Francis Warren appears to have a normal life handling investments, but secretly he writes lurid detective novels under the pseudonym F.X. Pettijohn. His other career is unknown to wife Rita or to anyone but Inspector Mason, who mocks the books, insisting that true crime is much more difficult to solve. Francis's latest book is controversial, parodying members of The Thursday Club, using names that thinly disguise real members, which include his wife and her mother. Worse, “F.X. Pettijohn” sent copies of his book to every woman in the club. Indignant, Rita and her mother tell Francis that the club has decided to sue for
libel. Privately, Francis advises lawyer Wellington Carruthers that the lawsuit would bring more publicity for the book, urging him to lie to the women and keep postponing any action. Carruthers deplores deceit, but Francis points out that Carruthers has been married four times to his one; Francis counsels that a happy marriage depends on being considerate, keeping things from one's wife that would make her unhappy. A man named Leopold Fissue attempts to blackmail Francis to help him turn uncut diamonds into cash; otherwise, he will reveal Warren's secret life to the public. When Fissue is found dead on a yacht, the coroner and police think he died of heart failure caused by alcoholism. When Francis insists that Fissue was murdered for the diamonds without disclosing prior contact between them, Mason and Detective “Hoppy” Hopkins challenge Francis to solve the “murder” before the police. Ticket stubs in Fissue's jacket pocket lead Francis to
burlesque dancer Blondie White, who becomes his prime suspect. Under an assumed identity as “Tex”, Francis romances Blondie for information. Blondie's dentist, Dr. Davis, however, gives her a solid alibi. When Rita catches Francis sneaking home at 2:30 from a “business meeting”, she becomes sure that Francis is having an affair and hires a private detective. The detective finds out that Francis has been seeing Blondie and reveals that Francis has a secret (writing) studio that they believe is for liaisons. Rita goes to see Blondie at her burlesque show. Meanwhile, Blondie asks “Tex” to retrieve a suitcase from a locker. After Inspector Mason receives a call from the
FBI informing him that Fissue was involved with a diamond
smuggling ring, Mason orders another
autopsy on the body, but the coroner informs him that it has been
cremated. Mason and Hoppy begin to suspect that Francis murdered Fissue for the diamonds. Francis locates the locker and finds diamonds in the suitcase. When Blondie fails to turn up at a rendezvous with “Tex” or at a rehearsal, Francis, Mason, and Hoppy converge on Blondie's apartment and find her fatally shot. Meanwhile, Davis arrives claiming he was working in his office in the building but did not hear any gunshots. A creditor who was surveilling Blondie's apartment saw a woman who lost a heel from her shoe leaving Blondie's apartment, and a taxi driver says he dropped the woman off on Lake Drive, where Francis lives. At home, Francis finds Rita's shoe is missing a heel, and Rita admits to finding Blondie's body before leaving immediately. Initially Rita thinks Francis killed Blondie, while Francis believes Rita killed her. Hoppy arrives with the taxi driver and reveals that Francis is F.X. Pettijohn. Rita and her mother are certain that they will be stricken from the
social register. Hoppy accuses Francis and his wife of killing Blondie and Fissue for the diamonds, but Francis evades arrest and sets off to find the real killer. Francis concludes that Davis, the dentist, is Blondie's accomplice who provided the poison to kill Fissue while Blondie got Fissue drunk so alcohol would make the poison hard to detect in an autopsy. Davis attempts to kill Francis, but Mason and Hoppy arrive and arrest Francis despite his protests. Taking his opportunity, Davis absconds in his car but then hears on the radio that Francis fell off a roof to his death while escaping from custody. Thinking himself safe, Davis returns to his office, where Francis, Mason, and Hoppy await to apprehend him. Mason calls Francis to help out on a new murder case, and Rita insists on joining him, without her mother's knowledge. ==Cast==