Typical of the Hollywood approach to comic strip characters, particularly in serials, the studio acquires the rights to the name so they can advertise it outside the theater, but pays no further attention to the things that made the original successful Here, Dick Tracy is not a cop but a G-man. No Pat Patton, but a sidekick named Steve Lockwood. No Tess Truehart, but secretary named Gwen. Only Junior survives the transition the the screen, spending most of his time with another new character named Mike McGurk, played by Smiley Burnette for comic relief.
My guess is that Republic already had a script on the shelf called "King of the FBI" or some such, and just changed the name of the title character. You can see the same approach in the Captain America serial.
A great serial, but it's not Dick Tracy.
My guess is that Republic already had a script on the shelf called "King of the FBI" or some such, and just changed the name of the title character. You can see the same approach in the Captain America serial.
A great serial, but it's not Dick Tracy.