KING OF THE TEXAS RANGERS

Slingin' Sammy Baugh

KING OF THE TEXAS RANGERS (12 chapter Republic serial/1941). Directors: William Witney and John English.

Texas ranger Tom King Jr. (Slingin' Sammy Baugh) learns that his father (Monte Blue) has been murdered by fifth columnists who are out to sabotage certain oil fields. Since these fields  are out of his jurisdiction, King decides to fight against the saboteurs as a private agent. Working with King are Pedro (Duncan Renaldo of Zorro Rides Again) of the Mexican Rurales; intrepid reporter Sally Crane (Pauline Moore of Arkansas Judge); and Wichita Bates (Kermit Maynard). Working against King, although King is unaware of it, is John Barton (Neil Hamilton), who secretly reports to "His Excellency" (Rudolph Anders of She Demons) from his dirigible. Sammy Baugh was a football star who had a very brief career as an actor, and is perfectly adequate in this serial. Cast in the Lyle Talbot role of smooth bad guy, Neil Hamilton is slightly more interesting than Talbot, but hardly riveting. Duncan Renaldo probably makes the best impression as the likable Pedro, and others in the cast, generally Barton's henchmen, include Roy Barcroft and Jack Ingram. Chapter one has a great cliffhanger in which oil fields are set ablaze and a flaming derrick falls on top of a cabin with King and Sally inside. Even better is the explosion at the end of chapter two, which blows up both ends of a tunnel containing a train. There's a tense business involving a hood holding a grenade in order to force a man to obey his orders. In chapter seven a truck smashes into a shed with King inside. Cy Feuer's music helps keep things moving at a rapid pace. The serial's suspense is minimized, however, because we're clued into the ultimate bad guy's identity from the very beginning.

Verdict: Republic serial is not bad and not great. **1/2.

SECRET SERVICE IN DARKEST AFRICA

SECRET SERVICE IN DARKEST AFRICA (aka Manhunt in the African Jungle/15 chapter Republic serial/1943). Director: Spencer Gordon Bennett.

Stalwart Secret Service agent Rex Bennett (Rod Cameron) goes to the Dark Continent to deal with a Nazi spy ring who have replaced a sultan with an imposter. He is aided by the spunky gal reporter Janet Blake (Joan Marsh). Their main adversary is Baron von Rommler (Lionel Royce), and Duncan Renaldo plays an ally, Captain LaSalle. There's a great bit in chapter four with some graves exploding one by one due to underground mines, and some effective cliffhangers: Janet in a crate with an incendiary device as Rex fights Nazis [chapter five]; Janet under a giant slab that crashes downward [chapter seven]; and --best of all -- an "execution wheel" with a saw-pendulum swinging above [chapter twelve]. The trouble with Secret Service is that it doesn't have a strong, suspenseful  plotline, an exciting villain -- or even an exciting hero. Cameron is unemotional and stone-faced throughout. Joan Marsh appeared in quite a few movies before making this but apparently retired two years later. Cameron also appeared in The Jungle, Life with Henry and Henry Aldrich for President and also played Rex Bennett in G-Men vs the Black Dragon, which was better than this.Lionel Royce was also in So Ends Our Night.

Verdict: A few thrills but overall somewhat disappointing. **1/2.

ZORRO RIDES AGAIN

ZORRO RIDES AGAIN (1937). Republic. Directed by William Witney and John English.

This is an acceptable but pretty standard cliffhanger that is by no means any great classic of the genre. John Carroll is fine as James Vega/Zorro, who comes to the aid of a brother-sister team of railroad owners beset by villains. Marsden (Noah Beery) wants the railroad for himself, and has "El Lobo" do his dirty work for him out in California while he sits behind a desk in Manhattan. El Lobo and Marsden are both colorless, unprepossessing antagonists. Helen Christian plays Joyce Andrews, one of the railroad owners. (Her reaction when she learns that a father and his young son have been killed by El Lobo is "underplayed," to say the least!) Duncan Renaldo is "Renaldo," who assists Zorro at times. Some good cliffhangers involve floods, explosions, and train tunnels, while chapter three features some good fisticuffs on the tracks as a train approaches, with Zorro’s foot getting caught in the rail (it never occurs to Zorro to simply remove his boot)! Zorro Rides Again is not terrible, but considering it comes from Republic studios, it is rather disappointing.

Verdict: Unspectacular. **1/2.