Flash Gordon (1936/I)

Director:

Frederick Stephani

Writers:

Alex Raymond (based on the comic strip by) &
Ella O'Neill (screenplay)

Release Date:

6 April 1936 (USA)

Genre:

Sci-Fi

Tagline:

THRILLING STRANGE WORLD ADVENTURES!!! (original Chapter 1 one-sheet poster)

Plot:

Three earthlings visit the planet Mongo to thwart the evil schemes of Emperor Ming the Merciless.

Plot Keywords:

Shadow Puppet | Meteor Shower | Post Apocalyptic | Rocket | Space Opera

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Buster Crabbe	...	Flash Gordon
Jean Rogers	...	Dale Arden
Charles Middleton	...	Ming the Merciless
Priscilla Lawson	...	Princess Aura
Frank Shannon	...	Dr. Alexis Zarkov
Richard Alexander	...	Prince Barin [Chs. 5-13]
Jack 'Tiny' Lipson	...	King Vultan [Chs. 5-13]
Theodore Lorch	...	High Priest #2 [Chs. 8-11, 13]
Richard Tucker	...	Prof. Gordon [Chs. 1, 4, 9-13]
George Cleveland	...	Prof. Hensley [Chs. 1, 4, 9-13]
James Pierce	...	Prince Thun [Chs. 2-9, 12-13]
Duke York	...	King Kala [Chs. 2-5] (as Duke York Jr.)
Muriel Goodspeed	...	Zona [Ch. 4]
Earl Askam	...	Officer Torch
House Peters Jr.	...	Shark Man [Chs. 3-4]

Also Known As:

Flash Gordon: Space Soldiers (USA) (video title)
Space Soldiers (USA) (TV title)

Runtime:

245 min (13 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Victor High Fidelity Recording)

Certification:

USA:Approved

Filming Locations:

Bronson Caves, Bronson Canyon, Griffith Park - 4730 Crystal Springs Drive, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

King Features Production

Trivia:

The serial was shot in six weeks with the cast and crew working many fourteen hour days.

Goofs:

Audio/visual unsynchronized: When some of the characters speak, the voice on the soundtrack doesn't match the person speaking.

Quotes:

Princess Aura: [observing Flash wrestling with the Orangupoid] He fights well, the Earth man.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The Unauthorized 'Star Wars' Story (1999) (V)

The Standard for All Serials

The Standard bearer of all movie serials, the definite good guy - Flash Gordon - versus Bad Guy - Ming the Merciless. Though the special effects seem awful by today's standards, for 1936 they were top notch. But the essence of the story is the battle between Earthman Flash Gordon (Buster Crabbe) versus Emporer Ming of Mongo (Charles Middleton). Crabbe and Middleton are terrific in their parts. And the supporting characters playing Dale Arden, Dr. Zarkov, Princess Aura, Prince Barin, Vulcan, and the rest are all very good. This serial is far superior to the 1980 movie, basically because Crabbe is much much superior to Sam J. Jones as Flash Gordon.

This serial is the standard bearer for all movie serials. No question about it.