King of the Rocket Men (1949)

Jeff King in his experimental rocket suit battles the evil Dr. Vulcan.

Director:

Fred C. Brannon

Writers:

Royal K. Cole, William Lively,

Stars:

Tristram Coffin, Mae Clarke, Don Haggerty

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tristram Coffin	...	Jeff King
Mae Clarke	...	Glenda Thomas
Don Haggerty	...	Tony Dirken
House Peters Jr.	...	Burt Winslow
James Craven	...	Prof. Millard [Chs. 1-7, 10]
I. Stanford Jolley	...	Prof. Bryant
Douglas Evans	...	Chairman [Ch. 12]
Ted Adams	...	Martin Conway [Chs. 1-4]
Stanley Price	...	Gunther Von Strum
Dale Van Sickel	...	Henchman Martin [Ch.1] / Prof. Drake [Ch. 1] / Henchman Gates [Chs. 6-7, 9-11]
Tom Steele	...	Henchman Knox [Chs. 1, 3-4, 7] / Taxi Driver [Chs. 10-11]
David Sharpe	...	Henchman Blears / Cliff / Stark
Eddie Parker	...	Rowan [Ch. 3]
Michael Ferro	...	Henchman Turk [Ch. 8]
Frank O'Connor	...	Warehouse Guard [Chs. 1, 10]

Storyline

Prof. Millard pretends to be dead and helps Jeff King ferret out Vulcan, the evil traitor at the science academy. Donning his Rocket Man costume King goes from one hair raising rescue to the next in order to keep the newly invented Decimator out of the clutches of Vulcan and his minions.

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Plot Keywords:

secret | science | suspect | remote control | traitor | 

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Taglines:

Faster than light! (original poster)

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Crime | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 June 1949 (USA)

Also Known As:

Der König der Raketenmänner

Filming Locations:

Iverson Ranch - 1 Iverson Lane, Chatsworth, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$165,592 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Republic Pictures (I)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

167 min 167 min (12 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Jeff King's atomic powered rocket suit was so advanced that it required only three operational controls: on/off, up/down and slow/fast.

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Connections

Featured in Action Heroes of Movies & T.V.: A Campy Compilation (1989)

User Reviews

Up, Up, and AWAY!

This has some of the most convincing flying sequences for its time. The later Superman serial had him "fly" as a cartoon: here, King appears really to fly. I have read that the flying sequences used a lightweight dummy on wires. It looks pretty convincing.

Minor spoiler: There was only one "rocket man": the serial title suggests more. (The hero's name is Jeff King) For that matter, the flight controller is marked, "Slow," "Fast," "Up," and "Down." Not bad, but rough if one had to change direction in flight.

Naturally, the serial uses the standard formula of a colorful villain who's out to steal a secret, whom the hero has to contend with.

Worth viewing, but light entertainment.