio enthusiast (remember this is in 1938) as well as being an amateur photographer who developed the aerial photos. It was fascinating!

This film was aimed at a young audience, who probably rolled their eyes at it when it was first shown, but who would have admired the qualities that Nancy displayed: courage, independence, perserverance, loyalty- but also being mischievous and not inclined to follow orders meant to keep her safe. They would have seen right through Ted's little act of "aw shucks, I'm a guy, I want Nancy to leave me alone to do guy stuff," which they were intended to see through, and see that Ted was steadfast and determined to help Nancy in every way, even though he loved her dearly and was worried about her getting in trouble over her head. Sex did not raise its head at anytime in this film, and its omission bothered me not at all; there was plenty of love and tenderness.

All in all, a delightful film. If they made movies like that these days, I'd be at the theater regularly- but they don't, and I'm not. Which is a pity!

William Clemens directed this first of four film adaptations of the Carolyn Keane novels starring Bonita Granville as energetic and smart Nancy Drew, who assists her attorney father Carson Drew(played by John Litel) with the help of her boyfriend Ted Nickerson(played by Frankie Thomas) to solve mysteries in their town. This case involves the disappearance of an older woman who was planning on making a sizable donation to Nancy's school, but is abducted by crooks instead, who want the money themselves. The cast is good, especially Granville who is charming and appealing. Too bad the mystery itself is so flimsy, with cardboard villains and plot silliness. Still, kids may not mind so much.

Good, action packed, teenage movie from 1938 based on the popular book series "Nancy Drew".

The movie moves quickly and leads Granville and Thomas develop a unique chemistry they carry through until the end, adding an element of charm and interest to the film.

This is an above average film, starring two teenagers who possess unique acting skills. It is more than a teenage movie.

It was only a matter of time before the immensely popular Nancy Drew mystery books would be brought to the screen after the teenage amateur detective was introduced to the book shelves in 1930. Warner Brothers took advantage of a ready-made market of thousands of readers familiar with the antics of the 16-year-old daughter of a successful lawyer by rolling out its first of four kid sleuth movies in November 1938's "Nancy Drew, Detective."

Warner Brothers bought the rights to the entire book series for a paltry $6,000. The studio was planning on producing just one Drew movie to see how it fared at the box office. "Nancy Drew, Detective" was based on the 1933 novel 'The Password to Larkspur Lane," about the kidnapping of a rich benefactor Mary Eldredge (Helena Evans). Nancy (Bonita Granville), whose school was about to be handed a $250,000 check from the wealthy lady, happens to stumble upon the crime when their family's doctor is also shanghaied by the same gangsters to treat the elderly woman. She enlists next door neighbor Ted (Frankie Thomas), and the two get ensnared in the crime ring, jeopardizing their lives-in a light-hearted way.

The Kenneth Garnet script departs from the novel in many ways, primarily in Nancy's personality. On screen, she's ditzy and more of a schemer than in her book, where she exudes intelligence and maturity. Her lawyer dad, Atty. Carson Drew (John Litel), was much older and distant in print than the younger, more involved film version who's always restraining Nancy from getting into danger. And the next door friend Ted (Ned in the book) is streetwise, but in the movie he's the clumsy neighbor who reluctantly is ensnared in Nancy's detective work. And the films were darker in tone than the books, with more violent villains who consisted of murderers and kidnappers.

"Nancy Drew, Detective" was a moderate success at the box office, motivating Warner Brothers to produce three more: February 1939 "Nancy Drew, Reporter," June 1939 "Nancy Drew, Trouble Shooter," and September 1939 "Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase." Bonita Granville, who carried the series portraying Nancy, was earlier nominated for Academy Award's Best Supporting Actress as the spoiled bratty 14-year-older in 1936's "These Three." Granville had a relative successful movie career in the early 1940s highlighted by her appearance in 1942's "Now, Voyager." When she married businessman Jack Wrather, she turned to producing and managing her husband's properties, including his Los Angeles floating hotel, The Queen Elizabeth. Critics thought highly of Granville's acting in the Nancy Drew movies, with Variety praising her as "forthright and refreshing as the bright-eyed heroine."

Nancy Drew movies continued to prove popular well after the Warners' film series ended. These followed the plots of numerous Drew books published by several pseudonym writers throughout the years. The ABC 'The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries' television series is seen as the most faithful to the novels. Nancy Drew also appeared in 1995 and in 2019 TV series. The 2007 "Nancy Drew" feature film with Julia Roberts' daughter Emma Roberts as Nancy, and the 2019 movie with Sophia Lillis and Ellen DeGeneres starring in "Nancy Drew and The Hidden Staircase" were also produced.

But the 1938/1939 movies were the ones that most captured the hearts of Nancy Drew readers when they later appeared on cable television. Granville herself remarked it was these films she would be most remembered, echoed by the other cast members who saw their popularity rejuvenated by the Turner Classic Movie showings.

I've tried looking it up but can't seem to find any reference to the importance or usage of that particular number:

2380 - twenty-three eighty.

They'd use it like, "I'll bet you twenty-three eighty that..."

or

"It was twenty three eighty million miles away" or something of that sort, but always as twenty-three eighty.

Does anyone know what that term refers to?

As for the movie itself, it was just OK.

I always pictured Nancy Drew as more sure of herself and less bungling and helpless girlie-like.

Bonita Granville plays the popular girl sleuth in this first of four films. She is appealing in her enthusiasm and her lack of fear when it comes to solving a mystery. Not a bad role model for girls of the thirties.

As for the story--which revolves around a missing person---it is full of holes and improbabilities. Younger viewers might not notice or mind, but those who like a finely crafted mystery and superior sleuthing will not find them here.