''The Vigilantes Are Coming'' is a 1936 American

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 ...

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 Ray Taylor and Mack V. Wright. It was the third of the sixty six serials made by Republic Pictures (and the third released in 1936). This serial was filmed between 28 May and 17 June 1936 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 ...

of ''The Vigilantes''. It was released two months later, on 22 August 1936, under the final title. In the early 1950s the serial was re-edited into six 26½ minute episodes for

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

Plot

Following the discovery of

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile ...

Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

in 1844, Russian

Cossacks The Cossacks , es, cosaco , et, Kasakad, cazacii , fi, Kasakat, cazacii , french: cosaques , hu, kozákok, cazacii , it, cosacchi , orv, коза́ки, pl, Kozacy , pt, cossacos , ro, cazaci , russian: казаки́ or ...

led by Count Ivan Raspinoff, in collusion with General Jason Burr, attempt to invade

and turn it into a Russian

Colony In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state' ...

with Burr as its

dictator A dictator is a political leader who possesses absolute power. A dictatorship is a state ruled by one dictator or by a small clique. The word originated as the title of a Roman dictator elected by the Roman Senate to rule the republic in time ...

. In doing so they round up

slaves Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

to work the mines and General Burr has Don Loring's

brother A brother is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingly to refer to non-famili ...

and

father A father is the male parent of a child. Besides the paternal bonds of a father to his children, the father may have a parental, legal, and social relationship with the child that carries with it certain rights and obligations. An adoptive fathe ...

murdered to acquire their ore-rich land. When Don returns, having been away at the time with Salvation, Whipsaw and Captain John Fremont, he assumes the masked identity of ''The Eagle'' to stop them and get his

revenge Revenge is committing a harmful action against a person or group in response to a grievance, be it real or perceived. Francis Bacon described revenge as a kind of "wild justice" that "does... offend the law ndputteth the law out of office." P ...

. He is aided by a group of

vigilante Vigilantism () is the act of preventing, investigating and punishing perceived offenses and crimes without legal authority. A vigilante (from Spanish, Italian and Portuguese “vigilante”, which means "sentinel" or "watcher") is a person who ...

s assembled from the Californian

ranch A ranch (from es, rancho/Mexican Spanish) is an area of land, including various structures, given primarily to ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle and sheep. It is a subtype of a farm. These terms are most ofte ...

ers, fighting both General Burr's henchmen and Raspinoff's Cossacks, while awaiting the arrival of Captain Fremont's

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

troops before the colony becomes official.

Cast

* Robert Livingston as Don Loring, the mild mannered church organist and the masked vigilante ''The Eagle'' *

Kay Hughes Kay Hughes (born Catherine Mary Hughes; January 16, 1914 – April 4, 1998) was an American actress in the 1930s and 1940s who appeared mainly in Western films and serials. Biography Hughes was born in Los Angeles, California. When she was a ...

as Doris Colton, John Colton's daughter *

Guinn 'Big Boy' Williams Guinn is both a surname and a given name. Notable people with the name include: Surname: *Bill Guinn or Lew Meehan (1890–1951), American film actor *Colin Guinn, contestant in ''The Amazing Race'', a U.S. TV series *Dominick Guinn, (born 1975), A ...

as "Salvation", leader of the

s *

Raymond Hatton Raymond William Hatton (July 7, 1887 – October 21, 1971) was an American film actor who appeared in almost 500 motion pictures. Biography Hatton was born in Red Oak, Iowa. His physician father steered him toward a career in medicine. Howev ...

as "Whipsaw", another Californian

* Fred Kohler as General Jason Burr, conspirator with Count Raspinoff aiming to become supreme

of Russian California *

Robert Warwick Robert Warwick (born Robert Taylor Bien, October 9, 1878 – June 6, 1964) was an American stage, film and television actor with over 200 film appearances. A matinee idol during the silent film era, he also prospered after the introduction ...

as Count Ivan Raspinoff, emissary of the Russian Tsar aiming to conquer Mexican California and claim its

William Farnum William Farnum (July 4, 1876 – June 5, 1953) was an American actor. He was a star of American silent film cinema and became one of the highest-paid actors during that time. Biography Farnum was born on July 4, 1876, in Boston, Massachuse ...

as Father Jose, the local priest ;Supporting cast *

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 Boris Petroff, a

Cossack The Cossacks , es, cosaco , et, Kasakad, cazacii , fi, Kasakat, cazacii , french: cosaques , hu, kozákok, cazacii , it, cosacchi , orv, коза́ки, pl, Kozacy , pt, cossacos , ro, cazaci , russian: казаки́ or ...

* John Merton as Rance Talbot, one of General Burr's

henchman A henchman (''vernacular:'' "hencher"), is a loyal employee, supporter, or aide to some powerful figure engaged in nefarious or criminal enterprises. Henchmen are typically relatively unimportant in the organization: minions whose value lies pri ...

Lloyd Ingraham Lloyd Chauncey Ingraham (November 30, 1874 – April 4, 1956) was an American film actor and director. Biography Born in Rochelle, Illinois, Ingraham appeared in more than 280 films between 1912 and 1950, as well as directing more than 100 f ...

as John Colton, Mining engineer held by General Burr * William Desmond as "Anderson",

Ranch A ranch (from es, rancho/Mexican Spanish) is an area of land, including various structures, given primarily to ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle and sheep. It is a subtype of a farm. These terms are most ofte ...

er/

Vigilante Vigilantism () is the act of preventing, investigating and punishing perceived offenses and crimes without legal authority. A vigilante (from Spanish, Italian and Portuguese “vigilante”, which means "sentinel" or "watcher") is a person who ...

Yakima Canutt Enos Edward "Yakima" Canutt (November 29, 1895 – May 24, 1986) was an American champion rodeo rider, actor, stuntman, and action director. He developed many stunts for films and the techniques and technology to protect stuntmen in performing t ...

as "Barsam", one of General Burr's henchman *Tracy Layne as Clem Peters,

er/

*Bud Pope as "Ivan", a

Steve Clemente Steve Clemente (born Esteban Clemento Morro November 22, 1885 – May 7, 1950) was a Mexican-American actor known for his many villainous roles. He began acting in his teens, signing up for his first movie, ''The Secret Man'', in 1917. His later ...

as "Pedro", one of General Burr's henchman *

Bud Osborne Leonard Miles "Bud" Osborne (July 20, 1884 – February 2, 1964) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 600 films and television programs between 1912 and 1963. Biography Osborne was born Miles Osborne in Knox County, Texas ...

as "Harris", one of General Burr's henchman * Ray "Crash" Corrigan as Captain John Charles Fremont,

US Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

Production

Stedman states that ''The Vigilantes Are Coming'' "was a reworking of '' The Eagle'',

Rudolph Valentino Rodolfo Pietro Filiberto Raffaello Guglielmi di Valentina d'Antonguolla (May 6, 1895 – August 23, 1926), known professionally as Rudolph Valentino and nicknamed The Latin Lover, was an Italian actor based in the United States who starred ...

's silent film." Harmon and Glut expand on that to say it was based on

Zorro Zorro ( Spanish for 'fox') is a fictional character created in 1919 by American pulp writer Johnston McCulley, appearing in works set in the Pueblo of Los Angeles in Alta California. He is typically portrayed as a dashing masked vigilante w ...

and ''

The Lone Ranger Rides Again ''The Lone Ranger Rides Again'' is a 1939 American Republic serial. It was a sequel to Republic's 1938 serial ''The Lone Ranger'', which had been highly successful, and the thirteenth of the sixty-six serials produced by Republic. The serial w ...

'' in addition to Valentino's ''The Eagle''. However, no mention is made of this being a derivative work in

William Witney William Nuelsen Witney (May 15, 1915 – March 17, 2002) was an American film and television director. He is best remembered for the action films he made for Republic Pictures, particularly serials: '' Dick Tracy Returns'', '' G-Men vs. the Bl ...

's autobiography. The fact that it looks like Zorro, which led several countries to name the movie after Zorro: the film was named ''Zorro l'indomptable'' in France, ''Zorro – Der blutrote Adler'' in Germany, ''Zorro – den blodrøde ørn'' in Denmark and ''Zorro – veripunainen kotka'' in Finland. The main character is played by Robert Livingston, who would then play the actual Zorro in the movie ''

The Bold Caballero ''The Bold Caballero'' is a 1936 American Western film written and directed by Wells Root. It is based on the character Zorro, created by Johnston McCulley. The characters Don Alejandro Vega (Don Diego's father) and Bernardo are notably absent. ...

'', also released in 1936. The serial was budgeted at $82,616 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 $87,655 (a $5,039, or 6.1%, overspend). Despite being overbudget, this was the cheapest Republic serial of 1936 as well as the second cheapest of them all. It was filmed between 28 May and 17 June 1936 under the

The Vigilantes. The serial's production number was 418. This was William Witney's first time working on a serial, although not as director (that would be ''

The Painted Stallion ''The Painted Stallion'' is a 1937 American Western film serial from Republic Pictures. It was the sixth Republic serial of the sixty-six made by that company. Western serials such as this made up a third of the serials from Republic, a studio t ...

'' in 1937). In ''The Vigilantes Are Coming'' he worked as a

second unit director Second unit is a discrete team of filmmakers tasked with filming shots or sequences of a production, separate from the main or "first" unit. The second unit will often shoot simultaneously with the other unit or units, allowing the filming stag ...

and as an extra (a Cossack). It was the only serial Republic produced in this year, 1936 (the first year of serial production for Republic), where the lead character did not share the name of the lead actor (although "Crash" Corrigan in the previous Republic serial, ''

Undersea Kingdom ''Undersea Kingdom'' (1936) is a Republic Pictures 12 chapter film serial released in response to Universal's ''Flash Gordon''. It was the second of the sixty-six serials made by Republic. In 1966, the serial was edited into a 100-minute televi ...

'', had his

stage name A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...

created specifically for that serial).

Stunts

as Don Loring (doubling Robert Livingston) * Tommy Coats * Ken Cooper * Sam Garrett, roping double *

Ted Mapes Ted Mapes (November 25, 1901 – September 9, 1984) was an American character actor, who was also a prolific stuntman and body double. Born on November 25, 1901, in St. Edward, Nebraska, he moved to Los Angeles in his mid-20s, and entered the fi ...

Wally West Wallace Rudolph "Wally" West is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics as the original Kid Flash and the third Flash (DC Comics character), Flash. His power consists mainly of speedster (fiction), superhuman speed. ...

Release

Theatrical

''The Vigilantes Are Comings official release date is 22 August 1936, although this is actually the date the sixth chapter was made available to film exchanges.

Television

In the early 1950s, ''The Vigilantes Are Coming'' was one of fourteen Republic serials edited into a television series. It was broadcast in six 26½-minute episodes.

Chapter titles

#The Eagle Strikes ''(31 min 24s)'' #Birth of the Vigilantes ''(20 min 51s)'' #Condemned by Cossacks ''(18 min 45s)'' #Unholy Gold ''(16 min 50s)'' #Treachery Unmasked ''(19 min 4s)'' #A Tyrant's Trickery ''(17 min 54s)'' #Wings of Doom ''(17 min 23s)'' #A Treaty with Treason ''(17 min 18s)'' #Arrow's Flight ''(17 min 59s)'' #Prison of Flame ''(18 min 26s)'' #A Race With Death ''(15 min 37s)'' #Fremont Takes Charge ''(17 min 45s)'' _Source:

Cliffhangers

#The Eagle is shot and falls from a

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chri ...

bell tower A bell tower is a tower that contains one or more bells, or that is designed to hold bells even if it has none. Such a tower commonly serves as part of a Christian church, and will contain church bells, but there are also many secular bell tow ...

. #The Eagle is locked inside the Powder Magazine when it explodes. #The Eagle is caught by a

firing squad Execution by firing squad, in the past sometimes called fusillading (from the French ''fusil'', rifle), is a method of capital punishment, particularly common in the military and in times of war. Some reasons for its use are that firearms are ...

meant for Salvation. #The Eagle is caught under a

hydraulic Hydraulics (from Greek: Υδραυλική) is a technology and applied science using engineering, chemistry, and other sciences involving the mechanical properties and use of liquids. At a very basic level, hydraulics is the liquid counte ...

ore crusher. #The Eagle falls over a

cliff In geography and geology, a cliff is an area of rock which has a general angle defined by the vertical, or nearly vertical. Cliffs are formed by the processes of weathering and erosion, with the effect of gravity. Cliffs are common on co ...

under a hail of bullets. #The Eagle is knocked unconscious on a cart carrying powder when it explodes. #The Eagle trips and falls beneath the blades of four

. #A

stagecoach A stagecoach is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by four horses although some versions are dra ...

carrying The Eagle and Count Raspinoff goes over a

. #The Eagle is shot off his horse and falls under the hooves of his pursuers. #The Eagle is locked in a burning building. #The Eagle is caught in several explosions and the resultant

landslide Landslides, also known as landslips, are several forms of mass wasting that may include a wide range of ground movements, such as rockfalls, deep-seated slope failures, mudflows, and debris flows. Landslides occur in a variety of environmen ...

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Vigilantes Are Coming, The 1936 films American black-and-white films 1930s English-language films Films directed by Mack V. Wright Films directed by Ray Taylor Republic Pictures film serials 1936 Western (genre) films American vigilante films Films set in the 1840s Films set in the 19th century Films set in California Films produced by Nat Levine 1930s American films