It's good to see this movie is now available on an excellent Warner Brothers DVD entitled "Karloff & Lugosi Horror Classics". (The other titles in this four DVD set are The Walking Dead, Frankenstein 1970, and Zombies on Broadway). Mind you, it's not as entertaining on a third viewing as it is on a first or second – but what movie is? The surprises here are not only in Director David Butler's whodunit itself (when it finally gets going after a very long introductory sequence delightfully showcasing Kay Kyser and his band and his fabulous vocalists, Ginny Sims and Harry Babbitt) and the twists in the plot but in some of the characterizations. The talented Mervyn Bogue, for instance, who was actually the manager of the Kay Kyser Band in real life, is just a drag when he runs through his routines on a third viewing. Also, one is more horrified than amused in runthrough number three by Kay Kyser presenting himself as a first- class jerk and fraidy cat. On the other hand, nothing can dim Karloff, Lugosi, and especially Lorre who really comes to the fore when his two competitors are starting to lose their first and second times' charisma. And whatever happened to the lovely Helen Parrish? Ah, she went into TV as early as 1946 and died, alas, from cancer at the age of 35 in 1958.

Classic horror film fans will salivate at the thought of seeing Bela Lugosi, Boris Karloff, and Peter Lorre all at their devilish best in any film even if it's not a horror film per se. But the star of this film was noted band-leader and radio personality Kay Kyser who back in 1940 was enormously popular for his music and his Spike Jones lite type of orchestra comedy.You'll Find Out features Kay and the boys hired to play at a party that their manager Dennis O'Keefe has arranged for his girlfriend Helen Parrish. She's an heiress whose money is held in trust by her aunt Alma Kruger. But Kruger is in the thrall of fake swami Bela Lugosi who's got a séance also planned for the evening. Also in attendance in addition to Parrish's girlfriends are Boris Karloff as the family attorney and Peter Lorre as a psychologist hired to expose Lugosi as a fake.If you liked as I do Abbott&Costello Meet Frankenstein than you should like this film as well. In fact Bud and Lou also did Hold That Ghost which is even more similar to this film. But it's a double treat if you like the music of the era as I did.Kay Kyser's orchestra also featured singers Harry Babbitt and Ginny Simms who introduce I'd Know You Anywhere which gained for You'll Find Out an Oscar nomination. Kyser himself was good as both comedian and musician.Even though it's a comedy and not a Gothic horror film one should never pass up seeing Karloff, Lugosi, and Lorre in the same film.

I knew my summary would get you. How is this movie like a Pet Rock and Disco?! Well, unless you lived through the 1970s or 80s, you probably can't understand WHY anyone would like a New Coke or own a Pet Rock (and frankly, at least in the case of Pet Rocks, I STILL don't understand it completely). They're just a couple things that seemed to make sense at the time but really baffle the younger generation. The same can be said for Kay Kyser and his band. At the time (the 1940s mostly), they were very popular and had enough clout that the studio starred them with Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi AND Peter Lorre in this film. Yet, if you didn't live at that time (it was well before my time), you wonder why anyone liked this sort of "entertainment". After all, Kyser and his band mates are incredibly obnoxious and their humor is very, very broad (i.e., unsophisticated and cheesy). Frankly, I couldn't stand their antics nor did I appreciate that there were just too many musical numbers in the film. Because of these factors, the great supporting cast was given a back seat and fans of these actors will probably be disappointed.The film involves Kyser and the band coming to a mansion where a young lady and her wacky aunt live. Once there, the bridge is washed out and strange happenings begin. Eventually, it culminates in some attempts on Sally's life and a séance (of sorts). It's all played for laughs--and it's really not a horror movie despite the cast.Overall, it's passable entertainment at best. As a Lugosi and Karloff fan, I sure felt cheated having to watch Kyser and his knuckleheads.

This may seem like slight entertainment, and of course it is. But I am recommending it as must viewing until I find an earlier example with this structure.The setup is simple enough: it is explicitly a self-aware movie. In fact Kyser comes on at the end and assures the audience that Lorre, Karloff and Lugosi aren't really murders. Within that are several performances of the band, performances I assume are similar to what they did in non-movie-land. Two performances. Added to that in a clever way is a third. For this you need some background.From about 1880 to 1910, many North Americans were spiritualists. Yes, about as many as today call themselves evangelists, the movement that displaced spiritualism. The rapidity of the change is breathtaking in a sociological context and interesting in itself. By the thirties, the "next" generation was making serious fun of spiritualism, usually in terms of uncovering a fake séance.I've found several earlier fake séance movies, but they are all in the context of detective movies. That's another story all together. Superficially, they look like the fakery in this movie: a secret room, microphones, special effects, gullible participants holding hands. But this is the first I think that references it as a performance. A lot flows from that tipping point on both sides: movies and the religious show.Three layered performances, here.Ted's Evaluation -- 3 of 3: Worth watching.