King of the Carnival
| 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 |
|
Running time | 12 chapters (167 minutes)[1] |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $172,995 (negative cost: $177,050)[1] |
King of the Carnival (1955) is a Republic movie serial. It contains a substantial amount of stock footage from the earlier Republic serial Daredevils of the Red Circle. This was the 66th and last serial ever made by Republic and is often considered to be one of the worst produced by that company. The plot concerns Treasury Agents investigating a Cold War counterfeiting operation believed to be connected to a circus.
Plot
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 (they were both paratroopers in the war) in searching for the counterfeiters; his acrobatic partner "June Edwards" assists him actively. From the start of their involvement, they find themselves repeatedly threatened by two thugs, "Daley" and "Travis". Early evidence leads Bert and June to a cave which leads to an isolated beach, and contains gear belonging to the gang. They are unaware, however, that in a minisub off this beach's shoreline hides Zorn, the counterfeiter who is printing the phoney bills. Ultimately, however, the evidence points to an unknown, higher authority directing the operations of these men, and apparently indeed someone connected with the circus. Among the most suspicious-acting of the circus staff are Burton the clown, and any of three "rubes", at least one of whom seems to be lurking by when something threatens the life of Bert or June.
Cast
Principal players
- Harry Lauter as Bert King, acrobat and former paratrooper
- Fran Bennett as June Edwards, acrobat
- Keith Richards as Daley, Henchman
- Terry Frost as Travis, Henchman
- Robert Shayne as Jess Carter, Circus ringmaster
Supporting players
- Rick Vallin as Agent Art Kerr, a T-Man (Treasury Agent) and former paratrooper
- Robert Clarke as Agent Jim Hayes, a T-Man (Treasury Agent)
- Gregory Gay as Zorn, agent of a foreign power
- Lee Roberts as Hank
Small role players
- Mauritz Hugo as Sam, Sideshow barker and Henchman
- Chris Mitchell as Bill
- Stuart Whitman as Mac, Acrobat
- Tom Steele as Matt Winston, Acrobat
- George DeNormand as Garth
Production
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]
It was filmed between 8 March and 25 March 1955 under the working title King of the Circus. At seventeen days this is the joint-shortest, with Zombies of the Stratosphere, filming period of all Republic serials.[1] The serial's production number was 1800.[1]
Republic liked calling their heroes "King" in order to use the title "King of..." The studio had found success with this naming scheme following the adaptation of Zane Grey's King of the Royal Mounted.[2][3]
Stunts
- Tom Steele. Whereas Republic serials traditionally employed a small army of stuntmen, Steele was the only stuntman required for "King of the Carnival."
Special effects
Special effects created by the Howard and Theodore Lydecker.
Release
Theatrical
King of the Carnival's official release date is 27 June 1955, although this is actually the date 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 re-released serials until 1958, beginning with a re-release of Dick Tracy's G-Men and ending with Zorro's Fighting Legion.[1]
Chapter titles
- Daredevils of the Air (20 min)
- Death Takes the Wheel (13 min 20s)
- The Trap that Failed (13 min 20s)
- Operation Murder (13 min 20s)
- The Mechanical Bloodhound (13 min 20s)
- Undersea Peril (13 min 20s)
- High Hazard (13 min 20s)
- Death Alley (13 min 20s)
- Cave of Doom (13 min 20s)
- The Masked Executioner (13 min 20s) -- Re-Cap Chapter
- Undersea Warfare (13 min 20s)
- Vengeance Under the Big Top (13 min 20s)
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Mathis, Jack (1995). Valley of the Cliffhangers Supplement. Jack Mathis Advertising. pp. 3, 10, 142–143. ISBN 0-9632878-1-8.
- ^ Harmon, Jim; Donald F. Glut (1973). "11. New Masks for New Heroes "Get That Masked Trouble Maker"". The Great Movie Serials: Their Sound and Fury. Routledge. p. 283. ISBN 978-0-7130-0097-9.
- ^ Cline, William C. (1984). "2. In Search of Ammunition". In the Nick of Time. McFarland & Company, Inc. p. 23. ISBN 0-7864-0471-X.
- ^ Cline, William C. (1984). "Filmography". In the Nick of Time. McFarland & Company, Inc. pp. 256–257. ISBN 0-7864-0471-X.
