... And The Ugly Of The 1940s
Have you ever been in a situation when you read a flims title or summary or saw a movie poster, a trailer or just some screen shots of a movie (especially of B-films) and you thought: "Wow, this looks like heaps of fun!"? You rented that film and after one and a half hours (at the most) you got that nagging feeling that someone stole that exact amount of precious quality lifetime from you. Well, basically this list is about those films. No matter how reduced your expectations had already been, no matter how much you care for flicks of that genre in general - these films did not even meet those expectations, not by a far shot. Even as a fan of trash films you refuse to acknowledge the existence of this list's entries, simply because a good trash film, even considering its manifold shortcomings, is at least fun. So beware, the films on this list are everything - except fun. Needless to say, I had quite some fun in doing this list, although it brought back painful memories.
Feel free to comment on my choice of movies.
PS: This list is by no means complete as I will add new worthwhile films as I stumble across them.
Feel free to comment on my choice of movies.
PS: This list is by no means complete as I will add new worthwhile films as I stumble across them.
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- DirectorRichard C. KahnStarsZack WilliamsLaura BowmanAlfred GrantA newlywed couple is visited by a strange old woman who harbors a secret about the young girl's father.
- DirectorDavid ButlerStarsKay KyserPeter LorreBoris KarloffThe manager of Kay Kyser's band books them for a birthday party bash for an heiress at a spooky mansion, where sinister forces try to kill her.
- DirectorWilliam NighStarsBoris KarloffMaris WrixonGene O'DonnellDr. Bernard Adrian is a kindly mad scientist who seeks to cure a young woman's polio. He needs spinal fluid from a human to complete the formula for his experimental serum.
- DirectorLewis D. CollinsStarsJack HoltStanley FieldsVickie LesterWhen heavily-insured gangster Frankie Toller is released from prison, Mike Henderson is assigned by the insurance company to make sure Toller's policy expires before he does. This, concise.
- DirectorElmer CliftonStarsWilliam GarganWallace FordJune LangSociety glamor girl/aviatrix Virginia Allerton decides to alter her around-the-world flight by stopping off on the Pacific isle of Palo Pango where her brother, Lieutenant Allerton is stationed with a detachment of U.S. Marines, including "Stripes" Thornton and "Milly" Barnes. Local smuggler Barton baits her into a trap using her plane for his gun-smuggling racket and she ends up wrecked on another island. Thornton, as a stowaway on Barton's gun-smuggling plane, and Barnes, by water in a stolen speed boat, rush to her rescue. Inda, the jealous native wife of Barton, with a penchant for dispatching people with poison darts from a blow gun, does her best to do the same for Virginia.
- DirectorLászló KardosStarsSigrid GurieRalph ByrdEddie QuillanJewel smugglers in Cairo try to pin their crimes on a kidnapped baron.
- DirectorRaymond K. JohnsonStarsJack RandallLouise StanleyKenne DuncanA ranch owner gives the Cheyenne Kid $1000 and sends him off to buy cattle. At the same time he fires a ranch hand and that hand rides ahead and alerts Jeff Baker about the $1000. Bakers' henchman are too late to get the Kid but they kill the rancher paid by the Kid. The Sheriff then arrests the Kid claiming he murdered the rancher to get the money back and that Baker said he then lost it at his gambling table.
- DirectorDavid HowardStarsGeorge O'BrienVirginia ValeDick HoganJudge Curry is selling Austin's land to nesters and his men are rustling his cattle to provide beef. When the Sheriff accuses butcher Gore of possessing stolen beef, Gore kills him. Curry then holds a quick election to change the county seat so he can preside at the trial. But Brill gets the Governor to change it back and this leads to the big shootout between Curry's men and Brill and the ranchers.
- DirectorRaymond K. JohnsonStarsJack RandallSally CairnsLafe McKeeA wagon train of settlers is approaching Prairieville and rancher Allen is out to stop them by having some of his men join the train and poison the horses. When Jack Cameron arrives in Prairieville with replacement horses, he learns his brother who was with the train has been murdered. A piece of his brother's clothing identifies a member of the gang and Jack sets out to find the rest of them and also deliver the horses.
- DirectorRaymond K. JohnsonStarsBob SteeleLouise StanleyKenne DuncanPete Childers, a notorious killer, is assigned as a deputy to Sheriff Bob Hall. Hardy Keller, wanted for murder, is hiding on a ranch own by Bob's sweetheart, Helen Jones and her brother Fred. Childers is working with Farley, a crooked cattle dealer. After Childers wantonly shoots down the surrendering Kellar, Bob beats him up and fires him. Bob knows that Fred is on familiar terms with the rustlers, but Helen won't believe him and they quarrel.
- DirectorAlbert HermanStarsTex RitterDorothy FaySlim AndrewsA U.S. marshal is sent to investigate a gang that is stealing horses from the cavalry.
- DirectorAlbert HermanStarsTex RitterNelson McDowellMuriel EvansOregon fur traders are attempting to keep pioneers migrating westward out of the territory by inciting the Indians to attack their wagon trains. The U.S. Army sends Tex Masters (Tex Ritter) to uncover who is supplying the Indians with Army rifles. He and his pal Rawhide (Nelson McDowell) ---called "Lucky" in the credits and pressbook---join up with the wagon train headed by Benson (Frank LaRue) and his daughter Ruth (Muriel Evans). When a staged "accident" almost kills Benson, Tex discovers it was the work of Matt Grimes (Tom London), the train scout, but can't prove it. He and Grimes have a row when Tex insists that the train take a different route from the one Grimes recommends, and Grimes quits the train and goes off the set the Indians on Benson's outfit. Tex saves the train, but Ruth and her father now believe that Tex is in league with the Indians, and they fire him. In town, Tex and Rawhide see Grimes conferring with Steve Coleman (Reed Howes), a fur trader. That night, Tex sneaks into Coleman's store and finds a huge supply of Army rifles, ready to be sent to the Indians. He also hears Coleman telling henchman Slade (Nolan Willis) to wipe out the wagon train. Tex is accidentally locked in the storeroom, but gets free and sends Rawhide for the Army. Tex gets to the wagon train just as the attack by the Indians and Coleman's renegades starts.
- DirectorIra WebbStarsBob SteelePhyllis AdairLafe McKeeBob Evans' (Bob Steele) Arabian stallion is stolen and Bob, with his friend Shag Williams (Jimmy Aubrey) starts on the trail that takes them to the horse ranch owned by Kimball (Lafe McKee) and his daughter Ann (Phyllis Adair), where the stallion is running wild. Baker (Ted Adams), the ranch's crooked foreman, is utilizing the stallion as a decoy and, with his henchmen, Raymer (George Chesebro) and Winton (Bud Osborne), corrals the mares that follow the stallion in a hidden corral, intending to sell them across the state line.
- DirectorJoseph H. LewisStarsBela LugosiPolly Ann YoungJohn McGuireThe town's leading citizen becomes a homicidal maniac after his wife deserts him.
- DirectorJohn RawlinsStarsRichard ArlenAndy DevineJean BrooksDetectives Dick Williams and Andy McAllister find themselves trying to solve several crimes at an isolated mentally-ill hospital, where the patients range from slightly daffy to criminally insane, and they don't know which is which. A gang is out to steal a fortune inherited by one of the patients and, before Dick and Andy solve the case, several patients are transferred to the cemetery. And 'tiddlie-winks" are indeed involved.
- DirectorEdward DmytrykStarsFlorence RiceLeif EricksonGordon JonesA couple of adventurous pilots-turned-pearl-divers encounter a helpless woman whose missionary parents have died. They entrust their cache of pearls to her, but discover that she is actually not what she claims.
- DirectorAlbert H. KelleyStarsKane RichmondPauline MooreWynne GibsonWhen a cop is shot dead during a raid, and another is mistakenly shot for killing him, his fellow officer friend goes undercover on his own to bust up the criminal's operation.
- DirectorElmer CliftonStarsAnn CorioJack La RueMary HullInto the vast swamplands hurry three people; honky tonk dancer Annabelle Tollington (Ann Corio), cheap promoter "Flash" Bland (Jay Novello) trying to catch Annabelle, and escaping convict Jeff Carter (Richard Deane), only a few steps ahead of the bloodhounds of Police Lieutenant Rance (Ian MacDonald). Jeff reaches the cabin of Lizbet Tollington (Mary Hull), Annabelle's niece, and fiancée of trapper Pete Oliver (Jack La Rue), Annabelle's ex-sweetheart. Lizbet, seeing Jeff in the mirror as she tries on her wedding gown, believes him to be the man she will eventually marry, as stipulated in an old proverb of the swamps. She hides Jeff from the law. Annabelle, determined to break Lizbet's engagement to Pete, tells him that Lizbet is hiding a man in her cabin. The enraged Pete cools off when he realizes that Lizbet loves Jeff and determines to help him. Rance arrives and recognizes Annabelle as "The Swamp Woman" of the honky tonk, whose testimony saved "Flash" from a prison sentence on the murder charge that sent the innocent Jeff to the chain gang. Rance locates Lizbet's cabin and arrests Jeff. "Flash" comes out of hiding to talk to Annabelle. Having experienced a gradual regeneration through the efforts of Pete, Annabelle makes "Flash" admit to her that he was the actual killer. Jeff is cleared of the crime and remains to marry Lizbet, while Pete and Annabelle resume their old romance. Corio keeps all of her clothes on most of the time, and most of her clothes on all the time. Sorry.
- DirectorHarry L. FraserStarsBuster CrabbeCharles MiddletonSheila DarcyAn expedition sets out to darkest Africa to find the fabled City of the Dead, and must battle thick jungle, hostile natives, wild animals and a deadly epidemic.
- DirectorJean YarbroughStarsRoger PryorVirginia ValeLionel RoyceJan Martin, sister of government chemist Paul Martin, realizes she is being followed by enemy agents after her brother. She ignores him at the Panama airport and embraces a stranger, Mike Lawrence, instead. Enemy agents Lake and Wilton are convinced that Mike is her brother and attempt to trap the pair. They get away but Jan disappears. Disguised with a black wig and new makeup, Jan becomes Dolores and gets a job singing at a cafe. Spotting Jan without her disguise, Mike follows her down an alley where they are trapped by Raynor, another espionage agent. They get away and Jan also gets away from Mike. Later, both Mike and Jan are captured and the agents realize that Mike is not the brother they are after. Paul is brought to the hideout, but Mike gets the drop on them.
- DirectorWilliam BeaudineStarsForrest TuckerCarol HughesEvelyn BrentA test pilot and his weather observer develop a "robot" control so airplanes can be flown without pilots, but enemy agents get wind of it and try to steal it or destroy it.
- DirectorSam NewfieldStarsGeorge HoustonAl St. JohnMaxine LeslieThe Lone Rider Tom assumes a former outlaw's identity (Keno) to learn where the gold from his last big heist is hidden. He tries to get the info from Blackie Dawson, but Blackie gets suspicious.
- DirectorSam NewfieldStarsJohnny DownsGeorge ZuccoAnne NagelA mad scientist changes his simple-minded handyman into a werewolf in order to prove his supposedly crazy scientific theories - and exact revenge.
- DirectorJoseph H. LewisStarsUna MerkelLionel AtwillNat PendletonA mad scientist is forced to leave San Francisco when his experiments become known. He lands on a tropical island, takes control and terrorizes the local populace. The survivor of a shipwreck washes ashore on the island, sees what is happening and determines to free the natives from his rule.
- DirectorWilliam NighStarsPatric KnowlesLionel AtwillAnne GwynneA mysterious vigilante known as "Dr. Rx" strikes again. Assigned to the case is private detective Jerry Church but the crimes are baffling and involve strangulation and a possible attempt to implant a gorilla's brain into a human body.
- DirectorSam NewfieldStarsAnn CorioBuster CrabbeEvelyn WahlA woman who was raised in the jungle helps a man fight Nazis who are trying to start a native uprising.
- DirectorJean YarbroughStarsArline JudgeJohn 'Dusty' KingMantan MorelandNona Brooks, former member of a stranded theatrical troupe, earns a temporary living singing in a cafe in Duakwa, British Rhodesia, Africa.
- DirectorAlbert HermanStarsMichael WhalenAnne NagelWilliam BakewellNazi spies in the USA try to steal the formula for synthetic oil and ship it to Germany by means of a night plane called the Dawn Express.
- DirectorWilliam BeaudineStarsJames DunnJoan WoodburyPaul McVeyA retired detective, Nick Trayne, is hired to look for a missing banker. During the investigation, the aforementioned banker returns in a zombie-like state. Trayne must track down the madman responsible for the banker's state.
- DirectorWallace FoxStarsBela LugosiLuana WaltersTristram CoffinA scientist, aided by an old hag and her two sons, kills virginal brides, steals their bodies, and extracts gland fluid to keep his ancient wife alive and young.
- DirectorGeorge ShermanStarsDon 'Red' BarryLynn MerrickJohn JamesBig Jim Johnson is a cattleman who wants to run all the settler's off the land. He has a number of hired guns including Johnny Dawson. Doctor Bill Dawson comes to town and wants to see the trouble stop, but all that he sees is Sullivan murdered and a Judge who is working for Johnson. Johnny is ordered to get rid of the Doc, who has decided to side with the settlers. Johnny as no choice but to side with his brother against Johnson, and that is a tall order.
- DirectorHoward BrethertonStarsTim HoltCliff EdwardsNell O'DayThis film opens with two small Arizona towns, Spencerville and East Spencerville, separated by a dry gulch and a feud, and governed by a Vigilante Committee. Lew Harmon, committee member and also leader of the crooked element, is using the masked band for his own purpose to terrorize ranchers, and to grab the land and force the railroad to pay high right-of-way prices. Deputy U.S. Marshal Larry Durant, sent to investigate, poses as a gunsmith, and is ordered out of town by Harmon. Helen Spencer, the banker's daughter, discovers the railroad survey is finished and later, Harmon tricks Ike into telling him where the line will run. Larry trails Harmon's henchmen to East Spencerville and breaks up an extortion scheme. This convinces banker John Spencer of the treachery of Harmon and the vigilantes, but he is killed by Harmon before he can disband the committee. Larry, after Ike is wounded trying to help him, rounds up the citizens of East Spencerville and sets a trap for the criminals.
- DirectorSam NewfieldStarsGeorge HoustonAl St. JohnDennis MooreTom disguises himself as a musician to learn who is terrorizing the miners into selling their claims cheaply.
- DirectorRobert Emmett TanseyStarsTom KeeneFrank YaconelliLeRoy MasonWorking undercover, Allen and sidekick Mendoza are out to stop the mail train robberies. Rivers and his gang are the culprits and by joining up with them, they hope to get the evidence they need.
- DirectorFred C. NewmeyerStarsFred ScottPat DunnLoie BridgeOne of the rarest, which is okay as it seldom even appears on the want lists of dedicated P.R.C. collectors (especially those who have seen it), and one of the oddest of the "who-let-this-out" films. Filmed on location in the Kansas City area, with only B-western star Fred Scott and actress Loie Bridge the only two in the cast who had ever been in a film (and Scott had none after this), and the only other Hollywood connections were director Fred C. Newmeyer, who hadn't had a directing job since 1937 and who chose to be billed as Fred Neymeyer here; cameraman Edward A. Kull, billed as Eddie Kull and editor George Halligan, who may have assumed it wouldn't be seen by anybody and kept his own name on the credits. At this period in time, actress Loie Bridge was a Kansas City residence herself. Sister of actor Alan Bridge, the pair had their start in Kansas City co-managing a stock company at the Empress Theatre, before brother Al headed for Minneapolis and, later, the bright lights of Tinseltown. Loie stayed at home in Kansas City running stock companies, with an occasional role in California in early 1930's B-westerns that usually had brother Al in the cast. Loie left Kansas City for good it appears circa 1942-43 and had a fair career as a character actress. Roy Knapp, a Kansas City dry cleaner, opened a kid's riding academy in that city circa 1926 and,in a few years, his troupe of riding young daredevils (ages from 4 years old to late teens) were performing in rodeos and livestock shows all over the American Midwest. One of the riding stars of the troupe was a 5-year-old girl named (correct spelling) Roylene "Small Fry" Smith, who evidently became Donna Jean Meinke somewhere along the way, according to the cast listing on the IMDb. While the film is a showcase for Roy Knapp's "Rough Riders," it is not a story of the group, although "Knapp" is the character role names for Scott and Bridge, who play brother and sister. She plays Tillie Knapp, struggling to keep the Knapp Orphanage open. The highlight event at the Orphanage each year is the annual summer vacation visit the kids make to the ranch of her brother Buck, who sends her money to pay for the trip. Alas, this year, Alex Twitchell, local money-bag version of Snively Whiplash, has purchased the mortgage due on the orphanage and the Knapp Ranch, and demands immediate payment. Tillie gives him all the money that had been saved for the trip. To keep the kids, orphans all, from being disappointed, her old vaudeville partner, Joe Stegge, takes her and the kids to the ranch in his truck. The kids learn that Uncle Buck and Aunt Tillie are in dire straits and enlist the aid of Jim Corey, a former member of the orphanage, and Ellie Knapp, Buck's daughter, to help them put on a rodeo and use the money to help Aunt Tillie. Whiplash, uh, Twitchell arrives and legally ties up all of Buck's property, which includes the ponies the kids were going to ride in the rodeo and pay off the old homestead. But Twitchell is in a car wreck, and the kids save his life by taking him from under the car and rushing him to the hospital. Twitchell releases the ponies and the rodeo is held and enough money raised to pay off the mortgage. But Twitchell says the money is for them and he not only is going to retire the mortgage himself, he is going to build them a bigger and better Orphanage. While producer Leo J. McCarthy wrote the story, he and the two other writers chose to be uncredited also or, at least, PRC chose not to credit them. Aside from the riding ability of the kids---and they were good---this film is a good measurement of the talent level of Kansas City stock company players at the time, which also indicates that Kansas City was among the last to know that Vaudeville had died. But Victor Adamson and Robert J. Horner made worse films without leaving California. Not by much, though.
- DirectorWilliam NighStarsJames DunnFlorence RiceRobert DudleyA newlywed couple winds up spending their honeymoon night in an old, dark, spooky mansion.
- DirectorEdgar G. UlmerStarsJohn CarradineGale SondergaardSidney TolerThe owner of a seedy dive and brothel on a South Seas island meets two treasure hunters looking for a sunken ship with a $3-million cargo of gold. She persuades them to let her in on the deal. Complications ensue because of intrigue, double-crosses and an approaching violent monsoon.
- DirectorSam NewfieldStarsGeorge ZuccoMary CarlisleNedrick YoungThe twin of a kindly small-town physician returns from the grave for vengeance against his brother, who secretly killed him because the twin served Satan.
- DirectorWilliam BeaudineStarsBela LugosiLouise CurrieWallace FordA crazed scientist accidentally turns himself into a half ape, half human creature, and scrambles to find a cure.
- DirectorSteve SekelyStarsJohn CarradineGale StormRobert LoweryAfter the death of Max's spouse, Lila, Max holds a funeral for her, but he has also reanimates her as a zombie. He is amazed when Lila show signs of free will and challenges him for control.
- DirectorFrank WoodruffStarsRuth TerryRobert LivingstonWally VernonWesterner Sally Benson is cheated out of her bankroll by Nick Winner, a gambler passing through town. In New York, Nick opens up a combination night club/gambling joint and, while he is away, Sally, using the name of Vicki Norris, gets a job singing there. He tries to fire her when he returns but she cooly pulls a gun and forces him to cut cards for the club he opened using her money. This time, using marked cards herself, she wins but keeps Nick on as the manager. She becomes engaged to to rich, stuffy blueblood, J. Leslie Benton III, until Nick, who has fallen in love with her, wins her away. They plan to marry until Vicki gets the mistaken idea that Nick's real interest is in getting his club back. This complication is coupled with a war waged against the club by Nick's old gambling rival Johnny Rossi.
- DirectorJoseph KaneStarsRoy RogersTriggerSmiley BurnetteRoy's boss has inherited a very large ranch, but the will keeps him from selling it--although his widow could. Lucky Miller is out to get control of the ranch, so he has a girl come West to marry him, then after the wedding he has his henchman kill the owner. Roy is nearby, and when the murder gun is switched with his, he finds himself in jail.
- DirectorHenry LevinStarsNina FochStephen CraneOsa MassenA young woman raised by gypsies hides a deadly secret which she will do anything to protect.
- DirectorReginald Le BorgStarsEvelyn AnkersJ. Carrol NaishSamuel S. HindsPaula the ape woman (Acquanetta) is alive and well, and running around a creepy old sanitarium run by the kindly Dr. Fletcher (J. Carrol Naish), also reverting to her true gorilla form every once in a while to kill somebody.
- DirectorSam NewfieldStarsJ. Carrol NaishRalph MorganTala BirellA mad scientist injects his enemies with an acromegaly virus, causing them to become hideously deformed.
- DirectorSam NewfieldStarsMary Beth HughesRobert LowellJohn MiljanJames "Jimmy" Wilson, a young man neglected by his parents, goes to work for a bunch of gangsters to impress his nightclub-singer girlfriend.
- DirectorPhil RosenStarsAnn CorioJames BushClaudia DellTana, beautiful white girl resident of Ta'Pu, is determined to clear Harley, who is suspected of stealing the sacred jewels and of the murder of Dozan, thus preventing the natives from mass rebellion against the whites. Jim, the island police officer, is wounded and Tana and Harley nurse him back to health. Jim gathers evidence that leads him to Boggs and Carlton. Malu, a native boy in love with Tana, is murdered before he can give Jim some important evidence.
- DirectorWilliam BeaudineStarsBilly GilbertShemp HowardMaxie RosenbloomThree goofballs run up against ghosts and a giant gorilla in a haunted house.
- DirectorWilliam BeaudineStarsJames DunnWanda McKayJack La RuePrivate Investigator Terry Moran, who is in love with Nora O'Brien the daughter of Police Detective Tim O'Brien, is hired by Mrs. Hamilton to solve the murder of her husband, a fur dealer
- DirectorPhil RosenStarsBela LugosiJohn CarradineGeorge ZuccoA scientist seeks to transplant a brain into the body of a thawed caveman in order to get it to do his bidding.
- DirectorSam NewfieldStarsBuster CrabbeFalconAl St. JohnA lawman stages a prison break so a gang of imprisoned robbers will lead him to their hidden loot.
- DirectorTerry O. MorseStarsGeorge ZuccoLionel AtwillJerome CowanAn investor recently released from prison invites a group of former business associates to a holiday in his island home, intending to exact revenge on them.
- DirectorSam NewfieldStarsRichard FraserMaris WrixonLionel RoyceHunters and scientists venture into the jungle to track down a savage albino gorilla, which they believe could be the missing link between man and ape.
- DirectorHarry L. FraserStarsRay CorriganLorraine MillerGeorge J. LewisA white gorilla is snubbed by black gorillas because he is the wrong color. Cut off from his tribe he becomes lonely and angry. After troubling hunters and natives, the white gorilla fights the king of the black gorillas while we are told by a narrator that the fate of Africa hangs in the balance. The movie was made by editing some 1947 acting into footage from a 1927 silent serial, Perils of the Jungle, starring Frank Merrill the fifth screen Tarzan.
- DirectorJean YarbroughStarsRondo HattonTom NealJan WileyA facially-deformed and mentally-unhinged man wreaks his revenge, with a series of brutal murders, on those who deformed him.
- DirectorFrank WisbarStarsRosemary La PlancheJohn JamesMichael HaleWishing to dispose of his wife, psychiatrist Doctor Elliott makes his patient Nina think that she suffers from a compulsion to kill. He drugs Nina, murders his wife and leaves evidence that points to Nina. The latter, pre-conditioned by Elliott, also thinks she is guilty.
- DirectorS. Edwin GrahamStarsBarry NortonBlanche MehaffeyJack BartyThis is an edited version of a ten-year-old film, _Sea Fiend, The (1936)_.
- DirectorLesley SelanderStarsCarl EsmondLenore AubertAdele MaraAre mysterious killings in Paris of 1896 the work of man or monster?
- DirectorLewis D. CollinsStarsDon PorterBrenda JoycePatricia MorisonAn atomic scientist who was one of the brains behind the A-bomb is now working in private life, trying to adapt atomic power for business purposes. One day his long-estranged wife--who had walked out on him years before and taken up with a string of boyfriends--shows up claiming to want a reconciliation, but soon the scientist finds himself in the center of what appears to be a plot to steal his secrets.
- DirectorPhil RosenWilliam BeaudineStarsKane RichmondBarbara ReadTom DuganSuper-sleuth Lamont Cranston, (aka "The Shadow") investigates the theft of jewels from a grave.
- DirectorPhil KarlsonWilliam BeaudineStarsKane RichmondBarbara ReadGeorge ChandlerLamont Cranston, aka the Shadow, has his hands full as the murder of blackmailing reporter Jeff Mann is blamed on him. Not only does the real murderer seem one step ahead of him as Lamont tries to discover his identity, but he is continually hampered from gaining crucial evidence by his jealous, interfering fiancée Margo Lane. Cranston perseveres and is rewarded with the clue he needs at one of Mann's victims' nightclubs.
- DirectorPhil KarlsonStarsKane RichmondBarbara ReadGeorge ChandlerA jade statue, "The Missing Lady", is stolen and its owner killed. Lamont Cranston, alias the Shadow, sets out to catch the killer but is blamed for the murders himself as each time he investigates some facet of the case another suspect is killed.
- DirectorLesley SelanderStarsMonte HaleLorna GrayRobert BlakeAn interesting oddity in Republic's B-western series but certainly not the first or only time the studio used a movie set as the backdrop of a plot line. Newcomer Monte Hale is tying to just get a job in western films when he meet young Danny McCoy and his sister Gloria. Danny is trying to get his horse, "Pardner" into films. Monte sings a song and "Pardner" does some tricks and a casting director notices. Monte gets a singing-cowboy role and the horse gets a bit, but there is an accidental explosion, engineered by western star Rod Mason, who is jealous of Monte, and the horse is badly scared and blows his lines. Monte takes care of Sheridan in some hand-to-hand fisticuffs and "Pardner", trouper that he is, recovers and performs as expected. Republic contractees Roy Rogers and Dale Evans drop by and sing a song while "Trigger" upstages "Pardner" with some tap-dancing, and Donald Barry and Allan Lane drop by and say 'hidy."
- DirectorDerwin AbrahamsStarsCharles StarrettHelen MoweryHank NewmanProspector Cimarron Dobbs (Emmett Lynn) stumbles on a vast cache of Spanish gold left in Texas by Santa Anna's army, and knows he will be swindled out of his discovery unless he gets help. Saloon hostess Dixie King (Helen Mowery) agrees that he must secure the help of the Durango Kid (Charles Starrett), otherwise known as Steve Reynolds. Dobbs is kidnapped by a gang headed by John Munro (Robert Filmer'), owner of the saloon where Dixie works. She writes Steve, and the Durango Kid and his sidekick Smiley (Smiley Burnette) ride out to help. Meanwhile,henchmen Rankin (George Chesebro) and Slade (Zon Murray) are vainly attempting to learn the location of the treasure from Dobbs. Steve begins to suspect that Munro is involved, and offers a $5,000 reward for information leading to Dobb's whereabouts and announces that the treasure will be divided among the needy ranchers in the area.
- DirectorEdward FinneyStarsRobert LoweryPatricia MorisonJ. Edward BrombergA woman's husband has disappeared on an expedition into the jungle. She hires a guide to take her into the jungle to find him. However, they discover that he has been captured by a savage female tribe.
- DirectorChristy CabanneStarsBela LugosiGeorge ZuccoMolly LamontFrom a slab in the morgue, a dead young woman tells the bizarre tale of how she got there, through a maze of murder involving a hypnotist, a midget and a mysterious figure in a green mask.
- DirectorSam NewfieldStarsRory CalhounRhonda FlemingPaul KellyTravelers find themselves marooned on an island with a maniacal self-made ruler.
- DirectorDerwin AbrahamsStarsCharles StarrettVirginia HunterTexas Jim LewisA saddle-weary Steve Larkin (Charles Starrett), also the Duranko Kid, rides into Red Mound, a town filled with cattle rustlers. Cafe owner Smiley (Smiley Burnette), befriends Steve and fills him in on the activities. Steve angers the rustler's leader, Flip Dugan (Jim Diehl) when he purchases the old Atkins ranch which is supposedly haunted. Flip and his henchmen try to prevent the recording of the deed, but the Durango Kid and Deputy Marshal Tug Carter win the gun battle.
- DirectorAlfred J. GouldingStarsDon StannardGeorge FordJack ShawGovernment agent Dick Barton battles a ring of Nazi spies who are planning to poison the entire London water supply.
- DirectorLewis D. CollinsStarsGeorge ReevesWanda McKayRalph ByrdWhen a plane carrying the daughter of a millionaire crashes in an African jungle, two pilots set out to collect the reward. They discover that she has become the goddess of a primitive tribe.
- DirectorEduardo de CastroStarsFernando PoeBerting LabraMona LisaAfter studying in America, South Seas Prince Sigore returns home with plans to change things on his island. He's opposed by the sultan's sister-in-law, who has plans to control the paradise, and is infatuated with the Forbidden Women and their sensuous ways.
- DirectorOscar BurnStarsMara Russell-TavernanRobert EssexKarl Meir1947. Drama. During the war, a British agent travels to the remote Glennye Castle in the wilds of Scotland to investigate a mysterious murder by a masked phantom. Directed by Oscar Burn.
- DirectorLew LandersStarsCameron MitchellAudrey LongFuzzy KnightTed Daniels, a ranch hand working for a rodeo, captures a magnificent wild horse that he tames and trains. As Ted is recovering from an accident that happened during a rodeo, the rodeo owner cheats him out of his horse.
- DirectorWilliam BerkeStarsJon HallJune VincentJane NighThe story of a boy raised by gorillas.
- DirectorLeon LeonardStarsRon RandellDevera BurtonTrevor BardetteThe curse of a shark god follows a group of people who have violated a sacred jungle idol.
- DirectorW. Merle ConnellStarsLita GreyWill CharlesWilliam ThomasonThe head of an illegal drug ring uses a women's health spa as a front for his sleeping-pill racket.