''Jungle Drums of Africa'' is a 1953 12-episode American

serial film 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 ...

shot in

black-and-white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

. It was an original commissioned screenplay by

Ronald Davidson Ronald Anstuther Davidson (July 13, 1899 – July 28, 1965) was an American screenwriter. He was born in Arizona, raised in Los Angeles, and died in San Diego, California. He was the son of Dr. Ansthuther and Alice Davidson. He graduated from t ...

produced by Franklin Adreon and directed by Fred C. Brannon for Republic Pictures. The story is set in

Kenya ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi ...

, and involves the efforts of an American uranium processing company's representative and a woman medical missionary, to thwart the efforts of agents of a "foreign power", abetted by a disaffected native witchdoctor, to gain control of a large uranium deposit on lands owned by the latter's tribe. This serial features black American actors in major roles, including that of a college-educated chieftain.

Plot

The daughter of a medical missionary in Africa carries on her father's work after he dies. She later befriends two adventurers prospecting for uranium. But it isn't long before she finds herself in danger from crooks trying to get the uranium for themselves and a local

witch doctor A witch doctor (also spelled witch-doctor) was originally a type of healer who treated ailments believed to be caused by witchcraft. The term is now more commonly used to refer to healers, particularly in regions which use traditional healing ...

, who sees her as a threat to his power.

Cast

Clayton Moore Clayton Moore (born Jack Carlton Moore, September 14, 1914 – December 28, 1999) was an American actor best known for playing the fictional western character the Lone Ranger from 1949 to 1952 and 1953 to 1957 on the television series of the sa ...

as Alan King *

Phyllis Coates Phyllis Coates (born Gypsie Ann Evarts Stell; January 15, 1927) is an American former actress, with a career spanning over fifty years. She is best known for her portrayal of reporter Lois Lane in the 1951 film ''Superman and the Mole Men'' and ...

as Carol Bryant *

Johnny Spencer John William Spencer (October 30, 1897 – January 22, 1984) was an American Negro league outfielder in 1921 and 1922. A native of Lynchburg, Virginia, Spencer played for the Homestead Grays and Pittsburgh Keystones in 1921, and returned to ...

as Bert Hadley * Henry Rowland as Kurgan * John Cason as Regas * Roy Glenn as Naganto, the witch doctor * Bill Walker as Chief Douanga * Steve Mitchell as Gauss, the store clerk henchman * Don Blackman as Naganto

Production

''Jungle Drums of Darkest Africa'' was budgeted at $172,840 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 ho ...

was $167,758 (a $5,082, or 2.9%, under spend). It was the most expensive Republic serial of 1953. It was filmed between September 29 and October 18, 1952 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 ...

''Robin Hood of Darkest Africa''. The serial's production number was 1935.

Stunts

* Tom Steele as Alan King/Third Constable (doubling Clayton Moore)

Special effects

Special effects created by 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 ...

Release

Theatrical

''Jungle Drums of Darkest Africas official release date is 21 January 1953, although this is actually the date the sixth chapter was made available to film exchanges. This was followed by a re-release of '' Adventures of Captain Marvel'', re-titled as ''Return of Captain Marvel'', instead of a new serial. The next new serial, '' Canadian Mounties vs. Atomic Invaders'', followed in the summer.

Television

''Jungle Drums of Darkest Africa'' was one of twenty-six Republic serials re-released as a film on television in 1966. The title of the film was changed to ''U-238 and the Witch Doctor''. This version was cut down to 100-minutes in length.

Critical reception

Harmon and Glut describes this serial as "an uninteresting arrangement of stock footage and clichés."

Chapter titles

# Jungle Ambush (20min) # Savage Strategy (13min 20s) # The Beast Fiend (13min 20s) # Voodoo Vengeance (13min 20s) # The Lion Pit (13min 20s) # Underground Tornado (13min 20s) # Cavern of Doom (13min 20s) # The Water Trap (13min 20s) # Trail to Destruction (13min 20s) # The Flaming Ring (13min 20s) - a re-cap chapter # Bridge of Death (13min 20s) # The Avenging River (13min 20s) _Source:

References

External links

* , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Jungle Drums Of Africa 1953 films 1953 adventure films American black-and-white films 1950s English-language films Republic Pictures film serials Films directed by Fred C. Brannon Films set in Kenya American adventure films 1950s American films Films about witch doctors