The Lost Radio Adventures of "RENFREW OF THE MOUNTED"

After a healthy run over CBS as a five-times-a-week serial, Renfrew of the Mounted returned to the air as a weekly half-hour adventure program over NBC-Blue. Launched on the evening of January 7, 1939, the network agreed to produce a 30-minute weekly program with the hope that a sponsor would be interested in signing on the bottom line. Producer Phil Goldstone of Criterion Pictures, responsible for the big screen adventures of Renfrew, created a momentary stir when he consulted the network about a clause in his contract that stipulated his rights to have a market tie-in with the cast of the motion pictures. To avoid conflict of interest with the movie studio, executives at NBC-Blue agreed to allow James Newill, the screen Renfrew, to play the starring role if the program moved to the West Coast. In the meantime, the new half-hour format would originate from the studios in New York City, known to all interests as “a substitute cast,” although House Jameson and Brad Barker were merely reprising their roles from the 1936–37 series.

 

George Ludlam was hired to write the scripts, based on 14-page plot summaries by Laurie York Erskine, who had no time to write two drafts of a weekly half-hour radio script. Ludlam, an experienced script writer with such credits as For Men Only and Spy at Large under his belt, would eventually go on to establish The Adventures of Superman for radio in early 1940. Without the continuation format of a daily serial, these half-hour stories were superior on many levels.

 

The adventures dramatized during the half-hour rendition of Renfrew of the Mounted consisted of both single-episode adventures and multi-episode story arcs. A number of recurring characters bridged continuity even when Renfrew was solving cases within one radio broadcast. Some of the half-hour adventures were adaptations of short stories written years prior by Erskine, others recycled material from short stories with revisions, and a number of them were originals. The episode “Redheads Won’t Stay Down,” broadcast February 18, 1939, was adapted from a story in Renfrew Rides North (1931). The episode “Signals in the Dark,” broadcast June 29, 1940, was inspired by the seafaring stories of the ships that mysteriously wrecked in the fog at San Francisco Bay — one in particular that disappeared without a trace but today is assumed to have wrecked and sunk.

 

Despite all the publicity, however, the radio program expired after the broadcast of October 12, 1940, with Renfrew riding the range on the silver screen courtesy of second-run theatres. The final movie in the franchise was released nationally back in July. On October 3, 1940, L.H. Titterton, manager of the Script Division at NBC, wrote to Douglas Storer with an official verdict: “Renfrew has been with us through thick and thin for several seasons now and much effort and time on everybody’s part has been expended to find a sponsor. We have not succeeded and for this we are very sorry. However, time is so precious on the air that we feel that we will just have to kiss Renfrew goodbye and make the last broadcast October 12. I want to thank you for your courtesy during the long months of the Renfrew programs and tell you that we want to be able to work out another program arrangement with you sometime in the future.”

 

According to production and call sheets in the NBC files, every half-hour episode was recorded. Sadly, like the fifteen-minute radio serial before it, recordings of the radio broadcasts were subject to the ravages of time. Fewer than half a dozen recordings from the 1939–1940 series are known to exist in collector hands, and the transcription discs for the remainder of the broadcasts are presumed “lost.”

 

The following are plot summaries gleaned from review of the radio scripts, filling in the gap that “lost” recordings would not be able to provide.

 

EPISODE #6, “CHIEF CALF ROBE’S HIDDEN TREASURE”

Broadcast February 11, 1939

CAST: Jackson Beck, Bill Boren, Walter Bryan, Harold de Becker, Peter Donald, Bob Dryden, Carl Eastman, Juano Hernandez, and James Monks.

PLOT: Inspector Renfrew and Constable Sheehan are on an exploring expedition to a strange country of high peaks and foaming torrents, where rivers flow north and east to join the greater rivers that empty into the Arctic Sea. There they stumble upon Klondike Peebles, beaten and kicked like a dog, who claims three years of prime silver fur was stolen by Chief Calf Robe and the Kachikas. When the Mounties arrive at the village, the medicine man quickly bewitches the Mounties’ guns, so they will never fire again — and if they do, they will never shoot straight. As the rifle champion of the force, Renfrew challenges the Indians to a duel in an effort to dispel the witchcraft, braving the best sharp-shooter in the village — and gets shot in the chest by the young competitor. Renfrew appears to use his own magic by removing the bullet which had torn at his tissue and throwing it with all his might in the face of the startled Indian. With pain in his chest, Renfrew shoots the bullseye in the white caribou hide, marked into circles. Having won the respect of Calf Robe, the concealed pelts are retrieved and returned. Later, as the men ride out of the Indian village, Renfrew confesses to his friends that no such magic exists — the bullet had hit the small mirror in his breast pocket, saving his life. Weak from the bullet wound, however, Renfrew confesses that such bluffs are not meant to battle Indian magic.

 

NOTES: The announcer closes the episode revealing next week’s episode as “The Affair of Strawberry Bill.” This episode was adapted from “Meebles’ Magic,” originally published in the November 1932 issue of American Boy magazine, and later reprinted in Renfrew’s Long Trail (1933).

 

EPISODE #8, “THE LOST RIVER MINE”

Broadcast February 25, 1939

CAST: Fred Barron, Phyllis Creore, Milton C. Herman, William Johnstone, James Krieger, Joe Latham, and Ralph Locke.

PLOT: Far in the High North, where the Dead Bear River winds through the mountains of British Columbia, in the narrow canyon of the hills known as Dead Ghost Pass, three men had been mining for gold — and two of the men planned to kill the third. Red Greve and Harmon Blackwood, a.k.a. “Blackie,” masterfully executed premature dynamite, creating a landslide that also blocked the river and turned the canyon into a lake where the victim’s body would never be found. Joining Inspector Renfrew up north to investigate is Jeff Collins, a boy of 18, son of Steve Collins, the prospector and miner who had disappeared. Finding Steve’s duffle, the men examine a map that is accurate except for the man-made lake and Pulpit Rock, which is nowhere to be found. Finding the hat of Red Greve, floating in the water, Renfrew suspects the miners are upstream, keeping close tabs on the investigators. The crime, which had happened a year prior, is unearthed when the prospectors blow up a section of the lake so the water would drain, giving them access to return to the rich vein in the cave. Their guilty conscience gives themselves away, in the presence of the Mountie, when they swear they’d seen Steve Collins walking toward them. Imagine their surprise when they learn that the tunnels lead completely through the mountain, and out into a valley beyond — old volcanic craters full of berries and small game. Steve Collins had lived in the valley for almost a year until the recent explosion, then he came down to investigate, only to discover his only exit from the valley to be the tunnel that reopened into Dead Ghost Pass.

 

EPISODE #9, “BRASS KNUCKLES”

Broadcast March 4, 1939

CAST: Somer Alberg, Tony Berger, Joe Curtin, Roger DeKoven, Joe Granby, Jackie Kelk, Bennett Kilpatrick, and Wilmer Walter.

PLOT: Inspector Renfrew is sent to Saffron Bay, a small lumber shipping and fishing port on the coast of British Columbia, nicknamed “Brass Knuckles Town” by the captain of a schooner. Constable Allison insists Renfrew return to his post, following a deadly ambush in the streets, resulting in murder. When Renfrew makes note that the victim of the murder had been a gun-toter from the United States, this gives the crime International significance and puts the case within the jurisdiction of the Mounted Police. Allison reluctantly agrees to assist, only to discover that his son Jim, working for the Connolly Gang, is being used as bait in a failed trap for Renfrew. Late one evening the Mountie educates the lad with the law of the jungle, using him to help smash the illegal operations of Connolly, the foreman of the mill and claimant of Saffron Bay.

 

NOTES: This episode was adapted from “Brass Knuckles,” originally published in the August 1931 issue of American Boy magazine, later reprinted in Renfrew Rides North (1931).

 

EPISODE #13, “THE SHIP WITHOUT A MASTER”

Broadcast April 1, 1939

CAST: Somer Alberg, Horace Braham, Joe Granby, George Herman, Juano Hernandez, William Johnstone, and Chester Stratton.

PLOT: Buck Garrity, sailing for the United States with a cargo of furs he’d collected over the course of three winters of hunting, worth thousands of dollars, is the victim of piracy from the Folger mob, operated by a man known as Boss Folger. Under orders, Finn Gerson and Redeye Folger make sure the Jackdaw schooner is moored at the wharf, with Frank and Buck Garrity helpless against piracy of the seas. Inspector Renfrew happens to be cruising in the same waters, along with Irving Brewster, on a trip north toward Skagway. With the wounded body of Buck Garrity on board, the men tow the Jackdaw back to Prince Rupert to get the man to the hospital. Knowing the thieves would have to trade with the Indians — and with that much stolen loot, they would leave a trail even a blind man could follow — Renfrew questions an Indian Chief to learn that the bandits are traveling across the mountains along a trail haunted by spirits. After a day’s ride our heroes catch up with Frank Garrity, who explains that he had escaped the schooner with the best of the pelts and is being followed by the Folgers. Renfrew uses the pelts as bait to lure the outlaws into a trap, with Finn Gerson (who went straight years ago and tried to disassociate from the Folger gang) playing the role of an evil spirit to spook the outlaws into giving up. 

 

NOTES: Muriel Pollock supplied the piano music for a sequence in this broadcast. This story was adapted from “The Cruise of the Jackdaw,” published in the October 1934 issue of American Boy magazine.

NOTE: Plots are reprinted with permission from Renfrew of the Mounted: A History of Laurie York Erskine's Canadian Mounted Franchise by Martin Grams, Jr. 

THE LONE RANGER BUBBLEGUM CARDS

A collection of 48 bubblegum cards were produced in 1940, given away in packs of bubble gum, featuring the artwork of Charles H. Steinbacher. Produced by Gum, Inc., the candy and card combo was sold for a penny. The original concept was to consist of 60 different cards so that fans of the radio program could buy the candy with the intent of collecting all 60. Children who mailed in five of their wrappers could also receive 8 x 10 a photo from the series. Children who sent in 25 wrappers would receive a complete set of those five photos. Those large prints are today considered among the rarest of Lone Ranger premiums.

In the early-to-mid 1990s, the art for all 60 cards was discovered in the personal safe of the late Steinbacher, so the cards were reproduced by Dart Flipcards, Inc., in 1997, not with a reproduction of all 48 cards, but also the 12 that were never produced.

Steinbacher was the art director for the George Moll Advertising Agency, which handled the Gum, Inc., account. Steinbacher became a legend in the field of non-sports cards for producing the art for the Horrors of War set for Gum, Inc., which was produced in 1938. Steinbacher’s watercolor-on-board paintings, 7 x 6 inches, were sold off separately over the years for sums even larger than the cost of the original bubble gum cards.

 

Lost 1940 Adventures of SERGEANT PRESTON OF THE YUKON

Initially titled Challenge of the Yukon, the Sergeant Preston radio program started out in 1939 as a 15-minute series with massive epics in serial format. By 1940, the series evolved into single adventures (and sometimes two-part adventures). Broadcast "live" over the Michigan Radio Network, the program could be heard in Chicago, northern Indiana and Ohio, and certain sections of Canada where radio receivership (and superb weather conditions) could allow someone with a superb radio set to pick up the broadcasts. The program never went national until 1947. It was not until 1943 that the radio broadcasts were recorded on transcription discs. All of which makes these 1940 plot summaries treasured. Over the years I have been reading those pre-1943 radio broadcasts to fill in the gaps, progressing to a complete broadcast log of each and every radio adventure. The plots below are from radio scripts where recordings do not exist. (The plots are rough draft, not final draft.) 

By the way, it would not be until the broadcast of May 30, 1940, that Tom Dougall began assigning script titles. 

Episode #126 [NO TITLE LISTED]

Broadcast April 9, 1940

Copyright Registration D-69607, script received at Registration Office April 22, 1940.

Written by Tom Dougall.

Plot: Sergeant Preston, accompanied with young Constable Evans, arrive in Forty Mile. When they reached the edge of the town, a hundred miners crowded around their sled with the news of a murder which had been committed the night before. Black Mike Carney had shot and killed Eddie Ryan in the Northern Lights café after which he had managed to escape. Black Mike’s wife, Linda, would not testify. His right-hand man, Trigger Mason, practically spits and defies the law, insisting he had nothing to do with the murder. But men in the café insist Eddie was provoked into gunplay and Black Mike knew Eddie was a poor shot. Black Mike fled North for five miles and, certain that no one was following him, returned to Forty Mile and safely hid in a second floor room of the Northern Lights café. Three days later, Constable Evans receives a note tipping him off to Black Mike’s whereabouts. The criminal knocked the Mountie unconscious and stole the uniform. In his haste to escape, Black Mike never staked on Trigger’s desperation to shoot and kill the Constable to save his friend. Mike was shot and killed. Preston arrived in own to learn what happened and Linda confessed she and Trigger conpisred with Black Mike to kill Eddie. She also confessed that she was aiding in her husband’s escape. Trigger attempted to flee out the back window, but King raced out to fell the body and give Preston the advantage.

 

Trivia, etc. Opening narrative provided by the narrator referred to last week’s episode, even though by this time they were offering single-adventure stories: “Sergeant Preston captured a bank robber in Forty Mile and left Pierre behind when he took his prisoner down to Dawson. A week later he headed North once more with young Constable Evans who was to be stationed in Forty Mile.”

 

Episode #127 [NO TITLE LISTED]

Broadcast April 16, 1940

Copyright Registration D-69608, script received at Registration Office April 22, 1940.

Written by Tom Dougall.

Plot: Young Jim Hanley drove into town from his claim on Placer Creek, only to momentarily exchange fisticuffs with Red Frazer. The men fought over the love of Louise. Jim and Louise have it fixed up to get married in the spring but according to Greg Carlton, her stepfather, Red was promised her hand. The next morning, Red was found dead – shot in the back. Jim was accused of the crime but the remains of a paper found in the fireplace suggested the crime involved the a Yukon claim. Excitement ran high in the town all day long and no one could understand why the Sergeant should spend his time in the claim office when there was a murder to be solved. All the miners believed Jim to be guilty in spite of the sympathy they felt for him, but he remained a free man and that night, he called on Louise. The girl insisted they run off to the mission and get married but her stepfather puts a halt on their plans. He granted them permission in exchange for a signature on a contract, giving her mother’s $10,000 to him – not her. Louise would not sign, forcing Greg to create a story: Jim confessed to Red’s murder and tried to take Louise away with him, she would not allow it, so Jim shot the girl and then in the struggle, Greg shot Jim. Preston intervenes, preventing the murder, and verifies Greg was selling company land and pocketing the money himself. Red Frazer discovered the embezzlement and attempted blackmail with Louise’s hand and Greg’s blessing, later silenced when Jim returned and Red discovered he would not get Louise.

 

Episode #128 [NO TITLE LISTED]

Broadcast April 23, 1940

Copyright Registration D-69805, script received at Registration Office May 2, 1940.

Written by Tom Dougall.

Plot: A hundred miles to the northwest of White Horse, Mrs. O’Brien ran the trading post which her husband had started many years before. She was all alone except for her daughter, Ann, and the few Indians who worked around the place. It was desolate country at the southern end of the Pine River district, good for furs and nothing else. The Yukon Trading Company made a good offer for her post and Sergeant suggested she take it. He warns her of the gold strike on Pine River that was a false alarm. Within a few weeks there will be thousands of men migrating south. She has a lot of gold dust in her safe and a lot of supplies in her storehouse. “A desperate man turns to crime very easily,” Preston warns. Mrs. O’Brien scoffs until a man name Jack shows up and attempts to sell his furs, then attempts to rob her. Bull McAllister, wanted for murder in White Horse, shows up and shoots and wounds Jack in the shoulder, then attempts to shoot and rob the ladies. King charges in and takes down Bull, moments before Pierre places cuffs on the killer. Preston explained that Jack was hired by Preston to pretend to be a robber, with Preston intending to arrest the man and demonstrate what he meant about desperate men posing a threat. Bull McAllister was an unexpected surprise. Mrs. O’Brien and Ann forgive the Mountie for having saved their lives. Ann, however, fell for Jack and the two might visit the mission to get married.

 

Episode #129 [NO TITLE LISTED]

Broadcast May 2, 1940

Copyright Registration D-70044, script received at Registration Office May 17, 1940.

Written by Tom Dougall.

Plot: On the morning the news of the gold strike on the Klondike reached San Francisco, Laura Baker was to be married. Instead, she faced an empty parlor with young Dave Warren, who wished he could take Don Warren’s place. Don left to seek his fortune and promised to return so they can get married – while the wedding guests remained puzzled. Six months later in a café in Dawson, Don Warren caught Harvey Ransom, a card sharp, cheating him. Don pulled a gun and shot the poker player dead through the heart. Don fled the town and while a blizzard covered his tracks, Sergeant Preston was able to pick up the trail two weeks later. Arriving at Hilo Jackson’s way cabin at the mouth of Lonesome Creek, Preston discovers the whereabouts of the Warren cabin and that his twin brother Dave was there – with a warning not to make a mistake deciphering the two. At the cabin, Dave switches clothes with Don in exchange for a promise that his brother return to San Francisco and promise to take care of Laura. Preston and Pierre arrive and ask a couple questions, verifying Dave and Don switched clothes. Don, having overheard the discussion from behind the cabin and realizing the ruse was up, shoots himself. Before Don passes away, he confesses that he read a letter from Laura that was addressed to Dave: “Time changed a lot of things. I always thought I loved Don, but now I’m all mixed up. Maybe it was pity instead of love. Anyway, now that you’re both gone, it’s you I miss. I wish you’d come back home, Dave.”

 

Episode #130 [NO TITLE LISTED]

Broadcast May 9, 1940

Copyright Registration D-70045, script received at Registration Office May 17, 1940.

Written by Tom Dougall.

Plot: Sergeant Preston was more interested in saving Slim Elliott than capturing Barney Walsh. The latter is an outlaw who stole Miss Ryan’s old dust and it was Barney who pulled the trigger. Pierre caught a bullet in the shoulder. After mending the wound and sledding Pierre to Metka Joe’s cabin to heal, the policeman set out on the trail in pursuit of Barney Walsh and his two companions, Slim and Kurt. The men were headed for Circle City in Alaska, out of the Yukon. They stop to rest at Matt Davies’ way cabin, only to soon receive a visit from Sergeant Preston, who kept on their trail. At the way cabin, Preston holds the men at bay with his gun while he warms up by the stove and eats a hot meal, while having a conversation with Slim to offer the youth a choice of living inside or outside of the law. When Barney attempts to challenge Preston, the men draw and the Mountie wins. Kurt attempts to draw on Preston but Slim takes care of Kurt. Preston assures Slim that since he never broke any laws, he can deliver evidence against Barney and Kurt and collect the reward money.

THE GREEN HORNET Cliffhanger Serial

Theatrical Release Date: January 9, 1940

Universal Studios Production #1010

Dates of Production: Thursday, September 7 to Friday, October 6, 1939

 

After months of negotiations, The Green Hornet, Inc. entered into a contract with Universal Pictures Company, Inc. on June 30, 1939. Under the 28 terms outlined in the contract, Universal was granted a license to film a series of film shorts based on the characters from The Green Hornet radio program. Under the third term, the film studio was required to conform to the type of story and characterization as featured on the radio program.

 

The Green Hornet, Inc. (i.e. radio producer George W. Trendle) was to approve of all scenarios, including the proposed plot, characters, action and dialogue by reviewing the scripts before they were filmed. This included all synopses and shooting scripts. Universal had to pay for vocal recordings or electronically transcribed voice tests of all the principal actors to be used in the film and approval was required from George W. Trendle in writing before actors could sign contracts. Trendle had to approve of the gas gun, Kato’s driving uniform and the make of automobile to be used in the production. Naturally, such oversight from the owner of a property was rarely achieved under a studio contract. Republic Pictures, however, broke box office records for a cliffhanger serial with Trendle’s The Lone Ranger, which prompted Universal to grant Trendle whatever oversight he asked for. Among Trendle’s requests was a copyright notice regarding the radio program on all advertising — including lobby cards, stills and posters.

 

Payment for the license cost the studio $20,000. Universal was obligated to mail Trendle quarterly statements of the world-wide gross film rentals beginning 60 days after the cliffhanger began distribution. If the total gross film rental exceeded $300,000, Universal was obligated to pay The Green Hornet, Inc. 15 percent of all world-wide film rentals in excess of that amount (100 percent of the gross revenue, not net). Certified statements were to be mailed to Trendle on a monthly basis, providing a breakdown of all funds received as a result of film rentals.

 

Clause 28 was unique, offering the film studio an option to produce an additional cliffhanger serial, provided it met the terms of the contract to Trendle’s satisfaction. The pricing would be slightly different — in order to exercise the option of producing a second series of films, the studio prior to May 31, 1940, would have to notify Trendle in writing of its intention to exercise the option, which would be accompanied by a payment of $15,000. on or before January 9, 1941. Universal would have exclusive title use until January 31, 1942, and non-exclusive title use until January 31, 1945, after which the studio would be required to enter a new contract for the reuse of the serials, or new productions.

 

The serial started shooting on the morning of Thursday, September 7, with an approved budget of $160,000 on the 25 percent basis. In order to take advantage of weather conditions that sparked news in California at the time, it was decided to concentrate on all exterior shots for the first three days of production. This included a trip along Ranch Road, a popular spot with movie directors for highway filming, for all the floral roadside scenes. The gas station was filmed on location on the road to Back Ranch. The junk yard was filmed in Glendale, while the interior scenes would later be filmed on the studio back lot. A number of car chase sequences were filmed on Mulholland Drive, and director Ford Beebe took advantage of the opportunity to film more material than required so the studio would have stock footage to use in future productions. The freight train was shot at Chatsworth, California. The flying airfield was filmed at the Metropolitan Airport. By the third day, however, the serial began fighting adverse weather and production ran behind schedule.

 

Knowing the latter part of the schedule was devoted entirely to interior stage work, Martin Murphy of Universal consulted Henry MacRae, famous “serial king” of the screen who had been with the studio since 1915; he suggested they add an alternating director (Ray Taylor) to relieve Ford Beebe starting September 14. “With these two men on the job we feel there should be no difficulty in at least completing the entire serial on schedule and for the budget amount,” reported Murphy to the studio executives.

 

On September 30, Murphy said in an inter-office memo “it appears the addition of Ray Taylor as an alternating director on this serial has worked out as planned. During the past week the company has made very good headway and are now running right on schedule.”

 

An October 1939 issue of a Zaneszille, Ohio, newspaper inaccurately reported the original title of the serial as The Adventures of the Green Hornet, subtitled “The Masked Avenger of Mis-Deeds in the Big City.” The newspaper even reported there were three directors — Saul A. Goodkind, Ford Beebe and Ray Taylor — working simultaneously. Two units shot continuously, so that each director got every third day off to rest. According to the studio’s production notes, Goodkind had nothing to do with this serial, even though he was film editor for many of Universal’s other serials, including Pirate Treasure(1934), The Perils of Pauline (1933) and the Flash Gordon trilogy. Goodkind did propose dubbing his own voice in as The Green Hornet instead of using the voice of Al Hodge, as he did for other serials, but this was quickly disregarded. 

 

While the crew completed the interior shots on time, the studio used a number of techniques not uncommon in studio production — using everything on the lot at their disposal. The exterior scenes of the Acme Transportation Company and the scenes at the Whippet Garage were filmed at the studio garage. The parking lot was shot at the studio’s A-Gate. The airplane hangar was filmed on the backlot. The exterior of The Daily Sentinel Platform was filmed at the studio’s lumber yard. Most of the scenes of offices and interiors were shot on Sound Stage #15, while city streets were shot on the backlot’s “New York Street.”

 

Filming was completed on Friday evening, October 6, right on schedule. In 26 shooting days the unit completed 13 episodes of the serial — equivalent to one reel of finished product each day. The musical score was recorded on October 10 and arrangements were made to fly radio actor Al Hodge from Michigan to California to dub his lines on October 19 and 20. When Gordon Jones is masked as The Green Hornet on screen, it is the radio actor’s voice heard on the soundtrack.

 

During production of the serial, Trendle insisted the buzzing sound of a hornet was inserted into the soundtrack whenever the Black Beauty was speeding through the streets. It was his attorney, Raymond Meurer, who insisted that Al Hodge supply the voice of The Green Hornet so radio listeners could best associate the matching voice on film.

 

Even with a stunt man, actor and star of the title role, Gordon Jones had to be athletic for the title role. “You’re supposed to be an actor but you’ve also got to be a trapeze artist, a professional strong man, and a marvel of memory,” he remarked to the trade papers. “Yesterday, from 8 a.m. until midnight, I used up 24 pages of dialogue.”

 

Reportedly the entire serial script (all 13 chapters) ran 700 pages. “Last week, when we were on location, and the temperatures were in the 120s at Chatsworth, I thought I’d die,” Gordon continued. “I was in my whole regalia, fighting people inside a railroad locomotive cab, falling off cliffs, and carrying guys over my shoulders.”

 

Editing the serial was no easy task, but the first three episodes were completed and shipped out to movie theaters on November 7, three weeks before the trailer promoting the serial was completed. (The 15-page script for the trailer was dated November 17, 1939.)

 

The serial chapters were loosely adapted from original radio scripts. Script writers George H. Plympton, Basil Dickey, Morrison Wood and Lyonel Margolies received a large handful of scripts from which to choose material. The first chapter, “The Tunnel of Terror,” for example, came from the radio broadcast of October 12, 1937, which involved Reid’s efforts to shut down Henry Adsit of Liberty Construction, who managed to underbid everyone for city construction jobs — but at the cost of a tunnel collapse because of inferior lumber and materials.

 

Chapter six, “Highways of Peril,” was a loose adaptation of the radio broadcast of December 29, 1936, which involved Mr. Longworth, owner of a crooked transportation company plotting sabotage so his competition, Grant Mitchell of Six Point Airlines, would be forced to sell the business. After sabotaging four airplanes, Longworth finds himself a victim of his own scheme when The Green Hornet forces him to fly the next targeted airplane. 

 

These chapter plays for the cliffhanger serial is a Godsend to fans of the radio program. The radio program was never recorded on a regular basis until the spring of 1938 so the stories adapted for the screen are from radio broadcasts not known to exist in recorded form.

 

The question of Kato’s nationality came into question for the cliffhanger serial.

 

Originally Japanese from the very first radio episode, news events of the escalating war overseas forced Striker and Trendle to change Kato to a Filipino. In 1937, Japan’s army conquered Shanghai, China. A broadcast of December 1937 featured Kato’s disgust for the war in the Far East. By July of 1939, it was decided to switch Kato’s nationality from Japanese to Filipino to avoid any distaste by radio listeners. Then, in June of 1941, months before the U.S. entry in World War II, Kato was officially declared a Filipino and numerous references were made during the radio broadcasts. But Universal had its own solution: Kato would be Korean in the serial, avoiding any possible reference to the Japanese, and Kato’s nationality was disclosed in the very first chapter of the serial. Keye Luke played the role of the Hornet’s aide, and between scenes during production, he sketched a portrait of actress Anne Nagel for a leading American magazine.

 

This serial offers a number of casting surprises. Alan Ladd, a virtual unknown at the time, plays the part of Gilpin, the young pilot in Chapter 3. Jack Perrin, who played starring roles in a string of B-westerns during the early ’30s, makes an appearance as a patrol policeman in Chapters 5 and 9 (and would return as an Army deserter in the Hornet sequel). Anne Gwynne played the role of Josephine Weaver in Chapter 3. This was her seventh screen role under contract to the studio, but she would soon establish herself as one of the best “screamers” in Universal Studios’ horror films starring Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi. She went on to play the role of Tess Trueheart in Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome (1947).

The financial rewards were enough to satisfy both the studio and Trendle, and Universal optioned to produce a second sequel. Years later Universal Studios would reissue the serial as a 99-minute motion picture. Edited down from the 13 chapters, the studio was able to profit again from the same film. This was common for most studios like Mascot and Republic, but fans today still prefer to watch the serial in its entirety, chapter-by-chapter.

NOTES: The above contains excerpts from The Green Hornet: A History of Radio, Motion-Pictures, Comics and Television, by Terry Salomonson and Martin Grams, Jr.