BYU

Harold B. Lee Library

“Spy Smasher the Serial”

Spy SmasherSpy Smasher
Starring Kane Richmond, Sam Flint, Marguerite Chapman, Hans Schumm, Tristram Coffin.

  • Time: 7:00 PM
  • Date: New serial shown with each movie–see them all.
  • Place: HBLL Auditorium, 1st Floor; Admission is free; arrive early for seats.

About the Event:
Chapter play serials were a staple of American moviegoing, beginning in the early silent-film era. Later hit features Star Wars, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and Disney’s Rocketeer owe their success to the serials that their producers and directors watched as youngsters. The best sound serials were produced by Republic Pictures. One of the very best, Spy Smasher the first derived from a popular comic book hero, is set during World War II and is directed with energy by William Witney. Spy Smasher’s mission, following his capture by Germans and his subsequent escape in occupied France, is to foil an infamous Nazi villain known as the Mask, who, in the United States, has his hands in counterfeiting, trying to steal a secret bombsight, and a weapon that destroys airplane engines. Each thrilling chapter concludes with a “cliffhanger” ending that is explained in the following chapter. Designated chapters precede the showing of scheduled feature films, just like the old days!
Republic Pictures. 1941. 12 chapters. Chapter 1, 28 mins. Other chapters, 17 mins. each. Director: William Witney.