Summary
Stanley Ormsby, a dramatic critic whose acerbic pen is as sharp as his wit is blunt, ignites a veritable inferno of ill will by summarily dismissing a new theatrical production as utterly 'rotten.' His unyielding stance, delivered with characteristic disdain despite the playwright’s earnest supplications for clemency, sets the stage for a nightmarish descent into an urban labyrinth of peril. His evening's unraveling commences with an ill-advised intervention in a street quarrel, where his self-righteousness is met with swift, unceremonious rejection. Fate, however, has a far more intricate and sinister design awaiting him. An editorial directive dispatches Ormsby to a nondescript apartment building, ostensibly to interview a chanteuse. Yet, upon his arrival, the mundane mission shatters into a macabre tableau: a woman collapses, seemingly lifeless, directly before the ominous portal of Apartment 29. Thrust into a reluctant heroism, Ormsby carries her inside, only to discover she is the very woman from the earlier street altercation, now joined by her husband, tragically deceased from a gunshot wound. The chilling realization dawns upon him: the confluence of events paints him as the prime suspect. A desperate flight is contemplated, only to be momentarily stayed by the opportune appearance of the maligned playwright, a resident of the very same building. Offering sanctuary, the playwright exacts a steep price—a substantial sum Ormsby, in his burgeoning panic, readily surrenders. Sequestered in the playwright's abode, a 'girl' becomes his unlikely accomplice, concealing him through a series of harrowing police searches. Ormsby endures a dizzying succession of near-misses and heart-stopping close calls, only for his 'savior' to reveal a deeper venality, demanding further extortion. Ultimately, Ormsby, accompanied by the mysterious girl, orchestrates a daring escape from the building's confines, only to be ambushed by a menacing gang of thugs. In a cruel twist of irony, his rescue comes at the hands of the very authorities who then promptly charge him with murder, culminating in a convoluted, yet ultimately resolved, ordeal that leaves the critic profoundly shaken by his brush with the precipice of doom.
Synopsis
Stanley Ormsby, a dramatic critic, runs foul of an author and dramatic company who have just put on a new play which he announces as "rotten." On his way home from the play, after waiving aside the author's pleas for a merciful criticism, his adventures begin. He interferes between a couple quarreling on the street and is rebuffed. Later he gets an assignment from his editor to go to a certain apartment house to interview a singer. Entering the place he is diverted from his mission by a woman falling apparently dead at his feet, before the door of Apartment 29. Carrying her inside he finds her to be the woman of the quarrel, and there finds also her husband shot. There alone, he realizes suddenly that circumstances are against him and wishes to flee. The playwright, who lives in the same building, offers refuge, but in return asks a large sum of money, which Ormsby is only too glad to give. A girl in the playwright's apartment hides him while the police search the place. He has a dozen hairbreadth escapes and is finally shocked as the playwright demands a bribe to keep him hidden. Finally Ormsby escapes from the house with the girl, only to run into a nest of thugs, who attack him. He is then rescued by the very police, who then charge him with murder, after which...well, it winds up all right, but it was a hair-raising experience, mates.
