Buck Rogers (serial)

Buck Rogers
Directed by	Ford Beebe Saul A. Goodkind
Written by	Norman S. Hall Ray Trampe Dick Calkins
Based on	Buck Rogers created by Philip Francis Nowlan
Produced by	Barney A. Sarecky
Starring	Buster Crabbe Constance Moore Jackie Moran Anthony Warde C. Montague Shaw Jack Mulhall
Cinematography	Jerome Ash
Edited by	Joseph Gluck Louis Sackin Alvin Todd
Distributed by	Universal Pictures
Release date	April 11, 1939 (1939-04-11)
Running time	237 minutes (12 chapters)
Country	United States
Language	English

Buck Rogers is a 1939

Plot

In 1938, Lieutenant

Buck and Buddy join the resistance. They volunteer to go to Saturn, where they hope that they can find help in their fight against Kane. Wilma Deering (Constance Moore) is assigned to accompany them. Saturn is run by Aldar (Guy Usher), the Council of the Wise and Prince Tallen. To the dismay of Buck and Buddy, they also discover that Kane has dispatched ambassadors of his own, headed by his loyal henchman, Captain Laska (Henry Brandon). The serial then becomes a back-and-forth struggle between Buck and Kane to secure the planet's military support.

Chapters

_Source:^[2]

1. "Tomorrow's World"
2. "Tragedy on Saturn"
3. "The Enemy's Stronghold"
4. "The Sky Patrol"
5. "The Phantom Plane"
6. "The Unknown Command"
7. "Primitive Urge"
8. "Revolt of the Zuggs"
9. "Bodies Without Minds"
10. "Broken Barriers"
11. "A Prince in Bondage"
12. "War of the Planets"

Cast

• Buster Crabbe as Buck Rogers
• Constance Moore as Wilma Deering
• Jackie Moran as George "Buddy" Wade
• Anthony Warde as "Killer" Kane
• C. Montague Shaw as Doctor Huer
• Jack Mulhall as Captain Rankin
• Guy Usher as Aldar
• William Gould as Air Marshal Kragg
• Philson Ahn as Prince Tallen
• Henry Brandon as Captain Laska
• David Sharpe as Kane pilot / Hidden City sentry / Saturnian lieutenant

Production

The 12-part serial launched in 1939. Buster Crabbe had played Flash Gordon in the serials of the same name and Flash Gordon's Trip to Mars. Constance Moore played Lieutenant Wilma Deering, the sole female character, and Jackie Moran as "Buddy" Wade, an original character who was modeled on the Sunday strip character Buddy Deering. Anthony Warde was cast as "Killer" Kane, Rogers' enemy; this was the only time that Warde, who usually portrayed evil underlings in serials, played a lead villain. Korean-American actor Philson Ahn, younger brother of Philip Ahn, played Prince Tallen, a Saturnian native who befriends Rogers.

Noted actor and "crown prince of stuntmen" David Sharpe, who appeared in over 4,500 films over the course of a seven-decade career, appeared in several roles.

The serial had a small budget and saved money on special effects by re-using material from other stories: background shots from the futuristic 1930 musical Just Imagine, as the city of the future, the garishly stenciled walls from the Azura palace set in Trip to Mars, and even the studded leather belt that Crabbe wore in Trip, turned up as part of Buck's uniform.

Feature adaptations

In 1953, the serial was edited into a

Legacy

Planet Outlaws received comedic commentary treatment in 2018 as a "...Presents" feature by Matthew J. Elliott and Ian Potter as part of RiffTrax, an offshoot of cult movie-mocking TV series Mystery Science Theater 3000.

See also

• List of film serials by year
• List of film serials by studio

References