Escort Girl (1941)
Escort Girl (1941)
„Escort Girl“ is a 1941 Black & White crime drama film directed by Edward Kaye from a story and screenplay by David Halperin and Ann Halperin.
Ruth Ashley is a former escort girl who now owns the Hollywood Escort Bureau in Los Angeles together with Gregory Stone. Ruth is co-owner of the Café Martinique, where the escorts go with their dates to watch striptease and drink champagne. The escort bureau is managed by Breeze Nolan who provides customers with both male and female escorts.
Ruth has a daughter, June Ashley, who is ignorant of her mother’s occupation. June believes that her mother works in real estate. Ruth had sent her daughter to a private school in the eastern U.S. Eventually June is engaged to Drake Hamilton and when Drake travels to Los Angeles for work, June decides to accompany him to meet her mother. At the same time, Ruth and her partner learn that the district attorney is planning to put an end to illegal escort services. Since her daughter is coming to town, Ruth is concerned that the truth will come out about her business. She grows more worried when she discovers that Drake is in Los Angeles to assist the district attorney in stopping all escort operations.
In the line of duty Drake pretends to be a prospective client and calls the bureau to book a girl for the evening. His plan is to lay a trap for the bureau owners. But Stone learns from a snitch that Drake is investigating, and instead of sending a regular girl, he sends June to Drake’s hotel room at the specified time. Drake ends up believing that June works as an escort girl and breaks their engagement. June is devastated and blames Stone for what happened. She threatens to go to the DA. To stop her and exculpate himself, Stone reveals that Ruth is his partner. He tries to hire June as an escort girl after plying her with drinks.
Since Nolan is the face of the escort business, Drake finds him and beats him up, heartbroken because of what he thought about June. Drake learns that Stone is the owner. When Ruth arrives at Stone’s apartment, June is still there. June renounces her mother and leaves. Ruth learns what happened and tells Stone to reveal the truth to Drake, threatening to shoot him. Drake arrives, walking in on Ruth holding Stone at gunpoint. He tries to overpower her, and as they struggle for the gun, Ruth is accidentally shot and fatally wounded. As the struggle continues between Stone and Drake, Stone falls out a window and breaks his neck. With her last words, Ruth tells Drake the truth, and he promises to take care of June. Ruth dies, and Drake and June reconcile happily.
Cast:
- Betty Compson – Ruth Ashley
- Margaret Marquis – June Ashley
- Robert Kellard – Drake Hamilton
- Wheeler Oakman – Gregory Stone
- Guy Kingsford – Breeze Nolan
- Isabel La Mal – Snuggles
- Arthur Housman – Al, the Drunk
- Rick Vallin – Jack
- Virginia Davis – Blondie
- Kathryn Keys – Rita
- Cyd Charisse – Flamenco Dancer
- Lou Fulton – Elmer Antwhistle
- Harry Harvey Jr. – Ray (Bureau Customer)
- Jack Hendricks – Night Club Patron
- Gay Seabrook – Maizie
„Escort Girl“ ist ein Kriminaldrama aus dem Jahr 1941 unter der Regie von Edward Kaye nach einer Geschichte und einem Drehbuch von David Halperin und Ann Halperin.
Ruth Ashley ist ein ehemaliges Escort-Girl, das nun zusammen mit Gregory Stone das Hollywood Escort Bureau in Los Angeles besitzt. Ruth ist Miteigentümerin des Café Martinique, in das die Escorts mit ihren Dates gehen, um Striptease zu sehen und Champagner zu trinken. Das Escort-Büro wird von Breeze Nolan geleitet, der den Kunden sowohl männliche als auch weibliche Begleitpersonen vermittelt.
Ruth hat eine Tochter, June Ashley, die nichts über den Beruf ihrer Mutter weiß. June glaubt, dass ihre Mutter in der Immobilienbranche arbeitet. Ruth hatte ihre Tochter auf eine Privatschule im Osten der USA geschickt. Schließlich ist June mit Drake Hamilton verlobt, und als Drake aus beruflichen Gründen nach Los Angeles reist, beschließt June, ihn zu begleiten, um ihre Mutter kennenzulernen. Zur gleichen Zeit erfahren Ruth und ihr Partner, dass der Staatsanwalt plant, den illegalen Begleitservice zu unterbinden. Da ihre Tochter in die Stadt kommt, ist Ruth besorgt, dass die Wahrheit über ihr Geschäft ans Licht kommen könnte. Ihre Sorge wird noch größer, als sie erfährt, dass Drake in Los Angeles ist, um den Staatsanwalt bei der Unterbindung aller Escort-Geschäfte zu unterstützen.