Death on the Diamond

1934
Approved
1h 11m

IMDb RATING

YOUR RATING

Robert Young and Madge Evans in Death on the Diamond (1934)

A losing baseball team starts losing its players to strange killings, and the team's new pitcher takes a swing at finding the killer.A losing baseball team starts losing its players to strange killings, and the team's new pitcher takes a swing at finding the killer.A losing baseball team starts losing its players to strange killings, and the team's new pitcher takes a swing at finding the killer.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.0/10

469

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Photos11

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
Fred Graham was working in the MGM sound department and also playing baseball semi-professionally in his off-time. He was hired to tutor star Robert Young in baseball techniques. He also was hired to double Nat Pendleton in his scenes as a catcher, thereby beginning a nearly 40-year career as an actor and stuntman.

Goofs
When the game resumes, after the bad guy is caught, the camera pans across the scoreboard to show that the game is tied, 2-2. The radio announcer then states, "Cincinnati hasn't scored since Kelly threw that ball into the dugout and let the tying run come in." Cincinnati was the visiting team and the last run it scored, in the top of the second inning, would have made the score 2-1 (Cincinnati leading). It would not have been a tying run.

Soundtracks
Take Me Out to the Ball Game
(1908) (uncredited)
Music by Albert von Tilzer
Lyrics by Jack Norworth
Played during the opening and closing credits
Played as background music often

User reviews22

Review

Featured review

5/10

Weak murder mystery takes place on baseball diamond...

A very youthful looking ROBERT YOUNG plays a star pitcher hired to help the St. Louis Cardinals win the '34 pennant race. He falls in love with the manager's daughter, pretty MADGE EVANS.

The team is soon involved in a series of murders that take place on the baseball field or in the locker room. Since most of the action takes place in broad daylight, there's no chance to build up the suspense to turn this into a crime melodrama. Instead, the heavier touch is on comedy, supplied by NAT PENDLETON and TED HEALEY. Unfortunately, their humorous material is a bit strained for laughs.

Real footage of the Cardinals is integrated with the studio footage shot at Wrigley Field, with mixed results that are more distracting than anything else. Revelation of the murderer comes in the last reel and is far from satisfying, leading to a scene of ham acting at its worst.

Nothing special about this one, even with a cast that includes PAUL KELLY, WILLARD ROBERTSON and pint-sized MICKEY ROONEY in supporting roles.

Some uncredited bits by GARY OWEN, WARD BOND and DENNIS O'KEEFE for those who stay awake during the proceedings.