THE LOST CITY
(a cliffhanger serial - 1935)
Produced by Sherman S. Krellberg
Directed by Harry Revier
Story by: Zelma Carroll; George M Merrick; Robert Dillon
Actors: William (Stage) Boyd as Zolok
Kade Richmond as Bruce Gordon
Claudia Dell as Natcha
Josef Swickard as Manyus
George F. "Gabby" Hayes as Butterfield
William Bletcher as Gorzo
Eddie Fetherstone as Jerry
Milburn Moranti as Andrews
Margot Duse as Queen Rama
Jerry Frank as Appolyn
Ralph Lewis as Reynolds
William Millman as Colton
Gino Corrado as Ben Ali
Sam Baker as Hugo
CHAPTER 1 of 12
LIVING DEAD-MEN
Headlines: Strange Electric Storm Wrecks Ship At Sea
Scene: Ship sinks.
Heatlines: Mississippi Floods
Scene: Dam Breaks – shows woman in flood waters
Announcer: Storms causing havoc worldwide.
Scene: Bruce Gordon is working feverishly in his lab to determine the cause of the worldwide chaos and destruction. "We must locate where the control center of the storm is located", he says.
Soldier: We must find the source of the storm or the world will face destruction.
Reynolds: The source of problem is on the moon.
Colton: No. It’s the sun that is the cause.
Scene: Equipment looks and acts like it’s leftover from a Frankenstein movie.
A few scientists and a couple of military men rush in to hear from Bruce Gordon. The noise is similar to an old wringer washing machine. Gordon tells a crowd of on-lookers that his instruments will not fail, however, over in the corner an instrument catches fire and burns up. Reynolds and Colton continue their pessimistic attitude over the situation. Gordon determines the source is 28 degrees meridian and 10 degrees south of the Equator in Africa which is in unexplored territory. He tells his group that he needs to go there. He gets approval for the expedition on the spot.
Scene: Jungle: Restless natives wander about. Andrews approaches the gate to Butterfield’s post and calls out to the guards to open up. Andrews is weak from running but Butterfield catches him as he collapses and asks him what happened.
Butterfield carries him inside to his quarters and gives him some spirits. Andrews says that the natives are gone and that they were attacked by giants. Butterfield thinks Andrews is delirious but Andrews states that the giants are inhuman and took the natives to the “magnetic mountain”.
Meanwhile, Gordon’s party arrives and is heading toward Butterfield’s place. Butterfield and the natives are warned of their coming by jungle drums. Butterfield welcomes Gordon’s party to the post. Gordon tells him the purpose of his visit. Andrews slips up by mentioning the "magnetic mountain" , the place where the natives have gone with the giants. Gordon has an eureka moment and yells, “I’ve got it!!” He gets his sidekick Jerry to get the equipment and assures them that they need to go to "magnetic mountain". When Gordon’s group leaves, Butterfield scolds Andrews and tells him that he talks too much.
Scene: Magnetic Mountain: The equipment is making noise something like popcorn on steroids. Zolok scolds Manyus and tells him that he needs more power for his equipment. Manyus says he has released enough energy to destroy 100 cities after which he is escorted back to his lab by Gorzo.
Scene: At magnetic mountain, the giants are hauling each native to a holding cell. Ed. Note: By hauling, I mean like a sack of potatoes under one arm.
Scene: Natcha stops her father Manyus and asks to have the giant/native situation ended. Manyus tells her that if he does this, she may be harmed. Gorzo warns Manyus that they must press on back to the lab before Zolok notices.
Scene: The giants continue to load up the cell with natives. The giants line up and leave the cell in a single file like pre-school kids going to recess, flexing their muscles as they go.
Scene: Back at Zolok’s lab, his equipment begins to function. The giants start to remove the natives one-by-one. Zolok tells the first giant to put his native into the “Brain Destroyer”. Zolok gives a quick brain wash session to the first native. Gorzo escorts Manyos to the lab to start up the equipment which he does so reluctantly. Ed. Note: More Snap, Crackle and Pop, please. Zolok stops the experiment after a few short minutes and tells his native “slave” to arise. Now the slave looks like one of the giants. Zolok, in a flash of genius, names the new slave, “Pierre”. Ed. note: They must be in French Guinea. He sends Gorzo for the emblem of the “Lost City”. Ed. Note: Emblem? Why? No one really knows or cares. After Gorzo returns he escorts the new giant to his quarters. Zolok than orders Appolyn to go retrieve the next native. Pierre arrives at his destination and finds that he now shares a community cell with all the other giants. They all just stand around and grunt at each other. Ed. Note: Kind of like the opening scene of "2001: A Space Odyessy".
Gorzo, who looks to be about 4' 3", sneaks up on Natcha. Startled, she says he’s heartless. He says that Zolok will make him BIG and STRONG like the NY Giants --- Nah, really? Natcha tells Gorzo that Zolok will make him into a dead man. Ed. Note: A living dead-man I bet, hence the title of the episode.
Scene: Gordon starts up his experiment which sounds like an old airplane engine from a German Fokker.
Scene: Zolok’s experiment begins to have problems. Zolok says to Gorzo that there seems to be interference in the “Neighborhood”. Ed. Note: Could it be a Ham Radio interfering with TV signals? He switches on the Frankenstein equipment and finds out that Gordon is experimenting with magnetism and relates it to his problems. Zolok is mad as hell and says that they have found his “Lost City” and that he must put a stop to it. Zolok orders Gorzo to get Appolyn.
Scene: Appolyn and Natcha are alone. Appolyn has become very fond of Natcha. He’s been thinking seriously of marriage to her. Zolok calls her to the lab but Appolyn tells Natcha that he wants to marry her. Natcha, who doesn’t care for Appolyn goes off to see daddy Manyus and relays the marriage story to him.
Scene: Zolok, Gorzo and Appolyn: Appolyn thinks Butterfield talked. Zolok orders Gorzo to deploy giants around the hut to capture the white men if they escape his trap.
Scene: Gordon and party slog their way through the jungle.
Scene: Again Zolok calls for Natcha to come to the control room. Natcha doesn’t want to go but Manyus says she must. Ed. note: Nice of daddy, eh? Mr. Don't-Rock-The-Boat!
Scene Jungle: Colton still worries about natives disappearing like cats around a Chinese Restaurant. Gordon says that they need to get a move on. Gorzo, with 2 giants by his side, spots Gordon’s party and then hides off the beaten path. All of a sudden Gordon and Jerry hear a girl scream from inside a hut near the path. They hustle to try to locate her. Gorzo's giants capture Reynolds and Colton and take them to Zolok. As Gordon and Jerry enter the hut, the door closes and the two drop through a trap door in the hut floor.
STAY TUNED FOR EPISODE 2 – TUNNEL OF FLAME
1. What’s below the trap door that Gordon and Jerry fell through?
2. Where and who is the girl that was screaming?
3. What will happen to Reynolds and Colton in the hands of the giants?
4. What does Zolok want with Natcha?
5. What is Butterfield’s role in all this?
6. Will Appolyn eventually get Natcha to the altar?
