King of the Carnival | |
---|---|
Directed by | Franklin Adreon |
Written by | Ronald Davidson |
Produced by | Franklin Adreon |
Starring | Harry Lauter Fran Bennett Keith Richards Robert Shayne Gregory Gay Rick Vallin Robert Clarke |
Cinematography | Bud Thackery |
Distributed by | Republic Pictures |
Release date |
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Running time | 12 chapters (167 minutes) [1] |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $172,995 (negative cost: $177,050) [1] |
King of the Carnival is a 1955 Republic movie serial that contains a substantial amount of stock footage from the earlier Republic serial Daredevils of the Red Circle . It is the 66th and final serial produced by Republic and is often considered to be among the studio's worst. The plot concerns treasury agents investigating a Cold War counterfeiting operation believed to be connected to a circus.
Treasury agents Art Kerr and Jim Haynes are investigating a global counterfeiting operation believed to be linked to the circus. Acrobat Bert King agrees to help his old friend Art search for the counterfeiters, and his acrobatic partner June Edwards assists him. They are repeatedly threatened by two thugs, Daley and Travis.
Early evidence leads Bert and June to a cave that leads to an isolated beach and contains gear belonging to the gang. They are unaware that in a minisub off the shoreline hides Zorn, the counterfeiter who is printing the phony bills. However, the evidence points to an unknown, higher authority directing the operations, and indeed someone connected with the circus. Among the circus staff who act suspiciously are a clown named Burton and three rubes.
After several false turns, ringmaster Jess Carter is exposed as the counterfeit gang leader and Zorn's handler. Carter attempts to flee from the agents, but falls from the trapeze swing and breaks his neck. With the criminals' ringleader dead, the counterfeit operation is hastily shut down by the U.S. Treasury.
King of the Carnival was budgeted at $172,995 although the final negative cost was $177,050 (a $4,055, or 2.3%, overspend). It was the cheapest Republic serial of 1955. [1]
Under the working title King of the Circus (production number 1800), the production was filmed between March 8 and 25 of 1955; its 17 days of production marked the shortest duration of all Republic serials. [1]
Republic would often name its films' heroes King in order to use the title "King of..." The studio had found success with this approach following the adaptation of Zane Grey's King of the Royal Mounted . [2] [3]
Though Republic serials traditionally employed many stuntmen, Tom Steele was the only stuntman required for the film.
The film's special effects were created by the team of Howard and Theodore Lydecker.
King of the Carnival's official release date was June 27, 1955, although that is actually the date when the sixth chapter was made available to film exchanges. [1]
This was the last new serial released by Republic. However, the studio continued with a release schedule of rereleased serials until 1958, beginning with a rerelease of Dick Tracy's G-Men and ending with Zorro's Fighting Legion . [1]
Radar Men from the Moon is a 1952 Republic Pictures' 12-chapter movie serial, the first Commando Cody serial starring newcomer George Wallace as Cody, Aline Towne as his sidekick Joan Gilbert, and serial veteran Roy Barcroft as the evil Retik, the Ruler of the Moon. The director was Fred C. Brannon, with a screenplay by Ronald Davidson, and special effects by the Lydecker brothers. This serial recycles the flying sequences from Republic's earlier 1949 serial King of the Rocket Men. It was later released by Republic in 1966 as the 100-minute television film Retik the Moon Menace.
Undersea Kingdom (1936) is a Republic Pictures 12 chapter film serial released in response to Universal's Flash Gordon. It was the second of the sixty-six serials made by Republic. In 1966, the serial was edited into a 100-minute television film titled Sharad of Atlantis.
Mysterious Doctor Satan is a 1940 American film serial directed by William Witney and John English. Produced by Republic Pictures, the serial stars Edward Ciannelli, Robert Wilcox, William Newell, C. Montague Shaw, Ella Neal, and Dorothy Herbert. The title of the serial is derived from that of its chief villain.
Zorro's Black Whip is a 1944 12-chapter film serial by Republic Pictures starring Linda Stirling. The film was made after the 1940 20th Century-Fox remake of The Mark of Zorro in order to capitalize on it. Republic was not able to use the character of Zorro himself, however, and despite the title, the hero(ine) is called The Black Whip throughout.
Daredevils of the Red Circle (1939) is a 12-chapter Republic Movie Serial starring Charles Quigley, David Sharpe, Herman Brix, Carole Landis, Miles Mander and Charles Middleton. It was directed by William Witney and John English and is considered one of the better serials produced by Republic. The serial was the fourteenth of the sixty-six serials produced by the studio.
The Fighting Devil Dogs (1938) is a 12-chapter Republic movie serial starring Lee Powell and Herman Brix, the latter better known by his later stage name, Bruce Bennett. It was directed by William Witney and John English. While not often considered a great serial, as it contains much stock footage and two recap chapters, it is famous for its main villain, the Lightning—the first costumed supervillain. There is some speculation that George Lucas used the Lightning as a template for Darth Vader.
Zorro Rides Again (1937) is a 12-chapter Republic Pictures film serial. It was the eighth of the sixty-six Republic serials, the third with a Western theme and the last produced in 1937. The serial was directed by William Witney & John English in their first collaboration. The serial starred John Carroll who also sang the title song as a modern descendant of the original Zorro with Carroll stunt doubled by Yakima Canutt. The plot is a fairly standard western storyline about a villain attempting to illicitly take valuable land. The setting is a hybrid of modern (1930s) and western elements that was used occasionally in B-Westerns. It was also the first in a series of five Zorro serials, followed by Zorro's Fighting Legion (1939), Zorro's Black Whip (1944), Son of Zorro (1947) and Ghost of Zorro (1949).
Dick Tracy's G-Men (1939) is a 15-Chapter Republic movie serial based on the Dick Tracy comic strip by Chester Gould. It was directed by William Witney and John English.
The Lone Ranger is a 1938 American Republic Pictures movie serial based on The Lone Ranger radio program. It was the ninth of the sixty-six serials produced by Republic, the fourth Western and the first Republic serial release of 1938. The following year a sequel serial The Lone Ranger Rides Again was released. The fifteen chapters of the serial were condensed into the film Hi-Yo Silver, which was released in 1940.
Dick Tracy Returns (1938) is a Republic Movie serial based on the Dick Tracy comic strip. It was the eleventh of the sixty-six serials Republic produced and a sequel to the 1937 serial Dick Tracy, with Ralph Byrd reprising his role as the title character. It was successful enough that two further sequels were released in 1939 and 1941, and Byrd become so connected with the character he went on to play him in a subsequent television series.
Federal Operator 99 is a 1945 American movie serial from Republic Pictures. It was later edited down into a feature version titled F.B.I. 99 for television. The serial is about an FBI agent named Jerry Blake who battles gentleman thief Jim Belmont, who escapes custody with help of his gang and begins a wave of crimes, beginning with plotting to steal the crown jewels of the Princess Cornelia.
Jesse James Rides Again is a 1947 American Republic Western film serial.
Adventures of Frank and Jesse James is a 1948 Republic film serial directed by Fred C. Brannon and Yakima Canutt and starring Clayton Moore, Steve Darrell, Noel Neill, George J. Lewis, John Crawford, and Sam Flint.
Flying Disc Man from Mars is a 1950 Republic Pictures 12-chapter black-and-white science fiction adventure film serial, produced by Franklin Adreon, directed by Fred C. Brannon, that stars Walter Reed, Lois Collier, Gregory Gaye, James Craven, Harry Lauter, and Richard Irving. Disc Man is considered a weak example of the serial medium, even compared to other post-World War II serials. In 1958 Republic edited the serial's 167 minutes of footage into a 75-minute feature, released under the new title Missile Monsters.
Don Daredevil Rides Again (1951) is a Republic Movie serial. It makes heavy use of stock footage from Republic's previous Zorro serials. The character of Don Daredevil was created for this serial as the rights to Zorro belonged to Disney by 1951.
Jungle Drums of Africa is a 1953 12-episode American serial film shot in black-and-white. It was an original commissioned screenplay by Ronald Davidson produced by Franklin Adreon and directed by Fred C. Brannon for Republic Pictures. The story is set in Kenya, and involves the efforts of an American uranium processing company's representative and a woman medical missionary, to thwart the efforts of agents of a "foreign power", abetted by a disaffected native witchdoctor, to gain control of a large uranium deposit on lands owned by the latter's tribe. This serial features black American actors in major roles, including that of a college-educated chieftain.
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Winners of the West is a 1940 American Western film serial from Universal Pictures, directed by Ford Beebe and Ray Taylor. It stars Dick Foran and Anne Nagel in a plot about the construction of a railroad and a local ganglord, who opposes it. It was Universal's 115th serial release.
Hugh Prosser was a Hollywood actor who appeared in over 90 films between 1936 and 1953.