George Raft & Nina Foch in "Johnny Allegro" (1949) - feat. Will Geer

Los Angeles hotel lobby florist and former solider, Johnny Allegro (George Raft), is a man with a secret. He's a former criminal who escaped from Sing Sing prison in New York. However, Johnny went straight, and is trying to rebuild his life working under an alias as a florist in a large swank hotel in Los Angeles. He encounters a beautiful mysterious blonde, of the femme fatale variety, Glenda Chapman (Nina Foch), when she asks for his help in avoiding police detectives who are following her. But Treasury agents ask Allegro to help them by working undercover for them to stop the plot that Glenda is involved in. Allegro has no choice but to cooperate because they know that he is an escaped prisoner.

At the same time Glenda and Allegro are falling in love even though Glenda is married. Glenda takes Allegro with her to an island off the coast of Florida where Morgan Vallin (George MacReady), her husband, is the mastermind of a plot to bring down the American government by flooding the U.S. economy with counterfeit currency.

Vallin is a sadistic criminal who enjoys toying with his victims. He doesn't trust Allegro nor even his wife. Allegro manages to contact the Treasury agents with a short wave radio on one of the boats at the wharf. Allegro finds out where the counterfeit bills are hidden on the island. The Treasury agents arrive after Allegro kills Vallin in a desperate fight. The agents tell Allegro that he can rest easy about returning to prison now that his cooperation has resulted in the end of the threat. As they all sit in the boat leaving the island, Allegro and Glenda hug.

A 1949 American Black & White film-noir crime B-Movie (a/k/a "The Big Jump", and "Hounded") directed by Ted Tetzlaff, produced by Irving Starr, screenplay by Guy Endore and Karen DeWolf, story by James Edward Grant, cinematography by Joseph F. Biroc, starring George Raft, Nina Foch, George Macready, Will Geer, Gloria Henry, Ivan Triesault, Harry Antrim, and William 'Bill' Phillips.

Some scenes were shot at Catalina Island, which was renamed 'Palm Island' for the film.

Symphony no. 3 in E-flat: Finale by Ludwig van Beethoven is played on Morgan Vallin's phonograph.

George Raft signed on to make the film in July 1948. It was his first movie at Columbia since "She Couldn't Take It" (1935), and one of several thrillers Raft made in the late 1940s. Filming went for longer than intended, meaning Raft missed out on starring in "The Big Steal" (1949) and the role went to Robert Mitchum, with leading lady Jane Greer.

Nina Foch (1924-2008), born Nina Consuelo Maud Fock in Leiden, Netherlands, was an American actress who later became an instructor. Foch received a Best Supporting Actress Academy Award nomination for "Executive Suite" (1954), starring William Holden.

George Macready's character in "Gilda" (1946) is Ballin Mundson who used a walking stick with a bayonet. Here his name is Morgan Vallin who hunted with a bow and arrow. Known for his distinctive voice, he was Martin Peyton in “Peyton Place” (1965-68).

TV fans recognize Gloria Henry, Johnny’s employee in the florist shop, as Alice Mitchell on “Dennis The Menace” (CBS-TV 1959-63).

Will Geer (1902-1978), born William Aughe Ghere, was an American actor, musician, and social activist who was active in labor organizing and other movements in New York City and Southern California in the 1930s and 1940s. In California he befriended rising singer Woody Guthrie. They both lived in New York City in the 1940s. You don't see a young Will Geer in many films, because not too long after he made this film, he was blacklisted in the 1950s by Hollywood after refusing, in testimony before Congress, to name persons who had joined the Communist Party USA. Geer was best known for his role as Grandpa Zebulon "Zeb" Walton in the TV series "The Waltons" (CBS-TV 1972-81) from 1972 until his death in 1978.

Director Tetzlaff was better known as a cinematographer, and his obvious skills are shown to good effect. Tetzlaff borrows a bit of story line from "Suspicion" (1941). Tetzlaff served as cinematographer on the Hitchcock classic.

This Columbia B-movie has eye-catching high-contrast black and white cinematography by Joseph F Biroc. Biroc enjoyed a long career working in many genres, shooting films as diverse as "It’s a Wonderful Life" (1946) and "Airplane! "(1980).

The script was co-written by Karen DeWolf, best known for her work on Columbia’s "Blondie" films, and Guy Endore, who earned a screenwriting Oscar nomination for "The Story of G.I. Joe" (1945).

With good performances all round, an interesting supporting cast, a brisk plot, romance, mystery, and inventiveness of the storyline, this underrated, well-mounted thriller is well worth watching for B-movie fans. This is a well-paced, interesting and well-mounted "B" noir film, and one that bears watching for its mystery, and its situation-derived characters. While not a must-see, it absolutely satisfies. Fans of George Raft will be pleased.