277 silent serials, beginning in 1912 with Edison's What Happened to Mary? (12 ch.), through Pathe's 1929 Queen of the Northwoods (10 ch.) The advent of sound saw the production of 231 serials. The first was Universal's 1929 Tarzan the Tiger (15 ch.), and the last, Columbia's 1956 Perils of the Wilderness (15 ch.) This post concentrates on, no surprise, the thirties. During that decade 107 serials were produced, beginning in 1930 with Universal's The Indians Are Coming (12 ch.), released as a talkie and also as silent for theaters not yet equipped for sound, and ending with Republic's Zorro's Fighting Legion (12 ch.) in 1939.One thing you can bet on is that practically every serial had an actress who was in peril in at least one chapter, and often in several. She was the daughter, the sister, the girlfriend, the reporter, th
e secretary, the rival, or just the sidekick along for the ride. What follows is a look at some of the thirties serials and mostly forgotten actresses who braved exploding buildings, collapsing rooms, buzz saws, raging rivers, out of control vehicles, including stage coaches, motorcars, and rocket ships, and just about any other peril the producers could conjure up.All of the actresses have a link to their IMDb page, and they would love you to take a moment to drop by, they are so rarely visited these days. You will find that some had quite successful careers, but many had their 15 minutes at the dream factories and then vanished.
Double-click on the images for a large view.
Allene Ray, Virginia Brown FaireDorothy Gulliver, Edwina Booth*
Lucile Brown, Nora Lane
The asterisk indicates the link is to a page on this blog
because the actress has been featured.
Note: Both Edwina and Lucile appeared in the 1932 serial
The Last of the Mohicans as sisters Cora and Alice Munro.
Virginia was a WAMPAS Baby Star of 1923 and Dorothy was named one in 1928.
Dorothy Gulliver, Dorothy GulliverCecilia Parker, Viva Tattersall
Lucile Brown, Evalyn Knapp*
Evalyn was named a WAMPAS Baby Star of 1932.
Gloria Shea, Verna HillieLola Lane, Lucille Lund
Patricia Farr, Marion Shilling
Lola was sister to Priscilla and Rosemary Lane.
Marion was a WAMPAS Baby Star of 1931 and Lucille was named in 1934.
Maria Alba, Jean RogersUla Holt, Claudia Dell
Joan Gale, Joyce Compton
Claudia is thought to be the original model for the Columbia pictures logo.
Joyce Compton was named a WAMPAS Baby Star for 1926.
Lois Wilde, Ruth Mix and Mae BuschLona Andre*, Jean Rogers
Jean Rogers, Ruth Mix
Ruth was Tom Mix's daughter. Lona was a WAMPAS Baby Star for 1932.
Joan Barclay, Mamo ClarkKay Hughes, Jean Rogers,
Maxine Doyle, Joan Barclay
Mamo Clark appeared in two far more well known films, The Mutiny on the Bounty and The Hurricane. Maxine was married to one of the most prolific serial directors, William Witney.
Helen Christian, Frances RobinsonLynn Gilbert, Kay Hughes
Jean Rogers, Betty Jane Rhodes and Evelyn Brent*
Evelyn was named a WAMPAS Baby Star of 1923.
Our cutoff is 1939, but Shelia portrayed the Dragon Lady in the 1940 serial Terry and the Pirates. Maybe she shot some scenes in '39...
Some members of the sisterhood, with a special nod to Jean Rogers who appeared in six serials during the thirties.
Who wouldn't want to return each week to see a new episode when they had chapters with names like these. Hmmmm... Collapsing Room, trash compactor, Star Wars, nah, just a coincidence.Lastly, yup, for better or worse we have watched all these serials and about 100 more over the last 15 years.
4 comments:
When I was a nipper I could spend two bits and see some la-de-dah Fox musical or spend a thin dime and see Republic Westerns and a serial. I went for the dime special every time. It left me with dough for something to chew on, as well. In the serials they were forever utilizing that brand new technology, the radio. Later it was television, before people had it in their homes. Yes, the ladies had their problems but were almost always game.
I saw a lot of these on TV thru "Cliffhangers", and other syndicated fare, that often compressed more than one episode into a showing. I was fascinated by the jungle ones, and the sci-fi - the seemed so appealingly goofy. The westerns didn't have a grip on me, I was so exposed to so many B and C movies in that genre, I became inured to horse operas.
As an aside, I met Acquanetta a couple of times as a kid in the early 1960s - she was the jungle queen in B movies soon after the serials were passé - and she was still beautiful and very nice. She had a TV show on the local station back then, connected with old movies, sponsored by her car-dealer husband. I used think she would've been perfect for serials. Great post!
Ah, Aquanetta, born in Wyoming, but know as the Venezuelan Volcano thanks to movie magic. Loved her as well, too bad she made so few films. We are big serial fans, and of course the best were Republic's from the early to mid forties, but wanted to keep to the thirties. I know what ya mean about the westerns, but I watch a Bob Steele 30's flick any day. :-)
Speaking of Bob Steele, that guy had one helluva career- I like his work, too. He was a great Lash Canino in "The Big Sleep", and I see him on numerous TV episodes and bit parts in many westerns. It's interesting to see him play a quiet, dignified part in "Hang 'Em High", and remember him from all those westerns.
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