Wild Cargo (film)

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Wild Cargo
Wild Cargo (1934) film poster.jpg
Theatrical poster
Directed by Armand Denis
Written byFrank Buck
Edward Anthony
Courtney Ryley Cooper (dialogue and narration)
Produced by Amedee J. Van Beuren
Starring Frank Buck
Cinematography Leroy G. Phelps, Nicholas Cavaliere
Edited by Sam B. Jacobson
Music by Winston Sharples
Distributed by RKO Pictures
Release date
  • April 6, 1934 (1934-04-06)
Running time
96 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Wild Cargo is a 1934 jungle adventure documentary starring Frank Buck. Buck depicts the ingenious methods by which he traps wild birds, mammals and reptiles. Many scenes were photographed on the vast Malayan estates of Buck's friend, Sultan Ibrahim of Johor, who appears in person in the film. [1]

Contents

Scenes

Among the scenes in the film are:

Behind the camera

Director Armand Denis (seated right) with RKO exhibitors and poster for Wild Cargo (ca. 1934) Wild Cargo (1934) publicity photo.jpg
Director Armand Denis (seated right) with RKO exhibitors and poster for Wild Cargo (ca. 1934)

Cameraman Leroy G. Phelps was nearly crippled by an infection he acquired after scratching himself on a poisonous renghus plant. Buck and Phelps were almost trampled by a herd of stampeding water buffalo; they were spared only when the animals changed direction at the last moment. [2]

Reception

According to The New York Times , "Although it may seem as though several incidents in the screen work were prearranged, they are nevertheless quite thrilling." [3]

The film earned RKO a profit of $100,000. [4] The film was a box office disappointment for RKO. [5]

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Bring ‘Em Back Alive is a 1930 book by Frank Buck. His first book, it was a best seller that catapulted him to world fame and was translated into many languages. Buck tells of his adventures capturing exotic animals.

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Fang and Claw is a 1935 jungle adventure documentary starring Frank Buck. Buck continues his demonstration of the ingenious methods by which he traps wild birds, mammals and reptiles in Johore.

<i>Wild Cargo</i> (book) Book by Frank Buck

Wild Cargo was Frank Buck's second book, a bestseller. Buck, was born on March 17, 1884, in a wagon yard owned by his father at Gainesville, When he was five, his family moved to Dallas. After attending public schools in Dallas, Buck left home at the age of eighteen to take a job handling a trainload of cattle being sent to Chicago. In 1911, he made his first expedition to South America. He eventually also traveled to Malaya, India, Borneo, New Guinea, and Africa. From these and other expeditions, he brought back many exotic species that he sold to zoos and circuses, and he ultimately acquired the nickname "Bring 'Em Back Alive". Buck continued his tales of his adventures capturing exotic animals. Writing with Edward Anthony, Buck related many of his experiences working with and transporting jungle creatures.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leroy G. Phelps</span> American cinematographer

Leroy Garfield Phelps was a cinematographer who filmed Frank Buck’s second movie, Wild Cargo.

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Jungle Cavalcade is a compilation of footage from Frank Buck’s first three films depicting his adventures capturing animals for the world's zoos.

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References

  1. SULTAN TO VIEW FILM AT RKO. Los Angeles Times , May 10, 1934 p. 15
  2. Wesley S. Griswold. "Stalking Asia's fiercest wildlife with a movie camera involved New Haven photographer in thrilling adventures". Hartford Courant , April 8, 1934, p. D1
  3. "The Screen". Mordaunt Hall. The New York Times , March 30, 1934
  4. Richard Jewell & Vernon Harbin, The RKO Story. New Rochelle, New York: Arlington House, 1982. p. 72
  5. Churchill, Douglas W. (November 25, 1934). "TAKING A LOOK AT THE RECORD; Hollywood Consults the Box-Office Scores and Finds That Many Glittering Films Did Not Make Gold". The New York Times. ProQuest   101193306.

Bibliography