Corporal Rod Webb | |
---|---|
Based on | the novels of James Oliver Curwood |
Starring | Kirby Grant Chinook |
Production company | |
Distributed by | Monogram Pictures |
Release date | 1949-1954 |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Corporal Rod Webb and his faithful dog Chinook were the major characters in a series of films made by the American studio Monogram Pictures between 1949 and 1954. Webb was played by the actor Kirby Grant in eight films, while in two others (Trail of the Yukon and Snow Dog) Grant played the almost identical character of Bob McDonald, accompanied as usual by Chinook.
Corporal Webb was an officer of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and enjoyed a series of adventures tracking down criminals in Yukon and the Northwest Territories. Chinook was his German Shepherd companion who, in spite of his name, had no connection to the Chinook breed of dog.
The series was based on the Northlands novels of James Oliver Curwood, [1] and is part of the Northern genre of popular culture. The series bore similarities to a number of other films and shows, particularly to an earlier radio series Challenge of the Yukon and to the later television series Sergeant Preston of the Yukon .
James Oliver Curwood was an American action-adventure writer and conservationist. His books were often based on adventures set in the Hudson Bay area, the Yukon or Alaska and ranked among the top-ten best sellers in the United States in the early and mid 1920s, according to Publishers Weekly. At least one hundred and eighty motion pictures have been based on or directly inspired by his novels and short stories; one was produced in three versions from 1919 to 1953. At the time of his death, Curwood was the highest paid author in the world.
Kirby Grant, born Kirby Grant Hoon Jr., was a long-time B movie and television actor, mostly remembered for having played the title role in the Western-themed adventure television series Sky King. Between 1949 and 1954, Grant starred in 10 Mounted-Police adventures, usually in the role of Corporal Rod Webb.
Herman Arthur "Harry" Lauter was an American character actor.
John Wilkinson English was a British film editor and film director. He is most famous for the film serials he co-directed with William Witney for Republic Pictures such as Zorro's Fighting Legion and Drums of Fu Manchu.
The Northern or Northwestern is a genre in various arts that tell stories set primarily in the late 19th or early 20th century in the north of North America, primarily in western Canada but also in Alaska. It is similar to the Western genre, but many elements are different, as appropriate to its setting. It is common for the central character to be a Mountie instead of a cowboy or sheriff. Other common characters include fur trappers and traders, lumberjacks, prospectors, First Nations people, outlaws, settlers, and townsfolk.
Frank BurgessMcDonald was an American film and television director, active from 1935 to 1966. He directed more than 100 films, including many Westerns starring Gene Autry and Roy Rogers, and numerous TV show episodes. He is interred at Conejo Mountain Memorial Park in Camarillo, California.
Yukon Vengeance is a 1954 American Northern film directed by William Beaudine and starring Kirby Grant, Monte Hale and Mary Ellen Kay. It was the tenth and final film featuring Grant as Mountie Corporal Rod Webb, assisted by his dog Chinook.
Trail of the Yukon is a 1949 American Northern film directed by William Beaudine and starring Kirby Grant, Suzanne Dalbert and Bill Edwards. It was based on a novel by James Oliver Curwood about a North-West Mounted Police officer and his faithful German Shepherd dog Chinook. It is part of the Northern genre. The film was popular, and inspired Monogram to make a series of nine further films starring Grant and Chinook.
The Wolf Hunters is a 1949 American Northern film directed by Budd Boetticher and starring Kirby Grant, Jan Clayton and Edward Norris. It was based on the novel of the same title by James Oliver Curwood, which had previously been adapted in 1926 as The Wolf Hunters and in 1934 as The Trail Beyond starring John Wayne, Noah Beery, Sr. and Noah Beery, Jr. The film was the second in a series of ten films featuring Kirby Grant as a Canadian Mountie.
Yukon Gold is a 1952 American Northern film directed by Frank McDonald and starring Kirby Grant, Martha Hyer and Harry Lauter. The film was seventh in the series of ten films featuring Kirby Grant as a Canadian Mountie.
Call of the Klondike is a 1950 American Northern film directed by Frank McDonald and starring Kirby Grant, Anne Gwynne, and Lynne Roberts. The film was the fourth in the series of ten films featuring Kirby Grant as a Canadian Mountie.
Fangs of the Arctic is a 1953 American Northern film directed by Rex Bailey and starring Kirby Grant, Lorna Hanson and Warren Douglas. The film was the eighth in the series of ten films featuring Kirby Grant as a Canadian Mountie.
Snow Dog is a 1950 American Northern film directed by Frank McDonald and starring Kirby Grant, Elena Verdugo and Rick Vallin. It was the third of a series of ten films featuring Grant as a Canadian Mountie.
Yukon Manhunt is a 1951 American Northern film directed by Frank McDonald and starring Kirby Grant, Gail Davis and Margaret Field. The film was the sixth in the series of ten films featuring Kirby Grant as a Canadian Mountie.
Northwest Territory is a 1951 American Northern film directed by Frank McDonald and starring Kirby Grant, Gloria Saunders and Warren Douglas. The film is the fifth in the series of ten films featuring Kirby Grant as a Canadian Mountie.
Northern Patrol is a 1953 American Northern film directed by Rex Bailey and starring Kirby Grant, Marian Carr and William Phipps. The film was the ninth in a series of ten films featuring Kirby Grant as a Canadian Mountie.
Leonard "Ace" Herman (1913–1971) was an American film editor and producer. During his career he edited over seventy films, generally at low-budget outfits such as Monogram Pictures where he worked for many years, often on series films such as the Corporal Rod Webb Northerns.
Lindsley Parsons (1905–1992) was an American film producer and screenwriter. He worked throughout his career at the low-budget Monogram Pictures and its successor, Allied Artists. He generally produced cheap gangster, action and Western films. He was the father of film producer Lindsley Parsons Jr.
William F. Broidy (1915–1959) was an American film and television producer.
William A. Sickner was an American cinematographer. He worked prolifically in film and later television. He worked for a number of studios, particularly Universal and Monogram Pictures.