''Raiders of Ghost City'' is a 1944 American

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

film 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 ...

from

Universal Pictures Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...

set in California during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

Plot

At the height of the Civil War, a gang of supposed Confederates, headed by Alex Morel, raid all gold shipments from Oro Grande, California, bound for Washington. Captain Steve Clark is recognized as a Union Secret Service agent by Morel's accomplice Trina Dessard, along with his friend Idaho Jones, is ambushed in the baggage car and sent to almost certain death when the car is un-coupled and plunges down the mountainside. Leaping to safety, Idaho and Steve report to Colonel Sewell in Oro Grande, and Idaho introduces himself as a Wells Fargo detective to Cathy Haines the Oro Grande company agent. Steve and Idaho learn that the Morel raiders are only posing as Confederates, and their headquarters are at Morel's "Golden Eagle" saloon. He also discovers that members of the gang use old European coins with the date "1752" as identification. In a raid on the hideout, Steve's brother Jim is killed by the gang. The next victim is Confederate Army Captain Clay Randolph who has discovered that Morel is connected with a group of

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...

n spies who have been using the stolen gold to initially finance Prussia's wars but later to buy Alaska from the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

as a "club over Canada"; hed gives Steve a clue before he dies. The date 1752 of the recognition coins is explained as the date of

Frederick the Great Frederick II (german: Friedrich II.; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was King in Prussia from 1740 until 1772, and King of Prussia from 1772 until his death in 1786. His most significant accomplishments include his military successes in the S ...

's Testament that supposedly gave instructions how Prussia would take over the world. The clue leads Steve to a San Francisco dive owned by Abel Rackerby, who thinking he has Steve in his power, exposes the ring's activities and operation methods. Aided by the San Francisco Secret Service, Steve escapes and returns to Oro Grande where he and Idaho round up the spies.

Cast

* Dennis Moore as Captain Steve Clark *

Wanda McKay Wanda McKay (born Dorothy Quackenbush; June 22, 1915 – April 11, 1996) was an American actress and model. Early years McKay was born as Dorothy Quackenbush in Portland, Oregon,McKay's obituary in the Los Angeles Times says that she was " ...

as Cathy Haines *

Lionel Atwill Lionel Alfred William Atwill (1 March 1885 – 22 April 1946) was an English stage and screen actor. He began his acting career at the Garrick Theatre. After coming to the U.S., he subsequently appeared in various Broadway plays and Hollywood f ...

as Erich von Rugen, alias Alex Morel *

Joe Sawyer Joe Sawyer (born Joseph Sauers, August 29, 1906 – April 21, 1982) was a Canadian film actor. He appeared in more than 200 films between 1927 and 1962, and was sometimes billed under his birth name. Early life Sawyer was born August 29, 1 ...

as Idaho Jones *

Regis Toomey John Francis Regis Toomey (August 13, 1898October 12, 1991) was an American film and television actor. Early life Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he was one of four children of Francis X. and Mary Ellen Toomey, and attended Peabody High ...

as Captain Clay Randolph *

Virginia Christine Virginia Christine (born Virginia Christine Ricketts; March 5, 1920 – July 24, 1996) was an American stage, radio, film, television, and voice actress. Though Christine had a long career as a character actress in film and television, she i ...

as Countess Elsa von Merck, alias Trina Dressard *

Eddy Waller Edward Carlingford Waller (June 14, 1889 – August 20, 1977) was an American stage, film and television actor. Early years Born in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, he was a son of the Rev. Thomas M. Waller, a Presbyterian minister, and Anna Ta ...

as Doc Blair *

Emmett Vogan Charles Emmett Vogan (September 27, 1893 – October 6, 1969) was an American actor with almost 500 film appearances from 1934 to 1954, making him, along with Bess Flowers, one of the most prolific film actors of all time. In 1913, Vogan ...

as Count Manfried von Rinkton, alias Carl Lawton * Addison Richards as Colonel Sewell *

Charles Wagenheim Charles Wagenheim (February 21, 1896 – March 6, 1979) was an American actor who appeared in over 250 films. On television, Wagenheim appeared in an episode of ''Barnaby Jones'' titled "The Murdering Class", portraying a cemetery groundskeeper ...

as Hugo Metzger, alias Abel Rackerby *

Jack Ingram Jack Owen Ingram (born November 15, 1970) is an American country music artist formerly signed to Big Machine Records, an independent record label. He has released eleven studio albums, one extended play, six live albums, and 19 singles. Although ...

as Braddock, Confederate outlaw

Production

Stunts

Frank McCarroll Frank or Franks may refer to: People * Frank (given name) * Frank (surname) * Franks (surname) * Franks, a medieval Germanic people * Frank, a term in the Muslim world for all western Europeans, particularly during the Crusades - see Farang Curr ...

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 ''Indestructible Man'' is a 1956 American cri ...

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. ...

(including being the fight double for Dennis Moore) * Henry Wills

Critical reception

Cline writes that ''Raiders of Ghost City'' had a "good cast and production values...It came off quite well."

Chapter titles

# Murder by Accident # Flaming Treachery # Death Rides Double # Ghost City Terror # The Fatal Lariat # Water Rising # Bullet Avalanche # Death Laughs Last # Cold Steel # Showdown # The Trail to Torture # Calling all Buckboards # Golden Vengeance _Source:

Notes

References

* White, Raymond ''Hollywood Cowboys Go to War: The B-Western Movie during World War II'' ''Under Western Stars'' # 25 (Sept. 1986)

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Raiders of Ghost City 1944 films American Civil War films American black-and-white films 1940s English-language films Universal Pictures film serials Films set in ghost towns Films directed by Ray Taylor Films directed by Lewis D. Collins 1944 Western (genre) films American Western (genre) films 1940s American films