The old lady stole every scene

Yeah, Ruth Donelly was terrific as Marth, the diner owner.

But, does the OP mean Grayce Mills, who played the old lady who lived in the basement apartment of Kenneth Paine's building (imdb says she was his landlady)? She blew me away, too, albeit more quietly. I found her ultimately very moving in this film, a beautiful little window into the loneliness so many face in older age.

One of the great pleasures of loving older films is the constant discovery of wonderful character actors who played small, often uncredited, supporting roles -- and noir and crime films in general seemed to be particularly blessed with characters and actors like these.

It's a shame that Don Appell, who played small-timer Willie Bender, didn't get a screen credit here; he was another of the film's knockouts.

Matthew