King of The Congo

King of The Congo, a 15-Chapter Serial from Columbia in 1952: With Buster Crabb as Thunda/Roger Drum, and Gloria Dea as Pha, the Queen of the Rock People. Roger Drum is sent to Africa as a spy where enemies of America are trying to bully the local natives and locate an important radioactive ore. When Drum’s plane crashes, Pha and her warriors rescue Drum and take him to their caves. The enemy is searching for him too, as he is supposed to be carrying an important message to them. While in the cave the enemy attacks, and Drum lifts a heavy club to strike the warning gong for Pha’s warriors. By lifting the great club the Rock People believe he is Thunda, the only one capable of the feat, thus they make him king of their tribe. I believe this was the seventh and last serial Buster Crabb made, and possibly the weakest. He appeared still in good shape and all, but the acting and directing was just weak. The growling Cave Men tribe and Rock People have numerous battles, and there was a lot of fake growling. Thunda’s fight with the gorilla is the best scene in the film, I think. This was the only serial that Gloria Dea was in, and she just wasn’t very good in the part. Jungle Drums of Africa, the 12-Chapter Serial from Republic, would follow in 1953 with a similar plot (minus the muscular jungle man), but with better acting and directing. Even with the awful giant claw monsters, it is a better serial than King of The Congo. But then anything with Clayton Moore and Phyllis Coates is going to be good. Still, it was fun finally getting the chance to see this serial thanks to my friend Ralph Grasso. And it did provide a serial weekend for me. So that can’t be all bad.

Red Barry

Red Barry, a 13-chapter serial from Universal from 1938, featuring Larry “Buster” Crabb as detective Red Barry, and Francis Robinson as reporter, Mississippi (I loved her southern accent). Edna Sedgewick plays a Russian dancer, with a pretty good French accent. This serial was almost five hours long, but lots of fun. Many twist, as the good guys weren’t always good. Everyone was after two million dollars in bonds that Russia sent to Wing Fu to buy bombers for the war. Plenty of good fight scenes, as usual and Tom Steele is around for this. The best fight scene was when the Russian café erupts in a free-for-all, and everyone was fighting. While white men were playing a couple Asian bad guys, it was nice to see Philip Ahn around as a real Asian actor. Buster Crabb gets to show off his swimming abilities. The cliffhangers weren’t as good as those from Republic, but none of the studios beat Republic with cliffhangers. Still, another great serial.

Flash Gordon

Flash Gordon

Buster Crabb had the honor of portraying at least three iconic characters on the Big Screen: Flash Gordon, Buck Rogers, and Tarzan. I have no doubt that if Doc Savage had been brought to movie serials, Buster Crabb would have played Doc.  Curious enough, when William Shatner was cast to play James T. Kirk, captain of the Enterprise on Star Trek, he looked a bit like Buster Crabb. I wonder if that was just a coincidence?

Buster wasn’t a great actor, but he had the heroic looks, and was a great action star. Although his Tarzan portrayal is forgettable, his role as Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon remain popular among fans long after those serials played at the local movie houses.

There were three Flash Gordon serials: Flash Gordon, 1938, a 13 chapter serial from Universal, staring Jean Rogers as Dale Arden, and Charles Middleton as the villain, Emperor Ming; Flash Gordon’s Trip To Mars, 1938 from Universal, a 15 chapter serial with Jean Rogers as Dale Arden, and Charles Middleton as Emperor Ming; and finally, Flash Gordon Conquers The Universe, 1940 from Universal, a 12 chapter serial with Carol Hughes as Dale Arden, and Charles Middleton as Emperor Ming. Buster Crabb played Flash Gordon in all three serials.

Buck Rogers & Buddy Wade

         In 1939, Universal took a break from Flash Gordon, and brought Buster Crabb over to play Buck Rogers in a 12-chapter serial. Constance Moore played Wilma, and Jackie Moran played Buck’s sidekick, Buddy Wade.

         These were thrilling Saturday Matinee serials, though special effects at the time was lacking, and rocket ships and ray guns looked exactly like what they were – toys, and monsters were men in rubber suits. But for young kids watching each chapter at their local theater every week, they were real.