Smart Girls Don't Talk

When club owner Marty Fain (Bruce Bennett) blithely declares, "Gambling is my profession," it's an understatement. Because the beautiful, tough-talking society dame he's talking to is the riskiest wager he's made yet. Virginia Mayo plays tart tomato Linda Vickers, who, suspicious that Fain used her car in the murder of a gangster who held up his joint, declares in return that she has a great memory and gets "paid for not talking." But minds can change just as readily as a gambler's luck. Newly arrived in town, Linda's surgeon brother (Robert Hutton) disapproves of the company his sister keeps and persuades her to grow a conscience and break off with Fain -- though that cuts no ice when Fain is wounded while settling a debt and needs emergency medical attention. The resulting tragedy leads to a trial by fire for Linda, who wrestles with helping the police nail the man she loves. Richard L. Bare, best known for directing 63 Joe McDoakes shorts and 163 Green Acres episodes, directed this sturdy and sparky thriller worth talking about.

• crime
• musical
• mystery