Lost Planet Airmen
Lost Planet Airmen is a 1951 black-and-white American science fiction film produced and distributed by Republic Pictures, which is actually the feature film condensation of their 1949 12-chapter serial, King of the Rocket Men.[1] Lost Planet Airmen was directed by Fred C. Brannon and written by Royal K. Cole and William Lively. The lead actors in Lost Planet Airmen were Tristram Coffin and Mae Clark.[2]
Lost Planet Airmen | |
---|---|
Directed by | Fred C. Brannon |
Produced by | Franklin Adreon |
Written by | Royal K. Cole William Lively |
Starring | Tristram Coffin Mae Clarke |
Music by | Stanley Wilson |
Cinematography | Ellis W. Carter |
Edited by | Cliff Bell Sr. Sam Starr |
Production company | |
Distributed by | Republic Pictures |
Release date |
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Running time | 65 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Plot
Professor Millard (James Craven), a scientist who is a member of the group Science Associates, works in a secluded desert location on a secret research project. Reporter and photographer Glenda Thomas (Mae Clarke) is curious about the secret project. When she tours the facility, she meets Burt Winslow (House Peters, Jr.), the project's publicity director and Jeff King (Tristram Coffin), a young project member.
The mysterious "Dr. Vulcan" is intent on stealing the atomic-powered weapons being developed by the scientists at the Science Associates group. Vulcan hopes to make a fortune by selling these valuable devices to foreign powers. Dr. Vulcan's gang kills one of the scientists but Jeff dons a newly developed atomic-powered rocket backpack, mounted on a leather jacket. He wears a streamlined flying helmet, and with Dr. Millard, foils the attacks from the gang.
Dr. Vulcan plans on destroying New York City with a sonic ray device, which causes massive earthquakes. Only the "Rocket Man" ultimately stands in his way.
Cast
- Tristram Coffin as Jeff King aka Rocket Man
- Mae Clarke as Glenda Thomas
- Don Haggerty as Tony Dirken
- House Peters, Jr. as Burt Winslow
- James Craven as Dr. Millard
- I. Stanford Jolley as Professor Bryant
- Stanley Price as Gunther Von Strum
- Ted Adams as Martin Conway
- Marshall Bradford as Dr. Graffner
- Dale Van Sickel as Martin (archive footage)
- Tom Steele as Knox, a thug (archive footage)
- David Sharpe as Blears (archive footage)
- Eddie Parker as Rowan (archive footage)
- Michael Ferro as Turk (archive footage)
- Frank O'Connor as Warehouse Guard (archive footage)
Production
Lost Planet Airmen used scenes from the King of the Rocket Men but was more cheaply made than previous Republic serials. Creating a compilation film allowed for Republic to have an opportunity to exploit the serial format. The studio's prospects of continuing the serials in a waning market, was not lost on management. Republic and Columbia Pictures were the last to offer serials in the mid-1950s. Columbia, alone, had two 15-episode serials in 1956, that ended the cycle. [3]
Stunts
- David Sharpe as Jeff King/Tony Dirken/Prof Bryant (doubling Tristram Coffin in rocket suit, Don Haggerty & I. Stanford Jolley)
- Tom Steele as Jeff King/Burt Winslow (doubling Tristram Coffin and House Peters, Jr.)
- Dale Van Sickel as Jeff King/Tony Dirken (doubling Tristram Coffin in the helmet/rocket backpack and Don Haggerty)
- Carey Loftin as Burt Winslow (doubling House Peters Jr)
- Eddie Parker
- Bud Wolfe[4]
Receptions
Jim Craddock, in VideoHound's Golden Movie Retriever 2001 included a slight mention of the "feature-length condensation of the 12-part sci-fi serial King of the Rocket Man. He further noted that, "Rocket Man is pitted against the sinister Dr. Vulcan in this intergalactic battle of good and evil."[5]
References
Notes
- The shadowy Dr. Vulcan is never revealed, but is heard only as a voice.[1]
Citations
- Weiss and Goodgold 1973, pp. 291–292.
- "Title: 'Lost Planet Airmen' (1951)." IMDb, 2019. Retrieved: June 26, 2019.
- Weiss and Goodgold 1973, p. ii.
- "Cast: 'Lost Planet Airmen' (1951)." IMDb, 2019. Retrieved: June 26, 2019.
- Craddock 2001, p. 583.
Bibliography
- Craddock, Jim, ed. VideoHound's Golden Movie Retriever 2001. Detroit: Gale/Cengage Learning, 2001. ISBN 978-1-578-59120-6.
- Weiss, Ken and Ed Goodgold. To be Continued ...: A Complete Guide to Motion Picture Serials. New York: Bonanza Books, 1973. ISBN 0-517-166259.