PULP HEROES IN THE MOVIES

Victor Jory as the Shadow

PULP HEROES IN THE MOVIES.

Pulp magazines were called such because of the cheap paper they were printed on, and these digest-sized publications featured such heroes as The Shadow, Doc Savage, The Spider, The Black Bat, and several others in snappy, fast-paced, and often violent novels. Many of these characters influenced the comic book super-heroes who came later, such as Batman and Superman (for whom Doc Savage was a major influence). The Shadow and the Spider were take-no-prisoners vigilantes, with the Spider, in particular, always leaving behind a very high body count of bad guys with no benefit of trial or council -- still, they were generally trying to kill him at the time, and he ultimately saved many more lives than he took.

The three pulp heroes covered this week on Great Old Movies -- Shadow, Spider, and Doc Savage -- have endured far beyond the life of the pulp magazines whose adventures they graced. Over the decades since the thirties there have been radio shows, TV shows, cliffhanger serials, comic books, and theatrical movies devoted to the characters, and the original pulp novels have all been reprinted in paperback -- from such major publishers as Bantam Books and various smaller presses -- innumerable times. You can still thrill to the adventures of Doc Savage and his band of scientific and heroic assistants; the Spider with his blazing guns and truly fiendish antagonists; and the Shadow, who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men and does his best to stamp it out. Generally the film versions of these stories can't compare to the original books, but some manage to come close.

NOTE: Shadow movies that have already been reviewed on this blog include The Shadow Strikes and The Invisible Avenger. 

GAS HOUSE KIDS GO WEST

Those Wild and Crazy Gas House Kids!

GAS HOUSE KIDS GO WEST (1947). Director: William Beaudine.

The Gas House kids are invited to spend some time at a California ranch by its owner, Mrs. Crowley (Lela Bliss). The boys arrange to drive a used car cross country with friendly police sergeant Casey (Emory Parnell of Safari Drums) in tow, but they are all unaware that the auto is hot. In a coincidence that can only happen in the movies, or in old Hardy Boys books, the stolen car gang is operating in the very town where Mrs. Crowley's ranch is located. The head of the gang is Jim Kinsgley (William Wright), who is engaged to Mrs. Crowley's daughter, Nan (Chili Williams), who has strange taste in men, With the help of Casey, who is in love with Mrs. Crowley, the boys cook up a scheme to trap the gang. Gas House Kids Go West is another entry in this short-lived imitation of the Eastside Kids/Bowery Boys, and it is amiable but dull. The boys are Alfie (Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer); Chimp (Tommy Bond); Orvie (Benny Bartlett); Scat (Rudy Wissler); and Roy Dolciame as Corky. Switzer gets to sing an off-key version of "West of the Pacos" and accidentally kisses Tommy Bond instead of Nan at the climax. Wissler, who actually had a fine voice, is not given a number. Vince Barnett [Drums of Africa] is notable and amusing as Steve, the man out west who receives the stolen car and hides it in the Crowley barn. Followed by The Gas House Kids in Hollywood, the third and final film in the series. Chili Williams was a pin-up queen and competent actress who managed to amass twenty credits,

Verdict: Take some pepto bismol and don't call me in the morning. **.

THE SAINT'S GIRL FRIDAY

THE SAINT'S GIRL FRIDAY (1953). Director: Seymour Friedman.

"I have a hobby of reforming burglars." 

Simon Templar, famously known as the Saint (Louis Hayward), returns to London from New York and learns that a woman he cared for, Julie (uncredited), has died in an accident, plunging her car off a bridge during a high-speed chase. Templar discovers that Julie had somehow gotten involved with a gang of gamblers who blackmailed people into working for them and conveniently resorted to murder for their ends. As Templar investigates -- to the chagrin of friendly adversary Chief Inspector Teal (Charles Victor) -- he encounters a woman named Carol (Naomi Chance of Wings of Danger) and a flirtatious hostess named Kate (Jane Carr), one or both of whom may be working for the mysterious boss of the gang. Templar also has a brief dalliance with a sluttish blonde acquaintance of the chief, an unnamed woman played by Diana Dors (who briefly livens up the picture but not enough to do it much good). William Russell, Fred Johnson and Sam Kydd also have supporting roles in this uninspired late Saint adventure that barely has any suspense or excitement. Hayward is fine as Templar and the other actors are all good.

Verdict: Distinctly minor fifties entry in the shady sleuth sub-genre. **.

DEVIL GODDESS

Billy Griffith

DEVIL  GODDESS (1955). Director: Spencer Gordon Bennett.

In the last of the "Jungle Jim" movies -- or the last non-JJ movie, since star Johnny Weissmuller plays himself and not Jungle Jim, more or less -- our hero encounters Nora (Angela Stevens) who is accompanying her father, Professor Carl Blakely (Selmer Jackson) on a search for the missing Professor Dixon (Billy Griffith). Turns out Dixon has gone a little crazy and become the strange Fire God of the Mountain, but he is actually on a mission to get a tribe to give up the practice of human sacrifice. Sarabina (Vera Francis) is to be one of the sacrifices, and her lover Teinusi (Abel Fernandez) gets Johnny to help him save the gal. The natives are especially restless and the mountain is about to blow its top. Naturally there are bad white guys looking for treasure. One sequence is lifted straight from Savage Mutiny, the Jungle Jim feature which also starred Angela Stevens. The exciting fight between Weissmuller and a gorilla on a rope bridge was taken from Pygmy Island. The best scene in this has chimp Kimba and his simian buddies getting drunk! After this Weissmuller did Jungle Jim, the TV series, which lasted one season and twenty-six episodes. There is no actual "Devil Goddess" in the picture.

Verdict: Barely acceptable jungle adventure with familiar elements. **.

JUNGLE MOON MEN

Helene Stanton as High Priestess Oma

JUNGLE MOON MEN  (1955). Director: Charles S. Gould.

In this "Johnny Weissmuller" (formerly Jungle Jim) adventure, Johnny (Weissmuller, of course) encounters a lady anthropologist named Ellen (Jean Byron) and her boyfriend, Bob (William Henry of The Thin Man). Naturally there are bad guys afoot, personified by Myron  Healey as Mark Santo, leader of a group of men who are after some diamonds. Good guys and bad guys alike come afoul of a tribe of midget "moon men" (presumably they worship the moon) armed with poisonous blow darts. It develops that these moon men are the subjects of one Oma, (Helene Stanton), their beautiful High Priestess, who lives in a cavern with a not-so-hidden entrance -- along with diamonds and a host of ravenous lions. In the movie's best scene, Oma has virtually all of the characters tied up and left in a chamber where lions are going to be released to feed upon them. The cute chimp Kimba sort of comes to their rescue. Like something out of Lost Horizon, Oma is apparently centuries old and comes to an expected end. Helene Stanton's talent (aside from her sex appeal) is obvious even in this cheapie, and that same year she was seen to better advantage in the excellent Cornel Wilde thriller The Big Combo. Unfortunately, her movie career only lasted two more years. Unlike in the previous non-Jungle Jim film, Weissmuller's last name is used more than once.

Verdict: A variety of elements thrown together to make a fairly entertaining jungle "epic." **1/2.

THOSE B MOVIE SERIES FROM BOSTON BLACKIE TO THE WHISTLER

Chester Morris as Boston Blackie

This week GREAT OLD MOVIES looks at those venerable B movie series from the golden age of Hollywood (and elsewhere). I define a "B" movie as one that generally has a running time of between fifty to eighty minutes, and a B movie series as a group of films featuring the same character. Most of these films played on the bottom half of a double-bill, or two were lumped together for an afternoon at the movies. There have been a lot of movie series from different studios -- MGM, 20th Century-Fox and Columbia down to the "poverty row" studios like Monogram and PRC. Among the more famous series were *Andy Hardy, Henry Aldrich, The Jones Family, and on the thriller side of the spectrum, Charlie Chan, Sherlock Holmes, The Falcon, Mr. Wong, Inner Sanctum, Michael Shayne (with Lloyd Nolan and then Hugh Beaumont), and others. (All of the classic Chan and Holmes movies -- the very best of the mystery movie series -- have been reviewed on this blog and you can find them by using the search bar on the top left corner.)

Among the series we're looking at this week are Boston Blackie; the similar Lone Wolf series; Jungle Jim/Johnny Weissmuller; Philo Vance; Mr. Moto; and the Whistler, not to mention Dr. Mabuse from Germany. Philo Vance started out as a top-drawer series starring William Powell, but degenerated into a cheaper series for PRC. The Whistler movies all starred Richard Dix in a variety of roles and were based on the old radio program. Boston Blackie and the Lone Wolf starred, respectively, Chester Morris and Warren William, but later entries, not really a part of the main series, starred other actors. Dr. Mabuse began life in a series of films by Fritz Lang, dating back to the silent period, but these, too, degenerated into ersatz spy movies by the sixties. Johnny Weissmuller played Jungle Jim in a slew of features (and later a TV series) until the studio temporarily lost the rights to the character and he simply played himself in the last four films in the series.

Many of these movies employed the same elements: gun-toting femme fatales; hoods with grudges; and most ubiquitous, police detectives who were always at odds with the (anti) heroes, thinking they were really crooks underneath no matter how many genuine bad guys they helped put away. As well, the cops were always much dumber than the heroes. A lot of directors who became famous later on, such as William Castle, cut their teeth on these "B" movies. Sometimes the choice of sidekick was key in making an entertaining series. For instance, for my money Eric Blore as the Lone Wolf's "Jamison" is far superior to George E. Stone's "Runt" in the Boston Blackie series.

* Of course the Andy Hardy movies were "A" movies aside from the very last.

THE LONE WOLF MEETS A LADY

Warren William as Michael Lanyard, the Lone Wolf

THE LONE WOLF MEETS A LADY (1940). Director: Sidney Salkow.

"Jamison! Open the window -- and air the room!"

Joan Bradley (Jean Muir) is all set to marry wealthy Bob Penyon (Warren Hull), when her future mother-in-law (Georgia Caine) lends her an expensive diamond necklace. At her apartment Joan is confronted by an old acquaintance who demands the necklace before being promptly shot by an unseen figure; the necklace disappears. Before long Michael Lanyard, aka the Lone Wolf (Warren William), is involved in the case even as Inspector Crane (Thurston Hall), who loves rare plants, is on the trail of both Lanyard and Joan. The Lone Wolf Meets a Lady is distinguished primarily by the acting, with William, as usual, doing splendidly as the title character. Jean Muir [And One Was Beautiful] is on the money as Joan; Hall makes a terrific inspector; Fred Kelsey is funny as the bumbling cop, Dickens; Victor Jory [Manfish] scores as a sleazy "associate" of Lanyard's; and Eric Blore [Swiss Miss] nearly steals the picture as Jamison, Lanyard's butler and aide. The screenplay isn't terrible, with good dialogue, but The Lone Wolf Meets a Lady is no great shakes as a mystery. Not to be confused with The Lone Wolf and His Lady.

Verdict: Modestly entertaining with some very good performances. **1/2.

THE CHANCE OF A LIFETIME

Chester Morris and George E. Stone as Boston and "Runt"

THE CHANCE OF A LIFETIME (1943). Director: William Castle.

"You've seen too many bad movies, Boston." -- Nails Blanton.

Ex-con and adventurer Boston Blackie (Chester Morris of Red-Headed Woman) importunes the prison board to release several men -- none of whom are what he terms "habitual criminals" -- so they can aid the war effort. Twelve of these test cases get jobs in a factory owned by Arthur Manleder (Lloyd Corrigan) and move in to Boston's apparently spacious apartment. Unfortunately, one of these men, Dooley Watson (Erik Rolf), is allowed to see his wife and child and uses the opportunity to try to get some money he stole years before. Also covetous of the money is Nails Blanton (Douglas Fowley of Behind Locked Doors), leading to a gun battle and Boston being accused of murder. Naturally Boston escapes from Inspector Farraday (Richard Lane) -- there's a good scene when he and his sidekick, the Runt (George E. Stone). descend in a dumb waiter as part of their getaway -- and later the two dress in drag to take the place of two inebriated scrub women (one of whom is Maude Eburne) to get at a safe in police HQ. An unusual feature of the flick is that aside from Dooley Watson's wife (Jeanne Bates of The Phantom) and Nail's briefly-seen, unnamed moll, there are no women in the film for Boston to dally with. Corpulent Cy Kendall, also briefly-seen, shows up as a character appropriately named Jumbo. The Chance of a Lifetime has an interesting premise but the film itself is tedious. As everything is spelled out for you in TV episode fashion, this has no surprises and hence little suspense.

Verdict: Sometimes the Boston Blackie movies work; sometime not. **.

ONE MYSTERIOUS NIGHT

Richard Lane as Inspector Farraday

ONE MYSTERIOUS NIGHT (1944). Director: Budd Boetticher.

When the famous Blue Star of the Nile diamond is stolen, Boston Blackie (Chester Morris) becomes a suspect. In an unexpected development considering their past relationship, Inspector Farraday (Richard Lane) deputizes Boston because he thinks he can solve the crime. He even says " From now on, no matter what happens, I'll never misjudge you again." Unfortunately, this is the only unusual or interesting thing that happens in the movie, which is saved primarily by the acting. Morris [Pursuit]  makes an excellent Blackie, and does a few impersonations, and the supporting cast includes Janis Carter [Slightly French] as reporter Dorothy Anderson; Mark Roberts (aka Robert E. Scott) as store employee George Daley; an utterly unrecognizable Dorothy Malone (in her brunette phase) as George's sister, Eileen; and William Wright, who would later play the Lone Wolf in one picture, as bad guy Paul Martens. The best performances seem to come from bit players: (Ms.) Early Cantrell as a switchboard operator; Anne Loos as a newsstand clerk; and Minerva Urecal [Gobs and Gals] as a clerk at a women's hotel. There's a quick laugh involving a Murphy bed in which Boston and the Runt (George E. Stone) are secreted. Like many of these programmers, this one has no real suspense or surprises.

Verdict: Not nearly "mysterious" enough. **.

MYSTERIOUS INTRUDER

MYSTERIOUS INTRUDER (1946). Director: William Castle.

Elderly Edward Stillwell (Paul E. Burns of The Royal Mounted Rides Again) hires private detective Don Gale (Richard Dix) to find a woman, Elora Lund, that he hasn't seen in several years. Gale is a somewhat shady character, and he has a lady friend, Freda (Helen Mowery), pretend to be Elora so he can get the skinny on just why Stillwell is trying to find the dame. Then the real Elora (Pamela Blake of Highway 13) shows up and Dale keeps tripping over corpses. Seems Elora was left some valuable items that may be worth a fortune ... Mysterious Intruder is one of the movies in the Whistler series, and it is narrated by that unseen character from radio, voiced by Otto Forrest. Dix is fine as the hero, and there are good supporting performances from Mowery; Blake; Nina Vale as Dale's secretary, Joan; Charles Lane and Barton MacLane as cops; Regis Toomey as an apartment manager; and especially Kathleen Howard [First Love] in a flavorful turn as a landlady who looks after Gale's clients when he needs a place to park them. Mysterious Intruder has a good and downbeat ending, but it's still a very minor mystery film. This was the fifth entry in the Columbia series.

Verdict: Some days a guy just doesn't get a break. **.  

PHILO VANCE RETURNS

cop vs private eye: Eddie Dunn and William Wright

PHILO VANCE RETURNS (1947). Director: William Beaudine. 

"Mrs. Simns is a neurotic -- an advanced case."

Larry Blendon (Damian O'Flynn) has already had four wives and a girlfriend, but he is smitten again when he meets singer Virginia Berneaux (Ramsay Ames). Unfortunately, Virginia is shot to death not long after being introduced to Larry's grandmother, Stella (Clara Blandick), then Larry himself is found dead. Larry's friend, detective Philo Vance (William Wright) teams up with Virginia's former manager, Alexis Karnoff (Leon Belasco), to look up these former wives -- and the fan dancer Choo Choo (Iris Adrian) -- all of whom were unaccountably mentioned in Larry's will (what, no divorce settlements?). There are more murders, usually involving women who put on a lipstick that's been poisoned. Frank Wilcox [The Devils Mask] is lawyer George Hullman, and Eddie Dunn [A Fig Leaf for Eve] is police lieutenant Mullard, who often finds Vance underfoot and doesn't like it. This one had possibilities in its characters and plot, but it's a minor PRC (Producer's Releasing Corporation) production, which puts it on an even lower level than Monogram. Still, Wright [Reveille with Beverly] is okay as Vance, and most of the performances are at least competent. Albert Glasser did the score.   

Verdict: Standard series mystery with some interesting elements. **

PHILO VANCE'S SECRET MISSION

Alan Curtis and Sheila Ryan

PHILO VANCE'S SECRET MISSION (1947). Director: Reginald Le Borg.

Martin Jamison (Paul Maxey of The Sky Dragon), a publisher of lurid horror and mystery pulp magazines, wants to hire Philo Vance (Alan Curtis) to write a story based on a real-life murder case. The victim was the husband of widowed Elizabeth Phillips (Tala Birell), who is working for Jamison and faints when she discovers Vance will be investigating her late spouse's still-unsolved murder. Jamison announces that he already knows who did it -- and is later found dead in the trunk of a car. Aided by Jamison's cover model, Mona Bannister (Sheila Ryan), Vance attempts to discover who killed the late Mr. Phillips as well as Jamison. Other suspects include Paul Morgan (Frank Fenton of Hell Bound), Louise Roberts (Toni Todd of Philo Vance's Gamble), and others who worked for their deceased boss. Philo Vance's Secret Mission is an acceptable lower case mystery with a not-bad plot, even if the solution is somewhat obvious. Curtis makes a handsome and reasonably adept Philo and the others are all okay. Frank Jenks plays Philo's buddy and sort of-partner, Ernie, and James Bell is the sheriff. This is another PRC release.

Verdict: Passable time-passer. **1/2.

JUNGLE MAN-EATERS

Karin Booth and Richard Wyler

JUNGLE MAN-EATERS (1954). Director: Lee Sholem.

Jungle Jim (Johnny Weissmuller) learns that yet another new diamond field has been discovered, and he and others fear the precious gems could be smuggled out to "flood the diamond markets of the world." Jim also encounters the lady doctor, Bonnie Crandall (Karin Booth of Let's Do It Again), who's a cute trick; and Inspector Jeffrey Bernard (Richard Wyler aka Richard Stapley of The Strange Door), who's handsome -- the two do even more smooching than the romantic couple in the previous Jungle Jim picture, but again Weissmuller gets no action. Mssr. Leroux (Gregory Gaye) is a member of the diamond syndicate who hides his true, more nefarious, purposes. In a weird sequence, Prince Zuwaba (Bernie Hamilton), is told that his wife has given birth to a baby boy, but that the mother died. Everyone congratulates Zuwaba on the child, but no one expresses any condolences over the woman! (Zuwaba seems to get over it pretty fast in any case.) The pretty doctor gets along swimmingly with the Inspector, but generally finds the mischievous chimp Tamba to be too much of a pest; Tamba is typically adorable. There are burned villages, angry natives, and a climactic cliff fight between Jim and Leroux that ends as expected. Hamilton later appeared on the sixties Tarzan TV series, and had many credits, including The Devil at 4 O'clock. There are no actual man-eaters in the movie. Although three films remained in the series, this is the last picture in which Weissmuller is referred to, or actually plays, "Jungle Jim."

Verdict: Standard Jungle Jim adventure with some rather attractive players. **1/2.

CANNIBAL ATTACK

Weissmuller and Bruce in a sticky situation

CANNIBAL ATTACK (1954). Director: Lee Sholem.

"Although I've educated (my ward Luora) in European ways, there are times when her jungle blood asserts itself." -- John King.

Ostensibly the 14th entry in the "Jungle Jim" series, Cannibal Attack ushers in some changes. Johnny Weissmuller is simply referred to as "Johnny," and the big chimp Tamba has been replaced by the smaller chimp Kimba. Otherwise everything is the same, What happened is that Columbia temporarily lost the rights to the Jungle Jim character, so Weissmuller simply played" Johnny Weissmuller" for the remaining three films in the series.

In this entry, a man named John King (Steve Darrell) falls under the spell of his beautiful native, but educated, ward, Luora (Judy Walsh). Johnny (Weissmuller) and his cronies try to figure out who is behind recent attempts to steal some valuable cobalt, and he encounters a tribe called the Shendi, formerly cannibals, who wear crocodile skins on their back and skulk around like animals. At one point Johnny and King's brother, Arthur (David Bruce of Can't Help Singing) are tied to poles as a hungry crocodile advances on them with open jaws. There is no romantic couple in this entry aside from King and Luora, but the latter makes advances on Johnny, for nefarious purposes only. One exciting sequence shows several natives and white men on a boat falling into the midst of thrashing and voracious crocodiles. [This picture should have used the title of the previous film, Jungle Man-Eaters.] Judy Walsh is sexy and gives a good performance of the bad girl who wants to be Queen of the Jungle.

Verdict: Not bad "Johnny Weissmuller" adventure. **1/2.