''G-Men vs. The Black Dragon'' (1943) is a

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 ...

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 ...

. It is noteworthy among adventure serials as containing an unusually high number of fistfights, all staged by director

William Witney William Nuelsen Witney (May 15, 1915 – March 17, 2002) was an American film and television director. He is best remembered for the action films he made for Republic Pictures, particularly serials: ''Dick Tracy Returns'', ''G-Men vs. the Black ...

and a team of stuntmen. This was Witney's last production before leaving to serve in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. He actually shipped out before filming was complete. It also sees the return of Witney's wife, Maxine Doyle, to acting for the first time since they met on the set of an earlier serial, ''

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 ...

'' (

1937 Events January * January 1 – Anastasio Somoza García becomes President of Nicaragua. * January 5 – Water levels begin to rise in the Ohio River in the United States, leading to the Ohio River flood of 1937, which continues into Fe ...

Plot

After Japanese spies from the

Black Dragon Society The , or the Amur River Society, was a prominent paramilitary, ultranationalist group in Japan. History The ''Kokuryūkai'' was founded in 1901 by martial artist Uchida Ryohei as a successor to his mentor Mitsuru Tōyama's ''Gen'yōsha''. It ...

infiltrate United States borders, Federal Agent Rex Bennett is enlisted by the government to capture them. As Oyama Haruchi, leader of the dangerous paramilitary group, begins to destabilize the United States war effort through sabotage and corruption, Bennett must team up with British special agent Vivian Marsh and Chinese special agent Chang Sing to stop them and help win the war.

Cast

* Rod Cameron as US agent Rex Bennett *

Roland Got Roland Got (1916-1948) was a Chinese American character actor who worked in Hollywood during the 1930s and 1940s. Biography Roland Got was born in San Francisco, California, in 1916 to William Got and Lilly Leong. His father, who immigrated fro ...

as Chinese agent Chang Sing *

Constance Worth Constance Worth (born Enid Joyce Howarth; 19 August 1911 – 18 October 1963) was an Australian actress who became a Hollywood star in the late 1930s. She was also known as Jocelyn Howarth. Early life and career She was born in Sydney, Austral ...

as British agent Vivian Marsh *

Nino Pipitone Nino or Niño may refer to: *Nino (name) *Niño (name) * Antonin Scalia, American Supreme Court justice whose nickname was "Nino" *El Niño, a climate pattern in the tropical Pacific Ocean *NINO, an abbreviation for National Insurance number in th ...

as Oyama Haruchi, Japanese spy and leader of the Black Dragon Society * Noel Cravat as Ranga, Haruchi's assistant * George J. Lewis as Lugo, Haruchi's assistant

Production

''G-Men vs. The Black Dragon'' was commissioned based on the success of the serial ''

Spy Smasher Spy Smasher is the name of two fictional characters appearing in comics published by Fawcett and DC Comics. The first is a superhero that was formerly owned and published by Fawcett Comics. The second is a female anti-terrorism government agent, ...

'', although the production team preferred to have a non-costumed character. ''G-Men vs. The Black Dragon'' was budgeted at $148,445 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 $156,599 (a $8,154, or 5.5%, overspend). It was filmed between 26 September and 11 November 1942. The serial's production number was 1198. This was director

's last production before leaving to serve in

, he actually shipped out before filming was complete. Witney arranged for his wife, Maxine Doyle, to be auditioned for a part as he would be leaving her in the United States for the duration of the war. It was also arranged that she was the only candidate for the role, but this was not revealed to her until she arrived for the audition. This was her first time acting role since the couple met on the set of an earlier serial, ''

'' (

). This arrangement almost led to slight trouble in the relationship when Australian actress Constance Worth turned up at Witney's hotel room drunk. She was led away by a colleague before Maxine became aware of her presence. Rod Cameron's characterization of federal agent Rex Bennett was so successful that Republic hurriedly made changes to Cameron's next serial, already in production. It became an unofficial sequel, ''

Secret Service in Darkest Africa ''Secret Service in Darkest Africa'' is a 1943 Republic serial. It was Republic's thirtieth serial, of the sixty-six produced by the studio. It was a sequel to ''G-Men vs. the Black Dragon'' released earlier in 1943, again starring Rod Camero ...

'', with Cameron's reprising the character of Rex Bennett, and the feminine lead taken by

Joan Marsh Joan Marsh (July 10, 1914 – August 10, 2000) was an American child actress in silent films between 1915 and 1921. Later, during the sound era, she resumed her acting career and performed in a variety of films during the 1930s and 1940s. Ear ...

playing Janet Blake, a British reporter. In 1966 the serial was edited into a feature titled ''Black Dragon of Manzanar''. It played on television as part of Republic's "Century 66" package of 100-minute serial adaptations.

Special effects

All the special effects in this serial were produced by Republic's in-house effects team, 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 ...

. Many of the scenes were filmed so impressively that Republic reused them in later serials.

Stunts

* Tom Steele as Rex Bennett (doubling Rod Cameron) *

Duke Taylor Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ranked ...

as Lugo (doubling George J. Lewis) *

Ken Terrell Kenneth Jones Terrell (April 29, 1904 – March 8, 1966) was an American western and action film actor and stuntman best known for playing Joe Marcelli in the 1956 film ''Indestructible Man'' and Jess in the 1958 film ''Attack of the 50 Foo ...

as Ranga & Chang Sing (doubling Noel Cravat and Roland Got) *

Dale Van Sickel Dale Harris Van Sickel (November 29, 1907 – January 25, 1977) was an American college football, basketball and baseball player during the 1920s, who later became a Hollywood motion picture actor and stunt performer for over forty years. Van ...

(doubling Stanley Price) *

John Daheim 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 ...

(doubling Crane Whitley and Harry Burns)

Release

Theatrical

''G-Men vs. The Black Dragons official release date is January 16, 1943, although this is actually the date the seventh chapter was made available to film exchanges.

Television

''G-Men vs. The Black Dragon'' was one of twenty-six Republic serials re-released as a film on television in 1966. The title of the film was changed to ''Black Dragon of Manzanar''. This version was cut down to 100-minutes in length.

Critical reception

In the words of Cline, both this serial and its sequel were "well-made topical drama with highly capable and professional casts." In a departure from the normal formula, the villain's identity is known to the audience.

Chapter titles

#The Yellow Peril (25min 26s) #Japanese Inquisition (15min 34s) #Arsenal of Doom (15min 32s) #Deadly Sorcery (15min 34s) #Celestial Murder (15min 36s) #Death and Destruction (15min 35s) #The Iron Monster (15min 35s) #Beast of Tokyo (15min 39s) #Watery Grave (15min 31s) #The Dragon Strikes (15min 34s) #Suicide Mission (15min 35s) #Dead on Arrival (15min 31s) #Condemned Cargo (15min 34s) #Flaming Coffin (15min 34s) #Democracy in Action (15min 40s) _Source:

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:G-Men vs. the Black Dragon 1943 films 1940s spy films 1940s English-language films American spy films American World War II films American black-and-white films Republic Pictures film serials Films directed by Spencer Gordon Bennet Films directed by William Witney Films set in the United States World War II films made in wartime Japan in non-Japanese culture Films with screenplays by Joseph F. Poland