The Shadow of the Eagle (1932)

The Eagle uses sky writing to make threats against a corporation. Nathan Gregory owns a traveling fairground and is thought to be the Eagle. Craig McCoy is a pilot who goes looking for the Eagle when Gregory turns up missing.

Directors:

Ford Beebe, B. Reeves Eason (uncredited)

Writers:

Ford Beebe (story), Colbert Clark (story)

Stars:

John Wayne, Dorothy Gulliver, Walter Miller

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
John Wayne	...	Craig McCoy
Dorothy Gulliver	...	Jean Gregory
Walter Miller	...	Danby
Kenneth Harlan	...	Ward
Richard Tucker	...	Maj. Evans
Pat O'Malley	...	Ames
Edmund Burns	...	Clark
Yakima Canutt	...	Boyle
Roy D'Arcy	...	Gardner
Billy West	...	Bob - Clown
Edward Hearn	...	Col. Nathan Gregory
Lloyd Whitlock	...	Green
'Little Billy' Rhodes	...	The Midget (as Little Billy)
Ivan Linow	...	Henie - Strong Man
James Bradbury Jr.	...	Henry - Ventriloquist

Storyline

Nathan Gregory is a World War I veteran pilot who runs a small, debt-ridden traveling carnival along with loyal daughter Jean. Gregory is at odds with five of his former squadron comrades, who he thinks shot him down in 1918 and stole his plans for an incredible invention, a radio=piloted plane. An enigmatic criminal, called "The Eagle", and his gang of toughs skywrites threatening the five businessmen with vengeance for their past misdeeds. Although Gregory is suspected of being the arch-villain, especially after he disappears, hero Craig McCoy and the carnival's midget, strongman, and ventriloquist struggle to expose "The Eagle's" identity.

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Plot Keywords:

pre code film | b movie | poverty row film | low budget film | double feature film | 

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Taglines:

A CRASHING Adventure Serial! (1949 re-release poster)

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

Passed

Did You Know?

Trivia

James Bradbury Jr. who plays Henry is not a real ventriloquist. George Lowerre did the voice of Henry's dummy. George is only credited as sound recording engineer.

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Goofs

In both chapters 1 and 11 the same scene is used of the plane in a spiral dive.

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Quotes

Henie the Strong Man: [backing accidently into the midget] Hey, get out under my feet, you little squirt!
The Midget: Don't get persomal, you big palooka! It's guys like you that make guys like me hate guys like you.

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Alternate Versions

There is a 185-minute home video version (released on DVD by Platinum) which cuts the "episodic" aspects, such as episode titles and cliffhangers, to form a continuous story.

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Connections

Featured in Sprockets: Classic Serials (1991)

User Reviews

DVD Productions of this film

While this is not John Wayne's finest movie, or even his finest serial, for fans of the cliffhanger it delivers plenty of action and pretty good acting.

The main point of this review is to caution you about differences in the two DVD releases, both essentially from the same starting print. Decisions taken by the two different DVD production companies make all the difference in whether you enjoy this film or feel cheated. The two companies are Marengo Films and Platinum Disc.

I first purchased the Marengo print and was so wholly unsatisfied with the editing and production that I went looking for another. I finally found it from a company named Platinum Discs.

The Marengo release chops 5 seconds off the end of the film, leaving out completely John Wayne's closing scene. Also, the text that Marengo substituted for the studio's "The End" text is huge, blocky and computer generated. In short, Marengo has butchered the film for the sake of reducing the total number of VOBs needed to hold the DVD film image.

The Platinum Disc release is the entire original film, not a single frame, more or less. My only disappointment with this version is they appear to have made no effort to clean up dust and scratches.

The irony is that the Marengo print does have slightly more detail and better scratch and dust cleanup, however not enough, IMHO, to compensate for altering the original edit.

Review written May 22, 2011 based on latest available releases from Marengo and Platinum.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 February 1932 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Sombra da Águia

Filming Locations:

Antelope Valley, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mascot Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

218 min (12 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1