Last Night at the Hollywood Canteen
In March 1943, 28-year-old writer Annie Laurence has made it on Broadway. Her new play runs in a sold-out theatre. But after two months, the lead actors, married couple Adam and Beverly Cook, refuse to renew their contract and accept MGM’s offer to work in Los Angeles. When the Cooks leave, Annie’s show closes. Not only has she lost all income, but the Cooks had been her best friends and lovers in a cozy threesome. Eventually, Hollywood’s Pacific Pictures throws Annie a lifeline to come write movie scripts.
A true-to-life Los Angeles club, the Canteen, offers all servicemen free sandwiches and a dance floor with live music. Show business workers volunteer to be dance partners, make the sandwiches, and staff the club. Annie volunteers and falls in with a small group of regulars, headed by nasty gossip columnist, Fiona Farris. Each member of Fiona’s group (self-named the Ambassador’s Club) has secrets that could ruin them. One evening Fiona lies dead in the Canteen’s kitchen. Every Ambassador Club member, plus Fiona’s husband, Adam Cook, Beverly Cook, and others come under suspicion for murder. Fiona had dirt on them all. The police flail around, and Annie decides to find the killer.
The always mobbed Canteen, its servicemen headed to war, and the volunteers with cameo appearances by big stars make for a great setting. The story, told by Annie in first person, contains many funny jabs and counter-jabs, astute insights along with foolish notions about who killed Fiona and how. The murder mystery plot proceeds through dead ends and ah-ha moments. While not a page-turner, this is an interesting slice of old Hollywood and its zany people struggling for stardom.
