Spy Smasher (serial)
Encyclopedia
Spy Smasher is a Republic
movie serial based on the Fawcett Comics
character Spy Smasher
, which is now the property of DC Comics
. It was the 25th of the 66 serials produced by Republic. The serial was directed by William Witney
with Kane Richmond
and Marguerite Chapman
as the leads.
This serial was Chapman's big break into a career in movies and television. Spy Smasher is a very highly regarded serial. In 1966, a television movie was made from the serial footage under the title Spysmasher Returns.
. After discovering information about Nazi activities in occupied France he is captured and executed. However this is faked and he escapes back to the United States, meeting with his twin brother Jack (as Jack is incorrectly "recognized" and attacked by a Nazi agent) and Jack's fiance. The Nazi agent in America is The Mask, operating from a U-Boat
near the coast. The Mask's attacks on America begin with an attempt to flood the country with forged money and destroy the economy. When this is defeated, he continues with other attacks including destroying planes, oil and munitions intended for Britain. Constant defeats at the hands of Spy Smasher, with support from Jack Armstrong and Admiral Corby, also leads the villain to take the fight back to the masked hero. In the end, the villain is killed aboard his own U-Boat in a sea of flaming oil. However, Spy Smasher's brother Jack Armstrong was also killed by the Nazis earlier in the serial.
was $156,431 (a $2,749, or 1.8%, overspend). It was the most expensive Republic serial of 1942. Spy Smasher was filmed between 22 December 1941 and 29 January 1942. The serial's production number was 1196.
Spy Smasher's plane from the comic, the Gyrosub, was changed for the serial to be a secret Nazi craft called The Bat Plane. Mort Glickman echoed the "V for Victory" theme from Beethoven's 5th symphony in the Spy Smasher theme song. Both pieces of music include the "..._" Morse code for the letter V.
Columbia's The Secret Code
, released later in 1942, was patterned after Spy Smasher. Adverts for the Columbia serial included the phrases "Smash spies with the Secret Service" and "Thrill again to spy smashers' biggest chase!"
Kane Richmond did some of his own stunts but the most spectacular were performed by Dave Sharpe who, for example, "rolled from an overturning motorcycle to leap atop a careening auto that plunged from a cliff." Stuntman Carey Loftin "showed what a motorcycle could do in the hands of an expert."
.
Source:
) is a Republic
movie serial based on the Fawcett Comics
character Spy Smasher
, which is now the property of DC Comics
. It was the 25th of the 66 serials produced by Republic. The serial was directed by William Witney
with Kane Richmond
and Marguerite Chapman
as the leads.
This serial was Chapman's big break into a career in movies and television. Spy Smasher is a very highly regarded serial. In 1966, a television movie was made from the serial footage under the title Spysmasher Returns.
. After discovering information about Nazi activities in occupied France he is captured and executed. However this is faked and he escapes back to the United States, meeting with his twin brother Jack (as Jack is incorrectly "recognized" and attacked by a Nazi agent) and Jack's fiance. The Nazi agent in America is The Mask, operating from a U-Boat
near the coast. The Mask's attacks on America begin with an attempt to flood the country with forged money and destroy the economy. When this is defeated, he continues with other attacks including destroying planes, oil and munitions intended for Britain. Constant defeats at the hands of Spy Smasher, with support from Jack Armstrong and Admiral Corby, also leads the villain to take the fight back to the masked hero. In the end, the villain is killed aboard his own U-Boat in a sea of flaming oil. However, Spy Smasher's brother Jack Armstrong was also killed by the Nazis earlier in the serial.
was $156,431 (a $2,749, or 1.8%, overspend). It was the most expensive Republic serial of 1942. Spy Smasher was filmed between 22 December 1941 and 29 January 1942. The serial's production number was 1196.
Spy Smasher's plane from the comic, the Gyrosub, was changed for the serial to be a secret Nazi craft called The Bat Plane. Mort Glickman echoed the "V for Victory" theme from Beethoven's 5th symphony in the Spy Smasher theme song. Both pieces of music include the "..._" Morse code for the letter V.
Columbia's The Secret Code
, released later in 1942, was patterned after Spy Smasher. Adverts for the Columbia serial included the phrases "Smash spies with the Secret Service" and "Thrill again to spy smashers' biggest chase!"
Kane Richmond did some of his own stunts but the most spectacular were performed by Dave Sharpe who, for example, "rolled from an overturning motorcycle to leap atop a careening auto that plunged from a cliff." Stuntman Carey Loftin "showed what a motorcycle could do in the hands of an expert."
.
Source:
) is a Republic
movie serial based on the Fawcett Comics
character Spy Smasher
, which is now the property of DC Comics
. It was the 25th of the 66 serials produced by Republic. The serial was directed by William Witney
with Kane Richmond
and Marguerite Chapman
as the leads.
This serial was Chapman's big break into a career in movies and television. Spy Smasher is a very highly regarded serial. In 1966, a television movie was made from the serial footage under the title Spysmasher Returns.
. After discovering information about Nazi activities in occupied France he is captured and executed. However this is faked and he escapes back to the United States, meeting with his twin brother Jack (as Jack is incorrectly "recognized" and attacked by a Nazi agent) and Jack's fiance. The Nazi agent in America is The Mask, operating from a U-Boat
near the coast. The Mask's attacks on America begin with an attempt to flood the country with forged money and destroy the economy. When this is defeated, he continues with other attacks including destroying planes, oil and munitions intended for Britain. Constant defeats at the hands of Spy Smasher, with support from Jack Armstrong and Admiral Corby, also leads the villain to take the fight back to the masked hero. In the end, the villain is killed aboard his own U-Boat in a sea of flaming oil. However, Spy Smasher's brother Jack Armstrong was also killed by the Nazis earlier in the serial.
was $156,431 (a $2,749, or 1.8%, overspend). It was the most expensive Republic serial of 1942. Spy Smasher was filmed between 22 December 1941 and 29 January 1942. The serial's production number was 1196.
Spy Smasher's plane from the comic, the Gyrosub, was changed for the serial to be a secret Nazi craft called The Bat Plane. Mort Glickman echoed the "V for Victory" theme from Beethoven's 5th symphony in the Spy Smasher theme song. Both pieces of music include the "..._" Morse code for the letter V.
Columbia's The Secret Code
, released later in 1942, was patterned after Spy Smasher. Adverts for the Columbia serial included the phrases "Smash spies with the Secret Service" and "Thrill again to spy smashers' biggest chase!"
Kane Richmond did some of his own stunts but the most spectacular were performed by Dave Sharpe who, for example, "rolled from an overturning motorcycle to leap atop a careening auto that plunged from a cliff." Stuntman Carey Loftin "showed what a motorcycle could do in the hands of an expert."
.
Source:
Republic Pictures
Republic Pictures was an independent film production-distribution corporation with studio facilities, operating from 1934 through 1959, and was best known for specializing in westerns, movie serials and B films emphasizing mystery and action....
movie serial based on the Fawcett Comics
Fawcett Comics
Fawcett Comics, a division of Fawcett Publications, was one of several successful comic book publishers during the Golden Age of Comic Books in the 1940s...
character Spy Smasher
Spy Smasher
Spy Smasher is the name of two fictional characters appearing in comics published by DC Comics. The first is a superhero that was formerly owned and published by Fawcett Comics...
, which is now the property of DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
. It was the 25th of the 66 serials produced by Republic. The serial was directed by William Witney
William Witney
William Nuelsen Witney was an American film and television director. He is best remembered for the movie serials he co-directed with John English for Republic Pictures such as Daredevils of the Red Circle, Zorro's Fighting Legion and Drums of Fu Manchu.He directed many Westerns during his career,...
with Kane Richmond
Kane Richmond
Kane Richmond was an American film actor of the 1930s and 1940s, mostly appearing in cliffhangers and serials...
and Marguerite Chapman
Marguerite Chapman
Marguerite Chapman was an American actress.Born in Chatham, New York, she was working as a telephone switchboard operator in White Plains, New York when her good looks brought about the opportunity to pursue a career in modeling...
as the leads.
This serial was Chapman's big break into a career in movies and television. Spy Smasher is a very highly regarded serial. In 1966, a television movie was made from the serial footage under the title Spysmasher Returns.
Plot
Spy Smasher is a costumed American acting independently of the United States while it remains out of World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. After discovering information about Nazi activities in occupied France he is captured and executed. However this is faked and he escapes back to the United States, meeting with his twin brother Jack (as Jack is incorrectly "recognized" and attacked by a Nazi agent) and Jack's fiance. The Nazi agent in America is The Mask, operating from a U-Boat
U-boat
U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
near the coast. The Mask's attacks on America begin with an attempt to flood the country with forged money and destroy the economy. When this is defeated, he continues with other attacks including destroying planes, oil and munitions intended for Britain. Constant defeats at the hands of Spy Smasher, with support from Jack Armstrong and Admiral Corby, also leads the villain to take the fight back to the masked hero. In the end, the villain is killed aboard his own U-Boat in a sea of flaming oil. However, Spy Smasher's brother Jack Armstrong was also killed by the Nazis earlier in the serial.
Cast
- Kane RichmondKane RichmondKane Richmond was an American film actor of the 1930s and 1940s, mostly appearing in cliffhangers and serials...
as Spy Smasher, his secret identity Alan Armstrong and his twin brother Jack. The twin brother was added by Republic but other characters, including Admiral Corby, his daughter Eve and the villain The Mask, are all from the original comic. - Marguerite ChapmanMarguerite ChapmanMarguerite Chapman was an American actress.Born in Chatham, New York, she was working as a telephone switchboard operator in White Plains, New York when her good looks brought about the opportunity to pursue a career in modeling...
as Eve Corby, Admiral Corby's daughter and Jack Armstrong's fiance. - Sam Flint as Admiral Corby
- Hans Schumm as The Mask. The Nazi villain of the serial "appeared just as often without the disguise as with it, the only purpose of the mask seemed to be to make him familiar to comic book fans."
- Tris CoffinTris CoffinTristram Coffin , also known as Tris Coffin, was a film and television actor from the latter 1930s through the 1970s, usually in westerns or other action-adventure productions.-Biography:...
as Drake, The Mask's spearhead heavy. Drake is a reporter working for the Ocean-wide Television Network. One of his espionage techniques was to leave the camera rolling after an interview inside Admiral Corby's office or a report from a crime scene. The broadcast was then picked up by the Mask in his submarine ("and presumably [by] the sets of any home viewer tuned into the proper channel").
Production
Spy Smasher was budgeted at $153,682 although the final negative costNegative cost
Negative cost is the cost of actually producing and shooting a film. It does not include such costs as distribution and promotion.Low-budget movies, for example The Blair Witch Project, can have promotional expenses that are much larger than the negative cost.The term comes from the costs up to the...
was $156,431 (a $2,749, or 1.8%, overspend). It was the most expensive Republic serial of 1942. Spy Smasher was filmed between 22 December 1941 and 29 January 1942. The serial's production number was 1196.
Spy Smasher's plane from the comic, the Gyrosub, was changed for the serial to be a secret Nazi craft called The Bat Plane. Mort Glickman echoed the "V for Victory" theme from Beethoven's 5th symphony in the Spy Smasher theme song. Both pieces of music include the "..._" Morse code for the letter V.
Columbia's The Secret Code
The Secret Code (serial)
The Secret Code was the 19th serial released by Columbia Pictures. It features the masked hero "The Black Commando" facing Nazi saboteurs, inspired by Republic Pictures' successful Spy Smasher serial of the same year...
, released later in 1942, was patterned after Spy Smasher. Adverts for the Columbia serial included the phrases "Smash spies with the Secret Service" and "Thrill again to spy smashers' biggest chase!"
Stunts
- Yakima CanuttYakima CanuttYakima Canutt , also known as Yak Canutt, was an American rodeo rider, actor, stuntman and action director.-Biography:...
- Republic's "Ram Rod" (Head of the stunt team) - Carey LoftinCarey LoftinCarey Loftin was an American actor and stuntman. One of his most famous roles was as the truck driver in Steven Spielberg's Duel, although his face was never seen...
as Alan/Jack Armstrong & Spy Smasher (doubling Kane Richmond) - David Sharpe as Alan/Jack Armstrong & Spy Smasher (also doubling Kane Richmond)
- Ken TerrellKen TerrellKen Terrell was an American western and action film actor and stuntman best known for playing Joe Marcella in the 1956 film The Indestructible Man. He died March 8, 1966 from arteriosclerosis-Partial filmography:...
(doubling Crane Whitley) - Bud WolfeBud WolfeRoland 'Bud' Wolfe was an American pilot who parachuted from an RAF Spitfire plane into a peat bog on the Inishowen peninsula in County Donegal, Ireland, on November 30, 1941. The incident initiated a diplomatic row between Britain and Ireland....
(doubling Richard Bond) - John Daheim
- James Fawcett
- Loren Riebe
- Duke Taylor
Kane Richmond did some of his own stunts but the most spectacular were performed by Dave Sharpe who, for example, "rolled from an overturning motorcycle to leap atop a careening auto that plunged from a cliff." Stuntman Carey Loftin "showed what a motorcycle could do in the hands of an expert."
Special effects
All the special effects in Spy Smasher were created by Republic's in-house effects duo, the Lydecker brothersLydecker brothers
-Partial filmography:*Darkest Africa *Women in War - Oscar nominated*Adventures of Captain Marvel *Flying Tigers - Oscar nominated*Commando Cody: Sky Marshal of the Universe...
.
Cliffhangers
Chapter 11 has what Harmon and Glut consider to be the "most unique chapter ending of them all:" Spy Smasher is gunned down by enemy agents at point blank range and falls from the top of an office building to crash into the pavement below. In the resolution, the audience discover that Jack, Spy Smasher's brother, has knocked him out and stolen his costume. The real Spy Smasher turns up too late to save his twin. This is notable because in nearly every other chapter ending ever produced the person in danger manages to somehow survive.Theatrical
Spy Smashers official release date is 4 April 1942, although this is actually the date the sixth chapter was made available to film exchanges.Television
Spy Smasher was one of twenty-six Republic serials re-released as a Century 66 film on television in 1966. The title of the film was changed to Spysmasher Returns. This version was cut down to 100-minutes in length.Critical reception
In the opinion of Harmon and Glut, Spy Smasher is the best serial in terms of special effects and stunts, and one of the best in general: "Although lacking the beauty and imagination that appeals to a kind of racial unconscious in the Jungian sense that is found in Flash Gordon...Spy Smasher emerges in a class by itself, the foremost cliffhanger example of a whole school of Hollywood film-making in the 40s that gloried in matchless pure entertainment." The script is consistently logical and well constructed with credible dialogue and good characterisation. The cinematography is atmospheric and often artistic. According to Cline, Spy Smasher had a "very tight and fast-moving screenplay." In the words of Grant Tracey, writing on the Images Journal website, Spy Smasher is "perhaps one of the best serials of all time because of its stunning cliffhangers and unique innovations to the serial form."Chapter titles
- America Beware (28min 32s)
- Human Target (17min 29s)
- Iron Coffin (16min 48s)
- Stratosphere Invaders (16min 50s)
- Descending Doom (16min 48s)
- The Invisible Witness (16min 39s)
- Secret Weapon (16min 53s)
- Sea Raiders (16min 45s)
- Highway Racketeers (16min 41s)
- 2700° Fahrenheit (16min 56s)
- Hero's Death (16min 45s)
- V..._ (16min 40s)
Source:
See also
- Adventures of Captain MarvelAdventures of Captain MarvelAdventures of Captain Marvel is a 1941 twelve-chapter film serial directed by John English and William Witney for Republic Pictures, adapted from the popular Captain Marvel comic book character then appearing in Fawcett Comics publications such as Whiz Comics and Captain Marvel Adventures...
(1941) is the other Republic serial based on a Fawcett comic - List of film serials
- List of film serials by studio
External links
Spy Smasher (19421942 in film
The year 1942 in film involved some significant events, in particular the release of a film consistently rated as one of the greatest of all time, Casablanca.-Events:...
) is a Republic
Republic Pictures
Republic Pictures was an independent film production-distribution corporation with studio facilities, operating from 1934 through 1959, and was best known for specializing in westerns, movie serials and B films emphasizing mystery and action....
movie serial based on the Fawcett Comics
Fawcett Comics
Fawcett Comics, a division of Fawcett Publications, was one of several successful comic book publishers during the Golden Age of Comic Books in the 1940s...
character Spy Smasher
Spy Smasher
Spy Smasher is the name of two fictional characters appearing in comics published by DC Comics. The first is a superhero that was formerly owned and published by Fawcett Comics...
, which is now the property of DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
. It was the 25th of the 66 serials produced by Republic. The serial was directed by William Witney
William Witney
William Nuelsen Witney was an American film and television director. He is best remembered for the movie serials he co-directed with John English for Republic Pictures such as Daredevils of the Red Circle, Zorro's Fighting Legion and Drums of Fu Manchu.He directed many Westerns during his career,...
with Kane Richmond
Kane Richmond
Kane Richmond was an American film actor of the 1930s and 1940s, mostly appearing in cliffhangers and serials...
and Marguerite Chapman
Marguerite Chapman
Marguerite Chapman was an American actress.Born in Chatham, New York, she was working as a telephone switchboard operator in White Plains, New York when her good looks brought about the opportunity to pursue a career in modeling...
as the leads.
This serial was Chapman's big break into a career in movies and television. Spy Smasher is a very highly regarded serial. In 1966, a television movie was made from the serial footage under the title Spysmasher Returns.
Plot
Spy Smasher is a costumed American acting independently of the United States while it remains out of World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. After discovering information about Nazi activities in occupied France he is captured and executed. However this is faked and he escapes back to the United States, meeting with his twin brother Jack (as Jack is incorrectly "recognized" and attacked by a Nazi agent) and Jack's fiance. The Nazi agent in America is The Mask, operating from a U-Boat
U-boat
U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
near the coast. The Mask's attacks on America begin with an attempt to flood the country with forged money and destroy the economy. When this is defeated, he continues with other attacks including destroying planes, oil and munitions intended for Britain. Constant defeats at the hands of Spy Smasher, with support from Jack Armstrong and Admiral Corby, also leads the villain to take the fight back to the masked hero. In the end, the villain is killed aboard his own U-Boat in a sea of flaming oil. However, Spy Smasher's brother Jack Armstrong was also killed by the Nazis earlier in the serial.
Cast
- Kane RichmondKane RichmondKane Richmond was an American film actor of the 1930s and 1940s, mostly appearing in cliffhangers and serials...
as Spy Smasher, his secret identity Alan Armstrong and his twin brother Jack. The twin brother was added by Republic but other characters, including Admiral Corby, his daughter Eve and the villain The Mask, are all from the original comic. - Marguerite ChapmanMarguerite ChapmanMarguerite Chapman was an American actress.Born in Chatham, New York, she was working as a telephone switchboard operator in White Plains, New York when her good looks brought about the opportunity to pursue a career in modeling...
as Eve Corby, Admiral Corby's daughter and Jack Armstrong's fiance. - Sam Flint as Admiral Corby
- Hans Schumm as The Mask. The Nazi villain of the serial "appeared just as often without the disguise as with it, the only purpose of the mask seemed to be to make him familiar to comic book fans."
- Tris CoffinTris CoffinTristram Coffin , also known as Tris Coffin, was a film and television actor from the latter 1930s through the 1970s, usually in westerns or other action-adventure productions.-Biography:...
as Drake, The Mask's spearhead heavy. Drake is a reporter working for the Ocean-wide Television Network. One of his espionage techniques was to leave the camera rolling after an interview inside Admiral Corby's office or a report from a crime scene. The broadcast was then picked up by the Mask in his submarine ("and presumably [by] the sets of any home viewer tuned into the proper channel").
Production
Spy Smasher was budgeted at $153,682 although the final negative costNegative cost
Negative cost is the cost of actually producing and shooting a film. It does not include such costs as distribution and promotion.Low-budget movies, for example The Blair Witch Project, can have promotional expenses that are much larger than the negative cost.The term comes from the costs up to the...
was $156,431 (a $2,749, or 1.8%, overspend). It was the most expensive Republic serial of 1942. Spy Smasher was filmed between 22 December 1941 and 29 January 1942. The serial's production number was 1196.
Spy Smasher's plane from the comic, the Gyrosub, was changed for the serial to be a secret Nazi craft called The Bat Plane. Mort Glickman echoed the "V for Victory" theme from Beethoven's 5th symphony in the Spy Smasher theme song. Both pieces of music include the "..._" Morse code for the letter V.
Columbia's The Secret Code
The Secret Code (serial)
The Secret Code was the 19th serial released by Columbia Pictures. It features the masked hero "The Black Commando" facing Nazi saboteurs, inspired by Republic Pictures' successful Spy Smasher serial of the same year...
, released later in 1942, was patterned after Spy Smasher. Adverts for the Columbia serial included the phrases "Smash spies with the Secret Service" and "Thrill again to spy smashers' biggest chase!"
Stunts
- Yakima CanuttYakima CanuttYakima Canutt , also known as Yak Canutt, was an American rodeo rider, actor, stuntman and action director.-Biography:...
- Republic's "Ram Rod" (Head of the stunt team) - Carey LoftinCarey LoftinCarey Loftin was an American actor and stuntman. One of his most famous roles was as the truck driver in Steven Spielberg's Duel, although his face was never seen...
as Alan/Jack Armstrong & Spy Smasher (doubling Kane Richmond) - David Sharpe as Alan/Jack Armstrong & Spy Smasher (also doubling Kane Richmond)
- Ken TerrellKen TerrellKen Terrell was an American western and action film actor and stuntman best known for playing Joe Marcella in the 1956 film The Indestructible Man. He died March 8, 1966 from arteriosclerosis-Partial filmography:...
(doubling Crane Whitley) - Bud WolfeBud WolfeRoland 'Bud' Wolfe was an American pilot who parachuted from an RAF Spitfire plane into a peat bog on the Inishowen peninsula in County Donegal, Ireland, on November 30, 1941. The incident initiated a diplomatic row between Britain and Ireland....
(doubling Richard Bond) - John Daheim
- James Fawcett
- Loren Riebe
- Duke Taylor
Kane Richmond did some of his own stunts but the most spectacular were performed by Dave Sharpe who, for example, "rolled from an overturning motorcycle to leap atop a careening auto that plunged from a cliff." Stuntman Carey Loftin "showed what a motorcycle could do in the hands of an expert."
Special effects
All the special effects in Spy Smasher were created by Republic's in-house effects duo, the Lydecker brothersLydecker brothers
-Partial filmography:*Darkest Africa *Women in War - Oscar nominated*Adventures of Captain Marvel *Flying Tigers - Oscar nominated*Commando Cody: Sky Marshal of the Universe...
.
Cliffhangers
Chapter 11 has what Harmon and Glut consider to be the "most unique chapter ending of them all:" Spy Smasher is gunned down by enemy agents at point blank range and falls from the top of an office building to crash into the pavement below. In the resolution, the audience discover that Jack, Spy Smasher's brother, has knocked him out and stolen his costume. The real Spy Smasher turns up too late to save his twin. This is notable because in nearly every other chapter ending ever produced the person in danger manages to somehow survive.Theatrical
Spy Smashers official release date is 4 April 1942, although this is actually the date the sixth chapter was made available to film exchanges.Television
Spy Smasher was one of twenty-six Republic serials re-released as a Century 66 film on television in 1966. The title of the film was changed to Spysmasher Returns. This version was cut down to 100-minutes in length.Critical reception
In the opinion of Harmon and Glut, Spy Smasher is the best serial in terms of special effects and stunts, and one of the best in general: "Although lacking the beauty and imagination that appeals to a kind of racial unconscious in the Jungian sense that is found in Flash Gordon...Spy Smasher emerges in a class by itself, the foremost cliffhanger example of a whole school of Hollywood film-making in the 40s that gloried in matchless pure entertainment." The script is consistently logical and well constructed with credible dialogue and good characterisation. The cinematography is atmospheric and often artistic. According to Cline, Spy Smasher had a "very tight and fast-moving screenplay." In the words of Grant Tracey, writing on the Images Journal website, Spy Smasher is "perhaps one of the best serials of all time because of its stunning cliffhangers and unique innovations to the serial form."Chapter titles
- America Beware (28min 32s)
- Human Target (17min 29s)
- Iron Coffin (16min 48s)
- Stratosphere Invaders (16min 50s)
- Descending Doom (16min 48s)
- The Invisible Witness (16min 39s)
- Secret Weapon (16min 53s)
- Sea Raiders (16min 45s)
- Highway Racketeers (16min 41s)
- 2700° Fahrenheit (16min 56s)
- Hero's Death (16min 45s)
- V..._ (16min 40s)
Source:
See also
- Adventures of Captain MarvelAdventures of Captain MarvelAdventures of Captain Marvel is a 1941 twelve-chapter film serial directed by John English and William Witney for Republic Pictures, adapted from the popular Captain Marvel comic book character then appearing in Fawcett Comics publications such as Whiz Comics and Captain Marvel Adventures...
(1941) is the other Republic serial based on a Fawcett comic - List of film serials
- List of film serials by studio
External links
Spy Smasher (19421942 in film
The year 1942 in film involved some significant events, in particular the release of a film consistently rated as one of the greatest of all time, Casablanca.-Events:...
) is a Republic
Republic Pictures
Republic Pictures was an independent film production-distribution corporation with studio facilities, operating from 1934 through 1959, and was best known for specializing in westerns, movie serials and B films emphasizing mystery and action....
movie serial based on the Fawcett Comics
Fawcett Comics
Fawcett Comics, a division of Fawcett Publications, was one of several successful comic book publishers during the Golden Age of Comic Books in the 1940s...
character Spy Smasher
Spy Smasher
Spy Smasher is the name of two fictional characters appearing in comics published by DC Comics. The first is a superhero that was formerly owned and published by Fawcett Comics...
, which is now the property of DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
. It was the 25th of the 66 serials produced by Republic. The serial was directed by William Witney
William Witney
William Nuelsen Witney was an American film and television director. He is best remembered for the movie serials he co-directed with John English for Republic Pictures such as Daredevils of the Red Circle, Zorro's Fighting Legion and Drums of Fu Manchu.He directed many Westerns during his career,...
with Kane Richmond
Kane Richmond
Kane Richmond was an American film actor of the 1930s and 1940s, mostly appearing in cliffhangers and serials...
and Marguerite Chapman
Marguerite Chapman
Marguerite Chapman was an American actress.Born in Chatham, New York, she was working as a telephone switchboard operator in White Plains, New York when her good looks brought about the opportunity to pursue a career in modeling...
as the leads.
This serial was Chapman's big break into a career in movies and television. Spy Smasher is a very highly regarded serial. In 1966, a television movie was made from the serial footage under the title Spysmasher Returns.
Plot
Spy Smasher is a costumed American acting independently of the United States while it remains out of World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. After discovering information about Nazi activities in occupied France he is captured and executed. However this is faked and he escapes back to the United States, meeting with his twin brother Jack (as Jack is incorrectly "recognized" and attacked by a Nazi agent) and Jack's fiance. The Nazi agent in America is The Mask, operating from a U-Boat
U-boat
U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
near the coast. The Mask's attacks on America begin with an attempt to flood the country with forged money and destroy the economy. When this is defeated, he continues with other attacks including destroying planes, oil and munitions intended for Britain. Constant defeats at the hands of Spy Smasher, with support from Jack Armstrong and Admiral Corby, also leads the villain to take the fight back to the masked hero. In the end, the villain is killed aboard his own U-Boat in a sea of flaming oil. However, Spy Smasher's brother Jack Armstrong was also killed by the Nazis earlier in the serial.
Cast
- Kane RichmondKane RichmondKane Richmond was an American film actor of the 1930s and 1940s, mostly appearing in cliffhangers and serials...
as Spy Smasher, his secret identity Alan Armstrong and his twin brother Jack. The twin brother was added by Republic but other characters, including Admiral Corby, his daughter Eve and the villain The Mask, are all from the original comic. - Marguerite ChapmanMarguerite ChapmanMarguerite Chapman was an American actress.Born in Chatham, New York, she was working as a telephone switchboard operator in White Plains, New York when her good looks brought about the opportunity to pursue a career in modeling...
as Eve Corby, Admiral Corby's daughter and Jack Armstrong's fiance. - Sam Flint as Admiral Corby
- Hans Schumm as The Mask. The Nazi villain of the serial "appeared just as often without the disguise as with it, the only purpose of the mask seemed to be to make him familiar to comic book fans."
- Tris CoffinTris CoffinTristram Coffin , also known as Tris Coffin, was a film and television actor from the latter 1930s through the 1970s, usually in westerns or other action-adventure productions.-Biography:...
as Drake, The Mask's spearhead heavy. Drake is a reporter working for the Ocean-wide Television Network. One of his espionage techniques was to leave the camera rolling after an interview inside Admiral Corby's office or a report from a crime scene. The broadcast was then picked up by the Mask in his submarine ("and presumably [by] the sets of any home viewer tuned into the proper channel").
Production
Spy Smasher was budgeted at $153,682 although the final negative costNegative cost
Negative cost is the cost of actually producing and shooting a film. It does not include such costs as distribution and promotion.Low-budget movies, for example The Blair Witch Project, can have promotional expenses that are much larger than the negative cost.The term comes from the costs up to the...
was $156,431 (a $2,749, or 1.8%, overspend). It was the most expensive Republic serial of 1942. Spy Smasher was filmed between 22 December 1941 and 29 January 1942. The serial's production number was 1196.
Spy Smasher's plane from the comic, the Gyrosub, was changed for the serial to be a secret Nazi craft called The Bat Plane. Mort Glickman echoed the "V for Victory" theme from Beethoven's 5th symphony in the Spy Smasher theme song. Both pieces of music include the "..._" Morse code for the letter V.
Columbia's The Secret Code
The Secret Code (serial)
The Secret Code was the 19th serial released by Columbia Pictures. It features the masked hero "The Black Commando" facing Nazi saboteurs, inspired by Republic Pictures' successful Spy Smasher serial of the same year...
, released later in 1942, was patterned after Spy Smasher. Adverts for the Columbia serial included the phrases "Smash spies with the Secret Service" and "Thrill again to spy smashers' biggest chase!"
Stunts
- Yakima CanuttYakima CanuttYakima Canutt , also known as Yak Canutt, was an American rodeo rider, actor, stuntman and action director.-Biography:...
- Republic's "Ram Rod" (Head of the stunt team) - Carey LoftinCarey LoftinCarey Loftin was an American actor and stuntman. One of his most famous roles was as the truck driver in Steven Spielberg's Duel, although his face was never seen...
as Alan/Jack Armstrong & Spy Smasher (doubling Kane Richmond) - David Sharpe as Alan/Jack Armstrong & Spy Smasher (also doubling Kane Richmond)
- Ken TerrellKen TerrellKen Terrell was an American western and action film actor and stuntman best known for playing Joe Marcella in the 1956 film The Indestructible Man. He died March 8, 1966 from arteriosclerosis-Partial filmography:...
(doubling Crane Whitley) - Bud WolfeBud WolfeRoland 'Bud' Wolfe was an American pilot who parachuted from an RAF Spitfire plane into a peat bog on the Inishowen peninsula in County Donegal, Ireland, on November 30, 1941. The incident initiated a diplomatic row between Britain and Ireland....
(doubling Richard Bond) - John Daheim
- James Fawcett
- Loren Riebe
- Duke Taylor
Kane Richmond did some of his own stunts but the most spectacular were performed by Dave Sharpe who, for example, "rolled from an overturning motorcycle to leap atop a careening auto that plunged from a cliff." Stuntman Carey Loftin "showed what a motorcycle could do in the hands of an expert."
Special effects
All the special effects in Spy Smasher were created by Republic's in-house effects duo, the Lydecker brothersLydecker brothers
-Partial filmography:*Darkest Africa *Women in War - Oscar nominated*Adventures of Captain Marvel *Flying Tigers - Oscar nominated*Commando Cody: Sky Marshal of the Universe...
.
Cliffhangers
Chapter 11 has what Harmon and Glut consider to be the "most unique chapter ending of them all:" Spy Smasher is gunned down by enemy agents at point blank range and falls from the top of an office building to crash into the pavement below. In the resolution, the audience discover that Jack, Spy Smasher's brother, has knocked him out and stolen his costume. The real Spy Smasher turns up too late to save his twin. This is notable because in nearly every other chapter ending ever produced the person in danger manages to somehow survive.Theatrical
Spy Smashers official release date is 4 April 1942, although this is actually the date the sixth chapter was made available to film exchanges.Television
Spy Smasher was one of twenty-six Republic serials re-released as a Century 66 film on television in 1966. The title of the film was changed to Spysmasher Returns. This version was cut down to 100-minutes in length.Critical reception
In the opinion of Harmon and Glut, Spy Smasher is the best serial in terms of special effects and stunts, and one of the best in general: "Although lacking the beauty and imagination that appeals to a kind of racial unconscious in the Jungian sense that is found in Flash Gordon...Spy Smasher emerges in a class by itself, the foremost cliffhanger example of a whole school of Hollywood film-making in the 40s that gloried in matchless pure entertainment." The script is consistently logical and well constructed with credible dialogue and good characterisation. The cinematography is atmospheric and often artistic. According to Cline, Spy Smasher had a "very tight and fast-moving screenplay." In the words of Grant Tracey, writing on the Images Journal website, Spy Smasher is "perhaps one of the best serials of all time because of its stunning cliffhangers and unique innovations to the serial form."Chapter titles
- America Beware (28min 32s)
- Human Target (17min 29s)
- Iron Coffin (16min 48s)
- Stratosphere Invaders (16min 50s)
- Descending Doom (16min 48s)
- The Invisible Witness (16min 39s)
- Secret Weapon (16min 53s)
- Sea Raiders (16min 45s)
- Highway Racketeers (16min 41s)
- 2700° Fahrenheit (16min 56s)
- Hero's Death (16min 45s)
- V..._ (16min 40s)
Source:
See also
- Adventures of Captain MarvelAdventures of Captain MarvelAdventures of Captain Marvel is a 1941 twelve-chapter film serial directed by John English and William Witney for Republic Pictures, adapted from the popular Captain Marvel comic book character then appearing in Fawcett Comics publications such as Whiz Comics and Captain Marvel Adventures...
(1941) is the other Republic serial based on a Fawcett comic - List of film serials
- List of film serials by studio