''Dick Tracy'' (1937) is a 15-chapter

Republic A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...

movie serial A serial film, film serial (or just serial), movie serial, or chapter play, is a motion picture form popular during the first half of the 20th century, consisting of a series of short subjects exhibited in consecutive order at one theater, gene ...

starring

Ralph Byrd Ralph Byrd (April 22, 1909 – August 18, 1952) was an American actor. He was most famous for playing the comic strip character Dick Tracy on screen, in serials, films and television. Early life and career The son of George and Edna May ...

based on the ''

Dick Tracy ''Dick Tracy'' is an American comic strip featuring Dick Tracy (originally Plainclothes Tracy), a tough and intelligent police detective created by Chester Gould. It made its debut on Sunday, October 4, 1931, in the ''Detroit Mirror'', and it ...

comic strip A comic strip is a sequence of drawings, often cartoons, arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions. Traditionally, throughout the 20th and into the 21st ...

Chester Gould Chester Gould (; November 20, 1900 – May 11, 1985) was an American cartoonist, best known as the creator of the ''Dick Tracy'' comic strip, which he wrote and drew from 1931 to 1977, incorporating numerous colorful and monstrous villains. Ear ...

. It was directed by

Alan James Alan James (March 23, 1890 – December 30, 1952) was an American film director and screenwriter. He directed more than 70 films between 1916 and 1943. He also wrote for more than 60 films between 1916 and 1951. He was born in Port Townsend ...

and Ray Taylor.

Plot

Dick Tracy's foe for this serial is the

crime boss A crime boss, also known as a crime lord, Don, gang lord, gang boss, mob boss, kingpin, godfather, crime mentor or criminal mastermind, is a person in charge of a criminal organization. Description A crime boss typically has absolute or nearl ...

and

masked mystery villain A masked villain, also seen as masked mystery villain, is a stock character in genre fiction. It was developed and popularized in movie serials, beginning with The Hooded Terror in ''The House of Hate'', (1918) the first fully-costumed mystery v ...

the Spider/the Lame One (both names are used) and his Spider Ring. In the process of various crimes, including using his

flying wing A flying wing is a tailless fixed-wing aircraft that has no definite fuselage, with its crew, payload, fuel, and equipment housed inside the main wing structure. A flying wing may have various small protuberances such as pods, nacelles, blis ...

and sound weapon to destroy the Bay Bridge in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

and stealing an experimental "speed plane", The Spider captures Dick Tracy's brother, Gordon. The Spider's minion, Dr. Moloch, performs a brain operation on Gordon Tracy to turn him evil, making him secretly part of the Spider Ring and so turning brother against brother.

Cast

Starring cast

Kay Hughes Kay Hughes (born Catherine Mary Hughes; January 16, 1914 – April 4, 1998) was an American actress in the 1930s and 1940s who appeared mainly in Western films and serials. Biography Hughes was born in Los Angeles, California. When she was a ...

as Gwen Andrews *

Smiley Burnette Lester Alvin Burnett (March 18, 1911 – February 16, 1967), better known as Smiley Burnette, was an American country music performer and a comedic actor in Western films and on radio and TV, playing sidekick to Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, and ...

as Mike McGurk *

Lee Van Atta Lee Van Atta (July 22, 1922 – February 15, 2002) was an American child actor The term child actor or child actress is generally applied to a child acting on stage or in movies or television. An adult who began their acting career as a chi ...

as Junior *John Picorri as Dr Moloch *Richard Beach as Gordon Tracy (pre-operation in Chapter 1) *

Carleton Young Captain Carleton Scott Young (October 21, 1905 – November 7, 1994) was an American character actor who was known for his deep voice. Early years Born in Fulton, Oswego, New York, Young was the second and only surviving child of St ...

as Gordon Tracy (post-operation in Chapter 1) *Fred Hamilton as Steve Lockwood * Francis X. Bushman as Clive Anderson The above cast members appear in the opening credits in "cameo" display — sequential pictures of each actor with his/her name (and sometimes character name) superimposed at the bottom of the screen — for the first episode, followed by a listing of supporting players. Subsequent chapters simply listed the stars on one screen and the same supporting cast a second. This approach to cast display was used by Republic from its first serial through ''

Haunted Harbor ''Haunted Harbor'' (1944) is a Republic serial, based on the novel by Ewart Adamson. Plot Sea captain Jim Marsden is about to be hanged for a murder he didn't commit, and is rescued from the gallows by two of his crewmen. To clear the captain' ...

'' in 1944. Universal serials presented a similar approach to cast display until 1940, only in their case, the star-cameos appeared with the first 3-4 episodes, and subsequent episodes listed these names usually followed, on a scrolling cast list, by part, but not often all, of the supporting players who had been named on the episodes with the cameos. Occasionally, a new player or two might be added. Columbia only a few times adopted this approach to displaying the cast of its serials. Republic, Universal, Warner Bros. Pictures, and some independents also used star "cameos" in numbers of their

B picture A B movie or B film is a low-budget commercial motion picture. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified films intended for distribution as the less-publicized bottom half of a double feature ...

s during the 1930s.

Supporting cast

John Dilson John Dilson (February 18, 1891 – June 1, 1944) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 250 films between 1934 and 1944. Selected filmography * ''A Man's Game'' (1934) * '' The Westerner'' (1934) * '' The Girl Who Came Back'' ...

as Ellery Brewster *

Wedgwood Nowell Wedgwood Nowell (born Harry Wedgwood Nowell; January 24, 1878 – June 17, 1957) was an American stage and film actor, director, producer, and musician. He produced 144 plays during his stage career, which began around 1901. Later, while w ...

as H. T. Clayton *

Theodore Lorch Theodore "Ted" Lorch (September 29, 1873 – November 12, 1947) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 140 films between 1908 and 1947. Biography Born in Springfield, Illinois, in 1873, Lorch appeared in several Three Stooges ...

as Paterno *

Edwin Stanley Edwin Stanley (November 22, 1880 – December 25, 1944), was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 230 films between 1916 and 1946. He was born in Chicago, Illinois and died in Hollywood, California. On Broadway, Stanley appear ...

as Walter Odette *

Harrison Greene Harrison Greene (January 18, 1884 – September 28, 1945) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 230 films between 1931 and 1945. The son of a jeweler, Greene was born in Portland, Oregon, but grew up in California. He was a d ...

as Cloggerstein *Herbert Weber as Tony Martino *

Buddy Roosevelt Buddy Roosevelt (born Kenneth Stanhope Sanderson; June 25, 1898 – October 6, 1973) was an American film and television actor and stunt performer from Hollywood's early silent film years through the 1950s. Biography Roosevelt was born as Kenn ...

as Burke *

George DeNormand George DeNormand (1903 – 1976) was an American actor and stuntman. DeNormand was an amateur middleweight boxer in the 1920s. He was a prolific though often uncredited actor and stunt double in movies such as ''The Raven'' and ''Bride of Fran ...

as Flynn * Byron K. Foulger as Kovitch The above cast members appear in the opening credits as simply a list of the actor's names.

Production

''Dick Tracy'' was budgeted at $112,334 although the final

negative cost Negative cost is the net expense to produce and shoot a film, excluding such expenditures as distribution and promotion. Low-budget movies, for example ''The Blair Witch Project ''The Blair Witch Project'' is a 1999 American supernatural h ...

was $127,640 (a $15,306, or 13.6%, overspend). It was the most expensive Republic serial until ''

S O S Coast Guard ''S O S Coast Guard'' is a 1937 Republic film serial. It was the seventh of the sixty-six serials made by Republic. The plot concerns the mad scientist Boroff (Bela Lugosi) attempting to sell a superweapon to the highest bidder, opposed by Coast ...

'' was released later in the year. It was filmed between 30 November and 24 December 1936 under the

working title A working title, which may be abbreviated and styled in trade publications after a putative title as (wt), also called a production title or a tentative title, is the temporary title of a product or project used during its development, usually ...

s ''Adventures of Dick Tracy'' and ''The Spider Ring''. The serial's production number was 420. In this serial,

is a

G-Man ''G-man'' (short for "government man", plural ''G-men'') is an American slang term for special agent, agents of the United States Government. It is especially used as a term for an agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). ''G-man'' i ...

(

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...

) in

rather than a

Midwestern The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of the United States. I ...

city

police The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and t ...

detective A detective is an investigator, usually a member of a law enforcement agency. They often collect information to solve crimes by talking to witnesses and informants, collecting physical evidence, or searching records in databases. This leads th ...

as in the comic strip. Most of the ''Dick Tracy'' supporting cast and rogues gallery were also dropped and new, original characters used instead (for instance the characters of Tracy's girlfriend Gwen Andrews and his detective partner Mike McGurk were stand-ins for Tess Trueheart and Pat Patton respectively). ''Dick Tracy'' creator

approved the script despite these changes. There were three sequels to this serial: ''

Dick Tracy Returns ''Dick Tracy Returns'' (1938) is a Republic Movie serial based on the Dick Tracy comic strip. It was the eleventh of the sixty-six serials Republic produced and a sequel to the 1937 serial ''Dick Tracy'', with Ralph Byrd reprising his role as the ...

'' (1938), ''

Dick Tracy's G-Men ''Dick Tracy's G-Men'' (1939) is a 15-Chapter Republic movie serial based on the ''Dick Tracy'' comic strip by Chester Gould. It was directed by William Witney and John English. This serial was the fifteenth of the sixty-six produced by Repu ...

'' (1939), and ''

Dick Tracy vs. Crime, Inc. ''Dick Tracy vs. Crime, Inc.'' (1941) is a Republic Movie serial based on the Dick Tracy comic strip. It was directed by the team of William Witney and John English with Ralph Byrd reprising his role from the earlier serials. It was the last ...

'' (1941). They were all permitted by an interpretation of the original contract, which allowed a "series or serial". That meant that ''Dick Tracy''s creator,

, was only paid for the rights to produce this serial but not for any of the sequels.

Stunts

*George DeNormand as Dick Tracy (doubling

) *Loren Riebe (doubling Jack Gardner)

Special effects

John T. Coyle John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

*The

Lydecker brothers Howard and Theodore Lydecker, always known—and billed—as such, were Howard "Babe" Lydecker (June 8, 1911 – September 26, 1969) and Theodore Lydecker (November 7, 1908 – May 25, 1990), a special effects team primarily working as contract s ...

Release

Theatrical

''Dick Tracys official release date is 20 February 1937, although this is actually the date the seventh chapter was made available to

film exchange A film exchange was a business in film distribution that rented out movies to theaters. They opened up all over the U.S. to handle film reels during the silent film era. Film exchanges were often a separate business from production. Buildings were ...

s. Alpha Video released the serial on two DVDs in 2003. Volume 1 contains Chapters 1 through 7, and Volume 2 contains Chapters 8 through 15. VCI released all four Dick Tracy serials on DVD in 2008 separately, then put them all out together in one boxed set in 2012. A 73-minute feature film version, created by editing the serial footage together, was reported by Jack Mathis to have been released on 27 December 1937, based on a single memo in the

Republic Pictures Republic Pictures Corporation (currently held under Melange Pictures, LLC) was an American motion picture production-distribution corporation in operation from 1935 to 1967, that was based in Los Angeles. It had studio facilities in Studio City an ...

corporate papers files; however, no evidence of any showing of this film, at least within the United States, has ever been located, nor any other evidence that such a feature version was even made. The only known feature version of this serial is a direct-to-TV movie edited and syndicated in the late 1980s, and subsequently made available on videotape and DVD (most recently, under the altered title ''Dick Tracy and the Spider Gang'').

Critical reception

Cline states that the ''Dick Tracy'' serials were "unexcelled in the action field," adding that "in any listing of serials released after 1930, the four ''Dick Tracy'' adventures from Republic must stand out as classics of the suspense detective thrillers, and the models for many others to follow." He goes on to write that Ralph Byrd "played the part f Dick Tracyto the hilt, giving his portrayal such unbridled, exuberant enthusiasm that the resulting excitement was contagious." Byrd become identified with the character following the release of this serial. The final chapter reunion between Dick and Gordon Tracy, as Gordon lies dying and his memory returns, is "one of the few moments of real emotional drama ever attempted in serials". This added to the human quality of Dick Tracy, which was present in both this serial and Chester Gould's original strip.

Chapter titles

#The Spider Strikes ''(29 min 31s)'' #The Bridge of Terror ''(19 min 11s)'' #The Fur Pirates ''(20 min 25s)'' #Death Rides the Sky ''(20 min 49s)'' #Brother Against Brother ''(19 min 14s)'' #Dangerous Waters ''(16 min 52s)'' #The Ghost Town Mystery ''(20 min 11s)'' #Battle in the Clouds ''(18 min 40s)'' #The Stratosphere Adventure ''(18 min 00s)'' #The Gold Ship ''(18 min 28s)'' #Harbor Pursuit ''(16 min 35s)'' #The Trail of the Spider ''(17 min 39s)'' — re-cap chapter #The Fire Trap ''(16 min 45s)'' #The Devil in White ''(20 min 35s)'' #Brothers United ''(16 min 59s)'' _Source: ''Dick Tracy'' was the only 15-chapter serial released by Republic in 1937.

Cliffhangers

#''The Spider Strikes:'' The Bay Bridge, under attack from the Spider's

sonic weapon Sonic and ultrasonic weapons (USW) are weapons of various types that use sound to injure or incapacitate an opponent. Some sonic weapons make a focused beam of sound or of ultrasound; others produce an area field of sound. military and police ...

, begins to collapse on top of Dick Tracy. #''The Bridge of Terror:'' Dick Tracy's

plane Plane(s) most often refers to: * Aero- or airplane, a powered, fixed-wing aircraft * Plane (geometry), a flat, 2-dimensional surface Plane or planes may also refer to: Biology * Plane (tree) or ''Platanus'', wetland native plant * Planes (gen ...

is damaged by gunfire and crashes into a rail bridge. #''The Fur Pirates:'' Chasing his

brother A brother is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingly to refer to non-familia ...

and the Spider Ring by

motorboat A motorboat, speedboat or powerboat is a boat that is exclusively powered by an engine. Some motorboats are fitted with inboard engines, others have an outboard motor installed on the rear, containing the internal combustion engine, the gea ...

, Dick Tracy is crushed between two moored ships moving closer together. #''Death Rides the Sky:'' Dick Tracy transfers to an unmanned, remote plane to save Junior but it is shot down by the Spider Ring. #''Brother Against Brother:'' In a roof-top chase, Gordon shoots his brother Dick, sending him into a multi-story fall. #''Dangerous Waters:'' Dick Tracy's leg is caught in

submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

mooring line A mooring is any permanent structure to which a vessel may be secured. Examples include quays, wharfs, jetties, piers, anchor buoys, and mooring buoys. A ship is secured to a mooring to forestall free movement of the ship on the water. An ''an ...

, pulling him under the waves. #''The Ghost Town Mystery:'' Dick Tracy falls into a pit in a mine tunnel. Spider Ring thugs take aim. #''Battle in the Clouds:'' Gordon shoots down his brother's

. #''The Stratosphere Adventure:'' Dick Tracy is knocked unconscious aboard a burning, crashing

Zeppelin A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship named after the German inventor Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin () who pioneered rigid airship development at the beginning of the 20th century. Zeppelin's notions were first formulated in 1874Eckener 1938, pp ...

. #''The Gold Ship:'' A steel plate from a ship's hull falls on top of Dick Tracy. #''Harbour Pursuit:'' Dick Tracy's

has its controls shot out by thugs, crashing into an oncoming ship. #''The Trail of the Spider:'' The lights go out, the Spider mark shines on Dick Tracy's forehead, several shots are fired. #''The Fire Trap:'' Dick Tracy falls while escaping a burning ship. #''The Devil in White:'' Dick Tracy is strapped to an operating table to undergo the same brain operation as his

Gordon.

References in other films

* The

cliffhanger A cliffhanger or cliffhanger ending is a plot device in fiction which features a main character in a precarious or difficult dilemma or confronted with a shocking revelation at the end of an episode or a film of serialized fiction. A cliffhang ...

for chapter three, a

chase, is copied in the movie ''

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade ''Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade'' is a 1989 American action film, action-adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg, from a story co-written by executive producer George Lucas. It is the third installment in the Indiana Jones, ''Indiana ...

'' (

1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress Street Viaduct, Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxo ...

). * The Spider's

was reused for the later, unconnected, Republic serial ''

The Fighting Devil Dogs ''The Fighting Devil Dogs'' (1938) is a 12-chapter Republic movie serial starring Lee Powell and Herman Brix, the latter better known by his later stage name, Bruce Bennett. It was directed by William Witney and John English. While not often co ...

'' (

1938 Events January * January 1 ** The Constitution of Estonia#Third Constitution (de facto 1938–1940, de jure 1938–1992), new constitution of Estonia enters into force, which many consider to be the ending of the Era of Silence and the a ...

References

External links

* * *
''Dick Tracy'' at Todd Gault's Movie Serial Experience

Download or view online

Download or view the complete public domain serial at The Internet Archive
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

{{Authority control 1937 films 1930s crime films American black-and-white films Dick Tracy films 1930s English-language films Republic Pictures film serials Films directed by Ray Taylor Films directed by Alan James American aviation films Articles containing video clips Films produced by Nat Levine 1930s American films