Serial SERIAL FILMS GENRE : The long line of people waiting, talking excitedly with their friends—the anticipation and sometimes real concern—it’s Saturday and the chores are done, and you’re in line to buy your ticket at the Saturday matinee, waiting to see if your favorite hero survived last week’s cliffhanger. Waiting a whole week to find out what happened in the latest serial film wasn’t easy! Serial films, sometimes called ‘chapter plays’ or simply, ‘serials’, were extra long films broken-down into short segments known as ‘chapters’ or ‘episodes’. Most serials were from twelve to fifteen chapters long, with each chapter running between fifteen and twenty minutes. These chapters were usually shown between two full length movies in theaters, along with newsreels and cartoons. The subjects were often based on pulp fiction magazines. Serials could last in a theater as long as fifteen weeks with one chapter being revealed each week, until the story concluded. Naturally, each episode ends with a dramatic cliffhanger so as to entice the audience to return the next week and see what would become of the hero, heroine and the villain, of course. In the early 1900’s, young people especially liked chapter plays. They would spend a Saturday enjoying a double feature, the latest episode of a serial, newsreels, cartoons and maybe a trip to the concession stand, too. Although many serials were Westerns (the least expensive to film), they could cover the gamut of genres including crime fiction, spy stories, adventures in outer space, jungle adventures, and often comic book or comic strip characters that were popular at that time. Quite often, they were low budget, but there were some that were major productions for their time, such as the “Flash Gordon” serials. Filled with action and adventure, the serial film usually featured a hero encountering an evil villain, fighting the bad guy to save the world or a beautiful damsel in distress. The hero and heroine faced such dangers as being trapped in a burning building, hanging by their fingernails from the edge of a cliff, or being tied up, helplessly watching the fuse on a bundle of dynamite burn while the villain watched smugly a safe distance away. Almost always the villain had a gang of henchmen to help in his evil plots against the hero. Many serials followed a fairly predictable pattern. The characters included an attractive, honest hero and/or heroine whose courage in the face of seemingly unbeatable odds would amaze audiences. Their goal was usually selfless—they weren’t looking for profit, but simply to help people and right the wrongs in the world. The heroes were almost always outnumbered, but many were lucky enough to have a faithful sidekick who was always there to lend a hand in their fight for justice. Of course, to make a good story there had to be villains for the heroes to battle. One of the features of some serial films was the suspense in not knowing exactly who the bad guy was—there were usually a few suspects offered and the audience would cast suspicious glances at each new character introduced. It seems that villains usually come in groups, too. The main villain, the mastermind of the evil plot, was portrayed as the ‘brains of the outfit’, and could be taken for a businessman or just another average citizen. He was usually paired with another character, the tough guy, who followed the mastermind’s orders. He was generally not as sophisticated as the ‘boss’, being the ‘muscle’ in the scheme, and spent his time finding ways to try to kill the hero by whatever method he could. The primary bad guy seemed to always have a gang of thugs ready and willing to do his bidding, increasing the odds against the good guy. Production of serial films began almost as soon as the movie industry was born. The earliest serials were silent films, with the twelve chapter “What Happened to Mary?” (1912) starring Mary Fuller, being credited as the first American serial. Interestingly, the earliest serials starred female leads or heroines more often than not. Probably the first serial that comes to mind for most people is “The Perils of Pauline” from 1914, starring Pearl White, with the scene of Pauline tied to the railroad trestle as a speeding train approaches in one of the twenty episodes. Hundreds of serial films were made during the silent era, from various genres. There was 1916’s “The Crimson Stain Mystery” starring Maurice Costello, a sixteen episode horror film; 1924’s fifteen episode Western “Riders of the Plains” starring Jack Perrin and Marilyn Mills; and 1925’s ten chapter “The Green Archer” with Allene Ray and Walter Miller. By the 1930’s studios began making serial ‘talkies’. Popular serials of the time include “The Lightning Express” of 1930, a ten chapter Western serial starring Lane Chandler, Louise Lorraine, and Al Ferguson. Jungle themed serials were also very popular, like 1931’s “King of the Wild” in twelve chapters, starring Walter Miller, Nora Lane, and Boris Karloff. The period between 1936 and 1945 are considered by many to be the ‘Golden Age of Serials’. Although there were fewer independent studios remaining, due to the cost of converting to sound technology, the larger studios continued to make serial films in quantity. One of the serials audiences were enjoying at the time was “The Vigilantes are Coming”, a twelve chapter film starring Guinn ‘Big Boy’ Williams, Raymond Hatton, and Robert Livingston as the masked character ‘The Eagle’. Also by that time studios had begun to film serials based on characters from the comics, such as “Flash Gordon” in 1936 starring Buster Crabbe and Jean Rogers in thirteen episodes and “Dick Tracy” in 1937 in fifteen chapters, starring Ralph Byrd, Kay Hughes, and Smiley Burnette. More and more comic heroes appeared throughout the 1940’s, including “Adventures of Captain Marvel” (1941) starring Tom Tyler, a twelve chapter serial, and “Superman” (1948) with Kirk Alyn as Superman, a fifteen episode serial. Sadly, by the end of the 1940’s, the era of the serial film was fading. By that time audiences were tiring of serials, studios were struggling with production costs, and with the advent of television people no longer needed to leave their homes to watch weekly programs. Some of the last serials made were “Adventures of Captain Africa” in 1955, in fifteen chapters and starring Rick Vallin and John Hart; and “Perils of the Wilderness” in 1956, in fifteen chapters and starring Dennis Moore, Richard Emory, and Eve Anderson. Between 1914 and 1917 Kalem Company released “The Hazards of Helen”, an American adventure serial. The serial is a record-breaker in that it consists of 119 episodes, for a total length of nearly 24 hours, although some argue that it should be considered a series rather than a serial. The first forty-eight episodes were directed by J. P. McGowan and the balance by James Davis. Helen Holmes played the title character for the first forty-eight episodes and Helen Gibson (Hoot Gibson’s wife) for the majority of the rest. The film revolves around the story of a quick-witted, independent female heroine named Helen and the dangers she faces as she fights train robbers and other villains. In 1917 Pathé Exchange released “The Mystery of the Double Cross” as a fifteen episode silent action serial. The film was directed by Louis J. Gasnier and William Parke. Peter Hale (Leon Bary) is traveling via steamship, returning home to America to claim his inheritance. He is warned by telegram to ‘beware the Double Cross’. His father has made it a condition of his inheritance that he must marry a woman who has been selected for him. In the meantime, he overhears a plot to steal oil-rich land from a friend of his father’s, and makes an enemy of Bridgely Bentley (Ralph Stuart) when Hale foils his plan. Complications ensue as Peter Hale woos the woman he believes is the ‘right one’. “The Golden Stallion”, directed by Harry S. Webb and released by Mascot Pictures Corporation in 1927 is a 10 episode Western film serial. Starring Maurice Bennett Flynn, Joe Bonomo, and Ann Small, the story involves the trials and tribulations faced by the characters as they search for a lost gold mine. The secret to the gold mine is connected to a secret which is branded onto the neck of a horse named White Fury. In 1929 Mascot Pictures Corporation released “The King of the Kongo”, credited as being the first serial to have sound. The ten chapter serial was directed by Richard Thorpe. Diana Martin (Jacqueline Logan) is a young woman searching for her missing father in the jungle. At the same time, Secret Service Agent Larry Trent (Walter Miller) is searching for his lost brother. Their search is complicated by ivory smugglers and by a giant gorilla (Joe Bonomo) that is guarding the temple, the smugglers’ den. Boris Karloff also had a featured role in this serial. The twelve chapter “The Indians are Coming” was directed by Henry MacRae and distributed by Universal Pictures in 1930 and is the first all-talking serial film. The serial stars Tim McCoy as Jack Manning, Allene Ray as Mary Woods, Francis Ford in the dual roles of George Woods and Tom Woods, and Wilbur McGaugh as Rance Carter. The film relates the story of gold that George Woods discovered and sent to his brother, Tom, which is in turn stolen. Jack and Mary set out with a wagon trail to track down the gold and Mary’s father, encountering trouble from bad guy Rance, prairie fires, Indian attacks, kidnapping and explosions. Directed by Armand Schaeffer and Colbert Clark, Mascot Pictures released “The Three Musketeers” in 1933. The twelve chapter adventure serial was based on Alexandre Dumas novel of the same name, but updated to a more contemporary setting for the serial and set in North Africa. The Musketeers are legionnaires in the French Foreign Legion and are played by Jack Mulhall as Clancy, Raymond Hatton as Renard, and Francis X. Bushman, Jr. as Schmidt. John Wayne plays Lt. Tom Wayne, an American aviator (the D’Artagnan character). After rescuing the three legionnaires from Arab attack in the desert, they in turn help Lt. Wayne as he searches for the murderer of his fiancés brother. “The New Adventures of Tarzan” is a 1935 film serial in twelve chapters, directed by Edward Kull and Wilbur F. McGaugh and released by Burroughs-Tarzan Enterprises, Inc. Tarzan (Herman Brix) leaves Africa to go to Guatemala to rescue his friend whose plane has crashed in the jungle there. At the same time, Ula Vale (Ula Holt) is in Guatemala searching for the Green Goddess, and so is Major Francis Martling (Frank Baker), on an expedition searching for the same treasure. These three characters must soon team up and fight the life-threatening conditions of the jungle, the natives, and P. B. Raglan (Ashton Dearholt), a villain who has been sent to steal the Green Goddess. In 1949 “Ghost of Zorro” was released by Republic Pictures. The twelve chapter serial was directed by Fred C. Bannon. Construction on telegraph lines is being done to bring communications West in 1865, and George Crane (Eugene Roth) wants none of it. He wants to keep his territory free from as much law and order as he can. Ken Mason (Clayton Moore), the grandson of Zorro, is the engineer on the construction project. Each time Crane sends his henchmen or Indians to sabotage the construction, Ken Mason must don the mask of Zorro and ride to the rescue. Other Zorro serials included “Zorro Rides Again” in 1937, “Zorro’s Fighting Legion” in 1939, and “Son of Zorro” in 1947. “Blackhawk” is a fifteen episode aviation adventure serial, based on the comic book of the same name. The serial film is directed by Spencer Gordon Bennet and Fred F. Sears and released by Columbia Pictures in 1952. Seven pilots fighting the Nazis during World War II have stayed together after the war, dedicated to protecting America and fighting evil. This group of pilots, and its head, are known as Blackhawk (Kirk Alyn). The Blackhawks have learned of a plot by ‘The Leader’ (Michael Fox) to use his foreign agent Laska (Carol Forman) to steal the formula for a super-fuel called ‘Element-X’. The Blackhawks encounter harrowing car chases, exploding warehouses and plane crashes as they battle to save the world for democracy. The last serial produced by a major studio, “Blazing the Overland Trail” is a fifteen chapter serial directed by Spencer Gordon Bennet and released by Columbia Pictures in 1956. Rance Devlin (Don C. Harvey) and his gang, known as the Black Raiders, means to establish an empire in the West, using whatever means necessary. Army Scout Tom Bridger (Lee Roberts) intends to stop him from terrorizing the frontier, assisted by Pony Express relay station manager Ed Marr (Dennis Moore) and Cavalry Captain Frank Carter (Gregg Barton). In their attempts to preserve law and order Bridger and his pals must battle hostile Indians and the Black Raiders. - See more at: matineeclassics/genres/movies/serial/details/#sthash.b0Ntaa12.dpuf
Posted on: Fri, 18 Oct 2013 23:24:52 +0000
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