''The Sky Ranger'' (aka ''The Man Who Stole the Moon'') is a 1921 American 15-episode/chapter silent

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 ...

. Directed by

George B. Seitz George Brackett Seitz (January 3, 1888 – July 8, 1944) was an American playwright, screenwriter, film actor and director. He was known for his screenplays for action serials, such as '' The Perils of Pauline'' (1914) and ''The Exploits o ...

who also starred with

June Caprice June Caprice (born Helen Elizabeth Lawson, November 19, 1895 – November 9, 1936) was an American silent film actress. Early life and career Born Helen Elizabeth Lawson in Arlington, Massachusetts, Caprice was educated in Boston. She began ...

, the film serial was an

adventure film An adventure film is a form of adventure fiction, and is a genre of film. Subgenres of adventure films include swashbuckler films, pirate films, and survival films. Adventure films may also be combined with other film genres such as action, an ...

with locales as exotic as Tibet. The plot staple of an inventor of aviation technology having to contend with conspirators who wish to steal the invention, often appeared in

aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' includes fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air craft such as hot air ...

films. ''The Sky Ranger'' is considered to be

lost Lost may refer to getting lost, or to: Geography *Lost, Aberdeenshire, a hamlet in Scotland * Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, or LOST, a hiking and cycling trail in Florida, US History *Abbreviation of lost work, any work which is known to have bee ...

."Progressive Silent Film List: 'The Sky Ranger'."
''silentera.com'', 2019. Retrieved: July 26, 2019.

Plot

George Rockwell (

) is young and adventurous. He meets June (

), a beautiful young girl on the road and decides she will be his wife. But Professor Elliott (Frank Redman), June's father, has him thrown out the door. George does not give up and saves the Professor from his cousin Murdock (Joe Cuny), who was trying to kill him. Professor Elliott has made a number of important inventions, including developing a fast, silent aircraft. His latest work concerns a new, powerful light, which is the object of those criminals who want to steal the invention. On the day of their engagement, George and June are abducted on an aircraft which takes them to Tibet. Dr. Santro (

Harry Semels Harry Semels (November 20, 1887 – March 2, 1946) was an American film actor. He appeared in over 315 film between 1917 and 1946. Career Semels appeared in his first film in 1917. He began to achieve fame after arriving at Columbia Pictu ...

), Murdock's accomplice is the culprit. He and his wife Tharen ( Peggy Shanor) leave the two in the hands of angry Tibetans. The two lovers are locked into a box with only a tiny hole in it through which they can see some food that is out of their reach. As if that was not enough suffering, one of the abductors decides to shoot them through the box. George miraculously opens the box with a rock he had picked up before. As he tries to capture two horses, June is taken away in the desert by a Tibetan. George follows the traces left by his horse and rescues June in time.

Chapter titles

#Out of the Clouds #The Sinister Signal #In Hostile Hands #Desert Law #Mid-Air #The Crystal Prism #Danger's Doorway #Dropped from the Clouds #The House on the Roof #Trapped #The Seething Pool #The Whirling Menace #At the Last Minute #Liquid Fire #The Last Raid

Cast

as George Oliver Rockwell *

as June Elliott *

as Dr. Santro * Frank Redman as Professor Elliott * Joe Cuny as Murdock * Peggy Shanor as Tharen * Charles "Patch" Revada as Bean *

Spencer Gordon Bennet Spencer Gordon Bennet (January 5, 1893 – October 8, 1987) was an American film producer and director. Known as the "King of Serial Directors", he directed more film serials than any other director. Biography Born in Brooklyn, New York, Benne ...

* Tom Goodwin as The Butler (credited as Thomas Goodwin) *

Marguerite Courtot Marguerite Gabrielle Courtot (August 20, 1897 – May 28, 1986) was an American silent film actress. Early life Marguerite Gabrielle Courtot was born in Summit, New Jersey, on August 20, 1897 to Gustave Courtot, who was born in France, and Char ...

Production

''The Sky Ranger'' was not to be confused on the 1928 short film based on the popular "Russ Farrell" magazine stories and the film series, ''Russ Farrell, Aviator'' that stars Reed Howes as the dashing, devil-may-care flyboy hero.

Reception

When ''The Sky Ranger'' was released as a film serial with the first chapter playing on May 1, 1921, a decision was made to rename the serial to ''The Man Who Stole the Moon''. The new title was a way to market the production as more of a

science fiction film Science fiction (or sci-fi) is a film genre that uses speculative, fictional science-based depictions of phenomena that are not fully accepted by mainstream science, such as extraterrestrial lifeforms, spacecraft, robots, cyborgs, interstellar ...

, capitalizing on interest in this genre. ''The Man Who Stole the Moon'' was compared to a similar film, '' A Message from Mars'', a 1921 American silent

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

released by

Metro Pictures Metro Pictures Corporation was a Film, motion picture production company founded in early 1915 in Jacksonville, Florida. It was a forerunner of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The company produced its films in New York, Los Angeles, and sometimes at leas ...

on April 11, 1921."Details: 'A Message from Mars'."
''afi.com'', 2019. Retrieved: July 26, 2019.

References

Notes

Citations

Bibliography

* Farmer, James H. ''Celluloid Wings: The Impact of Movies on Aviation''. Blue Ridge Summit, Pennsylvania: Tab Books Inc., 1984. . * Flynn, John L. ''War of the Worlds: From Wells to Spielberg''. Baltimore, Maryland: Galactic Books, 2005. .

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sky Ranger, The 1921 films American aviation films American silent serial films 1921 comedy films American black-and-white films Films directed by George B. Seitz Lost American films Silent American comedy films 1921 lost films Lost comedy films 1920s American films