S.O.S. Coast Guard (1937)

Directors:

Alan James
William Witney

Writers:

Franklin Adreon (screenplay)
Morgan Cox (story)

Release Date:

28 August 1937 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Romance | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

ADVENTURE....THAT SWEEPS THE SEA! ROMANCE...THAT SWEEPS THE HEART!

Plot:

A mad scientist tries to sell his formula for a dist integrating gas to foreign powers.

Plot Keywords:

Gas | Serial | Murder | Photographer | Slave

Cast

Ralph Byrd	...	Lt. Terry Kent
Bela Lugosi	...	Boroff, alias M.A. Anderson
Maxine Doyle	...	Jean Norman
Richard Alexander	...	Thorg
Lee Ford	...	Snapper McGee
Herbert Rawlinson	...	Cmdr. Boyle
John Picorri	...	G.A. Rackerby
Lawrence Grant	...	Rabinisi (Boroff's spokesman at screening)
Thomas Carr	...	Ens. Jim Kent
Carleton Young	...	Henchman Dodds [Ch. 4]
Allen Connor	...	Dick Norman
George Chesebro	...	L.H. DeGado - Chief Thug
Ranny Weeks	...	Wies - Ambulance Orderly thug

Runtime:

224 min (12 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Approved | Sweden:15 | USA:Passed (National Board of Review)

Filming Locations:

Port Hueneme, California, USA

Company:

Republic Pictures

Trivia:

Chapter Titles: - 1. Disaster At Sea - 2. Barrase Of Death - 3. The Gas Chamber - 4. The Fatal Shaft - 5. The Mystery Ship - 6. Deadly Cargo - 7. Undersea Terror - 8. The Crash - 9. Wolves At Bay - 10. The Acid Trail - 11. The Sea Battle - 12. The Deadly Circle

Movie Connections:

Featured in Lugosi: Hollywood's Dracula (1997)

Action Packed Serial!

"S.O.S. Coast Guard" benefits from the casting of Bela Lugosi as the chief villain. He adds a certain menace that only he can provide, what with that thick Hungarian accent and his patented menacing stare.

Coast Guard Lt. Terry Kent (Ralph Byrd) discovers that the evil Boroff (Lugosi) has developed a deadly disintegrating gas which he hopes to sell to a foreign power (in this case, "Morovania"). The key component of the gas, an element known as "arnatite" is being smuggled aboard the freighter "Carfax" to Boroff's hideout. En route the ship runs into a storm and runs aground.

News reporter Jean Norman (Maxine Doyle) and her photographer Snapper McGee (Lee Ford) recognize the fleeing Boroff. While escaping, Boroff is pursued by Terry's brother Jim (Thomas Carr) who is murdered by Boroff. Terry vows to avenge his brother.

Meanwhile, in order to hide the evidence of the arnadite, Boroff sends his hulking mute henchman, Thorg (Richard Alexander) to cut the cables securing the distressed vessel. The ship then sinks. Boroff enlists scientist Rickerby (John Picorri) to manufacture the deadly gas.

Boroff has Thorg dive to the sunken ship to recover the arnadite. This leads to several death defying encounters between Terry and Thorg. Eventually Boroff is able to manufacture his gas and moves to ship it. Again and again Terry thwarts his efforts. Finally Terry and the Coast Guard bring the villains to justice in the final chapter, as we knew he would.

I believe that this was the first time Republic Pictures used that "melting/disintegration" special effect. You can see variations of this effect in several of their subsequent serials.

Others in the cast include Herbert Rawlinson as Terry's commanding officer, George Chesboro, Carleton Young and in an early serial villain role, Roy Barcroft as Boroff's henchmen.

It's interesting to note that the name "Boroff" is a contraction of the name BORis KarlOFF. The name of the ship, "Carfax" is the same as the name of the abbey Lugosi as Dracula rented (i.e. "Carfax Abbey")in "Dracula" (1931). Coincidence? Who knows?

Ralph Byrd would go on to portray comic strip detective "Dick Tracy" in three Republic serials, a role with which he would be identified for the rest of his career.