Mystery Street

Unusual for two reasons: an immigrant detective who ignores race baiting for a shot at his first big case and the use of forensics (then a new science) to solve it. Bar girl Vivian (Sterling) gets the brush-off from her married lover and decides to confront him. She persuades drunken Henry (Thompson) to loan her his car so she can meet the louse. Months later a skeleton turns up on a Cape Cod beach and Portuguese-American detective Peter Morales (Montalban) gets his chance to move up the cop ladder. He enlists the aid of Harvard forensic expert Dr. McAdoo (Bennett) to identity the bones. Then the car turns up, putting foolish Henry (who reported it stolen) in the hot seat. McAdoo insists forensics show Henry is the wrong guy but Morales is skeptical.