The Lost City (1935 serial)

Infobox Film
name = The Lost City


image_size =
caption =
director = Harry Revier
producer = Sherman S. Krellberg
writer = Zelma Carroll
Geo. M. Merrick
Robert Dillon
Eddie Granemann
Leon D'Usseau
Perley Sheehan
narrator =
starring = William "Stage" Boyd
Kane Richmond
Claudia Dell
Josef Swickard
music =
cinematography = Edward Linden
Roland Price
editing = Holbrook Todd
distributor = Super Serial Productions Inc.
released = 6 March 1935
runtime = 12 chapters (240 min)
country = USA
language = English
budget =
gross =
preceded_by =
followed_by =
website =
amg_id = 1:30139
imdb_id = 0026652

"The Lost City" is an independently made film serial produced in 1935 directed by Harry Revier.

Plot

The film took the premise of that year's "The Phantom Empire" but transferred the lost civilization motif from the west to another popular serial locale, the African jungle. Scientist Bruce Gordon comes to a secluded area in Africa after realizing that a series of electrically induced natural disasters had been detected in the area. There he finds Zolock, last of the Lemurians, in a secret complex under a mountain.

Zolock had created the natural disasters as a prelude to his attempt to take over the world, holding a brilliant scientist, Dr. Manyus, there hostage with his daughter. He had also forced Manyus to create mindless "giant" slaves out of the natives as a private army and as the serial progresses we learn Manyus also turned another tribe, the spider-worshipping Wangas, into white burly haired midgets. The heroes escape Zolock, encounter the slave trading Queen Rama, and survive many harrowing adventures before returning to the Lost City and stopping Zolok's plan.

Cast

*William "Stage" Boyd as Zolok
*Kane Richmond as Bruce Gordon
*Claudia Dell as Natcha Manyus
*Josef Swickard as Doctor Manyus
*George 'Gabby' Hayes as Butterfield
*Billy Bletcher as Gorzo
*Eddie Fetherston as Jerry Delaney

Chapter titles

#Living Dead Men "(27min 48s)"
#Tunnel of Death "(20min 43s)"
#Dagger Rock "(19min 56s)"
#Doomed! "(12min 36s)"
#Tiger Prey "(19min 34s)"
#Human Beasts "(18min 25s)"
#Spider Man "(17min 04s)"
#Human Targets "(17min 39s)"
#Jungle Vengeance "(23min 16s)"
#The Lion Pit "(18min 24s)"
#The Death Ray "(13min 38s)"
#The Mad Scientist "(18min 25s)"_Source: [cite book
last = Cline
first = William C.
title = In the Nick of Time
origyear = 1984
publisher = McFarland & Company, Inc.
isbn = 078640471X
pages = pp. 214
chapter = Filmography (Chapter titles only)]

Feature Length Versions

Sherman Krellber had the serial edited into four different feature versions over time, perhaps setting a record for feature versions of a serial. The first feature consisted of the first 5 episodes of the serial and the first reel of the fourth edited together, and supplemented with footage not part of the serial itself which drew the adventure to a loose conclusion; and the second was compiled from material in the first and last four chapters of the serial, omitting the adventures with the slave traders, the spider people and Queen Rama, but ending as did the serial. Both these features were made and released in 1935 and both were also called The Lost City. The first of these was also designed so that it could be followed over successive weeks by the remaining chapters in the serial.

In the early 1940s, Krellberg then created a new feature version which incorporated material from the adventures with the slavers, spider people and jungle queen, and released this under the title City of Lost Men. Finally, in the 1970s, he took the first feature version and clumsily edited in, at the end, most of the footage from the last chapter, creating what goes beyond a continuity gap and is rather a continuity abyss, and attached the City of Lost Men title to this feature.

It is not clear whether the last feature had any theatrical exposure or went directly to television. The first City of Lost Men appears to be lost, and videos and DVDs being sold under that title are sourced from film prints of this final feature. Since it incorporates the entire first feature version entitled Lost City, that film cannot fairly be said to be lost, although no separate video issue of that version under its own titles, is known. Video/DVD offerings of The Lost City as a feature are from prints of the second feature version described.

See also

* List of film serials
* List of film serials by studio

References

External links

*
*
* [http://community-2.webtv.net/CaptainHermes/CLIFFHANGERS/page2.html Dr Hermes Review of The Lost City]

Download or view online

* [http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=The%20Lost%20city%20AND%20mediatype%3Amovies%20AND%20collection%3Afeature_films%20AND%20subject%3A%22The%20Lost%20City%22 Complete public domain serial at The Internet Archive]
* [http://www.archive.org/details/lost_city1 Chapter 1 at The Internet Archive]
* [http://www.archive.org/details/lost_city2 Chapter 2 at The Internet Archive]
* [http://www.archive.org/details/lost_city3 Chapter 3 at The Internet Archive]
* [http://www.archive.org/details/lost_city4 Chapter 4 at The Internet Archive]
* [http://www.archive.org/details/lost_city5 Chapter 5 at The Internet Archive]
* [http://www.archive.org/details/lost_city6 Chapter 6 at The Internet Archive]
* [http://www.archive.org/details/lost_city7 Chapter 7 at The Internet Archive]
* [http://www.archive.org/details/lost_city8 Chapter 8 at The Internet Archive]
* [http://www.archive.org/details/lost_city9 Chapter 9 at The Internet Archive]
* [http://www.archive.org/details/lost_city10 Chapter 10 at The Internet Archive]
* [http://www.archive.org/details/lost_city11 Chapter 11 at The Internet Archive]
* [http://www.archive.org/details/lost_city12 Chapter 12 at The Internet Archive]