MGM released a series of twenty-one two-reelers from 1935 to 1945 under the general heading of "Crime Does Not Pay." These were well made shorts that promoted respect for the law and gave publicity to such government law enforcement agencies as the FBI. Not merely propaganda or indoctrination, these two-reelers were entertaining short stories featuring many of the best character actors of the day, well-written, well-directed, and well-acted.
"Purity Squad" was one of the last in the series spotlighting the efforts of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to protect the consumer from bad medicine, in this case a pill, Diabulin, for type 2 diabetes that would replace the need for insulin injections. Ironically, sixty years later the drug community has actually created such a pill, Metaglidasen, now waiting for the approval of today's FDA. This film shows a much weaker FDA in 1945, largely dependent on state cooperation for approval or disapproval.
The story written by Charles F. Royal, who specialized in scripts for action B westerns, tells of a pair of con artists who take advantage of a discredited chemist to concoct a pill for type 2 diabetes. The two shysters also plant a janitor in the lab at the state capital to make sure the results on the test rabbits are positive by switching hares when needed. The FDA lab in Washington, D.C., runs its own tests which come up negative. Investigators are sent to the office of the state attorney general to find out what is happening to cause the two test results to be different. In the meantime diabetes patients who are taking Diabulin begin dying in alarming numbers.
I've seen most of the films in the "Crime Does Not Pay" series, which also led to a popular radio show at the time. None is boring. All, including "Purity Squad," are exciting and informative.