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.

SHE DEMONS

SHE DEMONS (1958). Director: Richard E. Cunha. 

A spoiled heiress, Jerrie (Irish McCalla), is shipwrecked on an island with a small party where she discovers that a mad Nazi, Carl (Rudolph Anders), is conducting terrible experiments. These have to do with "thermal energy" (actually, lava) but Carl seems more obsessed with what he calls "character X" (actually, genes). Seems his wife Mona (Leni Tana) was horribly burned and disfigured in a lab accident, so hubby experiments on beautiful native girls who all turn into big-toothed, scaly horrors that the hero Fred (Tod Griffin) calls "she demons" [to Carl's delight]. The film is reasonably entertaining to start, but the fun eventually peters out. Anders is a bit hammy (even for this kind of film) but he's effective as the slimy Nazi wannabee lover boy. Hopeless Irish McCalla gives a performance like you would expect of an 8-year-old child. Tod Griffin, who did a lot of TV work, is at least professional, as is Victor Sen Yung as Sammy. [Yung is better known as "Number Two Son" of the Charlie Chan films.] The picture picks up in the last few minutes as the good guys try to escape from the island. Stock footage is judiciously blended with some new, credible FX work and there are some reasonably exciting scenes. The she demons themselves don't have much to do. 

Verdict: Okay for about 30 minutes but the film runs 80. *1/2.