Federal Agents vs. Underworld, Inc

Federal Agents vs. Underworld, Inc.
Directed by Fred C. Brannon
Produced by Franklin Adreon
Written by Royal K Cole
Basil Dickey
William Lively
Sol Shor
Starring Kirk Alyn
Rosemary La Planche
Roy Barcroft
Carol Forman
Music by Stanley Wilson
Cinematography John MacBurnie
Distributed by Republic Pictures
Release dates
 United States 29 January 1949 (serial)[1]
United States 1966 (TV)[1]
Running time
 12 chapters / 167 minutes (serial)[1]
100 minutes (TV)[1]
Language English
Budget $156,120 (negative cost: $155,807)[1]

Federal Agents vs. Underworld, Inc. (1949) is a 12-episode black-and-white film serial produced by Republic Pictures during July 1948 and released in January 1949, an original screenplay written collaboratively by Royal K. Cole, Basil Dickey, William Lively and Sol Shor as a crime story with elements of "the mysterious Orient" incorporated in the plot.

Plot

Nila, an Abistahnian criminal, and Spade Gordon, an American gangster, conspire to form a super-mob dubbed Underworld, Incorporated, funded by the treasure of Kurigal I of Abistahn, instructions for the location of which are contained in hieroglyphics written on two golden statues in the shape of hands, found in Kurigal's tomb. When the professor in charge of the tomb's dig disappears under mysterious circumstances while translating the writing on one of the hands back at his American office, a team of special government agents led by David Worth and his aide Steve Evans, assisted by the professor's aide Laura Keith, set out to find the professor and the now-missing hands.

Cast

Production

Federal Agents vs. Underworld, Inc. was budgeted at $156,120 although the final negative cost was $155,807 (a $313, or 0.2%, under spend). It was the cheapest Republic serial of 1949.[1]

It was filmed between 6 July and 27 July 1948 under the working title Crime Fighters vs. Underworld, Inc.[1] The serial's production number was 1701.[1]

Stunts

Special Effects

The special effects in this serial were created by the Howard & Theodore Lydecker, Republic's in-house effect team.

Release

Theatrical

Federal Agents vs. Underworld, Inc.'s official release date is 29 January 1949, although this is actually the date the sixth chapter was made available to film exchanges.[1]

Television

Federal Agents vs. Underworld, Inc. was one of twenty-six Republic serials re-released as a film on television in 1966. The title of the film was changed to Golden Hands of Kurigal. This version was cut down to 100-minutes in length.[1]

Chapter titles

  1. The Golden Hands (20min)
  2. Criminals' Lair (13min 20s)
  3. Death in Disguise (13min 20s)
  4. Fatal Evidence (13min 20s)
  5. The Trapped Conspirator (13min 20s)
  6. Wheels of Disaster (13min 20s)
  7. The Hidden Key (13min 20s)
  8. The Enemy's Mouthpiece (13min 20s)
  9. The Stolen Hand (13min 20s)
  10. Unmasked (13min 20s)- a re-cap chapter
  11. Tombs of the Ancients (13min 20s)
  12. The Curse of Kurigal (13min 20s)

Source:[1][2]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 1.10 Mathis, Jack. Valley of the Cliffhangers Supplement. Jack Mathis Advertising. pp. 3, 10, 108–109. ISBN 0-9632878-1-8.
  2. ↑ Cline, William C. "Filmography". In the Nick of Time. McFarland & Company, Inc. p. 248. ISBN 0-7864-0471-X.

External links

Preceded by
Adventures of Frank and Jesse James (1948)		 Republic Serial
Federal Agents vs. Underworld, Inc. (1949) 		Succeeded by
Ghost of Zorro (1949)