Haunted Harbour

While many serials from those Golden Days of the 1930s and 1940s had western, war, jungle, or outer space backgrounds, this is one set on and around several islands in the South Seas. A few of the interiors and an occasional seascape impart a South Seas flavor, but much of the scenery has such a "sagebrush" look to it that you expect a stagecoach to come over the hill at any moment. Still, the story-line holds interest throughout 15 chapters and the action, often fast and furious with a heavy reliance on fistfights, always builds to exciting, cliffhanger endings. Kane Richmond (at age 37) plays the sea captain out to clear his name of a false murder charge and as he proved in the earlier (and somewhat superior) "Spy Smasher," Richmond is an ideal serial hero -- handsome without being pretty, likeable, a competent actor, and rugged enough to make all his physical heroics seem plausible. Note how good he looks with his shirt off in Chapter One's boat-rescue scenes. Kay Aldridge makes for a passable heroine though she seems a bit too young and diminutive to carry off some of her action scenes. Roy Barcroft is a suitable villain, heavier on style than sneer. The less said about the sea-serpent monster, the better. While "Haunted Harbor" doesn't quite rank with the serials' finest efforts, it's just half-a-notch below that level.

Republic Pictures present "HAUNTED HARBOR" (1944) (235 mins/B&W) (Dolby digitally remastered) --- is a 15-Chapter Republic Movie Serial starring Kane Richmond, Kay Aldridge, Roy Barcroft, Clancy Cooper & Marshall J. Reed, relive those thrilling days week after week venue brought you to the theater, as you were mesmerized in your seat waiting for the final chapter ... exciting action within 15 episodes from the Republic Serials department, released in August 18, 1944 our plot line being accused of murdering a high seas financier and stealing a fortune in bullion from his own schooner, Captain Jim Marsden enlists the help a ship-wrecked beauty as he battles an evil raider & his hencemen ... will the Captain be hanged for a murder he didn't commit, can his friends come to the rescue in time.

Under Spencer Gordon Bennet (Director), Wallace Grissell (Director), Ronald Davidson (Associate Producer), Ewart Adamson (Author of Novel as Dayle Douglas), Royal K. Cole (Screenwriter), Basil Dickey (Screenwriter), Jesse Duffy (Screenwriter), Grant Nelson (Screenwriter), Joseph F. Poland (Screenwriter), Joseph Dubin (Original Score), Bud Thackery (Cinematographer), Cliff Bell Sr.(Editor), (as Cliff Bell), Harold Minter (Editor), Fred A. Ritter (Art Director) ------ the cast includes Kane Richmond (Jim Marsden), Kay Aldridge (Patricia Harding), Roy Barcroft (Carter, alias Kane), Clancy Cooper (Yank), Marshall Reed (Tommy), Oscar O'Shea (John Galbraith), Forrest Taylor (Dr. Oliver Harding), Wally Wales (Lawson(as Hal Taliaferro), George J. Lewis (Dranga), Kenne Duncan (Gregg), Bud Geary (Snell), Duke Green (Constable #2), Dale Van Sickel (Gold Theft Thug/Sailor #1), Tom Steele (Constable #1/Store Thug/Radio Bomb Thug/Henchman Bert Mead), Rico De Montez (Tamil), Fred Graham (Mine Thug/2nd Bartender), Carey Loftin (Cave Thug #2), Jack O'Shea (Second Ambush Thug), Jay Silverheels (Native), Ken Terrell (Taola, Tobacco Peddler/Sailor), Robert J. Wilke (1st Bartender), Bud Wolfe (Cave Thug #1) ----- feast your eyes on the magnificent treasure chest filled with fabulous riches! ... witness the bold daredevils defy the evil that plagues each episode of this Republic classic ... great stunt work by the Republic stunt personnel John Daheim (stunt double: Marshall Reed), Duke Green (stunt double: Kenne Duncan & George J. Lewis), Eddie Parker (stunt double: Roy Barcroft), Tom Steele (stunt double: Wally Wales & Bud Geary), Dale Van Sickel (stunt double: Kane Richmond & Clancy Cooper) --- don't leave the theater until the final chapter "The Case of the Musical Clue" ... another winner from the vaults of Republic Serials --- this is a must watch for the serial buffs in all of us.

CHAPTER TITLES:
1. Wanted For Murder
2. Flight To Danger
3. Ladder Of Death
4. The Unknown Assassin
5. Harbor Of Horror
6. Return Of the Fugitive
7. Journey Into Peril
8. Wings Of Doom
9. Death's Door
10.Crimson Sacrifice
11.Jungle Jeapardy
12.Fire Trap
13.Monster Of the Deep
14.High Voltage
15.Crucible Of Justice

BIOS:
1. Kane Richmond (aka: Fred Bowditch)
Date of birth: 23 December 1906 - Minneapolis, Minnesota
Date of death: 22 March 1973 - Corona Del Mar, California

Special Footnote, Kane Richmond an American actor began as a supporting player during the 30's and 40's in standard Hollywood films and rugged star of "B" adventure two-reelers, features and cliff-hanger serials... "The Lost City" (1934), "The Adventures of Rex and Rinty" (1935), "Charlie Chan in Panama" (1940), "Spy Smasher" (1942), "Haunted Harbor" (1944), "The Shadow Returns" (1946), "Behind the Mask" (The Shadow) (1946), "The Missing Lady" (The Shadow) (1946) ... many fans of the chapter-play genre consider Richmond's dual role in Spy Smasher (1942) as his best work.

BIOS:
2. . Spencer Gordon Bennet (The Serial King) (Director)
Date of birth: 5 January 1893 - Brooklyn, New York, New York
Date of death: 8 October 1987 - Santa Monica, California

Second special footnote, Spencer Gordon Bennet, was known as the "King of Serial Directors" he directed more film serials than anybody else, Bennet first entered show business as a stunt man, when he answered a newspaper ad to jump from the Palisades of the Hudson River while wearing a suit for the serial film Hurricane Hutch. The gig at that time paid $1 per foot he had to fall ... Bennet made his directorial debut in "Behold The Man" (1921), but made his serial directorial debut in with "Sunken Silver" (1925), Bennet would keep making serials, as well as B westerns features, until the very end of the genre, directing the very last two made in the United States, "Blazing the Overland Trail" (1956) and "Perils of the Wilderness" (1956). After the serials ended he directed a handful of features, his final directorial credit with "The Bounty Killer" (1965) with Dan Duryea, Bob Steele, Buster Crabbe, Johnny Mack Brown, Fuzzy Knight, I. Stanford Jolley Richard Arlen and Rod Cameron, which was also the final film to feature noted cowboy star Gilbert "Broncho Billy" Anderson ... when Bennet died in 1987, his tombstone was engraved "The Final Chapter" ... over his long career Bennet directed over a hundred serials including "Atom Man vs Superman" (1950) serial, "The Adventures of Sir Galahad" (1949), "Batman and Robin" (1949), "The Tiger Woman" (1944), "Captain Video" (1951), and numerous western serials. Among his western B-features were his long running "Red Ryder" series, featuring Don "Red" Barry, Wild Bill Elliott and Allan Rocky Lane during the '40s.

If you're into vintage serials as I am, why not pick up a copy of the following titles from VCI Home Video:
VCI CLIFFHANGER TRAILERS:
1. Adventures of Red Ryder (Don "Red" Barry)
2. Adventures of the Flying Cadets (Bobby Jordan)
3. Buck Rogers (Buster Crabbe)
4. Captain Midnight (Dave O'Brien)
5. Captain Video: Master of the Stratosphere (Judd Holdren & I. Stanford Jolley)
6. Dick Tracy's G-Men (Ralph Byrd)
7. Don Winslow of the Navy (Don Terry)
8. Don Winslow of the Coast Guard (Don Terry)
9. Drums of Fu Manchu (Henry Brandon)
10.Fighting Kit Carson (Johnny Mack Brown)
11.Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe (Buster Crabbe)
12.The Green Archer (Victory Jory)
13.Jungle Girl (Frances Gifford)
14.Jungle Jim (Grant Withers & Raymond Hatton)
15.Lost City of the Jungle (Russell Hayden & Keye Luke)
16.Mandrake the Magician (Warren Hull & Dick Curtis)
17.Miracle Rider (Tom Mix & Tony Jr)
18.The Painted Stallion (Ray "Crash" Corrigan)
19.The Phantom (Tom Tyler)
20.The Return of Chandu (Bela Lugosi)
21.Riders of Death Valley (Dick Foran, Leo Carrillo & Buck Jones)
22.Secret Agent X-9 (1937) (Scott Kolk & Henry Brandon)
23.Secret Agent X-9 (1945) (Lloyd Bridges & Keye Luke)
24.Sky Raiders (Donald Woods & Billy Halop)
25.Undersea Kingdom (Ray "Crash" Corrigan)
26.Winners of the West (Dick Foran, Harry Woods, Roy Barcroft & Charles Stevens)
27.Zane Greys "King of the Royal Mounted" (Allan "Rocky" Lane)
28.Zorro's Cliffhanger Collection (Reed Hadley, John Carroll & Linda Stirling)

Hats off and thanks to Les Adams (collector/guideslines for character identification), Chuck Anderson (Webmaster: The Old Corral/B-Westerns.Com), Boyd Magers (Western Clippings), Bobby J. Copeland (author: Trail Talk), Rhonda Lemons (Empire Publishing Inc) and Bob Nareau (author: The Real Bob Steele) as they have rekindled my interest once again for B-Westerns and Serials --- looking forward to more high quality releases from the vintage serial era of the '20s, '30s & '40s and B-Westerns ... order your copy now from Amazon where there are plenty of copies available on VHS, stay tuned once again for top notch action mixed with deadly adventure --- if you enjoyed this title, why not check out VCI Entertainment where they are experts in releasing B-Westerns and Serials --- all my heroes have been cowboys!

Total Time: 235 min on VHS ~ Republic Video ~ (5/30/1995)

although i now remember seeing this ,it was the sea hound i was thinking of, secret bases under water sea monster , speed boats chases , phantoms of my gone youth

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 4 reviews  3.5 out of 5 stars