Zorro's Black Whip (1944)

Hammond, owner of the town's stagecoach line and a leading citizen, is opposed to Idaho becoming a state, and kills Randolph Meredith, owner of the town's newspaper, for endorsing it. ... See full summary »

Directors:

Spencer Gordon Bennet (as Spencer Bennet), Wallace Grissell

Writers:

Basil Dickey (screenplay), Jesse Duffy (screenplay)

Stars:

George J. Lewis, Linda Stirling, Lucien Littlefield

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
George J. Lewis	...	Vic Gordon
Linda Stirling	...	Barbara Meredith
Lucien Littlefield	...	Tenpoint Jackson
Francis McDonald	...	Dan Hammond
Hal Taliaferro	...	Baxter
John Merton	...	Ed Harris
John Hamilton	...	Mr. Walsh
Tom Chatterton	...	Crescent City Councilman
Tom London	...	Commissioner James Bradley
Jack Kirk	...	Marshal Wetherby
Jay Kirby	...	Randolph Meredith
Si Jenks	...	Zeke Hayden
Stanley Price	...	Hedges
Tom Steele	...	Ed
Duke Green	...	Evans - Trail Heavy [Chs. 1-2, 8] / Ranchhouse Heavy Brown [Ch. 9]

Storyline

Hammond, owner of the town's stagecoach line and a leading citizen, is opposed to Idaho becoming a state, and kills Randolph Meredith, owner of the town's newspaper, for endorsing it. Meredith's sister Barbara, expert with a bullwhip and pistol, dons a black costume and mask and becomes "The Black Whip", dealing a blow to Hammond and his gang each time they perform some heinous act in their efforts to keep the town, and their power over it, unchanged. Aided by government agent Vic Gordon, Barbara confronts Hammond in a final showdown just as the town votes on whether or not to accept statehood.

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Plot Keywords:

pistol | whip | idaho | street shootout | fistfight | 

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Taglines:

MASK OF MYSTERY! Who is this daring figure who conquers villainy and evil with the crack of a blazing black whip!

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Genres:

Western

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Certificate:

Approved

Did You Know?

Trivia

The fact that Randolph Meredith has no bullet wounds on him when he returns to his sister's house to die is no mistake. Serials were heavily regulated in those days--filmmakers were not even allowed to use blood packs, which would have made the shooting scenes more realistic.

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Goofs

Chapter three: position of Harris changes as he is taken back to town by The Black Whip.

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Quotes

Mr. Walsh [Chs.1-3,10-12]: The outlaws went too far when they stole federal funds from my bank. I telegraphed Washington and there's a federal commissioner on his way to take charge of things until we hold the statehood election.

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Connections

Featured in American Experience: Guerrilla: The Taking of Patty Hearst (2004)

User Reviews

Its not Zorro its the Black Whip

Zorro is gone and replaced by the Black Whip. Its 1880 something and one of the territories in the American west wants statehood to bring law and order but a band of outlaws doesn't want it. So the black whip rides to the rescue. At first its the publisher of the paper in disguise but when he dies his sister takes on the role. Good western serial and one of the few real action ones with a woman in the lead. Linda Sterling makes a dynamite action queen, even if she was doubled for most of the action. If there is a flaw it's that its that Republic was moving toward the machine like precision in the construction of their serials. The construction is Spartan and there is nothing extraneous anywhere so things can feel rather sparse. You can almost guess what the cliffhanger is going to be (especially if you've seen other serials since many are lifted from others in the Republic canon). Still its a very good serial, better if you aren't tearing through a great number in a short period them like I am.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 November 1944 (USA)

Also Known As:

Zorro's Black Whip

Company Credits

Production Co:

Republic Pictures (I)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

211 min (12 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1