Cliffhangers - Republic Pictures & Other Saturday Matinee Serials

AndyLGR

Active member
Montana Smith said:
The title of this one is really intriguing, which is why I still have it on my shortlist. I'm hoping it lives up to the creepy kind of Cthulhu-esque atmosphere that it suggests.
I'm hoping its creepy and atmospheric too.
 

Montana Smith

Active member
I found this site today, which has a lot of helpful reviews, plus a lot of other pages that I haven't delved into yet.

Spy Smasher was great viewing. I'm going through it again now taking screen shots for a review.
 

Montana Smith

Active member
Spy Smasher (1942)

This one looks like a top notch serial, with lots of real locations and well-played action. It was also one that Spielberg watched at the Kiva Theater in Scottsdale as a child, and then again as an adult while researching ROTLA.

As such it's possible to spot numerous elements that made their way into Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Possible character inspirations for Indiana Jones:

Brown leather jacket:

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Shortened Webley-style holster for a Smith & Wesson:

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Germans wearing Heer (Army) unforms, as in ROTLA (and even the villain 'The Mask' is Kriegsmarine and not SS):

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But there is one brutal SS torturer in the Gestapo dungeon:

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A flying wing features:

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Onto which the enemy plan to load a crate:

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But are thwarted:

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Later there’s a fight on the flying wing:

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And eventually, after crashing, it explodes:

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A German U-Boat features prominently:

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And the main character is almost drowned by it:

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A vehicle is quickly concealed behind a façade, as with the Ark truck in Cairo, leaving the pursuer confused:

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There’s also a mine cart scene, which was abandoned for ROTLA:

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And travelling sequences created by superimposing a map over the mode of transport:

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AndyLGR

Active member
I started Haunted Harbor today, I'm only 2 episodes through, not much so far that I think could be linked to an inspiration for Indy.

This version is actually titled Pirates Harbor, so its the 1951 re-release.
 

AndyLGR

Active member
Incidentally Kane Richmond, who played the lead in Spy Smasher, also plays the lead in Haunted Harbor.
 

Montana Smith

Active member
AndyLGR said:
Incidentally Kane Richmond, who played the lead in Spy Smasher, also plays the lead in Haunted Harbor.

I noticed that. The review here wrote:

The cast is perfect, too, there?s not a single dull or inept actor in sight. Kane Richmond is a terrific lead; he?s tough, determined, and resourceful--a typically unsinkable serial hero--but also seems very human and congenial; one can picture him spending time fishing with a few pals or cheerily swapping yarns with other sea captains as naturally as he tangles with gangs of ruthless henchmen.

But it also wrote:

HAUNTED HARBOR receives more adverse criticism than any other Silver Age Republic serial, except CAPTAIN AMERICA. This is probably because the serial introduces a colorful and atmospheric location and a compelling plot device (the hero?s being framed for murder) in its first chapter, only to drop these elements into the background for the remaining 14 chapters in favor of typical Republic fistfights, gunfights, and chases.

So I put this one towards the end of my shortlist when I ordered another bunch of serials yesterday.

Not on the topic of cliffhangers or serials, but closely related, I picked up a disc containing the first seven Johnny Weissmuller Tarzan films (1932-1943) ? and I see that Stoo used some footage from them in his terrific Raiders of the Lost Archives. (I didn?t realize that Jungle Girl's Nyoka, Frances Gifford, was in Tarzan Triumphs).

There?s something of the cliffhanger spirit in Tarzan the Ape Man (1932) ? darkest Africa with its ever present dangers of a wildlife intent on killing men, giant apes (one played by Ray 'Crash' Corrigan, who almost made a career out his ape suit!), and evil pygmies. Once you get past the out-of-place stock footage used early on the film takes quite unusual turns by modern action adventure standards: Tarzan murdering native bearers one by one; Jane hysterical with fear of being raped by Tarzan... It plays like a more adult version of a matinee serial.
 

AndyLGR

Active member
Montana 2 things you mention in your last post have inspired me to mention 2 things I either didn't want to post yet or didnt think belonged in this thread.

Firstly, I'm 5 episodes through haunted harbour and wasn't going to post anything til I watched it all but your quote above mirrors some notes I made whilst watching it so here goes.

1st episode has a Casablanca style feel with the bar, the hero is offered a job on an island where the legend of haunted harbour exists. But before he can leave he is convicted of a murder he didn't commit, without doubt Kane Richmond is the typical hero type, subsequently escapes and makes sale for the island and haunted harbour to find the real murderer.

Episode 2 sees the hero take up his role on the island, but with no adverse reaction from people there who know he is a convicted murderer on the run. This episode veers into western territory with a shoot out on horseback.

3 episodes in and it's just villains of the piece who want to stop him investigating haunted harbor through various traps that fail to work. Funny how after so many attempts on his life that he isn't questioning why.

Episode 3 has a western feel with another shoot out.

Funnily the island setting looks more like an American western setting in CA than a tropical Island.

4 episodes in and the hero realises they don't want him to get to haunted harbor, and we haven't seen the harbor yet!!

Amazing how often in a fight stuff is thrown at each other.

Settings are disappointing, a few palm trees scattered about but it doesn't by any stretch invoke an island feel.

So I'm on to episode 5 and already my initial notes echo that review you quoted. Certainly Kane Richmond is very capable but it definitely seems like a serial by numbers so far.

My second point is something I didn't think belonged in this thread but johnny weismullers Tarzan, basil rathbones Sherlock Holmes and also the Charlie chan movies were all staples of my tv viewing when I was growing up. Surely films of this era are worthy of discussion too.
 

Montana Smith

Active member
AndyLGR said:
Montana 2 things you mention in your last post have inspired me to mention 2 things I either didn't want to post yet or didnt think belonged in this thread.

Firstly, I'm 5 episodes through haunted harbour and wasn't going to post anything til I watched it all but your quote above mirrors some notes I made whilst watching it so here goes.

1st episode has a Casablanca style feel with the bar, the hero is offered a job on an island where the legend of haunted harbour exists. But before he can leave he is convicted of a murder he didn't commit, without doubt Kane Richmond is the typical hero type, subsequently escapes and makes sale for the island and haunted harbour to find the real murderer.

Episode 2 sees the hero take up his role on the island, but with no adverse reaction from people there who know he is a convicted murderer on the run. This episode veers into western territory with a shoot out on horseback.

3 episodes in and it's just villains of the piece who want to stop him investigating haunted harbor through various traps that fail to work. Funny how after so many attempts on his life that he isn't questioning why.

Episode 3 has a western feel with another shoot out.

Funnily the island setting looks more like an American western setting in CA than a tropical Island.

4 episodes in and the hero realises they don't want him to get to haunted harbor, and we haven't seen the harbor yet!!

Amazing how often in a fight stuff is thrown at each other.

Settings are disappointing, a few palm trees scattered about but it doesn't by any stretch invoke an island feel.

So I'm on to episode 5 and already my initial notes echo that review you quoted. Certainly Kane Richmond is very capable but it definitely seems like a serial by numbers so far.

That was what I was beginning to suspect the more I read. The titles are often what sell these serials, as they must have done back with their original release. I spent quite a while going through IMDB to break down the massive list, and then cross-checked what was left with reviews from other sites, and from Stoo's comments, so that in the end I thought I was getting a feel of which serials were worthy contenders.

The California settings are fine for something like Spy Smasher - and this one in particular uses them very well for some great sequences, but they don't stand in very well for exotic locations such as 'Darkest Africa'.

AndyLGR said:
My second point is something I didn't think belonged in this thread but johnny weismullers Tarzan, basil rathbones Sherlock Holmes and also the Charlie chan movies were all staples of my tv viewing when I was growing up. Surely films of this era are worthy of discussion too.

As the films weren't strictly 'Cliffhangers' or 'Other Saturday Matinee Serials' I didn't want to push them here too strongly in case they caused a derail.

I'm finding the big attraction with the serials and films from this era is their atmosphere and period detail. When it comes to some of the animal sequences there is something simultaneously fascinating and disturbing that sets these works apart from modern sensibilities. The same goes for some of the characterizations which are brutally honest to the sensibilities of their day (such as Tarzan drowing an African bearer who had nothing whatsoever to do with the killing of his gorilla friend; or the white hunter shooting dead a bearer who refused to journey onwards out of superstition and fear of a cannibal tribe).

(I bought three DVDs yesterday from a box that was largely made up of pirated copies of modern movies - The Tarzan Collection, a disc with three Charlie Chan films and Frankenstein Meets The Wolf Man).
 

Stoo

Well-known member
AndyLGR said:
I started Haunted Harbor today, I'm only 2 episodes through, not much so far that I think could be linked to an inspiration for Indy.

This version is actually titled Pirates Harbor, so its the 1951 re-release.

Incidentally Kane Richmond, who played the lead in Spy Smasher, also plays the lead in Haunted Harbor.
It also stars Kay Aldridge whom you'll be seeing again as Nyoka when you get around to watching "Perils of Nyoka". Perhaps the only Indy inspiration you can expect from "Haunted Harbor" might be a couple of motorboat chases? So many Republic serials have them and I'd be surprised if it didn't have *at least* one.
AndyLGR said:
Funnily the island setting looks more like an American western setting in CA than a tropical Island.

Settings are disappointing, a few palm trees scattered about but it doesn't by any stretch invoke an island feel.
More often than not, this is usually the case. One obvious culprit is, "Secret Service in Darkest Africa", because it NEVER looks like where it's supposed to take place! (Still a cracking romp, though!) Personally, I've become accustomed to putting those inconsistencies aside when they arrive and just enjoy the action.
Montana Smiff said:
The titles are often what sell these serials, as they must have done back with their original release.
Some titles can also be misleading. For example: "Robinson Crusoe of Clipper Island" doesn't feature a character with the name of Robinson Crusoe and the story bears ZERO relation to the classic tale of its namesake. Why that title was chosen is truly bizarre.:eek:
AndyLGR said:
Amazing how often in a fight stuff is thrown at each other.
I love the throwing of objects during the fights!(y) This reminds me of a comment in another thread where oki9Sedo wrote that the "old-fashioned", jungle fight between Indy & Dovchenko was "in the great tradition of the Republic serials". LIKE HELL IT WAS!:rolleyes: Many of their fight scenes moved around and ended up with a whole room being destroyed since the 2 adversaries grabbed anything & everything to throw at/smash the other guy over the head with (bottles, chairs, crates & whatnot). Tables got broken, shelves were knocked over, etc.
AndyLGR said:
My second point is something I didn't think belonged in this thread but johnny weismullers Tarzan, basil rathbones Sherlock Holmes and also the Charlie chan movies were all staples of my tv viewing when I was growing up. Surely films of this era are worthy of discussion too.
As per discussing the films of Tarzan, Sherlock Holmes and Charlie Chan, it would be prefarable to do so in seperate threads. Tarzan and Charlie don't have their own yet but I know that you, Andy, started a Sherlock one: Sherlock Holmes

However, there are a few Tarzan serials and at least one with Charlie Chan. (I have seen, "The New Adventures of Tarzan", from 1935 but not the rest.) High time for a Tarzan thread!;)
 

Montana Smith

Active member
Stoo said:
However, there are a few Tarzan serials and at least one with Charlie Chan. (I have seen, "The New Adventures of Tarzan", from 1935 but not the rest.) High time for a Tarzan thread!;)

What did you think of The New Adventures of Tarzan, Stoo? The reviews I've read don't seem very praising, though the Guatamalan location sounds good (at least it's not California!)
 
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AndyLGR

Active member
Stoo said:
It also stars Kay Aldridge whom you'll be seeing again as Nyoka when you get around to watching "Perils of Nyoka". Perhaps the only Indy inspiration you can expect from "Haunted Harbor" might be a couple of motorboat chases? So many Republic serials have them and I'd be surprised if it didn't have *at least* one.
I?ve not got to a boat chase yet, one of the characters reminds me of Chattar Lal though.

Stoo said:
I love the throwing of objects during the fights!(y) This reminds me of a comment in another thread where oki9Sedo wrote that the "old-fashioned", jungle fight between Indy & Dovchenko was "in the great tradition of the Republic serials". LIKE HELL IT WAS!:rolleyes: Many of their fight scenes moved around and ended up with a whole room being destroyed since the 2 adversaries grabbed anything & everything to throw at/smash the other guy over the head with (bottles, chairs, crates & whatnot). Tables got broken, shelves were knocked over, etc.
Theres a strange naivety about a lot of the old films and serials that I really like, in how they portray characters, relationships, violence, everything seems so simple. Its like another world. Maybe they didn?t want to convey the hardships of the time that real people were experiencing.

Stoo said:
As per discussing the films of Tarzan, Sherlock Holmes and Charlie Chan, it would be prefarable to do so in seperate threads. Tarzan and Charlie don't have their own yet but I know that you, Andy, started a Sherlock one: Sherlock Holmes
Yes the Sherlock Holmes one started out as a thread dedicated to the 2009 movie and is now encompassing all eras of Holmes. But I aren?t suggesting that this thread gets hijacked with other films of the era, I think they are all deserving of threads of their own. Theres such a rich vein of films from the 30?s to the 50?s like the ones already mentioned, Ealing studios movies, film noirs or the war films of the time.
 

Stoo

Well-known member
AndyLGR said:
I?ve not got to a boat chase yet, one of the characters reminds me of Chattar Lal though.
Not even one motorboat chase yet?:confused: That's surprising for a Republic mystery-adventure. So much for the harbour of "Haunted Harbor"!:eek:
AndyLGR said:
Theres a strange naivety about a lot of the old films and serials that I really like, in how they portray characters, relationships, violence, everything seems so simple. Its like another world. Maybe they didn?t want to convey the hardships of the time that real people were experiencing.
That really depends on the film since some can be more 'realistic' than others. Maybe Stephen Jared would like to elaborate on this aspect? Elements I enjoy from this era of cinema are the absence of foul language and attitudes on display that have become politically incorrect by today's standards. It's also interesting to see which violent and sexual situations made it past censorship back then. Not to mention the wanton smoking & drinking! Fascinating stuff.
AndyLGR said:
Yes the Sherlock Holmes one started out as a thread dedicated to the 2009 movie and is now encompassing all eras of Holmes. But I aren?t suggesting that this thread gets hijacked with other films of the era, I think they are all deserving of threads of their own. Theres such a rich vein of films from the 30?s to the 50?s like the ones already mentioned, Ealing studios movies, film noirs or the war films of the time.
Sadly, there is a large percentage of Raven members who don't seem to care for old flicks and the sheer amount of threads concerning new releases reflect that.:( Topics about pre-1981 films aren't popular and usually don't get any attention at all (with a few exceptions). For example: Do the superhero fans know or even care that there were serials about Batman, Superman and Captain America? Cripes, Batman even had 2 serials!

As an experiment, maybe I'll start a Tarzan thread and see how far it goes. (Which will probably be a road to nowhere...)

@Montana Smiffy: Personal opinion of "New Adventures of Tarzan" coming up. (Been a long while since I'd watched it so another viewing was in order!):)
 

Montana Smith

Active member
Stoo said:
Sadly, there is a large percentage of Raven members who don't seem to care for old flicks and the sheer amount of threads concerning new releases reflect that.:( Topics about pre-1981 films aren't popular and usually don't get any attention at all (with a few exceptions). For example: Do the superhero fans know or even care that there were serials about Batman, Superman and Captain America? Cripes, Batman even had 2 serials!

On that note, I've started watching The Phantom (1943). In it's favour it has more jungle than the usual scubby California!

I've seen five episodes and they don't seem to have the edge of the Republic serials. Or maybe it's just missing the William Witney touch.

There seems to be a theme developing: The Phantom tells his dog, Devil, to "stay". The Phantom goes about his tasks and ends up helpless in the closing minutes of the episode. Devil then arrives to save him. It reminded me of Hong Kong Phooey getting into scrapes which Spot the cat has to extricate him from.

There was one cliffhanger where the use of back projection was so seamless that it was hard to believe that the actor wasn't going to get attacked by a crocodile. And another scene in which a stuntman 'fights' a lion who has its jaws round his arm.

That's another odd thing about this serial. I'm not sure where it's supposed to be set. The lion suggested Africa or India. A character refers to an !alligator" which suggests the Americas. Yet, it might also be in the far east - due to a character called 'Singapore Smith' and the location named 'Sai Pana'. Though the original Phantom was set in Africa, the natives in this one look like a cross between those of South America and south east Asia.

One scene familiar to Indy, and likely to countless other films and serials, was the native porters wanting to run away when they get spooked by their superstition.

And back to Batman, The Phantom looks very much to have been the literary father of Bruce Wayne (with Zorro as the grandfather).

Stoo said:
As an experiment, maybe I'll start a Tarzan thread and see how far it goes. (Which will probably be a road to nowhere...)

@Montana Smiffy: Personal opinion of "New Adventures of Tarzan" coming up. (Been a long while since I'd watched it so another viewing was in order!):)

A new thread is a new resource, even though it might be lonelier than this one!
 
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Stephen Jared

New member
Hello again --

As to AndyLGR's comment on the simplicity, I've no idea of course, but I'd suspect the attempt was only to appeal to kids. The reasons behind the varying levels of sophistication would likely be due to the creative force behind the particular project. I'm sure there were directors doing serials who believed they should have been doing Citizen Kane. They likely tossed off their work as ridiculous and the results of course are not good. On the other hand, some directors maintained a child-like enthusiasm and likely enjoyed making the most exciting little films they could.

When I was real little I loved Speed Racer on TV. One day they stopped airing it, and my recollection is that someone had decided it was too violent for kids. It was violent, and characters -- cartoon characters! -- smoked cigarettes. Today, those details add to the charm.

I think the same holds true of those old serials. They reflect the times. They reflect the raw emotions of the times, unobstructed by efforts to come off as sophisticated or intelligent.

Stoo, I watched The New Adventures of Tarzan. I remember being dazzled by some of the set pieces, but I think I lost interest after 4 or 5 episodes. My recollection is the story wasn't as coherent as I would have liked. I recall feeling bored by the character after a while. Maybe my hopes were too high. If I remember correctly, Burroughs himself offered his approval over that series, while he was disappointed with some of the other efforts with his character. I'm very curious to read your thoughts on it. Maybe I should give it another try.

No one's discussed the music. I have a CD called Cliffhangers that's a great listen. It only has republic serials. Of course some of the music was borrowed. I have The Bride of Frankenstein soundtrack, which includes some of the music from Flash Gordon because Universal lifted it right out of Franz Waxman's Bride of Frankenstein score to be used in Flash. It's great fun music.
 

Montana Smith

Active member
Stephen Jared said:
Hello again --

As to AndyLGR's comment on the simplicity, I've no idea of course, but I'd suspect the attempt was only to appeal to kids. The reasons behind the varying levels of sophistication would likely be due to the creative force behind the particular project. I'm sure there were directors doing serials who believed they should have been doing Citizen Kane. They likely tossed off their work as ridiculous and the results of course are not good. On the other hand, some directors maintained a child-like enthusiasm and likely enjoyed making the most exciting little films they could.

...

I think the same holds true of those old serials. They reflect the times. They reflect the raw emotions of the times, unobstructed by efforts to come off as sophisticated or intelligent.

Having reached the end of The Phantom I'd say this rings true. While the character remains faithful to that created by Lee Falk, the serial as a whole felt flat.

There was never an attempt to place the location as anywhere in particular - so there are alligators, lions and tigers making an appearance. This would appeal to childlike sensibilities, that the location only exists for the action and adventure. It only becomes more confused when The Phantom reaches the land of the evil Tartar chieftain and his idiotic goons.

The episodes also lack variety - no motor transport and no big stunts (apart from the guy 'fighting' the lion.

On the upside there's an archaeological expedition to find a lost city, but it's only seen as a very poor model and then mostly as a series of mine tunnels (which look suspiciously like the scene previously used for the tiger trap).

The Phantom fights a gorilla (couldn't find any evidence that this one was Ray Corrigan again!), and that's always a highlight for me.

Tom Tyler was bulky enough and heroic enough to fill the costume, having been a boxer and champion weight-lifter. According to IMDB he was "Once considered the strongest man in America, he won the national AAU weight-lifting championship in 1928 (he lifted 760 lbs.) and made the 1928 U.S. Olympic team." However, he was being gradually crippled by Rheumatoid arthritis, and would die penniless at age 50 in 1954. Having read that before watching the serial it constantly over-shadowed my thoughts.

Ace the Wonder Dog, who played The Phantom's German Shepherd, Devil, was a scene stealer. When called on to fight he throws himself into the action, in one scene biting a bad guy on the behind which, by the actor's reaction, looked as though it was totally unplanned. When not fighting he'll be running around the fight scene, in between the actors' legs. In quieter moments he's constantly alert, looking around at everything going on.

The dog playing Fang in The Perils of Nyoka was also called Ace, and while IMDB doesn't cross reference him to Ace the Wonder Dog, I've a feeling they are one and the same.

For fans of The Phantom, or of the origins of the masked super-heroes who were soon to make an appearance, this serial is a must as it's the first live-action venture for the character.
 

Stoo

Well-known member
Montana Smith said:
On the upside there's an archaeological expedition to find a lost city, but it's only seen as a very poor model and then mostly as a series of mine tunnels (which look suspiciously like the scene previously used for the tiger trap).
I know "The Phantom" was a Columbia serial but Republic had sets of cave tunnels in sections which could be moved around and assembled to make them look 'different'. These were used over and over again. Columbia might have done the same thing.

As fun as it is to spot the Indy influences I also like to see which sets and footage were re-used. For example: The miniature effects footage of the water tunnel from "Jungle Girl" was seen again 4 years later in "Manhunt on Mystery Island". (At least they used a different cave exit!)

Comparsion_01.jpg


I was going to post this earlier but the previous page was already too image heavy!:p
 

Montana Smith

Active member
Stoo said:
As fun as it is to spot the Indy influences I also like to see which sets and footage were re-used. For example: The miniature effects footage of the water tunnel from "Jungle Girl" was seen again 4 years later in "Manhunt on Mystery Island". (At least they used a different cave exit!)

The re-used footage is of a better quality, too. Manhunt arrived yesterday along with The Phantom, and:

Congo Bill (1948)
Darkest Africa (1936)
Dick Tracy (1937)
Dick Tracy Returns (1938)
Dick Tracy’s G-Men (1939)
Dick Tracy vs Crime Inc. (1941)
Drums of Fu Manchu (1940)
Fighting Devil Dogs (1938)
G-Men vs The Black Dragon (1943)
Jungle Jim (1937)
Jungle Menace (1937)
King of the Mounties (1942)
Secret Service in Darkest Africa (1943)
Mysterious Doctor Satan (1940)


I know that Fighting Devil Dogs re-usued a lot of stock footage, but I read about some new elements that I wanted to see, along with the Vader-ish character of Lightning.

I've started on Mysterious Doctor Satan, and I've got to say that it's up there with Spy Smasher. Some great scenes and locations and a lot of very energetic stuntwork, i.e. stuntmen literally throwing themselves across the set or through windows into basements! The robot is very campy, but perfectly pulpy.

Of the serials I ordered it turns out that fifteen of them had William Witney as a director. And going by numerous reviews, I think there's only another six or seven from the Ebay seller's list that I would be interested in getting:

The Spider’s Web
Adventures of Captain Marvel
Flash Gordon
Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe
Flash Gordon's Trip to Mars
King of the Texas Rangers
Secret Agent X-9
(1945)
 

Stoo

Well-known member
Rant!

Montana Smith said:
A new thread is a new resource, even though it might be lonelier than this one!
Lonely is right, Smiffy. Where are all the people who like to say: "just like in the old serials"?:confused: If had a dollar for everytime someone wrote that, I'd be able to afford my own, private jet! Here at the Raven, the serials get 'name-dropped' quite frequently but are often accompanied by tell-tale signs of ignorance and ZERO familiarity.:rolleyes:

A few examples (members' names withheld by courtesy):
- "lighthearted slapstick humor" during action scenes is "in tune with cliffhanger serials"
- serials depicted "walls shooting arrows"
- a bare-boned fist fight is "in the great tradition of Republic serials"
- drama was a genre of "the actual 30s cliffhanger serials"
- serials had "fedora clad adventurers encountering the ark"! (The most outrageous misconception of them all.:eek:)

Recently, one Ravenhead told another to: "Go back and research serials of the 40s and 50s." That person needs to do their own research because, compared to previous decades, there weren't very many made in the '50s...and they were terrible!

This reminds me of a quote: "The book that everyone claims to have read but none of them have actually read it." (Was it Mark Twain referring to Leo Tolstoy's, "War and Peace", or was it someone else referring to James Joyce's, "Ulysses"? I don't remember. Anyone know this?)

With all this type of talk, why is there essentially only 4 people participating in this topic?:confused: Some folks really should acquaint themselves with the classic serials before (wrongly) referring to them. It's no wonder that those who like to mention the cliffhangers in casual conversation are absent from this thread.(n)
 

Montana Smith

Active member
Stoo said:
Lonely is right, Smiffy. Where are all the people who like to say: "just like in the old serials"?:confused: If had a dollar for everytime someone wrote that, I'd be able to afford my own, private jet! Here at the Raven, the serials get 'name-dropped' quite frequently but are often accompanied by tell-tale signs of ignorance and ZERO familiarity.:rolleyes:

A few examples (members' names withheld by courtesy):
- "lighthearted slapstick humor" during action scenes is "in tune with cliffhanger serials"
- serials depicted "walls shooting arrows"
- a bare-boned fist fight is "in the great tradition of Republic serials"
- drama was a genre of "the actual 30s cliffhanger serials"
- serials had "fedora clad adventurers encountering the ark"! (The most outrageous misconception of them all.:eek:)

Recently, one Ravenhead told another to: "Go back and research serials of the 40s and 50s." That person needs to do their own research because, compared to previous decades, there weren't very many made in the '50s...and they were terrible!

This reminds me of a quote: "The book that everyone claims to have read but none of them have actually read it." (Was it Mark Twain referring to Leo Tolstoy's, "War and Peace", or was it someone else referring to James Joyce's, "Ulysses"? I don't remember. Anyone know this?)

With all this type of talk, why is there essentially only 4 people participating in this topic?:confused: Some folks really should acquaint themselves with the classic serials before (wrongly) referring to them. It's no wonder that those who like to mention the cliffhangers in casual conversation are absent from this thread.(n)

Well, if there is anyone out there considering dipping a toe into serials I would recommend they don't start with Darkest Africa (1936).

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I struggled to the end of this, Republic's first serial, which sold itself as starring Clyde Beatty, the "World's Greatest Animal Trainer" along with Manuel King, the "World's Youngest Animal Trainer".

Beatty was a showman who had an act consisting of going into a cage with lions and tigers, and also of pitting lions against tigers. However, he wasn't much of an actor. And neither were the rest of the cast. Manuel King plays Baru, a podgy junior Tarzan, with his gorilla friend, Bonga, played yet again by Ray Corrigan.

The whole effort is pretty embarrassing, apart from the scenes with the big cats, and especially those with the lion battling the tiger (which are simultaneously fascinating and disturbing).

The miniature model of the lost city of Joba was very well done, and Republic knew it since they gave us the same shots of it over and over again. As with the repeated shots of the Bat-Men of the city flying, or rather gliding, as they were models. Even major scenes, such as Baru fighting off a pride of lions, are repeated in full, yet presented as separate events. At least with the Tarzan movies the big repeated scenes were presented a few years apart, rather than every few weeks (or sometimes even weekly) in Darkest Africa.

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One of the directors was B. Reeves Eason, who was also responsible for The Phantom, which may explain the lack of spark, along with the fact that Republic was just setting out in the serial genre.

Yakima Canutt was allegedly the stunt co-ordinator, but apart from the animal work, which Clyde Beatty was presumably responsible for, nothing really stood out.

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Elaine Shepard, seen here with Clyde Beatty, in her debut on film, provided some welcome eye-candy.


The last episode has a minor Indy-ism. Two bad guys stop to gather green diamonds from the mine at Joba as a volcano is erupting. As with Mac in KOTCS, their greed prevents them from escaping...
 

Attila the Professor

Moderator
Staff member
Stoo said:
A few examples (members' names withheld by courtesy):
- "lighthearted slapstick humor" during action scenes is "in tune with cliffhanger serials"
- serials depicted "walls shooting arrows"
- a bare-boned fist fight is "in the great tradition of Republic serials"
- drama was a genre of "the actual 30s cliffhanger serials"
- serials had "fedora clad adventurers encountering the ark"! (The most outrageous misconception of them all.:eek:)

Your real courtesy is in withholding anything of mine from the list of examples. (Although, I suppose mine is more the reverse: a hesitancy to make any claims that I can't be sure of, being more or less without any concrete knowledge.)

Stoo said:
With all this type of talk, why is there essentially only 4 people participating in this topic?:confused: Some folks really should acquaint themselves with the classic serials before (wrongly) referring to them. It's no wonder that those who like to mention the cliffhangers in casual conversation are absent from this thread.(n)

I'm an active reader, if that counts for anything.

I guess the one preconception I must admit to is that the serials contain a lot of relatively mindless action sequences, which is the sort of thing that bores me unless there's some point of interest - generally character-based - on which to hang my hat. So while I watch things pretty regularly, the serials aren't on my radar too strongly. Perhaps once I'm done with a run of a certain Canadian sketch comedy import in my Netflix disk queue I'll finally give something a shot. (I did see one chapter of Zorro's Fighting Legion, incidentally, a couple of weeks ago on TCM, but they were actually showing it in installments. Otherwise, I likely would have sat down for the whole thing.)
 
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