The Last Frontier (serial)

The Last Frontier
The Last Frontier
Directed by	Spencer Gordon Bennet; Thomas Storey
Written by	Karl R. Coolidge; Robert F. Hill; George H. Plympton; Arthur Rohlsfel; Courtney Ryley Cooper (novel)
Produced by	Fred McConnell
Starring	Lon Chaney Jr.; Dorothy Gulliver; Ralph Bushman; William Desmond; Joe Bonomo; Pete Morrison; LeRoy Mason
Cinematography	Edward Snyder; Gilbert Warrenton
Edited by	Tom Malloy
Distributed by	RKO Radio Pictures
Release date	September 5, 1932;
Running time	12 chapters (213 minutes)
Country	United States
Language	English

The Last Frontier is an American Pre-Code 12-chapter serial, distributed by RKO Radio Pictures in 1932. The story was based on the novel of the same name by Courtney Ryley Cooper.^[1]

The serial starred Lon Chaney Jr. as the Zorro-esque hero The Black Ghost. Dorothy Gulliver was the leading female star. The total running time of the serial is 213 minutes.

This serial was also released theatrically in 1932 as a 70-minute feature version called The Black Ghost.^[2]

Plot

The outlaw "Tiger" Morris attempts to drive settlers off their land in order to acquire the local gold deposits. A crusading newspaper editor, Tom Kirby, becomes the masked vigilante The Black Ghost to stop him.

Cast

Lon Chaney Jr. as Tom Kirby, the editor of the local newspaper and the masked vigilante The Black Ghost
Dorothy Gulliver as Betty Halliday
Ralph Bushman as Jeff Maitland
William Desmond as General George Custer
Joe Bonomo as Joe, one of Morris' henchman. Listed as "Kit Gordon" in the credits.
Pete Morrison as Hank, one of Morris' henchman
LeRoy Mason as Buck, Morris' spearpoint heavy (chief henchman)
Yakima Canutt as Wild Bill Hickok
Mary Jo Desmond as Aggie Kirby
Slim Cole as Uncle Happy
Richard Neill as Leige "Tiger" Morris, outlaw
Judith Barrie as Rose Maitland
Claude Payton as Colonel Halliday
Ben Corbett as Bad Ben, one of Morris' henchman
Frank Lackteen as Chief Pawnee Blood
Fritzi Fern as Mariah

Production

The Last Frontier was RKO's only serial.^[3]

Chapter titles

The Black Ghost Rides
The Thundering Herd
The Black Ghost Strikes
The Fatal Shot
Clutching Sands
The Terror Trail
Doomed
Facing Death
Thundering Doom
The Life Line
Driving Danger
The Black Ghost's Last Ride

_Source:^[4]

References

^ Cooper, Courtney Ryley (1923). "The Last Frontier".
^ "LAST FRONTIER, THE (1932/Alpha) - DVD".
^ Harmon, Jim; Donald F. Glut (1973). "14. The Villains "All Bad, All Mad"". The Great Movie Serials: Their Sound and Fury. Routledge. p. 360. ISBN 978-0-7130-0097-9.
^ Cline, William C. (1984). "Filmography". In the Nick of Time. McFarland & Company, Inc. pp. 206–207. ISBN 0-7864-0471-X.

External links

The Last Frontier at IMDb
The Last Frontier at AllMovie

[1] Cooper, Courtney Ryley (1923). "The Last Frontier".

[2] "LAST FRONTIER, THE (1932/Alpha) - DVD".

[GMS-3] Harmon, Jim; Donald F. Glut (1973). "14. The Villains "All Bad, All Mad"". The Great Movie Serials: Their Sound and Fury. Routledge. p. 360. ISBN 978-0-7130-0097-9.

[4] Cline, William C. (1984). "Filmography". In the Nick of Time. McFarland & Company, Inc. pp. 206–207. ISBN 0-7864-0471-X.

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