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Post by Xenorama ™ on Nov 22, 2006 23:47:34 GMT -8
Ralph Byrd .... Lt. Terry Kent
Bela Lugosi .... Boroff, alias M.A. Anderson
Maxine Doyle .... Jean Norman
Richard Alexander .... Thorg
Lee Ford .... Snapper McGee
Herbert Rawlinson .... Cmdr. Boyle
John Picorri .... G.A. Rackerby
Lawrence Grant .... Rabinisi (Boroff's spokesman at screening)
Thomas Carr .... Ens. Jim Kent
Carleton Young .... Henchman Dodds [Ch. 4]
Allen Connor .... Dick Norman
George Chesebro .... L.H. DeGado (chief thug)
Ranny Weeks .... Wies (ambulance orderly thug)
1. Disaster at Sea
2. Barrage of Death
3. The Gas Chamber
4. The Fatal Shaft
5. The Mystery Ship
6. Deadly Cargo
7. Undersea Terror
8. The Crash
9. Wolves at Bay
10. The Acid Trail
11. The Sea Battle
12. The Deadly Circle
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Post by Xenorama ™ on Nov 23, 2006 23:39:00 GMT -8
Terry is getting another medal for meritorious service from the Coast Guard for saving hundreds of lives. before he can have lunch, he's told he has to investigate a strange yacht. the passenger of the yacht later goes to a meeting to see the effects of "disintegration gas". the potential buyers want to meet this Boroff, but he's listening in and they don't know it.
Boroff is on board to sail to the country buying the gas, but the ship runs aground and sends an SOS to the Coast Guard. after rescuing the boat Gene recognizes Boroff, who then proceeds to shoot Jim.
Boroff shaves his beard off and dies his hair black. his mute servant Thorg hates him, but can't kill him. he then plans to get the "gas" back so he can deliver it to "Morovania".
on the grounded ship Thorg shows up and chases Snapper around. he frees the ship from the mooring cables. Snapper sends up a flare or two, and Terry rushes to the ship. naturally, he starts a fistfight with Thorg. they both fall into the hold as the last mooring cable snaps, sending the ship underwater!
wow, some really nice miniature work with the boats and storms, plus Bela is always nice to see in eville action. good picture on this copy and sound is decent.
the fellow playing Thorg had quite a career.
next- Barrage of Death
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Post by Xenorama ™ on Nov 26, 2006 23:05:54 GMT -8
an air pocket saves Terry and Jean for a little while. Terry finds the hatch and out they go. due to Snapper's insistence, they get picked up by the Coast Guard. Thorg swims to safety.
later, Terry vows revenge against Boroff, who tells an underling he is now "MA Anderson". he plans on retrieving the sunken chemicals. Terry visits the scientist and a fight breaks out. Terry gets knocked out and tied up. he wakes up while a phone is ringing and types out a Morse Code signal to the Coast Guard!
the thugs take Terry with them to meet Boroff. the Coast Guard moves to intercept them. they fire shots to stop it- then hit the boat!
next week- The Gas Chamber
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Post by Xenorama ™ on Nov 28, 2006 23:18:27 GMT -8
Terry manages to cut his bonds and leaps out of the boat just before it explodes. the cutter then rescues him.
later, Boroff takes over an abandoned Kelp Plant. that's how he will get his chemicals into the country under the nose of the Coast Guard. of course, it doesn't work, and the gang has to leave Thorg to fend for himself. when he reaches shore, Terry meets him and a fistfight breaks out. Terry catches him in a net and knocks him into the water. our heroes assume he wouldn't get free, but he does!
Boroff gets his scientist in with the old "scalded man" routine, which works. Terry has to go to the hospital to finish his report on the man, and Jean goes with him. Snapper rides in the ambulance and a fistfight breaks out. sort of.
Jean finds out that Snapper is in danger and away she and Terry go! Boroff plans to use the disintigrating gas on Snapper now (instead of a dog). Terry finds the hideout and a fight breaks out. Boroff drops a gas pellet and the place starts to melt!
next~ The Fatal Shaft
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Post by Xenorama ™ on Dec 3, 2006 22:30:35 GMT -8
Terry and Snapper are safe in the container, and then get out and give chase to the gang. they catch up to the gang and Terry catches one of them.
Boroff has the thugs kidnap Jean for information. naturally she won't give it to them. she manages to make a phone call, just as Boroff planned. he sends his men to the lab to stop them from analyzing the gas. naturally a fistfight breaks out. Snapper gets the drop on the gang, and our heroes skedaddle out of there. they plan on following the gang and rescuing Jean. Terry hides in the trunk.
Terry easily tricks the gang and rescues Jean. but he gets dropped into a shaft with the elevator descending!
next~ The Mystery Ship
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Post by Xenorama ™ on Mar 29, 2007 9:06:45 GMT -8
Terry uses a cinderblock to save himself from being crushed, and then the police show up!
Terry is planted on a cargo boat and Boroff has a man on there as well, who warns him that Kent is on the boat. later, some of Boroff's men hijack the boat for the cargo. naturally, a fight breaks out in the hold. Terry escapes, but the boat is captured. then Thorg boards, knocks Terry out and they leave him locked up.
the villains leave, with the boat rushing toward the lighthouse. Terry stops that, but now the engines are overheating!
next~ the Deadly Cargo
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Post by Shonokin on Mar 29, 2007 12:28:41 GMT -8
This was definately a showboat for the Lydecker bros' effects work. The ship miniatures and the sets were really fantastic.
I wonder what viewers might've thought of that disentigration effect the first time they saw it. I think it first appeared in Phantom Empire and was also used to great effect later on in one of the Rocketman serials.
From what I remember the effect was created by heating a projected film positive still picture until it started to melt and the projected image was captured on film.
Another excellent use of their talents was in The Fighting Devil Dogs. The lightning torpedos were really something. I've single framed through the scene where the miniature house is hit by the lightning and all I can come up with is that they must've had a lightning machine ala Ken Strickfaden's Frankenstein effects, that was trained on the set and then let loose some flamable squibs while it was being zapped. However it was done, I'm to this day still very impressed by it.
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Post by Xenorama ™ on Jun 6, 2007 20:21:08 GMT -8
the melting effect is used a lot in the Lydecker pictures, sometimes more than once in the same serial!
the boiler explodes and injures a sailor. he is taken to the hospital to be questioned by Terry when he wakes up.
Boroff has Thorg kill him before that can happen. however, Terry figures out that the gas pipes are running near a small radio station in Pierpoint. Terry heads out there in his plane at once! he figures out the gas in being hidden in electric lightbulbs and bluffs one of the thugs, and a fight breaks out!
Terry tries to take off in his plane, but the gas weakens the struts on a water tower and down it comes!
next~ Undersea Terror
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Post by Xenorama ™ on Jun 6, 2007 21:26:47 GMT -8
Terry ducks down into the cockpit of his plane and doesn't get crushed.
Boroff sends Thorg back to the boat to get more gas supplies. meanwhile, Jean goes to "help" Terry investigate the Sea Wolf, a notorious smuggling vessel. a fistfight breaks out, and Terry arrests two of the ship.
he then goes out to the boat where Thorg is, and plans on diving into it to see what they were doing out there. his diving gear looks like a "rocketman head"!
he dives down, and Thorg goes after him and cuts his airhose. a fight breaks out between them! Thorg is trying to drown Terry- his mask is filling up with water!
next~ the Crash
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Post by Xenorama ™ on Jun 7, 2007 21:07:37 GMT -8
after a terrific battle, Terry escapes by swimming into the airpocket of the downed steamer the Carfax. Thorg swims off, and Terry returns to the guard boat.
Snapper goes to take a picture of the kelp plant where Boroff's base is. after the "tour" Terry doubles back and finds out that Snapper's photos will show the radioactive material. naturally, a fistfight breaks out.
Terry takes off after the gang on a cycle (the villains are chasing Jean and Snapper). as he cuts the thugs off he climbs into the car, but the gang shoots the tire out and they plunge over a cliff!
next~ Wolves at Bay
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Post by Xenorama ™ on Jun 7, 2007 22:37:45 GMT -8
our heroes leap out of the car just in time, and then steal the thugs car and return to HQ. they develop the pictures and send out the Guard for a raid on the kelp factory.
Boroff plans to blow the place up. this time a gun battle breaks out when the Guard gets there. Boroff has Thorg light the fuse as he makes his getaway. Terry runs in and warns the Guardsmen that the place is mined.
Jean and Snapper arrive and go inside, and Terry runs back to save them just as the place explodes!
next~ The Acid Trail
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Post by Xenorama ™ on Jun 7, 2007 23:13:42 GMT -8
it's only half the building that blows out, not the half our heroes are in, fortunately. Jean finds a case of the disintegrating gas which they take to the lab for study.
Terry gets caught and tied up when he goes to get a compressor for Dick Norman. Terry gets loose and races over, but the thugs have got Dick already.
Terry takes off in pursuit (the baddies' truck is dripping the acid). he finds the truck on fire and leaps in to save him- but the truck heads off the cliff and into the ocean!
next~ The Sea Battle
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Post by Xenorama ™ on Jun 8, 2007 17:39:52 GMT -8
Terry swims out of the truck with Dick, and gets him to a hospital. Dick has a broken shoulder but is otherwise fine. meanwhile, Morovania is demanding the gas from Boroff, who promises it will be there in three weeks.
the doctor shows our heroes a device that can detect radiation, even arnatite. Terry borrows it to track Boroff. he finds Boroff just as the launch is about to leave, and a gunbattle takes place on the speedboats. Terry follows them to the secret loading bay, where Thorg is awaiting him!
last chapter~ The Deadly Circle
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Post by Xenorama ™ on Jun 8, 2007 18:20:44 GMT -8
Thorg bests our hero, and leaves him to drown, but then has to get him back since Boroff wants him alive. Boroff and Terry have a chat, then he is tied up and put in a cell.Dick gets the anti-gas finished, and Boroff tells the Coast Guard to leave him alone or Terry will die. Terry burns his way out of the ropes and captures Thorg. Boroff shoots him for his failure!
the Guard heads out to Gull Island to stop Boroff. they pick Terry up on the way. as the Guard attacks, Boroff lets loose the disintegrating gas all around them! but Jean and Dick drop the anti-gas and our heroes go in blasting! they arrest the gang, but Boroff sneaks off to save himself.
Boroff gets to a boat, but guess who is waiting for him? an enraged Thorg, who bombs them both with the disintegrating gas, and that's that.
Terry and Jean then get married!
the end!
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Post by Xenorama ™ on Jun 8, 2007 18:41:57 GMT -8
this was a fun serial, full of action- so much that there's not much room for talking. great miniatures and effects!
Bela is a great presence in this, just a charming villain. highly recommended.
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