Panther Girl of the Kongo

Panther Girl of the Kongo
Panther Girl of the Kongo
Directed by	Franklin Adreon
Written by	Ronald Davidson
Produced by	Franklin Adreon
Starring	Phyllis Coates; Myron Healey; Arthur Space; John Daheim; Mike Ragan; Morris Buchanan; Roy Glenn;
Cinematography	Bud Thackery
Distributed by	Republic Pictures
Release date	January 3, 1955(U.S. serial);
Running time	12 chapters (167 minutes(serial); 100 minutes(TV)
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$172,793 (negative cost:$179,341)

Panther Girl of the Kongois a 1955Republic movie serialthat contains a great deal ofstock footagefrom the 1941 Republic serialJungle Girl.This was the penultimate of Republic's 66 serial films.

Plot

Mad scientistDr. Morgan wants sole access to secret diamond mines in the local area of Africa. He breeds giantcrayfish( "Claw Monsters" ) to scare away any other inhabitants. Jean Evans, the Panther Girl and friend Larry Sanders encounter the plot while on a photo safari in the region.^[2]

Cast

Phyllis Coatesas Jean Evans, the Panther Girl
Myron Healeyas Larry Sanders, a big game hunter
Arthur Spaceas Dr. Morgan, amad scientist
John Daheim as Cass, one of Dr. Morgan'shenchmen
Mike Ragan as Rand, one of Dr Morgan's henchmen
Morris Buchanan as Tembo
Roy Glennas Chief Danka
James Logan as Constable Harris

Stunts

Tom Steeleas Larry Sanders (doubling Myron Healey)
Helen Thurston as Jean Evans/Panther Girl (doubling Phyllis Coates)
David Sharpeas Panther Girl (doubling Phyllis Coates via stock footage fromJungle Girl)
Fred Grahamas Nick Burgass

Production

Panther Girl of the Kongowas budgeted at $172,793, although the finalnegative costwas $179,341 (a $6,548, or 3.8%, overspend). It was the most expensive Republic serial of 1955.^[1]

It was filmed between August 16 and September 4 of 1954 under theworking titlePanther Woman of the Kongo.^[1]The serial's production number was 1939.^[1]

In order to use significantstock footagefrom the earlierJungle Girland cheaply padPanther Girl of the Kongo,a duplicate costume was used. As a result, Republic's last female lead wore the same costume as its first.^[3]^[4]

The film's special effects were created by theLydecker brothers.They used real crayfish as the monsters, and employed scaled-down props to create the illusion of gigantic size.^[5]

Release

Panther Girl of the Kongo's official release date was January 3, 1955, although this was actually the date when the sixth chapter was made available to film exchanges.^[1]This was followed by a rerelease ofJesse James Rides Againinstead of a new serial. The last new serial,King of the Carnival,followed in the summer.^[1]

The film was one of 26 Republic serials packaged for television broadcast as part of Republic's Century 66 in 1966. The title of the film was changed toThe Claw Monsters,and it was trimmed 100 minutes in length.^[1]

Chapter titles

The Claw Monster (20:00)
Jungle Ambush (13:20)
The Killer Beast (13:20)
Sands of Doom (13:20)
Test of Terror (13:20)
High Peril (13:20)
Timber Trap/Double Trap (Double Trap is the title shown on screen in chapter 7 and at the end of chapter 6) (13:20)^[6]
Crater of Flame (13:20)
River of Death (13:20)
Blasted Evidence (13:20) (recap chapter)
Double Danger (13:20)
House of Doom (13:20)

^[1]^[7]

References

^^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^kMathis, Jack (1995).Valley of the Cliffhangers Supplement.Jack Mathis Advertising. pp. 3, 10, 140–141.ISBN 0-9632878-1-8.
^Rovin, Jeff (1987).The Encyclopedia of Supervillains.New York: Facts on File. p. 100.ISBN 0-8160-1356-X.
^Stedman, Raymond William (1971)."5. Shazam and Good-by".Serials: Suspense and Drama By Installment.University of Oklahoma Press. p.141.ISBN 978-0-8061-0927-5.
^Harmon, Jim;Donald F. Glut(1973). "1. The Girls" Who Is That Girl in the Buzz Saw? "".The Great Movie Serials: Their Sound and Fury.Routledge. p. 17.ISBN 978-0-7130-0097-9.
^Blake, Jerry (January 5, 2015)."Panther Girl of the Kongo".The Files of Gerry Blake: Movie Serial Reviews and Other Cliffhanging Material.RetrievedApril 5,2020.
^"Timber Trap" is recorded as the title of the seventh chapter in William C. Cline'sIn the Nick of Timewhile "Double Trap" is recorded as the title in Jack Mathis’Valley of the Cliffhangers Supplement.
^Cline, William C. (1984). "Filmography".In the Nick of Time.McFarland & Company, Inc. p.256.ISBN 0-7864-0471-X.

External links

Panther Girl of the KongoatIMDb

Preceded by Man with the Steel Whip(1954)	Republic Serial Panther Girl of the Kongo (1955)	Succeeded by King of the Carnival(1955)

[mathis-1] ^^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^kMathis, Jack (1995).Valley of the Cliffhangers Supplement.Jack Mathis Advertising. pp. 3, 10, 140–141.ISBN 0-9632878-1-8.

[2] Rovin, Jeff (1987).The Encyclopedia of Supervillains.New York: Facts on File. p. 100.ISBN 0-8160-1356-X.

[3] Stedman, Raymond William (1971)."5. Shazam and Good-by".Serials: Suspense and Drama By Installment.University of Oklahoma Press. p.141.ISBN 978-0-8061-0927-5.

[4] Harmon, Jim;Donald F. Glut(1973). "1. The Girls" Who Is That Girl in the Buzz Saw? "".The Great Movie Serials: Their Sound and Fury.Routledge. p. 17.ISBN 978-0-7130-0097-9.

[5] Blake, Jerry (January 5, 2015)."Panther Girl of the Kongo".The Files of Gerry Blake: Movie Serial Reviews and Other Cliffhanging Material.RetrievedApril 5,2020.

[6] "Timber Trap" is recorded as the title of the seventh chapter in William C. Cline'sIn the Nick of Timewhile "Double Trap" is recorded as the title in Jack Mathis’Valley of the Cliffhangers Supplement.

[7] Cline, William C. (1984). "Filmography".In the Nick of Time.McFarland & Company, Inc. p.256.ISBN 0-7864-0471-X.

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