Fearless detective Dick Tracy meets his match when he tangles with Gruesome, the cold-blooded killer with the hideous face. Portrayed by the legendary horror star Boris Karloff, Gruesome gets Tracy's attention when he begins robbing banks with the aid of a mysterious gas. Ralph Byrd is cast as the square-jawed, two-fisted Tracy, and Anne Gwynn is on hand as the always loyal Tess Truehart. Upon its 1947 release, Variety called this film "...a chiller diller," and added, "Karloff, per usual, (steals) every scene in which he appears."