The Serial Squadron Cinema Cliffhanger Archive
US SERIALS 1912-1956 Complete Descriptions
1912-1918| 1919-1922 | 1923-1929 | 1930-1938 | 1939-1945 | 1946-1956
Lists by Studio: Pathé | Universal | Mascot | Republic | Columbia | Feature Versions
Subscriptions | Facebook Forum | DVD | Blu-Ray | In Production | Calendar
The Serial Squadron is a multimedia archive -- a soon-to-be non-profit library/archive supported by enthusiasts of the form, historians, and in cooperation with film archives and private collectors, which restores, repairs, and re-creates movie and audio serials not now available or have never been been commercially released by studios or legitimately licensed rightsholders in video, audio, and printed form. The Squadron is the home on the web of the original (male and female) cinema action heroes, and our goal is to preserve, restore and make available for viewing or study the original cliffhangers that inspired Star Wars and the Hollywood superhero blockbusters of today.
The Reference section of this site has been massively expanded to include complete lists of serials by studio and a comprehensive list of ALL US MOVIE SERIALS from 1912 to 1956, with release dates, principal credits and descriptions. Check out the links above!
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NEW RESTORATIONS
THE MYSTERIOUS DOCTOR SATAN RESTORATION IS FINISHED!
AND BLU-RAYS AND DVDS ARE BURNING NOW! Order early and receive a discounted price.
These titles will begin shipping first-come, first-served in the last week of April
and beginning of May as copies are duplicated and labeled.
The amazing, action-packed "perfect serial"
MYSTERIOUS DOCTOR SATAN
and the feature version DOCTOR SATAN'S ROBOT on Blu-Ray/DVD
Featuring Robert Wilcox as Bob Wayne/the Copperhead
Eduardo Ciannelli as Doctor Satan
with Ella Neal as Lois and Tom Steele as the Robot
Directed by William Witney and John English
Musical score by Cy Feuer
Originally released December 13, 1940
A crazed, sadistic scientist called Doctor Satan plans to create an army of killer robots and control the world after he obtains a remote control device invented by Professor Scott. After one of Satan's crooked assassins kills the Governor and a leading criminologist, a new masked hero called the Copperhead steps up to the plate to avenge the death of his stepfather, battle Doctor Satan and his remorseless killer robot and rescue the daughter of the captive scientist. The Copperhead fights the sinister Satan and his gang single-handedly on land, sea, and in the air and the serial builds to a tense final confrontation between the two arch-enemies as Doctor Satan captures all those who oppose him and is ready to set the robot upon them and kill them all. Only the Copperhead can stop him.
Cliffhanger situations here created for Superman, the original intended lead character in the serial, and adapted for the Copperhead are quite extreme and thrilling; this is why the serial is considered a favorite by fans. It is also an excellent example of pulp-style characters and story brought to life on film. The serial shows influence from Batman as well as the hero wears a cowl and is named Bob Wayne.
The Copperhead was a very early masked hero of the movies whose only adventure was this serial. He's portrayed effectively by handsome deep-voiced actor Robert Wilcox, and the part of Doctor Satan is executed with an air of exquisite evil by veteran screen villain Eduardo Ciannelli. It's also obvious Ella Neal was hired to play Lois Lane as she looks just like the cartoon version of the character as she was portrayed at the time.
Contains probably the most effective and exciting stunt fights of any classic movie serial, choreographed and executed by David Sharpe and others, and great stunt riding by Dorothy Herbert.
This serial has never before had anything but a VHS tape transfer and release. All those versions you see of this serial on eBay or even Amazon are nothing but dupes of the old Republic 2-tape VHS set. That is NOT what this is, it's something entirely new and available nowhere else--created from a new digital transfer and the product of 4 months of restoration work by Eric Stedman, director of the Squadron, and John ("Steve Canyon") Ellis.
New 2K digital transfer. Stabilized shot by shot, major picture artifacts eliminated,
audio restored, 15 episodes, 267 minutes
Restored from a film print and a print of the feature version of the serial. Image is occasionally bright and minor damage on some openings and closings is visible but the image is very sharp and has been stabilized shot by shot. Major artifact cleanup and picture restoration has been performed particularly on Chapters 1 and 2. The serial is fully complete; no content is missing and most or all splices or reel change markers have been digitally eliminated. Sound is very clear and strong.
DOCTOR SATAN'S ROBOT
Blu-Ray $19.95
The feature version of MYSTERIOUS DOCTOR SATAN. From a new HD transfer of a very-good-quality 16mm print. No major restoration.
DOCTOR SATAN'S ROBOT
DVD $16.95
YOU NEED THIS ONE.
The Blu-Ray edition of the full-length serial
is strongly recommended for this title.
CLICK HERE TO ORDER
MYSTERIOUS DOCTOR SATAN
on Blu-Ray
Final price in May will be $29.95
Order early for $26.95
Visit the Squadron Orders Log
to see when your shipment goes out.
MYSTERIOUS DOCTOR SATAN
DVD Final price will be $21.95, order now for $18.95
NEW & NOW AVAILABLE ON BLU-RAY
The Fighting Devil Dogs / The Crimson Ghost / Spy Smasher
Government Agents vs. Phantom Legion / Captain America
Son of the Guardsman / Adventures of Frank Merriwell
The CAPTAIN AMERICA Blu-Ray has been reauthored!
The original edition of the Serial Squadron CAPTAIN AMERICA Blu-Ray, the highest quality version of this serial on video in existence, tested fine on all our Blu-Ray players but it was discovered later that not all models of players were able to access and load its menus.
Good news: As of April 27, 2021 a new version of the Blu-Ray has been created with extremely simple menu encoding and internal structure which addresses the compatibility situation and may play on more if not virtually all Blu-Ray players.
If you ordered the CAPTAIN AMERICA (or SON OF THE GUARDSMAN) Blu-Ray and your player will not load the menu you will soon be able to get a disk of the new version of either or both disks for a nominal fee or $1 with any new Squadron order. Instructions on how to get one will be posted here shortly.
NEW ON DVD
FLYING G-MEN
DVD Shipping Now
Featuring Robert Paige and Adrian Booth with Sammy McKim
BY POPULAR DEMAND: The lively and rare serial featuring mystery character The Black Falcon, who, with his G-man friends, fight on land and in the air to try to destroy a spy ring in pre-WWII America. Who is behind the mask? We don't always know for sure but if one of the G-men in the Black Falcon guise perishes, another will take his place. Adrian Booth's first serial and the obvious inspiration for the comic book character Blackhawk.
Lo-res analog transfer; not super-sharp but stable, clean and scratch-free; reel change markers removed, end titles restored/reconstructed, opening titles fully visible (they say FLYING G-MEN, not LYING G-ME), fully restored audio. This is not a new digital transfer but a clean copy of a serial you may not have which should hold you until we do a full-quality new restoration someday. Sounds and looks good on phones, tablets, computers and small to medium size TV screens.
Click to view Chapter 1
Order DL-DVD
SON OF ZORRO
DVD Shipping Now
Featuring George Turner and Peggy Stewart with Roy Barcroft and Ernie Adams
A descendant of the original Zorro attempts to set things right when a crooked sheriff and judge conspire to swindle money out of settlers. Decent low-budget action serial with a small cast, not based on stock footage.
Standard-definition transfer, excellent exposure, very clean, no splices or reel change markers, audio enhanced & very clear and strong.
Click to view Chapter 1
ORDER DL-DVD
PROJECTS IN PRODUCTION
These Blu-Rays, DVDs and books are being worked on now and
will be released within the next few weeks/months. New titles will also be available for online viewing and as download
SERIAL BOOKS Available Now
Spy Smasher - The Mysteries of Myra
Under the Crescent - The Black Box - Hidden Dangers
The Strange Case of Mary Page - The Trey O'Hearts
SERIAL BOOKS In Production
The Movie Serials - Rocketman in the Comics and the Movies
The Complete Perisl of Pauline - Adventures of Captain Marvel
SERIAL SQUADRON RESTORATIONS
The Serial Squadron offers restorations of film serials in Blu-Ray, DVD, Audio and Book form. All our serials on Blu-ray and DVD are restored for picture/and or sound quality, mostly from new stabilized digital transfers of original film prints. Many also include custom extras and reconstruction of lost content.
Restorations of these titles are complete and shipping now.
The Squadron is not a commercial store and does not ship daily but processes shipments in batches. It is a digital archive, the goal of which is to keep rare content perpetually available at a reasonable cost and never let it go out of print. So titles are made to order for all requests. For faster shipping, please limit library title requests to 4 titles or less per order and allow 1-4 weeks for delivery of any shipment.
Requests for new restorations usually ship within two weeks. We are experiencing a higher than usual volume of order requests and are not staffed like Amazon.com so please be patient about shipping.
NOTE: The email you receive with tracking number means your order has been received and is on the table being assembled and will ship when complete.
We do not work on titles which have been released commercially by studios or those which have received legitimate distribution by secondary agencies.
Here are links to currently available high
quality commercial serial releases.
Adventures of Captain Marvel / Commando Cody
Daredevils of the Red Circle / The Shadow
Panther Girl of the Kongo/ The Invisible Monster
Flying Disc Man from Mars / The Mysterious Airman
Complete Adventures of Flash Gordon / Batman/Batman and Robin / Superman/Atom Man Vs. Superman
SERIAL ANTHOLOGIES
The Wharton Serials / The Lost Serial Collection / Serial Rarities
1-Disk Set
3-Disk Set
2-Disk Set
SCi-FI & FANTASY SERIALS
The Rocketman Collection / King of the Rocket Men / Radar Men from the Moon
Zombies of the Stratosphere / The Phantom Empire / Undersea Kingdom
ACTION HERO & HEROINE SERIALS
The Spider's Web / Captain America / The Perils of Pauline / Daughter of Don Q
Mysterious Doctor Satan / The Masked Marvel / The Vanishing Shadow
The Lost Special / Adventures of Frank Merriwell / The Blue Beetle
AVIATION, WAR & SPY SERIALS
Flying G-Men / Bruce Gentry / Spy Smasher / Fighting Devil Dogs
The Rex Bennett Collection / Secret Service in Darkest Africa / G-Men vs Black Dragon
King of the Texas Rangers / The Mystery Squadron / The Fighting Marines Tailspin Tommy in The Great Air Mystery / Patria / The Master Key / Steve Canyon
CRIME & MYSTERY SERIALS
The Crimson Ghost / Gang Busters / Beatrice Fairfax / Holt of the Secret Service
Government Agents vs. Phantom Legion / The Wolf Dog / Radio Paltrol
The House of Hate / The Green Archer / Blake of Scotland Yard / Zudora
OCCULT & HORROR SERIALS
The Trail of the Octopus / The Hope Diamond Mystery
The Mysteries of Myra / Horror Archive
EXOTIC ADVENTURE SERIALS
Drums of Fu Manchu / The Desert Hawk / The Tiger Woman / Perils of Nyoka
Lost City of the Jungle / World Adventurers Club
JUNGLE SERIALS
The King of the Kongo / Tarzan the Fearless / Darkest Africa / The Call of the Savage
Jungle Princess / Adventures of Tarzan / Jungle Menace / Tarzan Audio Collection
The Lost City
PIRATE & SEA ADVENTURE SERIALS
Manhunt of Mystery Island / The Great Adventures of Captain Kidd / Pirate Treasure
The Secret of Treasure Island / Mystery of the River Boat / Mala / Isle of Sunken Gold
SOS Coast Guard / Trader Tom of the China Seas
MOUNTIE SERIALS
Gunfighters of the Northwest / King of the Mounties
Clancy of the Mounted / The Mystery Trooper
MASKED RIDER SERIALS
The Lone Ranger / The Lone Ranger Rides Again
The Masked Rider / The Scarlet Horseman / The Black Whip / Deadwood Dick
Son of Zorro / Zorro Rides Again / Zorro's Fighting Legion
The Eagle in The Vigilantes are Coming
WESTERN SERIALS
Daredevils of the West / The Great Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok / Black Arrow
Desperadoes of the West / Jesse James Rides Again / The James Brothers of Missouri
King of the Texas Rangers / Heroes of the West / Mystery Mountain / The Red Rider
The Vanishing Legion / The Sign of the Wolf / The Rustlers of Red Dog / The Painted Stallion
The Devil Horse / The Lone Defender / The Valley of Vanishing Men
RARE FEATURES Also restored by the Squadron
The Bart Romans Collection
MOVIE SERIAL FEATURE VERSIONS Vol. 1
2-DVD Set
Republic serial feature versions, about 1 hour 40 minutes long each. Developed for TV in 1966. 10 hours total.
NYOKA AND THE LOST SECRETS OF HIPPOCRATES
LOST ISLAND OF KIOGA
DOCTOR SATAN'S ROBOT
TORPEDO OF DOOM
SPY SMASHER RETURNS
THE BARON'S AFRICAN WAR
Click to Order
The Bart Romans Collection
JEEP HERDERS
DVD $9.95
Color, 45 min. feature
1946 rarity produced in color by Richard Talmadge, featuring John Day and Republic serial stunt men Tom Steele and Dale VanSickel, with restored color and audio. A group of ex-GIs leave a hospital and travel to a ranch where they run down crooks not by riding horses but in their jeeps. This film and another (also included on the DVD) were experiments with the idea of rental/distribution outside the studio system. It didn't exactly work, but you can see the stunt guys having a lot of fun with JEEP HERDERS, which ends up with what looks like a 12-way stunt brawl at its conclusion.
AVAILABLE NOW
MOVIE THEATER
Squadron Video Page
Selected chapters from new releases
The Squadron Youtube channel
Lots of first chapters and some complete free serials
View Squadron Serials On Demand (Amazon)
The Lone Ranger - The Trail of the Octopus - Patria
The Hope Diamond Mystery - Daredevils of the West
SUBSCRIPTIONS
You can SUBSCRIBE and receive the latest Serial Squadron DVDs as soon as they are published. Visit the PATREON SERIAL SQUADRON VIP SUBSCRIBER PAGE for more details!
Visit the new sister group to the Serial Squadron
THE DAUGHTERS OF DARING
(Facebook Group)
ABOUT THE SERIAL SQUADRON
More information and Squadron history
It is our mission at the Squadron to preserve and restore the rarest of all historical theatrical cliffhanger movie serials of 1912-1956 and related series films and create restored editions of serials as yet unseen by the general public, or which are only viewable in poor or incomplete condition, and to keep all these titles available for purposes of historical research, study, remembrance value or to be seen by new audiences unfamiliar with the content. Most titles here come from new transfers done from original films and include restored picture and sound. Silent titles include new scores and missing content in any serial is re-created or summarized. Subscribers help us continue to restore new titles and when special projects surface we sometimes use pledge drives to help fund restorations.
The Squadron also publishes novelizations of lost serials and serial-related comics.
And some lost serials have been re-created as audio dramas and more will be presented in that form as time goes on.
Note: EVERYTHING here is an "upgrade." We will offer NO DVD copy of a serial that we believe exists in better condition anywhere else. We also do not copy studio releases of serials here, period; we do our own work and restorations. And if a studio makes a serial available commercially we will remove it from our list.
In accordance with current copyright law, no serials will be listed here unless they are public domain and/or more than 75 years old or in their last 20 years of a copyright term and not currently available as a commercial video product by a studio or legitimately licensed rights holder (if any). Copies of orphaned serials in which we have invested time and funds to preserve and restore are (legally) available to the public from this archive in accordance with Section 108 of the US Copyright law which states that “for preservation, scholarship or research, libraries or archives may reproduce, distribute, display or perform published works in their last 20 years of copyright if the work is not subject to commercial exploitation and cannot be obtained at a fair price.”
"Section 108 of the Copyright Act permits libraries and archives to make certain uses of copyrighted materials in order to serve the public and ensure the availability of works over time. Among other things, Section 108 provides limited exceptions for libraries and archives to make copies in specified instances for preservation, replacement and patron access. Section 108 was enacted as part of the Copyright Act of 1976, then amended in 1998 by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act and the Copyright Term Extension Act, and in 2005 by the Preservation of Orphan Works Act."
SQUADRON RESTORATIONS CONTAINING ORIGINAL CONTENT ARE NOT PUBLIC DOMAIN. BUY FROM THIS SITE OR LICENSED VENDORS ONLY
We have regrettably recently received reports of unlicensed vendors selling copies of copyrighted Squadron DVDs at conventions, in email lists, and on websites, including THE HOPE DIAMOND MYSTERY and even advertising illegal copies for sale in periodicals. Only Peter C. Walther of Rome NY, Frank Petrick, Norman Kietzer and the Lone Ranger Fan Club are licensed as a secondary distributors of Squadron DVDs so please do not order or purchase copies of Squadron publications from ANY other vendors; if you do you may be purchasing stolen property. Squadron restorations of public domain works are actively and legitimately copyrighted as "new versions" or derivative works, they are not public domain, even if their source material may be. Read about copyrights on derivative works at the Library of Congress. We reserve the right to register a copyright infringement complaint with the FBI, take legal action for damages, or file a charge of theft against any vendor selling copyrighted Squadron works without permission.
By ordering a copy of one of the restored public domain titles you agree to respect its copyright as a new version of a public domain work by the Squadron and not to copy or resell the DVD. In regards to orphaned (abandoned) titles, you agree that you are a writer, reviewer, historian, or library and research, review, or study is your purpose in requesting a copy of any of these films which we have taken pains to restore to as close to their original condition as possible.
"I AM THE SERIAL. I am the black sheep of the picture family and the reviled of critics.
I am the soulless one with no moral, no character, no uplift. All I do is try to amuse.
I am ashamed. Because I have so many friends I wonder if there is not some good in me.
I have ambitions. I will get better.
Until then, I suppose it is my fate to flaunt myself along, to put forth what petty virtues I have as best I can -- and pay for the birth of my high-brow brothers.
Ah, me, if only I could be respectable!" -- Pioneer serial producer/director George B. Seitz
More About the Squadron / Contact Info
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