Adventures of Captain Marvel (1941)

Directors:

John English
William Witney

Writers:

Ronald Davidson (original screenplay) &
Norman S. Hall (original screenplay) ...

Release Date:

28 March 1941 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Fantasy | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

THE MOST POWERFUL MAN IN CARTOONLAND BECOMES THE STRONGEST MAN ON THE SCREEN! All others pale in the light of this human fortress who finds no barrier too great in his amazing fight for justice.

Plot:

To protect a magic talisman from being used for evil, a boy is given the power to become an adult superhero with a single magic word.

Plot Keywords:

Idol | Scorpion | Shazam | Superhero | Based On Comic

Cast

Tom Tyler	...	Captain Marvel
Frank Coghlan Jr.	...	Billy Batson (as Frank Coghlan, Jr.)
William 'Billy' Benedict	...	Whitey Murphy (as William Benedict)
Louise Currie	...	Betty Wallace
Robert Strange	...	John Malcolm
Harry Worth	...	Prof. Luther Bentley
Bryant Washburn	...	Harry Carlyle [Ch. 1-3]
John Davidson	...	Tal Chotali
George Pembroke	...	Dr. Stephen Lang [Ch. 1-9]
George Lynn	...	Prof. Dwight Fisher [Ch. 1-6] (as Peter George Lynn)
Reed Hadley	...	Rahman Bar [Ch. 1,11-12]
Jack Mulhall	...	Howell [Ch. 1]
Kenne Duncan	...	Barnett (chief henchman) [Ch. 2-10] (as Kenneth Duncan)
Nigel De Brulier	...	Shazam [Ch. 1]
John Bagni	...	Henchman Cowan [Ch. 2-10]

Also Known As:

Captain Marvel
Return of Captain Marvel (USA) (reissue title)

Runtime:

216 min (12 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #6920) | USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | Finland:K-16 | Argentina:13

Filming Locations:

Bronson Caves, Bronson Canyon, Griffith Park - 4730 Crystal Springs Drive, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Republic Pictures

Trivia:

Chapter Titles: - 1. Curse of the Scorpion - 2. The Guillotine - 3. Time Bomb - 4. Death Takes the Wheel - 5. The Scorpion Strikes - 6. Lens of Death - 7. Human Targets - 8. Boomerang - 9. Dead Man's Trap - 10.Doom Ship - 11.Valley of Death - 12.Captain Marvel's Secret

Goofs:

Factual errors: In chapter 6, Betty is knocked unconscious when she drives a car through a wall in a parking garage. Despite the fact that no one is driving the car, it makes several sharp 180-degree turns while descending through the garage.

Quotes:

[first lines]
[sound of a huge gong omninously echoes down the valley]
Billy Batson: What's that, Mr. Howell?
Howell [Ch. 1]: I don't know, Billy - let's find out. What do you make of that cymbal, Malcolm?
John Malcolm: I don't know, Howell. Does it mean anything to you, Tal Chotali?
Tal Chotali: The men of the hills are gathering. The cymbal says that the white men are to be driven from the Valley of Tombs.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in West Side Story (1961)

Probably the best serial I've ever seen

Captain Marvel is one of the best serials available and a true credit to the genre. It offers plenty of the old-school, two-fisted action that you'd expect from an action serial, in addition to state-of-the-art (for the time) flying effects. The production value of the series is fantastic, including great stuntwork, fight sequences, and innovative cliffhangers. It also offers a great running mystery as to the identity of The Scorpion...which is ruined if you happen to read the cast list closely above :(

If you're a fan of serials or old action movies in general, you'd do well to pick this up as it truly is a classic.