The Spider's Web (1938)

Directors:

James W. Horne
Ray Taylor

Writers:

Robert E. Kent (screenplay) &
George H. Plympton (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

22 October 1938 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Action | Drama

Tagline:

The fearsome figure of "The Spider" magazine loom on the screen!...Gangdomshudders! Adventure fans cheer the mightiest of all Chapter Plays!

Plot:

A crime fighter known as The Spider battles a villain called The Octopus, who is out to sabotage America and install his own government. |

Plot Keywords:

Serial | Secret Identity | Superhero | Based On Pulp Magazine | Character Name In Title

Cast

Warren Hull	...	Richard Wentworth / The Spider / Blinky McQuade
Iris Meredith	...	Nita Van Sloan
Richard Fiske	...	Jackson
Kenne Duncan	...	Ram Singh (as Kenneth Duncan)
Forbes Murray	...	Police Commissioner Stanley Kirk
Donald Douglas	...	Jenkins (the butler)
Marc Lawrence	...	Steve Harmon
Charles C. Wilson	...	Chase (as Charles Wilson)
John Tyrrell	...	Henchman Grafton
Eugene Anderson Jr.	...	Johnnie Sands (as Gene Anderson, Jr.)
Ann Doran	...	Mason's secretary
Paul Whitney	...	Gray (banker)
Beatrice Curtis	...	Kate Sands
Gordon Hart	...	J. Mason
Byron Foulger	...	Allen Roberts

Also Known As:

The Spider: Master of Men

Runtime:

(15 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:Approved

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

Chapter Titles: - 1. Night of Terror - 2. Death Below - 3. High Voltage - 4. Surrender or Die - 5. Shoot to Kill - 6. Sealed Lips - 7. Shadows of the Night - 8. While the City Sleeps - 9. Doomed! - 10. Flaming Danger - 11. The Road To Peril - 12. The Spider Falls - 13. The Man Hunt - 14. The Double-Cross - 15. The Octopus Unmasked!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Four Christmases (2008)

Columbia's Best Serial

This serial is as action packed a serial you will ever find from start to finish with wonderful performances all around especially Warren Hull who essays three roles brilliantly. Add Keene Duncan's turn as Ram Singh one has a hall of fame serial. The music adds to the excitement. The Octopus is a masked villain set on destruction and Richard Wentworth sceretly The Spider and Blinky McQuade leads a loyal group in an effort to stop him. For 15 pulse pounding episodes The forces of evil are attacked by a hero who shoots first and asks questions later, The Spider.

I hope one day Sony sees fit to release this serial because it matches Republic's best. It was ranked by The Serial Squadron 10th best out of 266 sound serials.