The Twilight Zone: "To Serve Man"

Among the top ten episodes of The Twilight Zone is "To Serve Man," an intriguing story that works well for the episode's final punch-line, "It's a cook book!" but suffered production problems. The episode was filmed twice and then footage from both versions were combined to form the episode we see today. Footage that ended up on the cutting room floor was screened at the second annual Mid-Atlantic Nostalgia Convention in 2007, and has not yet been included on the DVD or BluRay release. If you were browsing the web hoping for a nice write-up about the entire production of this episode, you've come to the right place.

Production #4807 “TO SERVE MAN” (Initial telecast: March 2, 1962)

Copyright Registration: © Cayuga Productions, Inc., February 27, 1962, LP21889 (in notice: 1961)

Dates of Rehearsal: June 9 and 12, 1961

Dates of Filming: June 13, 14, 15 and 17, 1961

Script #66 dated: April 26, 1961, with revised pages dated June 12, 1961

Producer and Secretary: $1,625.00

Story and Secretary: $3,805.00

Director: $1,588.33

Cast: $7,774.27

Unit Manager and Secretary: $600.00

Production Fee: $900.00

Agents Commission: $2,500.00

Legal and Accounting: $250.00

Below the line charges (M-G-M): $41,105.47 

Below the line charges (other): $971.52
Total Production Costs: $61,119.59 

Total production costs and breakdown from production summary dated February 28, 1962.

Cast: Hardie Albright (the Secretary General); David Armstrong (guest at U.N. #1); Gene Benton (reporter #2); Lloyd Bochner (Mike Chambers); Bill Burnside (TV Cameraman #1); John Burnside (TV Cameraman #2); Susan Cummings (Pat “Penny” Brody); Jeanne Evans (woman #2); J.H. Fujiyama ( Japanese delegate); Jean Heremans (Dignitary #3); Richard Kiel (the Kanamits); Theodore Marcuse (Citizen Gregori); Adrienne Marden (woman #1); Bob McCord (Interpreter #1); Nelson Olmsted (the scientist); Ted O’Shea (Dignitary #1); Fred Rappaport (Dignitary #5); Bartlett Robinson (the baldish Colonel); Joseph Ruskin (the voice of the Kanamit); Lomax Study (M. Leveque, French delegate); Robert Tafur (Seńor Valdes, Argentine delegate); Charles Tannen (man #1); Jim Turley (TV Cameraman #3); James L. Wellman (man #2); Will J. Wilke (reporter #1); Jack Williams (Dignitary #2); and Carlton Young (Colonel #2).

Un-credited cast as Earthlings boarding the spaceship: Joan Austin, Joyce Baker, Mary Ellen Batten, Keith Britton, Ellen Brown, B. Cates, Joe Hicks, Lee Montgomery, Bob Peterson, Beau Ramstead, Jack Ramstead, Ester Silvery, Joan Weinstein, Jack Williams, and Sally Yarnell.

Stock Music Cues: Etrange #3 (by Marius Constant, :09); Milieu #1 (by Constant, :16); Counter Attack Part 1 (by Jerry Goldsmith, :42); Return to the Past (by Goldsmith, :47); The Assassination (by Goldsmith, :02); Return to the Past (by Goldsmith, :15); Counter Attack Part 2 (by Goldsmith, :26 and :36); Table Talk (by Goldsmith, :09); The Assasination (by Goldsmith, :02); Counter Attack Part 2 (by Goldsmith, :14); The Prediction (by Goldsmith, :21); Counter Attack Part 2 (by Goldsmith, 1:56); Serling III (by Robert Drasnin, :04); Etrange #3 (by Constant, :08); and Milieu #2 (by Constant, :19).

Season 3 of Bluray Release.

Director of Photography: George T. Clemens, a.s.c.

Production Manager: Ralph W. Nelson

Set Decorations: H. Web Arrowsmith

Art Directors: George W. Davis and Phil Barber

Assistant Director: E. Darrell Hallenbeck

Casting: Stalmaster-Lister

Story Consultant: Richard McDonagh

Film Editor: Jason H. Bernie, a.c.e.

Sound: Franklin Milton and Bill Edmondson

Automobiles Supplied by the Ford Motor Company.

Directed by Richard L. Bare

Teleplay by Rod Serling, based on the short story of the same name by Damon Knight, originally published in the November 1950 issue of Galaxy Science Fiction.

Serling's Opening Narrative: “Respectfully submitted for your perusal – a Kanamit. Height, a little over nine feet. Weight, in the neighborhood of three hundred and fifty pounds. Origin, unknown.  Motives? Therein hangs the tale, for in just a moment, we’re going to ask you to shake hands . . . Figuratively . . . with a Christopher Columbus from another galaxy and another time. This is the Twilight Zone.”

Plot: This is the way nightmares begin. On a warm April afternoon, an alien race makes contact with the citizens of planet Earth, offering a hand of friendship. Their intention is to offer peace and prosperity. Within months, deserts become fields of crops, because the Kanamits show how to add a very cheap nitrate to the soil. The threat of war becomes obsolete when all nations implement an invisible force field introduced by the visitors from outer space. While the world slowly transforms into a Garden of Eden, two decoding specialists for the U.S. government, Michael Chambers and Pat Brody, spend long hours trying to decode a book accidentally left behind at the United Nations. The only thing they have been able to crack is the title on the cover – “To Serve Man.” One year later, the book still isn’t cracked, and Chambers is one of the hundreds of thousands of passengers with a round-trip ticket to tour the Kanamit’s home planet – and fails to make his escape when he is warned at the last minute by Pat that she has finally deciphered the book’s meaning – it is a cookbook.

Serling's Closing Narrative: “The recollections of one Michael Chambers, with appropriate flashbacks and soliloquy. Or, more simply stated, the evolution of man. The cycle of going from dust to dessert; the metamorphosis from being the ruler of a planet . . . to an ingredient in someone’s soup. It’s tonight’s bill of fare . . . on the Twilight Zone.” 

Last Week's Trailer: “Next week we burrow deep into the most inner confines of kook-land and hopefully wind up dead center of the oddest portion thereof. We’ll bring you a story called ‘To Serve Man,’ written originally by Damon Knight. If you’ve ever wondered how we’d react to the arrival of some honest-to-Pete saucers – next week’s diet should be your meat. On The Twilight Zone . . . ‘To Serve Man.’”

 

Susan Cummings and Richard Kiel

Notes of Interest

Serling was contractually obligated to turn in the first draft of this script by May 1. The episode was assigned a production number on June 5, 1961. The short story on which this episode is based was retroactively awarded the 1951 “Retro” Hugo Award for “Best Short Story” in 2001. Damon Knight (who then resided in Milford, Pennsylvania), exchanged correspondence with Serling a number of times from 1960 to 1961. Knight submitted short stories and plot proposals for The Twilight Zone, but this marked his only story to be adapted. A three-page plot outline titled “A Meeting of the Board” was submitted to Serling in June of 1961, but Serling contemplated if it was feasible for use on the series, since the story went nowhere until the very end.

The flying saucer footage featured in the beginning of the episode was borrowed from the 1951 motion picture, The Day the Earth Stood Still. The stop-motion footage of the flying saucer taking off into the atmosphere towards the end of the episode was borrowed from the 1956 motion picture, Earth vs. the Flying Saucers. The stop-motion effect is credited to Ray Harryhausen in the movie, but the closing credits of this television episode never acknowledged the famed effects artist.  

The role of Lloyd Bochner was director Richard L. Bare’s choice, as was actress Jeanne Evans, who played one of the women getting ready to board the ship; she was the real-life wife of director Richard L. Bare.

Richard Kiel, a few hairs over 7-feet tall, was cast by Lynn Stalmaster in the multiple roles of the Kanamits you see throughout the entire episode. “I was still in the middle of shooting Eegah (1962) when I got a call from Herman about doing The Twilight Zone,” recalled Kiel. “Arch Hall was very nice about it, having been an actor himself, and shot around me during the week it took me to do what turned out to be one of the classic episodes, titled ‘To Serve Man.’”  

On June 12, Kiel reported to the men’s third floor wardrobe department at M-G-M Studios for makeup tests and costumes. He reported at the studio at 9 a.m., and as soon as the makeup and costumes were  completed, Kiel’s voice was recorded in Sync Room “A” at M-G-M from 10 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. William Tuttle created the look of the Kanamits, attempting to follow Serling’s description from the script: “we are reminded of his size in his relationships to other objects like chairs, tables, ashtrays, etc.” Serling’s facial description of the alien was a bit diff erent from what turned out on film. “While humanoid in general appearance, it is almost as if someone had been sculpturing it and had left the job prematurely. It has two eyes, very wide apart, a small opening that passes for a nose and a tiny, almost imperceptible circular hole that passes for a mouth.”

Lloyd Bochner, star of "To Serve Man"

After makeup, costumes and recorded voice tracks, Kiel then reported to Stage 4 so director Bare and the crew could shoot preliminaries with Kiel in makeup and costume. All of the scenes where a Kanamit first makes his appearance at the U.N. were shot on that afternoon – but only the scenes where only Kiel is seen, not the dignitaries, delegates, interpreters and cameraman. After viewing the rough cut, Serling was displeased with the effort. “‘To Serve Man’ turned out piss-poor, a combination of horrible direction and a faithless script bit your back,” Serling told Damon Knight on October 12, 1961. “We’re re-shooting some scenes and it’s my hope that we can at least come within a few hundred yards of your great story.”

Richard L. Bare is credited as director on the screen, but he wasn’t the only one who had a hand behind the directing chair. As Serling described in a letter to Buck Houghton, “I have done this in very rough fashion, offering the suggestions perhaps without proper integration. I’m assuming that we can re-tool this so that on occasion we can go out to film clips of mobs, loudspeakers, et al.” Richard L. Bare directed the scenes as the script called for, as revealed in the M-G-M filming schedule. After a rough cut was made and Richard Kiel’s voice was synced with the soundtrack, Serling and Houghton viewed the film and both agreed a major rehaul was needed. So plans were made to add footage, rewrite the Kanamit’s dialogue, re-record the alien’s voice, incorporate stock footage and film additional scenes.

The original cut ended abruptly as Pat shouts: “To Serve Man . . . it’s a cookbook!” And for a moment, Chambers looked stunned. A zoom into a close-up of his face as the horror takes hold. Slowly a huge hand comes into the frame to touch Chamber’s cheek, pinches it lightly as if feeling for tenderness, then the hand gently – but very firmly – turns Chambers around and propels him up the stairs as they slowly close. During the process of this closing, we hear Serling’s voice in closing narration:  

“The very explicit and very specific differences in points of view. To the wee ones . . . the little folk called man . . . it’s a marvelous adventure, a voyage to another planet. An exciting sojourn in another section of the galaxy. But to the very large, granite faced inhabitants known as Kanamits . . . it’s nothing more than a cattle car, a very comfortable provisions ship bringing food from the other end of the universe. Like I say. . . it’s all in the point of view.”

 

The Kanamit Bobble Head Doll

The ending with Chambers being escorted into the spaceship was deleted. Footage of a montage sequence of the Kanamit giving gifts superimposed over the shots of the various newspaper headlines was also deleted, replaced with the delegates offering a token of thanks for the gifts that were bestowed on them. Stock footage of power plants for force fields and crops and deserts was inserted. Serling also composed two additional scenes for the opening and closing of the episode, so the film already shot in the can would become the flashback scenes.

Production Schedule at M-G-MDay 1 – Interior of Secretary General’s Office (Stage 4)
Interior of Secretary General’s Conference Room
(Stage 4)
Day 2 – Interior of Code Room (Stage 4)
Day 3 – The Lie Detector Room (Stage 4)
Spaceship Hangar (Stage 9)
Day 4 – Interior of Conference Room (Stage 10)

The interior of the spaceship with Kiel and Bochner (composing the opening and closing scenes of the episode) was filmed, as well as a revised scene where Chambers is pushed back onto the stairs as the door to the spaceship closes (which is why Brody and Chambers are not on the screen together in the closing moments). These additional scenes were filmed on Stage 9. Serling also rewrote his narrations and had them rerecorded for this episode.

Serling left for five weeks of vacation, leaving the filming of additional scenes and new cut in the capable hands of Houghton. “Just so long as you know, Buck,” Serling wrote before leaving, “how deeply appreciative I am of all your back-breaking labor, your tremendous loyalty and your contributions which consistently and constantly made me look good.”

Lloyd Bochner’s narrations for the retakes were recorded on January 11, 1962, in Sync Room “B” from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. By this time, the recordings of Kiel’s voice had been tossed aside because of the revision, which required the dialogue to be recorded again. Since Kiel wasn’t available, Joseph Ruskin, who played the role of the genie in “The Man in the Bottle,” supplied the new voice of the Kanamits. Ruskin’s name remained uncredited in the episode.

“I had been told that M-G-M and the producers had the right to use someone else to dub in my lines and that they probably would do that,” Kiel recalled in his book, Making it Big in the Movies (2002). “I remember driving in directly from Palm Springs and reporting to M-G-M for hours of make-up before beginning the long day of shooting. I was so tired from driving right from one job to another and going through hours of brutal make-up that when they gave me a chance to do the lines myself, I was not prepared and did not do a very good job when I read the lines of the ‘Kanamit.’ Ultimately, they did use someone else to dub the voice of the Kanamit, and I wasn’t surprised, just disappointed in myself.”

When he came back from his trip, Serling viewed the revised film and admitted it was much better than before. A number of former insert scenes were deleted. The scene where a group of people boarded the spacecraft (with actor Theodore Marcuse as Citizen Gregori talking about a peaceful coalition) was in editor Jason Bernie’s original rough cut, after Chambers was put into the spaceship, so the audience would realize that the Earthlings were unaware of what went on across the airfield. Serling favored switching the order of the scenes.

Among the deleted scenes were inserts of a push panel button, a salesman’s hand, gum in a woman’s hand, insert of a piano, and young children who received gifts from the Kanamit. Extras who were filmed for the scenes that ultimately got deleted: Bob McCord, Jim Turley, and Shirley Swedsen.

Collectibles including the cook book have been produced.

The flashing light above the door in Chambers’ room in the spaceship is the same featured on the chest of the two-headed Martian in “Mr. Dingle, the Strong.” The television camera at the U.N. was the same lens installed on Wordsworth’s wall in “The Obsolete Man.” The private quarters featured in the opening and closing scene inside the spaceship was the same as in “Hocus-Pocus and Frisby,” with a different door frame and the addition of lights and drawers.

With the drastic re-edit of this film, an original music score was not recommended by Scott Perry, Jr., the music editor, who decided in favor of using cues from the CBS stock music library. Some of the music is easily recognizable – lifted from the compositions used in “Back There” and “The Invaders.”

The footage of New York Times Square was stock footage from 1949. The movie My Dream is Yours with Doris Day, Jack Carson and Lee Bowman is advertised at The Strand, and Champion with Kirk Douglas is advertised at another movie theater.

Television critic Leonard Hoff man of The Tucson Daily Citizen reviewed this episode referring to the story as “mediocre,” adding that “the program is saved by television’s sometimes unusual ability to reincarnate and even rejuvenate has-been tales and make them enjoyable fare.”

On March 9, Damon Knight wrote to Serling, “You have made me a big man around here, and I would hate to try to estimate what your Trendex was in Milford the night you did ‘To Serve Man.’ My kids thought there ought to have been more to the story, but I thought it was a dandy show; I loved your monster and I treasure your line, ‘dust to dessert.’ I hear the series has not been renewed, which is a great pity if true, but I trust you are busy and happy. May your tribe increase.”

Serling replied on March 13, thanking Knight for the gracious note. “I’m not at all sure we did justice to your exceptional story but the effort was there and the try was a manly one. Actually, the reactions to the show have been quite incredible. The mail pull, for our show anyway, has been quite phenomenal – and the word of mouth unusually positive and extensive. Actually, I think I piddled around with the U.N. too much and was unable to sustain this properly with legitimate production values. If we’d done this as a motion picture, and had a few more dollar bills accessible, it could have been dressed up far more handsomely. But as it is, we’ve done far worse with fewer results. Apologize to your kids for me, and explain to them what are the pitfalls of novice science fiction writers who run their ham fists all over the works of the legitimate ones. I hope we have a chance to do it again.”

Over the years, a number of spoofs have been made (this usually happens to a popular episode of The Twilight Zone). In The Simpsons’ annual “Treehouse of Horror” from October of 1990, elements of “To Serve Man” were implemented with Lisa discovering a book titled “How to Cook Humans.” The aliens, however, calm her fears when it is revealed that the book was really titled “How to Cook for Forty Humans.” On an episode of Futurama, the character of Bender wears an apron that says “To Serve Man.”

Lloyd Bochner made his only appearance on The Twilight Zone in this episode (though he was offered a lead in “Number 12 Looks Just Like You”), but the actor assisted in what has become probably one of the best spoofs of this classic episode. In the 1991 motion picture, The Naked Gun 2 ½: The Smell of Fear, Bochner runs across the screen holding a book, screaming “it’s a cookbook!”

In the episode “Sofa So Good,” on Married... With Children, initially telecast January 16, 1994, Al screams off screen “Peg! To Serve Man! It’s a cookbook!” In the episode “Space,” on Newsradio, initially telecast on May 21, 1997, a comical look of the future involves Jimmy distributing copies of a book titled “To Serve Man.” The printing is a result of a publishing company he bought out. When someone asks about the title, Jimmy sarcastically comments, “Yeah, it’s a cookbook.” In the episode “Lessons,” on Buffy, the Vampire Slayer, initially telecast September 24, 2002, a verbal reference is made about this episode. In the episode “Peace,” on Angel, initially telecast April 30, 2003, the cast discovers a creature that eats people to sustain life. One of the members, upon learning the news, comments, “It’s ‘To Serve Man’ all over again.”

The above information was excerpted from The Twilight Zone: Unlocking the Door to a Television Classic. Reprinted with permission. Available from Amazon.com, Coverout.com and MartinGrams.com.

2013 Williamsburg Film Festival

In 1987, a small group of Western movie fans began meeting to watch old cowboy movies on the big screen. From Whip Wilson, Roy Rogers, Gene Autry and Johnny Mack Brown... these classic cowboy Westerns have entertained children of all ages... literally. Several of the group had attended Western-cowboy themed film festivals in Charlotte, Knoxville and Asheville over the years. Realizing the importance of preserving the glory of Hollywood celluloid six shooters, they decided to create their own festival. In 1997, the first of what became sixteen annual migrations to historic Virginia was realized with the added charm of Colonial Williamsburg. The initial trial was devoted to honor not only Hollywood's Golden era on the silver screen, but the early days of television.

David Godwin and his WHIP WILSON book.

The first festival was held at the Comfort Inn in Williamsburg in March of 1997. The facility was small and intimate and was a two day event. The hotel was a sell-out and plenty of encouragement was passed around so the group decided to do their second. For the 1998 festival, the event moved to the Holiday Inn and in 1999, the event moved to the Holiday Inn Patriot where the event has remained every year since. The hotel is perfect for the venue which provides enough house for two theaters, a large star interview room and a dealer/memorabilia room. (Full disclosure: I have been an annual attendee every year for more than a decade and find myself signing copies of books I wrote year after year.) Included among the celebrity authors this year are Jim Rosin (author of The Streets of San Francisco), Deborah Painter (author of the great Forrest J. Ackerman book) and Dave Godwin (author of The Films of Whip Wilson) are among the celebrity authors. 

Harry Daniel, screen projectionist

In 2004, the convention began honoring a fan who helped make the festival special with the "Eddie Fan Appreciation Award." 

In 2006, the first Lifetime Achievement Award honoring folks who contributed to the hobby was bestowed. Presently a committee of 16 people are dedicated to making the festival happen year after year and each and every one of those individuals should receive a pat on the back for all the hard work that makes the event run so smoothly and successfully.

For reference, here is a list of all the Hollywood celebrities who have ever attended the Williamsburg Film Festival.

1997 Williamsburg Film Festival - Comfort Inn
Dale Berry
James Best
Peter Boone
Gene Evans
Will Hutchins
Willie Phelps
Ted & Ruth Reinhart

1998 Williamsburg Film Festival - Holiday Inn 1776
James Best
Peter Boone
Conrad Brooks
James Drury
Willie Phelps
Ted & Ruth Reinhart
Dale Robertson
Roberta Shore
Sonny Shroyer
Johnny Western
Peggy Stewart

1999 Williamsburg Film Festival - Holiday Inn Patriot
James Best
Peter Boone
Peter Breck
Ben Cooper
Jan Merlin
John Mitchum
Billie Murphy
Willie Phelps
Paul Picerni
Ted & Ruth Reinhart

2000 Williamsburg Film Festival - Holiday Inn Patriot
Rex Allen, Jr.
Dale Berry
James Best
Peter Boone
Joseph Campanella
Harry Carey, Jr.
Gary Gray
Will Hutchins
Willie Phelps
Mala Powers
Ted & Ruth Reinhart
Gale Storm
Johnny Western

2001 Williamsburg Film Festival - Holiday Inn Patriot
James Best
Peter Boone
Jim Bowman
Jerome Courtland
Beverly Garland
Will Jordan
Ruta Lee
Lucky Bill Parrish
Willie Phelps
Ted & Ruth Reinhart
Marion Shilling
William Smith
Peggy Stewart

2002 Williamsburg Film Festival - Holiday Inn Patriot
Jane Adams
Ben Cooper
The LeGarde Twins
Jimmy Lydon
Donna Martell
Jan Merlin
Ted & Ruth Reinhart
Lucky Bill Parrish
Frankie Thomas

2003 Williamsburg Film Festival - Holiday Inn Patriot
Kathryn Adams
Joseph Campanella
Dick Jones
Ed Kemmer
Jan Merlin
Ann Rutherford
Frankie Thomas
William Schallert
Johnny Western
Ted & Ruth Reinhart
Mike Culver

2004 Williamsburg Film Festival - Holiday Inn Patriot
John Alderson
John Calvert
Joe Canutt
Alex Cord
Kim Darby
Tommy Farrell
Robert Fuller
Kay Linaker
Steve Mitchell
Betsy Palmer
Ann Robinson
William Smith
Ted & Ruth Reinhart
Lucky Bill Parrish

2005 Williamsburg Film Festival - Holiday Inn Patriot
Kathy Garver
Ty Hardin
George Hamilton IV
Anne Jeffreys
Joan Leslie
Denny Miller
Don Stroud
Morgan Woodward
Ted & Ruth Reinhart
Lucky Bill Parrish
The Virginia Rounders 

 

2006 Williamsburg Film Festival - Holiday Inn Patriot
James Best
Ben Cooper
Beverly Garland
Will Hutchins
Dick Jones
James Lydon
Jan Merlin
Lucky Bill Parrish
Mala Powers
Ted & Ruth Reinhart
William Smith
Peggy Stewart
Frankie Thomas
Johnny Western

2007 Williamsburg Film Festival - Holiday Inn Patriot
Richard Anderson
Audrey Dalton
Margia Dean
Ed Faulkner
James Hampton
David Huddleston
Heather Lowe
Andrew Prine
Neil Summers
Eli Barsi
Ed & Bobbi Beard
Sterling Riggs

2008 Williamsburg Film Festival - Holiday Inn Patriot
Lesley Aletter
Roger Davis
Richard Devon
Richard Herd
Gene Lesser
Lee Meriwether
Don Kay Reynolds
Jacqueline Scott
Gregory Walcott
The LeGarde Twins
Ed & Bobbi Beard
Blue River Bluegrass Band 

2009 Williamsburg Film Festival -- Holiday Inn Patriot

Ed & Bobbi Beard

Joe Canutt

George Hamilton IV

Peggy Stewart

Steve Stevens

Larry Maurice

Steve Kanaly

Dick Jones

Loren Janes

Ron Harper

Jacqueline White

2010 Williamsburg Film Festival -- Holiday Inn Patriot

Lane Bradbury

Jim Byrnes

Ben Cooper

Wright King

Paul Picerni

Laurie Prange

Tom Reese

Jacqueline Scott

Eli Barsi

Richard Lyons

Ed & Bobbi Beard

2011 Williamsburg Film Festival - Holiday Inn Patriot

Ed Faulkner

Anne Jeffreys

Donna Martell

Paul Petersen

Ann Rutherford

H.M. Wynant

Johnny Western

Ed & Bobbi Beard

Blue River Blue Grass Band

Last year's (2012) celebrity guests included (Front) Marlyn Mason, Richard Erdman, Terry Moore, Peggy Stewart. (Second Row) Gary Hudson, Tommy Nolan, John Saxon, Mickey Kuhn, Monty Alexander. (Third Row) Bob Boze Bell, Sterling Riggs, Ed & Bobbi Beard, and R.W. Hampton.

There is a fantastic selection of cowboy westerns screened in the movie room all weekend long. From Johnny Mack Brown to Roy Rogers, Bob Allen and Hoot Gibson, the selections often put other Western Film Festivals to shame with their selections. And somehow there is something romantic about sitting in a dark room with a couple hundred fans of cowboy Westerns watching a movie off a 16mm Kodak print in a dark room late at night, then walking back to your hotel room in your socks after chatting with fans about some of the key scenes that made the movie so special.

Over 60 vendor tables offering movie posters, comic books, DVDs, VHS videos, vintage cowboy toys, books and other retro merchandise. At this year's event, Bobby Copeland plans to introduce a new book about Allan "Rocky" Lane. I enjoy all of his books and have bought one Bobby has ever written.

Small observation: I am not sure if the Chamber of Commerce does much to help promote the Williamsburg Film Festival... at least I haven't seen them do anything but if the city of Williamsburg knew how beneficial an event like this means to them when it involves out-of-state tourism and additional commerce for local hotels, motels and restaurants, they might do a better job. Especially since the event attracts a slew of Hollywood celebrities to the area. Oscar winning actresses, New York Times best-selling authors and national television hosts have all participated in what has become a high mark for the city. But this is not uncommon for events I have attended across the East Coast. It seems events like these are not regarded as propitious and I think the city could avoid high-profile egg on their face if the Chamber of Commerce instructed the news media to help promote the event. Come to think of it, I remember when the Starz Encore Westerns Channel attended the show a few years ago to film events for their national satellite/cable channel. Maybe the local news media (newspapers included) do not believe locals would want to meet movie stars....

William S. Hart

This year's events offer a screening of the silent Western, Hells Hinges, starring William S. Hart. Recently honored on a U.S. Postage Stamp, Hart is remembered for having "imbued all of his characters with honor and integrity," while others consider the actor as the founding father for all cowboy screen heroes to come. Author Deborah Painter will introduce the movie. This is a highlight I look forward to watching. Hell's Hinges tells the story of a minister, Rev. Bob Henley, who comes to a gunfighter-plagued town with his sister, Faith. The owner of the saloon, Silk Miller, and his accomplices sense trouble and hire gunman Blaze Tracy, the most dangerous man around, to run the minister out of town. Rev. Henley is seduced by the dance-hall girl, Dolly, and falls from grace as his sister, Faith, rehabilitates Blaze Tracey, who finds something special in her, and soon Miller and the others have Blaze to deal with. If you never saw this movie, or any William S. Hart movie, I recommend it. Especially with the experience of a dark screening room and a crowd that appreciates this type of art.

Deborah Painter proudly displays her book.

This year's event is March 6 to 9, 2013.

The convention website is www.williamsburgfilmfestival.org.

The Shadow Unmasked

From July 31, 1930 to July 30, 1931, the Detective Story Magazine Hour presented spooky mysteries dramatized late at night, under the sponsorship of Street & Smith Magazine. The stories were adaptations of short stories from the weekly magazine. Contracted for a series of 52 broadcasts with a 26-week cancellation clause, Street & Smith chose thrilling tales from their pulp pages in an attempt to promote their magazine. Allyn Jay Marsh was the account executive at Ruthrauff & Ryan, located then at 132 West 31st Street in New York City. He oversaw the radio production and worked closely with William Sweets, who wrote the radio dramas and selected stories which fit the mold of the program. Marsh was formerly an advertising salesman for the New York Times and would later become director of network program sales for CBS.

A few reference guides claim the title of the program switched from "Detective Story Hour" to "Detective Story Program" after the first two broadcasts. This, however, is inaccurate. The source of this information originated from the New York Times, which oftentimes failed to report the correct or full title among the radio listings. Adding the word “magazine” in the listings would have constituted sponsorship and the newspaper wanted to sell ad space. The radio listings offered little if not limited space for lengthy titles. The correct title was Detective Story Magazine Hour and never changed during the 52 weeks it was on the air. Even though the program ran a half-hour, programs referred to as “Hour” were broadcast on the hour, or on the half-hour; the designation did not indicate the program length. Newspaper listings should never be taken as the gospel, especially when one considers the Washington Post listed this program as “Tales of Mystery” in their radio listings.

The premiere broadcast, “The Serpent Stings” (July 31, 1930), was adapted from the short story of the same name by Herman Landon. It centered on a daring jewel robbery with two ruthless murders pressuring the detective, who finds a number of suspects. Among them are Mrs. Wakeling, Shorty, the rodman’s gun moll, Margy, who squealed when she thought he gave her the double-cross, and Wolf Garrett, who ultimately was executed for murder but was a strong character in the play. One columnist remarked “the program builders might be a little more careful, however, in selecting voices that show contrast. There was some confusion at times, because of vocal similarities.”

To give the program a splash of color, a horror host was added, a menace voice of conscience that sometimes urged the criminal to continue their deeds, and suggested retribution was close at hand. The Shadow became that voice. To add publicity to the radio program, a number of press releases were issued and sent out to various columnists and newspapers across the East Coast. These press releases were designed to add an air of mystery behind the man with the voice.

An undated 1930 column reported: “Secrecy surrounding ‘The Shadow’ announcer for Detective Stories is maintained by having him sneak into the studios via the freight elevator.” The September 4 issue of the New York Evening Journal reported the same news about the freight elevator, remarking, “Those press agents!” suggesting more publicity stunt than fact. The freight elevator story was widely circulated, appearing in numerous newspapers and Variety through late October. 

The January 3, 1932, issue of the Topeka Daily Capital-Journal reported: “‘The Shadow’ has refused to reveal his identity and whenever he was scheduled to appear for a broadcast, those who were in the studio were afforded only a glimpse of him as he dashed to the microphone.”

Early depiction of The Shadow.

The April 10, 1932, “Airy Chats” column penned by Bill Schudt (a Columbia scout) reported a series of mishaps that occurred over the network, including: “The night The Shadow was trying to be so mysterious on that Detective Hour and his mask slipped off, and three people immediately recognized him.”

But these press releases were obviously pure hokum. Some columnists did not bother to report the news as it was submitted, but rather offer their own speculations. The November 28, 1930 issue of The Decatur Review reported: “There was a new ‘Shadow’ to introduce the CBS Detective Story Thursday. The regular Shadow has a voice that vibrates one’s backbone. The sub was almost a tenor!” Columnist Jo Ranson in the October 30, 1932, issue of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, comented: “I still insist that Singin’ Sam’s laugh reminds me of The Shadow, radio’s most sinister figure.” It seems unlikely that a third person was playing the role of The Shadow but there can be no definite answer because there is an on-going debate between historians question whether Readick was a tenor.

Some newspapers did report his identity. The July 8, 1931 issue of The Boston Post reported the identity of the Shadow “not even known by members of that cast, has been uncovered. ‘The Shadow’ is portrayed by Frank Readick, character artist of the CBS, the same man who enacted the majority of the roles in Time magazine’s broadcast, and has also taken parts in Columbia’s True Story hours.”

In the November 27, 1931 issue of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, columnist Jo Ranson added an air of mystery when she remarked: “Very few people at the Columbia studios really know who he is. Every one is entitled to a guess and the guesses have been high, wide and handsome. He generally appears in the studio completely disguised (black robe, hood and mask) and comes up to the mike in the freight elevator. Among those suspected of being The Shadow are Frank Readick, Tony Wons, Bill Schudt, Jesse Butcher, Herb Glover, the Gloomchasers, and the Round Towners Quartet.”

Frank Readick as The Shadow (and all photos on this page).

From January to February 1932, The Shadow returned to the airwaves after a five month absence from the blood ‘n’ thunder format with his own program titled The Shadow. Frank Readick definitely reprised the role for this short-run series, giving the listeners (for five weeks, anyway) the opportunity to hear his weekly narrations. (Readick’s appearance was verified by numerous periodicals, including the January 12, 1932, issue of the Cleveland Press, which remarked: “Frank Readick, a mite of a fellow with an oily mustache, is the very mysterious Columbia ‘Shadow’ you’ll hear tonight.”)

The February 3, 1932, issue of the Elmira, New York, Advertiser reported: “With this week The Shadow again fades from WABC-CBS after a comparatively brief revival of his mystery dramatizations, and The Shadow is impersonated by Frank Readick, whose identity was kept secret for quite a time.”

The newspapers could only work with press releases issued from the network and often contradict each other, leaving one to wonder whether The Shadow’s identity truly remained a secret to anyone other than their readers. The October 2, 1932 issue of Radio Guide revealed Frank Readick as the former announcer, claiming a press agent revealed the fact and “now everybody knows ‘The Shadow.’” The October 5, 1932 issue of the Akron, Ohio, Times-Press claimed that the new Shadow was “not Columbia’s Frank Readick, and his identity will remain a secret.” The October 14 issue of the Grand Rapid Chronicle reported the Shadow’s return, contradicting the Ohio paper: “He’s on the NBC-WEAF net and his name, in case you haven’t heard, is Frank Readick. Last year he was just ‘The Shadow’ and enjoyed hearing remarks about his program, but now he takes his place among the headliners.”

Which all leads to a simple question. When did Frank Readick become publicly known as The Shadow? Who was the first to leak the info out? After finding a column in an old radio periodical that supports the July 8, 1931 Boston Post, there was a casual mention that The Shadow had unmasked on stage at a special event in St. Louis in September 1931. Naturally, I looked up the library on the internet, e-mailed a reference librarian and asked what the possibility would be of having someone dig through old microfilms of St. Louis newspapers (there were three) in September of 1931, to find what I was hoping to verify -- a personal one-stage appearance of The Shadow. Trent Sindelar of the St. Louis Public Library had no problems performing the task. He spent about two hours browsing every page of all three newspapers through the month of September 1931 and he found something that brought new light to the mystery. The results of that finding, and a copy of an advertisement from that microfilm is included below.

The Shadow Unmasks!

Eight weeks after the Detective Story Magazine Hour ended, The Shadow supposedly made an appearance on a radio broadcast heard over KMOX, KSD and KWK in St. Louis, Missouri. Sponsored by the Seventh Annual Southwest National Radio and Allied Products Exposition, the St. Louis Radio Show was heard twice a day from 4:45 to 5:15 and 7:30 to 9:30 p.m., CST, in a week-long special broadcast (Monday through Saturday, September 21-26, 1931) from the Crystal Coliseum. Most of the performances were musical in nature, with the Hawaiian Melodists (Joe and Dick), Eddie Jackson’s Crackerjacks, Romeo and Juliet (performed by Robert Betts, tenor, and Grace McGowan, soprano), and Helen Traubel. Not all of the stage performances were broadcast, but on the evening of Friday, September 25, The Shadow was heard over the ether in a rare public appearance. As pictured in this advertisement, The Shadow was scheduled to unmask in front of those in attendance!

Advertisement found on microfilm. Thank you, Trent!

According to a number of news items following the unmasking, Frank Readick was the actor on stage portraying the mysterious Shadow. When The Shadow later made a return to radio, newspapers reprinted a press release issued by the radio station that the masked man’s identity still remained a mystery. A number of columnists who recalled the news item of September 1931 were quick to point out that Frank Readick’s name had been reported as the elusive figure and questioned the validity of the press release. At the time of the unmasking, Street & Smith may have had no intentions to revive The Shadow and therefore created the confusion that mounted throughout the months following.

Months after the unmasking, the following appeared in the Editor's Mailbox column of the May 22-29, 1932 issue of Radio Guide: “After publishing in this column some weeks ago that the real name of ‘The Shadow’ had never been revealed, we received several confidential letters stating that his name was Frank Readick. We have since verified this information.” Many newspaper columnists throughout 1932 and 1933 who were not caught up in the mystery (or followed the events) continued to supply information as it was being delivered via press releases, claiming The Shadow's identity was still a mystery. 

Gotta love Canadian newspapers on microfilm!

There are a few grey areas of casting that remains unknown. The October 18, 1980, issue of The Winnipeg Free Press reported George Earle and Robert Hardy Andrews as playing the role of The Shadow at one time. This inaccurate statement most likely originated from the columnist having consulted a previously published reference guide that incorrectly stated Andrews played the role of “The Shadow” for the five Perfect-O-Lite broadcasts. Numerous periodicals have verified it was, indeed, Frank Readick, during the Perfect-O-Lite era and further investigation has shown Andrews was still in Chicago scripting and acting on soap operas, such as Just Plain Bill and Easy Aces. When Frank and Anne Hummert pulled up stakes in Chicago in 1938 to relocate to New York City, they steered Andrews away from his radio scripting and acting tasks to join them in the trek to the East. A thorough search of the Robert Hardy Andrews papers at Boston University confirms that Andrews never played the role. To this day the error continues to be reprinted, so with this detail, the record is set straight.

On the evening of Friday, June 15, 1934, The Shadow made a comeback in the form of a late-night audition that practically went unnoticed by faithful Shadow followers. Radio listings in the New York Times and other New York newspapers reveal only “Mystery Drama,” with no further details or even a mention of The Shadow. Slated for a deadly time slot of 10:30, following William Barley at the organ and a lecture about better business management for the government by Bernarr MacFadden, rival publisher of Street & Smith, The Shadow was more than likely accidentally discovered by those craving a good mystery yarn or twisting the dial in fear of laughing at the antics of Jack Benny, which aired over NBC during the same time slot. Benny received advanced publicity; The Shadow did not. 

Confirmation of the audition can be found in the June 23, 1934, issue of Billboard, which remarked that The Shadow “made a one-time comeback June 15 on WMCA for Blue Coal. Chances are a steady return in the fall.” Broadcast over WMCA, the same New York station that had established its independence by syndicating programs on motion picture soundtrack film and recently dropping its time-sharing agreement with WNYC, the Shadow broadcast was not aired on any other station, limiting the number of potential listeners and possibly suggesting this was an audition broadcast to determine whether the series could make a
return in the fall. 

www.MartinGrams.com

The actor playing the role of The Shadow remains unknown. Historians speculate either James La Curto or Frank Readick. La Curto had worked at every radio station in New York City and at the time was closely associated with producers at WMCA. The November 24, 1934, issue of Radio Guide reported La Curto replacing Readick “in the role he had had for so long, The Shadow.”  But there was nothing to ensure La Curto, who by that time took over the role for Readick for another radio run of The Shadow, was playing the role for every appearance including auditions. I have seen researchers and authors type their words in such a way as to offer an "assumption" as a fact, misleading readers. There are other Shadow appearances on other programs and the casting for those, too, remains elusive. The mystery continues...

James Cagney Meets Dick Tracy, 1933

With Warner Brothers and their gangster pictures so popular, it comes as no surprise that Chester Gould, creator and artist of the Dick Tracy comic strips, created a character molded in the image of James Cagney -- including the mannerisms and dialogue so commonly heard in a James Cagney picture. His name was Jimmy White, the son of a wealthy industrialist living outside of town on Ballard Boulevard. Mr. White's bonds and securities were stolen and Jimmy was responsible for the theft... but I'm getting ahead of myself. 

IDW has been doing a bang-up job reprinting the entire five decades of Chester Gould's Dick Tracy comic strip. Volume two centers on the years 1933 to 1934 (they touch on he first week or two of 1935 just to conclude a story arc) and featuring Junior on the dust jacket is certainly appropriate. He dominates the calendar year of 1933 saving Dick Tracy's life three times, Tess Trueheart's life twice and helps apprehend numerous criminals -- as well as going through a lot of pain in the process. I recommend you purchase the IDW hardcover reprints today and start enjoying them as much as I do.

Picking up where we last left off (CLICK HERE if you missed a review of 1931-32), in January 1933, Dick Tracy uses a lie detector to prove Larceny Lu's guilt, then reveals to Dan the Dope Peddler how lemon juice makes a good invisible ink that becomes visible when the paper is held over a flame. The lie detector is also applied on Tess Trueheart to learn how she feels about Dick Tracy and the two make plans to get married and raise Junior up as their own. It was in 1933 that Gould made it a habit of applying scientific tricks in his comic strips, including advancements in law enforcement and investigation techniques.

Opening the new year with a new criminal, "Stooge" Viller, a professional pick pocket, is hired by the remainder of "Ribs" Mocco's ring of criminals to frame Dick Tracy for a crime. Stooge plants phoney currency in the pockets of Dick Tracy, and in his house, to frame the detective so the police department believes Tracy is operating a counterfeiting racket on the side. The way Stooge sets up the whole scenario is brilliant and Tracy is promptly fired from his job. Tess, for a short while, leaves Tracy in tears. Stooge, believing he could one-up on Tracy, falls in love with Tess Trueheart, romances her and momentarily sweeps her off his feet. When Stooge slips and Tess discovers the truth and phones the police with the knowledge he learned, Stooge shoots her and attempts to flee the country. 

Tess Trueheart is shot by "Stooge" Viller when she tips off the police.

Junior, however, having a superb memory, remembers seeing Stooge more than once and at the train station where both Tracy and Junior are leaving for Western Kansas to start a new life and run Tracy's Uncle's big ranch. Junior spots the pickpocket and Tracy takes appropriate action. Tracy clears his name (thanks to Tess) and the detective is reinstated and the Chief apologizes to the best detective on the force. (Stooge attempts to slice his throat with an ink pen when he realizes he is going to jail, but police restrain him before he finishes the job.)

In March, 1933, Tess is healing from her wounds but Tracy, having discovered she was unfaithful for a spell, chooses to spend more time at the police station than her apartment. In the March 1 panel, Tess is down on her knees praying to God that Tracy doesn't drift away from her because she truly loves him. Steve the Tramp, meanwhile, stumbles on the mountain ranch of blind "Hank" Steele, who needs a hired hand. It doesn't take long before Steve discovers Hank's past and the blind man's $5,000 reward for anyone who can find his son, who was taken away from him nine years prior when his shiftless wife abandoned him. Steve remembers how Junior had no father and is about 9 years old and plots to return to town, kidnap Junior and reunite father and son for the reward money -- hoping to convince Junior to play along and fool the old blind man.

Steve successfully kidnaps Junior and forces the youth through a long journey by train, coal cars and stolen vehicles while Dick Tracy takes to the air to find Junior. In an abandoned gain elevator in a small country town, Dick Tracy falls into a trap and momentarily loses Steve and Junior's whereabouts. At the Steele ranch, Junior is introduced to Hank Steele and Dick Tracy exchanges both gunfire and brawn with Steve the Tramp. Della, the negro cook, is shot and wounded and ultimately dies. Steve stabs Tracy in the arm with a pitchfork. Steve jumps off a cliff in an attempt to escape but Tracy ultimately follows his trail and puts him behind bars. As one on-looker comments, while Steve is putting up a fight with the police, "He's a hard looking egg, isn't he?"

Back on the Steele Ranch, Junior remains with the blind man who, as it turns out, really is his father. The panels below from May 7, 1933, explain Junior's background.

Junior's true origin is revealed by Hank Steele, his father.

By June 1933, "Stooge" Viller and Steve the Tramp form an unlikely bond and friendship, cleverly plotting an escape from prison using a can of naptha and a red-holt bolt to blow a hole in the prison wall. The two succeed and the crooks race in a stolen car to the Steele farm to get revenge on Junior, both of whom would not be in prison if it wasn't for the kid. Dick Tracy knows exactly where they were going and races out to the farm to meet Hank and Junior and warn them of the approaching danger. Hank and Junior take the first train back into town, thanks to Tracy, while Stooge and Steve arrive on the farm and begin torturing Hank's hired hand.

Dick Tracy orders Pat to accompany Hank and Junior on an ocean cruise where the criminals would never think of looking, while Tracy remains behind to find Stooge and Steve. Stooge visits his sister, Maxine, who recently masterminded the robbery of expensive jewelry. Maxine agrees to hide Stooge for a short while, but presently has to get the jewels to a fence. Using her dog "Satan" as a means of communication, using hidden messages in the dog collar, she orders the fence to deal with Steve the Tramp when he arrives later in the day. Dick Tracy gets his arm bitten in an attempt to read the message and uses this information to get both "Gyp" Reed, the fence, and Steve the Tramp.

At Gyp's hideout, Dick Tracy falls through a trap door, finds himself in an underground room and is sprayed with gasoline from the pipes in the wall. Gyp then attempts to set Tracy on fire. 

Gyp attempts to set Dick Tracy, covered in gasoline, on fire.

Tracy, with lightning speed, raises his foot and thrusts it down on the flaming stick of wood. Knocking the gun out of Gyp's hand, Tracy punches Gyp through the door while Milligan apprehends Steve the Tramp who arrived at the fence's house.

After the crooks are put behind bars, Tracy and the police raid Maxine's house and Milligan falls for a poison gas bomb made to resemble walnuts. Maxine and Stooge make a getaway while Milligan and Tracy fall to the floor unconscious. Realizing it's been a long time since Tracy left, the chief orders his men to Maxine's residence and rescues the two cops in time. On the high seas, meanwhile, the boat carrying Junior, Hank and Pat is dashed to pieces in a storm. Everyone exist via lifeboats and makes for Halifax... the same seaport Maxine and Stooges are flying into during their getaway. Stooge recognizes Junior and against Maxine's protests, forces the three heroes into a warehouse. Attempting to defend Junior, Hank raises his cane and Stooge shoots Hank dead. 

The death of Junior's father.

Angry, Pat gives chase and Stooge jumps into the water as Pat takes shots with his gun. Stooge fakes his death in the bay and swims back to the waterfront where he is shanghaied onto Old Mike's boat and being two old friends, strike up a new partnership. Old Mike is presently smuggling goods within the hidden compartments of his ship and Stooge agrees to help Old Mike in return for a little "revenge." Disguising himself as an old seaman, Stooge visits the residence of Tess Trueheart and tells her that Tracy was met with a serious accident on a boat and was calling for her. Tess willfully goes along, unaware she is being kidnapped. While the police comb the waterfront, Tracy and Pat receive a threat to back off or Tess will be seriously injured. Junior is disguised as a waterfront street urchin in order to infiltrate the correct ship where Tess is being held captive. But Junior's disguise only fools the crooks momentarily and escapes just in time. The crooks are caught with their hands up. Tracy, apprehending the criminals on deck above, is unaware that Tess, below, makes a daring escape. Old Mike discovers what Tess is escaping in a lifeboat and shoots holes into the boat. Tess is screaming for help and Dick Tracy and Junior races out in a speed boat to rescue her. Old Mike is captured when he discovers that fish nets and propellers do not mix, thanks to quick thinking on the part of Dick Tracy.

Old Mike has an ace up his sleeve. He makes an offer to Dick Tracy that will expose three new underworld characters -- provided he can stand on the deck of his ship one last time, where he spent so many years of his life. But Old Mike detonates an explosive and everyone on board except Old Mike jumps overboard to save their necks.

Old Mike plots to kill as many police officers as possible, including Dick Tracy.

In September 1933, Junior stumbles on an automobile racket. Tracy promptly makes the arrest. "Slicer," one of the criminals, pleads for a shot of "snow" in the arm and Tracy decides to trick the criminal into receiving what is in reality, truth serum. Tracy hopes to learn the identity of the political big shot or fixer in back of the auto-stealing ring and protection rackets. Someone in the Mayor's office is crooked. In an attempt to smoke out the man in charge, Tess disguises herself as a new store owner to lure the crooks through the front door. The scheme works as members of the protection racket introduce themselves and the trail leads to Jim Herrod, the retired politician. Herrod is caught in the cross-fire, shot and killed. Tracy's war against racketeers rivals that of the real exploits of Elliott Ness, with one crime smashed after another and his war against racketeers climaxes when someone throws a pineapple (that means a bomb) into the front window of his house and blows it up. (Oddly, except for that one panel, no further mention of Tracy's house being bombed or Tracy's continued war against racketeers is brought back to papers. Could Gould have been influenced to back off depicting newspaper headlines?)

In October 1933, "Big Boy" is still behind bars and offers a $1,000 reward for anyone who sends lead into Dick Tracy. This prompts two men to take desperate action. While Tess Trueheart and Junior are waiting outside the police station for Tracy, two crooks force them out of the vehicle and across the street where Tess is ordered to strip down to her underwear. Disguising himself with Tess's dress, one of the criminals returns to the car and waits for Tracy to come out of the station. Tracy is fooled for a couple minutes and then discovers the gun pointing in his ribs. Forced to drive to a shack in the woods, Tracy is tied up to a wood post in the center of the shack. Barney, one of the crooks, pours oil on the roof of the shack. Junior and Tess are forced into a car and the crooks make for the same shack. "Big Boy," meanwhile, has gotten a gun and forced his way out of prison. Junior puts up a fight and is thrown out of the car and over a bridge. Tess is taken to the shack and tied to another post. "Big Boy" arrives and laughs. The shack is going to be set on fire and the great detective and his girlfriend will be burned alive. 

Could this be the end of Dick Tracy and Tess Trueheart? Wait, is that Junior alive and well and coming to the rescue?

Junior swims out of the river and follows the automobile tracks, races into the shack and unties Tess and Tracy. "Big Boy," observing the actions below, races down to the shack with his men and forces Tess and Tracy to face the burning wall. Before he can shoot them, the police arrive and "Big Boy" makes his escape. Junior, meanwhile, has been badly burned by the fire and a surgeon does what he can for the boy.

Throughout the month of November, as if the fire burning his entire body wasn't enough, Junior suffers more than any 9-year-old would normally stand. "Big Boy" wants to leave the country and sends "Confidence" Dolan to the city to fetch $10,000 from his shady lawyer, Ben Spaldoni. Spaldoni, however, phones a few friends and arranges for Dolan to be slugged and the money stolen -- a problem Dolan now has to solve and quickly. Every attempt to raise the money puts Dick Tracy closer on his trail -- including the discovery of $20,000 in stolen bonds. Sandy Maguire and "Confidence" Dolan attempt to steal a young boy out of the hospital, who messed up the delivery of the stolen bonds. They make a mistake and kidnap Junior instead. Junior gets hold of a gun and forces the two crooks out to the streets so he can call the police. The crooks get the upper hand thanks to two additional crooks (but not before the police are tipped off) and Junior is taken back for a little torture.

While Dick Tracy and the police set out to find Junior, Dolan and Maguire force the boy into an old hot water tank and solder the bottom closed so the boy will suffocate inside. The water tank, insulated, will prevent anyone from hearing him scream and shout. The crooks leave the building and accidentally leave the blowtorch on, burning the bottom of the tank. (It was at this point that I had to leave for an out-of-state business trip and spent an entire week pondering how the boy would escape... boy, did that annoy me.) Unaware of their mistake, the torch melts the solder and Junior is able to roll the tank on its side and make an escape from the bottom. Tracy arrives but is knocked from behind. Attempting to throw the detective into a coal hole, Sandy Maguire is shot to death by the approaching police. Dolan is identified as the crook that stole the bonds.

Another attempt to eliminate Tracy goes foul and another criminal killed.

In December 1933, Dick Tracy visits the house of Joseph White, a wealthy industrialist who is pleased to hear his bonds have been recovered. Jimmy, Joseph's son, is a spitting image of screen actor James Cagney, and the true mastermind behind the theft of the bonds. 

James Cagney look-alike in the form of Jimmy White, master criminal.

Jimmy befriends Junior and realizing the youth could prove valuable in his schemes, introduces Junior to the "25" Club, which maintains a bad reputation for petty theft and burglaries. Junior doesn't know the Club is crooked, believing the gang members are a swell bunch of guys that like to play pool and listen to the radio. Junior is sworn not to tell anyone about the Club... it'll be their little secret. So every night, Junior sneaks out of the house and hangs out with the guys... until he discovers the real motive for the Club. Forced to help the gang break into the back room of a store, Junior is concerned that he was tricked into helping them steal the contents of a safe, but can speak nothing to Tracy about his nightly adventures... if Junior talks, Tracy will be exposed as the father of a young criminal and Junior knows just what would happen to Tracy if the truth became known. Day after day, Junior creates distractions while the "25" Club steals money out of cash registers and other petty crimes. (It should be noted that Junior, throughout the month of November and December, is still wearing bandages from the shack fire.)

How will Junior be able to escape the clutches of the James Cagney look-alike? We'll find out in 1934...