Nitrateville Answer Dept: Movie Serials
Posted: Fri Dec 19, 2014 1:47 pm
While it has been moderately amusing and entertaining to watch ol' Bore Enough try to get straight and correct answers out of the general pinhead population of Nitratevile regarding what sound movie serials might be actually worth preserving, I guess it's time to put him out of his misery, even if I'm not in any real mood to help either ol Bore or the LOC at the moment, what the heck, it's Christmas:
Okay Bore, if you want sound serials that need preservin' that don't come from Republic, Universal, or Columbia, you basically only have a few small options: a handful of independently-produced serials like Sol Lesser's RETURN OF CHANDU with Bela Lugosi (indeed a worthy candidate, it's basically a PD orphan and there are 35mm prints floating around out there) or Sam Katzman's SHADOWS OF CHINATOWN (1936) also starring Bela Lugosi, which apparently only exists n one complete print at the moment, then you should look to ANY of the product made by Ned Levine's Mascot Pictures, nearly all of which are in dire need of restoration and 35mm preservation. There are three Mascot Serials that have early John Wayne starring roles: SHADOW OF THE EAGLE (1932), THE HURRICANE EXPRESS (1932), and THE THREE MUSKETEERS (1933), one more Bela Lugosi, THE WHISPERING SHADOW (1933), and these could easily be justified, but all of the Mascot product needs work, and they are terrific serials, most of which only survive and circulate in beat-up 16mm TV prints with poor sound copied from equally beat-up 35mm positives in the 50's. There is nitrate materials around, if one looks and had the funds to collect them and copy, but it would take some detective work, and it needs to be done.
Other great Mascot serials:
PHANTOM OF THE WEST (1931)- Tom Tyler
THE LONE DEFENDER (1930)- Rin Tin Tin
THE LIGHTNING WARRIOR (1931) Rin Tin Tin
THE GALLOPING GHOST (1931) Red Grange
THE VANISHING LEGION (1931) Harry Carey
LAST OF THE MOHICANS (1932) Harry Carey
THE DEVIL HORSE (1932) Harry Carey ( I know where there's a 35 mm nitrate on this one)
LAW OF THE WILD (1934) Ben Turpin's only starring serial!
So There.
RICHARD M ROBERTS
Okay Bore, if you want sound serials that need preservin' that don't come from Republic, Universal, or Columbia, you basically only have a few small options: a handful of independently-produced serials like Sol Lesser's RETURN OF CHANDU with Bela Lugosi (indeed a worthy candidate, it's basically a PD orphan and there are 35mm prints floating around out there) or Sam Katzman's SHADOWS OF CHINATOWN (1936) also starring Bela Lugosi, which apparently only exists n one complete print at the moment, then you should look to ANY of the product made by Ned Levine's Mascot Pictures, nearly all of which are in dire need of restoration and 35mm preservation. There are three Mascot Serials that have early John Wayne starring roles: SHADOW OF THE EAGLE (1932), THE HURRICANE EXPRESS (1932), and THE THREE MUSKETEERS (1933), one more Bela Lugosi, THE WHISPERING SHADOW (1933), and these could easily be justified, but all of the Mascot product needs work, and they are terrific serials, most of which only survive and circulate in beat-up 16mm TV prints with poor sound copied from equally beat-up 35mm positives in the 50's. There is nitrate materials around, if one looks and had the funds to collect them and copy, but it would take some detective work, and it needs to be done.
Other great Mascot serials:
PHANTOM OF THE WEST (1931)- Tom Tyler
THE LONE DEFENDER (1930)- Rin Tin Tin
THE LIGHTNING WARRIOR (1931) Rin Tin Tin
THE GALLOPING GHOST (1931) Red Grange
THE VANISHING LEGION (1931) Harry Carey
LAST OF THE MOHICANS (1932) Harry Carey
THE DEVIL HORSE (1932) Harry Carey ( I know where there's a 35 mm nitrate on this one)
LAW OF THE WILD (1934) Ben Turpin's only starring serial!
So There.
RICHARD M ROBERTS