The Unknown Guest

Production

Philip Yordan had written a script for the King Brothers, Dillinger which was too expensive to produce. They suggested he write something less expensive. Yordan took a course in budgeting from production manager George Moskov. Yordan later recalled:

Moskov’s advice was to avoid a gangster film. Action and gunfire was costly. He suggested a suspense melodrama with one set. I dreamed up an imitation Hitchcock idea, all taking place in a roadhouse closed for the winter. Frank King liked the script, especially the low cost with very few extras. He couldn’t pay more than the minimum and had to cajole and flatter the actors to get them. The brothers managed to get Victor Jory and Pamela Drake for almost nothing.

Reception

The film was the first movie from Monogram to screen at Grauman's Chinese Theatre.