Lora Blair, a movie star of the fifties and sixties, is pulled out of retirement to star in a Broadway musical. The show is stressful and Lora is soon in conflict with fellow cast members. When Lora disappears, it is quickly assumed, because of a mysterious limousine, she was kidnapped. Elena Dupree, an old friend and famous gossip columnist, sets out to find Lora. Elena is an ideal sleuth because she has entre everywhere and she knows where the bodies are buried, so to speak. The police are reluctant to get involved because it's not a crime to disappear. However, when a burned body is found, the media goes wild, assuming it is Lora Blair. It's not, of course, which Elena tries to tell them. It's the housekeeper. Lora's understudy is murdered shortly afterward. Elena concludes there is an incompetent murderer on the loose. She knows he is also looking for Lora Blair, so it becomes a race to find her. The police figure Lora is a victim of a motorcycle gang on Long Island. They set up an elaborate undercover operation. The undercover officer's identity is blown, setting off a speedboat chase in Long Island Sound. Elena is masterful at locating Lora Blair, but doesn't have a clue to the murderer's identity; that is, until they all converge, along with the Long Island undercover entourage, in one massive confrontation. All loose ends are tied up.