''The Invisible Monster'' is a 1950

Republic A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...

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 ...

, starring Richard Webb and Aline Towne.

Plot

A would-be dictator and scientist, known only as ''The Phantom Ruler'', has developed a formula which, when sprayed on some solid object, renders that object and everything it contains invisible when exposed to rays emitted by a special lamp, also his own invention. Covered from head to toe in formula-treated cloth, he thus moves about unseen, presently with the objective of stealing enough money and formula components to render an entire army of willing followers invisible. Two henchmen assist him, along with several illegal aliens smuggled into the US by him and used to infiltrate, as employees, possible sites for him to later rob while invisible. When he successfully robs a bank vault, an investigator from the bank's insurer teams up with a woman police detective to solve the mystery of the money which to all outside appearances has just vanished. Tracking clues and interrupting other attempts by the Phantom Ruler to commit crimes, the protagonists round up enough evidence that they are not merely dealing with an ordinary crime ring. Eventually they discover the invisibility fluid and lamp, and the Phantom Ruler is killed when he trips over an open high-power electric cable he had laid on the floor of his den to do in the forces of law and order closing in upon him.

Cast

* Richard Webb as Lane Carson *

Aline Towne Fern Aline Waller (née Eggen, 7 November 1919 – 2 February 1996), known as Aline Towne, was an American film and television actress, best remembered for her lead roles in 1950s Republic serials, such as ''Radar Men from the Moon''. Bio ...

as Carol Richards *

Lane Bradford Lane Bradford (born John Myrtland Le Varre, Jr., August 29, 1922 – June 6, 1973) was an American actor, who appeared in more than 250 films and television series between 1940 and 1973, specializing in supporting "tough-guy" roles predomin ...

as Burton *

Stanley Price Stanley Price (December 31, 1892July 13, 1955) was an American film supporting actor who appeared in over 200 films between 1922 and 1956. He was a charter member of the Screen Actors Guild. Career Price was an actor whose artistic career sp ...

as The Phantom Ruler. The villain of the serial uses the trappings of the Mystery Villain but his identity is revealed to the audience in the first chapter. * John Crawford as Harrison *

George Meeker George Meeker (March 5, 1904 – August 19, 1984) was an American character film and Broadway actor. A graduate of the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, Meeker made several films such as ''Crime, Inc.'' (1945) and ''A Thief in the Dark'' (1 ...

as Harry Long

Production

''The Invisible Monster'' was budgeted at $153,070 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 $152,115 (a $955, or 0.6%, under spend). It was filmed between March 7 and 30, 1950 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 ...

''The Phantom Ruler''. The serial's production number was 1707.

Stunts

* Tom Steele as Lane Carson (doubling Richard Webb) *

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 ...

as Harry Long (doubling George Meeker)

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 s ...

Release

Theatrical

''The Invisible Monsters official release date is May 10, 1950, although this is actually the date the sixth chapter was made available to film exchanges.

Television

''The Invisible Monster'' was one of twenty-six Republic serials edited to a uniform runtime of 100 minutes and syndicated directly to television as a package of TV Movies in 1966. The title of this new version was ''Slaves of the Invisible Monster''.

Critical reception

Cline describes this serial as just a "quickie." In Creature Feature, this movie serial was given three out of five stars, stating that the movie villain is incredibly inept and rarely uses his creation intelligently, and that the entire series is naive, but that there was an underlying sense of non stop fun.

Chapters

''The Invisible Monster'' has 12 chapters. The first chapter is 20 minutes long, and each one thereafter is 13 minutes, 20 seconds. Chapter 10, "High Voltage Danger", is a recap of all previous episodes.

References

External links

*
The Invisible Monster at Todd Gault's Move Serial Experience
{{DEFAULTSORT:Invisible Monster, The 1950 films 1950s science fiction films American black-and-white films Republic Pictures film serials 1950s English-language films Films directed by Fred C. Brannon American science fiction films 1950s American films