''Secret Agent X-9'' (1937) is a

Universal Universal is the adjective for universe. Universal may also refer to: Companies * NBCUniversal, a media and entertainment company ** Universal Animation Studios, an American Animation studio, and a subsidiary of NBCUniversal ** Universal TV, a t ...

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 ...

based on the

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 ...

Secret Agent X-9 ''Secret Agent X-9'' is a comic strip created by writer Dashiell Hammett ('' The Maltese Falcon'') and artist Alex Raymond (''Flash Gordon''). Syndicated by King Features, it ran from January 22, 1934 until February 10, 1996. Premise and publ ...

'' by

Dashiell Hammett Samuel Dashiell Hammett (; May 27, 1894 – January 10, 1961) was an American writer of hard-boiled detective novels and short stories. He was also a screenwriter and political activist. Among the enduring characters he created are Sam Spade ('' ...

and

Alex Raymond Alexander Gillespie Raymond Jr. (October 2, 1909 – September 6, 1956) was an American cartoonist who was best known for creating the '' Flash Gordon'' comic strip for King Features Syndicate in 1934. The strip was subsequently adapted into m ...

Plot

G-Men learn that "Victor Brenda", a notorious jewel thief, is heading for the US, to steal the Belgravian crown jewels currently on exhibit. The jewels are placed on a ship bound for Belgravia. However, the guard is murdered and the treasures are stolen. Agent Dexter, alias Agent X-9, trails Blackstone, one of the gang members, who hides the jewels in a safe deposit vault of a bank. He takes the bank receipt to an art shop, where Marker, a paid accomplice, conceals it between an oil painting and its frame. Dexter arrests Blackstone and pursues Marker with the full intention of unmasking Brenda.

Cast

Scott Kolk Scott may refer to: Places Canada * Scott, Quebec, municipality in the Nouvelle-Beauce regional municipality in Quebec * Scott, Saskatchewan, a town in the Rural Municipality of Tramping Lake No. 380 * Rural Municipality of Scott No. 98, Saska ...

as Agent Dexter (X-9) *

Jean Rogers Jean Rogers (born Eleanor Dorothy Lovegren, March 25, 1916 – February 24, 1991) was an American actress who starred in serial films in the 1930s and low–budget feature films in the 1940s as a leading lady. She is best remembered for ...

as Shara Graustark * Henry Brandon as Blackstone/Victor T. Brenda * David Oliver as Pidge *

Monte Blue Gerard Montgomery Blue (January 11, 1887 – February 18, 1963) was an American film actor who began his career as a romantic lead in the silent era; and for decades after the advent of sound, he continued to perform as a supporting player ...

as Baron Michael Karsten *

Lon Chaney, Jr. Creighton Tull Chaney (February10, 1906 – July12, 1973), known by his stage name Lon Chaney Jr., was an American actor known for playing Larry Talbot in the film '' The Wolf Man'' (1941) and its various crossovers, Count Alucard (Dracu ...

as Maroni, primary henchman * Ben Hewlett as Scarlett, primary henchman *

Larry J. Blake Larry J. Blake (April 24, 1914 – May 25, 1982) was an American actor. Career A native of Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, New York, he started his career in vaudeville as an impersonator, working his way to a headliner. After appearing at the Roxy Theatr ...

as Chief FBI Agent Wheeler * Henry Hunter as FBI Agent Tommy Dawson (C-5) * George Shelley as Packard, a henchman * Lynn Gilbert as Rose,

gun moll A gun moll or gangster moll or gangster's moll is the female companion of a male professional criminal. "Gun" was British slang for thief, derived from Yiddish ''ganef'', from the Hebrew ''gannāb'' ( גנב). "Moll" is also used as a euphemism for ...

* Robert Dalton as Thurston * Leonard Lord as Ransom, dissident henchman *

Bob Kortman Robert F. Kortman (December 24, 1887 – March 13, 1967) was an American film actor mostly associated with westerns, though he also appeared in a number of Laurel and Hardy comedies. He appeared in more than 260 films between 1914 and 1952. ...

as "Trader" Delaney *

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 Tay ...

as Lawyer Carp * Si Jenks as "Jolly Roger", ticket barker

Production

''Secret Agent X-9'' was based on the comic strip by

(writer) and

(artist).

Stunts

George Magrill George Magrill (January 5, 1900 – May 31, 1952) was an American film actor who appeared in more than 320 films between 1923 and 1952. Magrill performed on stage before he began to work in films. Besides his acting, Magrill worked as a s ...

* Eddie Parker doubling Scott Kolk * Tom Steele doubling Henry Brandon & Jack Cheatham

Chapter titles

# Modern Pirates # The Ray That Blinds # The Man of Many Faces # The Listening Shadow # False Fires # The Dragnet # Sealed Lips # Exhibit A # The Masquerader # The Forced Lie # The Enemy Camp # Crime Does Not Pay _Source:

References

External links

* 1937 films American black-and-white films 1930s English-language films Films based on comic strips Films based on works by Alex Raymond Universal Pictures film serials American spy films Films directed by Ford Beebe 1930s crime films Films based on works by Dashiell Hammett American crime films 1930s American films {{comics-film-stub