In New York City, best-selling novelist Victor Gresham is a playboy who has based each of his novels on a previous love affair. Before the completion of his latest book, Frailty , Victor is found dead. A note bearing his signature points to suicide, but Inspector Quillan suspects foul play and investigates six of Gresham’s lovers, all of whom were at his house the night before he died. Paul Bindar, Victor’s publisher, recounts the events leading up to Victor’s death: Carlotta Barbe, an old flame, returns from Europe and, curious to see who is Victor’s latest lover, invites the female subjects of Victor’s novels to a surprise party for him. They include Gail Melville, who says good-bye to Victor for good because her fiancé, who left town when Victor’s book about Gail came out, has returned to marry her; Gladys Durland, who has had a two-year affair with Victor and is planning to leave her husband Lyn for him; Foxey Dennison, who is married, but wants to have an affair with Victor; and Nan Fitzgerald, an old friend on whom Victor based his first book. Also at the party is Jean Sinclair, an illustrator who is hoping to design the cover of Frailty . Her boyfriend, Carter Vaughan, is in attendance to make sure Victor doesn’t make a play for Jean. At the end of the evening, Victor asks to see Jean in the morning. All leave except Nan, who has spent the night drinking and is asleep on the couch. In the morning, Victor asks his valet, Fletcher, to think up an ending to Frailty . Then he sends Nan upstairs to sleep off her hangover and discovers a gun in her purse. Fletcher and Victor’s secretary, Miss Bennett, read in the morning paper about the suicide in Paris of actress Peggy Fanning, the subject of Frailty , who was divorcing her actor husband to marry Victor when he told her not to bother. Gladys then arrives to warn Victor that Lyn is on his way to kill him, having recognized his own wife as the protagonist of one of Victor’s novels from the detailed description of her sexual idiosyncrasies. Gladys urges Victor to leave with her immediately and sail around the world, but he tells her he doesn’t love her. Carlotta arrives and throws herself at Victor, but he throws her out. Jean arrives to show Victor her cover sketches, and he gives her the job because he’s falling in love with her. He is about to kiss her when Lyn enters and threatens to kill him. To save him, Jean tells Lyn that Victor is going to marry her, then tells Victor she is sincere. As Victor and Jean embrace, Nan comes out of Victor’s bedroom, and Jean runs out in a panic believing that she might have been turned into next season’s best seller. Nan realizes Victor is really in love with Jean and leaves for Rio after selling Victor her pistol. Jean, meanwhile, asks Carter to take her to city hall. Victor now resigns himself to write real literature and suggests to Bindar that suicide should be the ending of Frailty . Fletcher and Victor discuss suicide, and Victor pretends to kill himself. When they discuss the actress in the book, Fletcher gives Victor the newspaper clipping about Peggy Fanning’s suicide. After asserting that Victor killed the actress just as sure as if he gave her poison, Fletcher confesses he is Peggy Fanning’s deserted husband and has only been acting as Victor’s valet to get revenge. Fletcher then shoots Victor dead, providing him with the perfect ending to his novel. More on Wikipedia or Mubi
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