crime gone awry   adultery   private detective   screwball   based on novel   christmas   scam   family relationships   missing person   marriage   criminal   supermarket   brother sister relationship   face slap   father son relationship   insurance agent   los angeles california   corpse   new york city   elevator   urban setting   character appears in newspaper   manhattan new york city   male female relationship   flashback   father daughter relationship   parking garage   private eye   alcohol   infidelity   1930s   detective   taxi   ex husband ex wife relationship   beautiful woman   lawyer   divorce   dinner party   dinner   mysterious man   amateur detective   blonde   crutches   cocktail party   boyfriend girlfriend relationship   dead body   honeymoon   dead woman   christmas tree   dating   woman shot   macguffin   mislaid trust   mortal wound   female killer   lieutenant   wanted poster   high society   inventor   unhappy marriage   innuendo   love story   sophisticated comedy   telephone box   mistress   murder of husband   female corrupts male   whodunit   finding a dead body   cocktail   christmas eve   insurance fraud   hard boiled dame   insurance   insurance salesman   stepmother   insurance investigator   jumping from a train   villainess played by lead actress   long distance call   domestic dispute   bigamy   oedipus complex   pouring alcohol down someone's throat   firearm   hotel suite   mother's boyfriend   booze   chorus line   booze drinking   couple sleep in separate beds   fox terrier   grant's tomb manhattan new york city   hidden safe   husband and wife sleuths   married detective   mutt   nick and nora charles   pet owner relationship   sparse music score   wiseguy dialogue   sophistication   title same as book   pet dog   wit   dog   cult favorite   betrayal   train   death   railway station   murder   mistaken identity   martini   irreverence   loss of father   mother son relationship   nipples visible through clothing   cynicism   husband wife relationship   title spoken by character   newspaper headline   unfaithfulness   gun   drunkenness   femme fatale   party   mother daughter relationship   police   told in flashback   sex   wisecrack humor   wedding   police detective