Valentine Dyall
Birthday: 1908-05-07 Place of Birth: London, England, U.K.
Synopsis
Acting
A Child's Voice
A popular radio personality writes and broadcasts ghost stories over the air. He receives a strange call warning him not to finish his latest story, which is about a child who dies assisting in a magician's show.
The Horror of It All
In this dark comedy, a Yankee goes to visit a family of British eccentrics to ask for the hand of one of their daughters in marriage. He soon finds himself in the midst of a really odd family. One of them talks like Bela Lugosi, another believes herself to be a vampire, while a third is locked away in a padded cell. Another family member is thrilled when he finally invents a horseless carriage (50 years after Ford), and the family grandfather is found reading Playboy just before he dies. Trouble begins when members of the family begin to be mysteriously murdered. The American suitor must then discover which member of the strange family is in line to inherit the family fortune.
The Haunting
Dr. Markway, doing research to prove the existence of ghosts, investigates Hill House, a large, eerie mansion with a lurid history of violent death and insanity.
The City of the Dead
A young college student arrives in a sleepy Massachusetts town to research witchcraft; during her stay at an eerie inn, she discovers a startling secret about the town and its inhabitants.
Johnny-on-the-Spot
An ex-convict, who was framed, struggles to clear his name.
Paul Temple Returns
A serial killer terrorizes London. Each victim is found with a telegram signed "The Marquis." There seems to be no other common thread between the victims, and Scotland Yard is baffled. Novelist and amateur sleuth, Paul Temple, is warned to stay away from the case, but he and his glamorous wife Steve can never refuse a good mystery.
The Man in Black
Henry Clavering suspects his second wife Bertha is trying to drive his daughter (by his first marriage) insane, to stop her inheriting his money. He decides to use his yoga skills to pretend to be dead, and thereby expose her villainy.
Dr. Morelle: The Case of the Missing Heiress
An heiress suddenly vanishes! A detective comes to the forlorn mansion of the missing heiress's wheel-chair-ridden uncle to discover the secret behind the disappearance.
I Know Where I'm Going!
Plucky Englishwoman Joan Webster travels to the remote islands of the Scottish Hebrides in order to marry a wealthy industrialist. Trapped by inclement weather on the Isle of Mull and unable to continue to her destination, Joan finds herself charmed by the straightforward, no-nonsense islanders around her, and becomes increasingly attracted to naval officer Torquil MacNeil, who holds a secret that may change her life forever.
This Is China
A fascinating compilation of scenes showing diversity and disparity in 1940s China. The ancient Forbidden City and Great Wall are followed by Shanghai’s metropolitan skyline; primitive farming methods are juxtaposed with mechanised factories; children in rags are contrasted with models wearing the latest fashions; Nationalist commanders and Communist leaders vie for support.
