Robinson Crusoe of Clipper Island

Infobox Film
name = Robinson Crusoe of Clipper Island


director =Ray Taylor
Mack V. Wright
producer =Nat Levine
Sol C. Siegel
writer =Morgan Cox
Maurice Geraghty
Barry Shipman
starring =Ray Mala
Mamo Clark
Herbert Rawlinson
William Newell
John Ward
John Dilson
Selmer Jackson
John Picorri
music =Hugo Riesenfeld
cinematography =Edgar Lyons
William Nobles
editing =Helene Turner
William Witney
distributor =Republic Pictures
released =14 November 1936
15 January 1937
1950s
1966
runtime =14 chapters (256 min)
language = English
country = USA
budget = $106,779 (Negative cost: $111,848)| awards =
amg_id =1:41700
imdb_id =0028198

"Robinson Crusoe of Clipper Island" (1936) is a Republic Movie serial starring Ray Mala. It was the fourth of the sixty-six serials produced by Republic and the last (of four) to be released in 1936. "Robinson Crusoe of Clipper Island" is notable for being the first Republic serial to contain another common aspect of serials - a Re-Cap Chapter, similar to a clipshow in modern television where the events of the previous chapters are repeated via clips (in order to save money). This may have even been the invention of the concept, which was then routinely used in serial production.

Plot

Following the sabotage and destruction of Pacific Dirigible Airlines' airship "San Francisco" on her maiden flight on the new California-Australia route (with the death of thirty-three people on board), the United States Intelligence Department assigns "Agent Mala" to investigate. Evidence points to the refuelling station on Clipper Island (in the Pacific Ocean). Mala heads to the island as a company radio operator, with partner "Hank McGlaurie" and dog "Buck", along with local princess "Melani" and novelist "Anthony Tupper".

The masked master spy known only as "H.K." has learned of his mission and despatches his henchmen to intercept. Also causing problems is "Porotu", who wishes to usurp Princess Melani and rule the Komatoans.

Cast

*Ray Mala as "Mala", operative of the "United States Intelligence Department" undercover as a "Pacific Dirigible Airlines" radio operator
*Rex the Wonder Horse
*Buck the Dog
*Mamo Clark as Princess Melani, Princess and ruler of the Komatoans
*Herbert Rawlinson as Grant Jackson
*William Newell as Hank McGlaurie, Agent Mala's partner
*John Ward as Anthony Tupper, English Novelist accompanying Agent Mala
*John Dilson as E. G. Ellsworth, joint owner of "Pacific Dirigible Airlines" with Canfield
*Selmer Jackson as "Canfield", joint owner of "Pacific Dirigible Airlines" with E. G. Ellsworth

upporting Cast

*John Picorri as "Porotu", of the Komatoans with ambitions to be their new ruler
*George Chesebro as "Draker", Henchman of "H.K." and chief of island operations
*Bob Kortman as "Wilson", Captain of the yacht "Tuloa" chartered to take Mala to Clipper Island
*George Cleveland as "Goebel", the gang's chief scientist
*Lloyd Whitlock as "Lamar", a Henchman of "H.K."
*Tiny Roebuck as "Eppa", a Komatoan wrestler
*Tracy Layne as "Larkin", a Henchman of "H.K."
*Herbert Weber as "Stevens", suspected "Pacific Dirigible Airlines" employee on Clipper Island
*Anthony Pawley as "Clark", a dying man on Clipper Island
*Allen Connor as Jim Taylor

Production

This serial was filmed between 31 August and 25 September 1936 under the working title of "Robinson Crusoe". It was released on 14 November 1936. It was re-released in several forms made from editing together the chapters - a 71-minute feature version on 15 January 1937, a television series of six 26½-minutes in the early 1950s and a 66-minute feature version in 1966 called "Robinson Crusoe of Mystery Island".

The planned budget was $106,779 but it went over budget by $5,069 (4.7%) for a final negative cost of $111,848.

Chapter titles

#The Mysterious Island "(31 min 21s)"
#Flaming Danger "(20 min 46s)"
#Fathoms Below "(18 min 03s)"
#Into the Enemy's Camp "(17 min 27s)"
#Danger in the Air "(17 min 41s)"
#The God of the Volcano "(17 min 19s)"
#Trail's End "(15 min 41s)"
#The Jaws of the Beast "(16 min 17s)"
#The Cave of the Winds "(17 min 22s)"
#Wings of Fury "(16 min 29s)"
#Agents of Disaster "(16 min 22s)" -- Re-Cap Chapter
#The Sea Trap "(16 min 41s)"
#Mutiny "(18 min 35s)"
#Thunder Mountain "(16 min 21s)"

Cliffhangers

#The burning mainmast of the "Tuloa" falls on Mala.
#Mala is captured by natives and forced to fall into a volcano.
#While diving, and with the ship above being shelled by a submarine, Mala begins to sufocate.
#Mala and Lamar are caught in the explosion of an overheated boiler.
#The plane carrying Mala crashes into the Pacific Ocean.
#Mala and Melani are caught in a landslide caused by an earthquake.
#While escaping from aggressive natives, Mala and Melani slip off a cliff.
#With his vine cut, Mala falls into Alligator infested water.
#While scaling a cliff, Mala is shot at and falls.
#Struggling with the pilot of a biplane causes it to crash into the Pacific Ocean.
#Mala's car is forced off the road and over an embankment.
#Mala and Melani, escaping in a motorboat, are shot at by a cannon.
#Mala is caught by gas aboard an Airship, which begins to crash.

Note: Many of the solutions to these cliffhangers are "cheats" - they change or obviously do not match the events shown in the preceding cliffhanger.

tunts & Effects

tunts

*Loren Riebe

pecial Effects

*John T. Coyle
*The Lydecker brothers

Trivia

* This serial is unusual in having 14 chapters and it is the only sound serial to do so. Most serials had either 12 or 15 chapters.

References

*"Valley of the Cliffhangers Supplement"; Mathis, Jack, 1995, ISBN 0-9632878-1-8
*imdb title|id=0028198|title=Robinson Crusoe of Clipper Island

External links

*imdb title|id=0028198|title=Robinson Crusoe of Clipper Island
* [http://www.serialsquadron.com The Serial Squadron]

###@@@KEY@@@###succession box
title=Republic Serial
before=The Vigilantes Are Coming (1936)
years=Robinson Crusoe of Clipper Island (1936)
after=Dick Tracy (1937)