Sherman Lowe Movies
A graduate of the University of Utah, American screenwriter Sherman Lowe (né Lowenstein) did newspaper and advertising work before serving 14 months with the RAF in France. Entering the motion picture business as a reader with Universal in 1926, Lowe went on to co-write such early talkies as King of Jazz and Dames Ahoy in 1930. Briefly with Educational and Mascot, he later settled into a long stint as a staff writer with such bottom-of-the-barrel companies as Monogram and PRC, specializing in action melodramas. He was a natural for action serials and co-wrote such genre classics as Mascot's Burn 'em up Barnes (1934), Universal's The Green Hornet Strikes Again (1940), and Columbia's The Phantom (1943). Lowe remained within the realm of B-movies well into the '50s and penned such television series as The Gene Autry Show and Ramar of the Jungle. He died in 1968 at the age of 73. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide- 1955
In this adventure, set in the dark African jungles, visiting American scientists inadvertently enrage the local natives when they steal a sacred golden tablet. Fortunately a jungle dwelling doctor helps the insensitive brutes return the tablet before they are killed by the natives. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1955
In this adventure, a renowned American physician journeys to darkest Africa to help a pair of sibling missionaries stop prospectors from inciting a tribal war. The miners do this to scare the white colonists away from their newly discovered mine. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1953
In this African adventure, a fearless physician goes into the jungle to search for rare medicinal herbs. While there, he runs into a tribe ruled by white women claiming to be goddesses. Some viewers may find the racial stereotypes presented in this story offensive. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1950
American actor/stuntman Jock O'Mahoney (aka Jock Mahoney) stars in the Australian The Kangaroo Kid. The star plays a 19th-century San Francisco detective named Tex Kinnane, who is sent "Down Under" to nab shyster lawyer Vincent Moller (Douglass Dumbrille). Several comparisons are made between the American Wild West and the equally treacherous Australian outback. Kinnane proves adept at adjusting to his new environment--much more so than the fugitive Moller. In addition to Jock O'Mahoney and Douglass Dumbrille, several other Hollywoodites contribute to the overall success of The Kangaroo Kid, including director Lesley Selander and actresses Martha Hyer and Veda Ann Borg. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Veda Ann Borg
Government agent Richard Hendricks (Michael O'Shea) goes undercover to get goods on a gang responsible for dispensing illegal paroles. Posing as a prisoner, Hendricks links up with the gang's inside man, Barney Rodescu (Turhan Bey). As often happens in real life, several pillars of society are getting rich by manipulating the lives of others. The plot is not always logical, but audience involvement is sustained every step of the way. Parole Inc was one of the "in-between" pictures -- not quite a "B", not expensive enough for "A" -- produced by young-and-hungry Eagle Lion studios in the late 1940s. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael O'Shea, Turhan Bey, (more)
One thing you can say about Alimony: It tackled a subject that virtually everyone in Hollywood was intimately familiar with. Martha Vickers plays a ruthless young woman who has hit upon a clever (if not original) method of fattening her bank account. She seeks out relationships with wealthy married men, gets them to leave their wives to marry her, then cooks up "alienation of affection" and "adultery" cases against them. As a result, she invariably leaves the divorce court with a huge alimony settlement. Eventually she graduates from breaking hearts to breaking laws, and is thrown in the calaboose for her troubles. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Martha Vickers, John Beal, (more)
- 1946
In this western, a tuneful saddletramp is appointed sheriff of Rawhide and begins rounding up three troublesome brothers. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1946
Invisible Informer serves as a feature-length vehicle for Republic serial queen Linda Stirling. The story is set in motion by a missing necklace, worth $100,000. The insurance agency covering the necklace suspects that the "theft" is a fraud, and dispatches special operatives Eve Murray (Stirling) and Mike Reagan (William Henry) to get to the truth. In the course of their investigation, Eve and Mike must contend with several murders, perpetrated by the thief with the help of a nasty police dog. Usually seen battling burly bad guys or escaping deadly perils in her other films, Linda Stirling is afforded a few steamy love scenes in this one, which she pulls off with elan. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Donia Bussey, Tristram Coffin, (more)
- 1946
In most of his Columbia westerns, Charles Starrett simply was the Durango Kid, a mysterious masked do-gooder who pretends to be a criminal. Desert Horseman attempts to explain why this disguise has been adopted. Starrett plays an army captain, dishonorably discharged for a theft he did not commit. To recover the money and restore his reputation, Starrett assumes the guise of the Durango Kid. He brings the real criminal to justice, which presumably means that there's no further need for his disguise. But two months later, The Durango Kid was back (under a whole new set of circumstances) in The Fighting Frontiersman. Desert Horseman was released in Great Britain as Checkmate. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1946
Magnificent Rogue is the title of a less than magnificent Republic programmer. Warren Douglas plays the title role, a wheeler-dealer businessman with fingers in several dirty pies. When Douglas is drafted, his wife Lynne Roberts is compelled to take over his business. Completely unaware of his shady corporate practices, Roberts suddenly finds herself commiserating with raffish characters straight out of Damon Runyon. How she comes out on top and reforms her husband forms the denouement of this lightweight comedy/drama. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1946
Horror films were not Republic Pictures' forte, as one can see while watching the stylish but pedestrian Catman of Paris. Carl Esmond stars as Charles Reigner, an amnesia victim who may or may not be fiendish "Catman" who has been cutting a homicial swath throughout Gay Paree. Essentially a Jeckyll-Hyde story, the film borrows a page from Oscar Wilde's anco 7 Argentina's first 1946 release, Christina stars screen favorite Zully Moreno as the title character. It's the old saw about the country lass who finds herself cast adrift in the Big City. She finds brief happiness in the arms of wealthy Esteban Serador, but he turns out to be a cad and a bounder. To no one's surprise, Moreno is rescued by hometown sweetheart Alberto Closas, who has remained faithful through it all. Very standard stuff, Christina coasts by on the appeal of Zully Moreno, who seems much too intelligent to be mouthing the inane dialogue she is given. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Carl Esmond, Lenore Aubert, (more)
- 1946
Stephanie Bachelor, Republic's answer to Ann Sheridan and Bette Davis, stars in Undercover Woman. The story takes place on a dude ranch, where female private eye Marcia Conroy (Bachelor) has been sent to gather evidence for a divorce case. Instead, she becomes involved with murder when philandering Gregory Vixon (Richard Fraser) turns up dead. None of the ranch's guests is above suspicion so far as sheriff Don Long (Robert Livingston) is concerned, even though Long has a crush on Marcia. Teaming up with Long to solve the killing, Marcia follows the trail of clues to the proverbial least-likely suspect. Originally released at a mere 56 minutes, Undercover Woman was trimmed down even farther for its TV release. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Stephanie Bachelor, Robert Livingston, (more)
- 1946
There's no "valley" in Valley of the Zombies, and only one "zombie," played with relish by Ian Keith. At large in a great metropolitan city, Ormand Murks (Keith), recently brought back from the dead, goes on the prowl for human blood, meaning that he's less of a zombie than a vampire (a phenomenon which he "explains" halfway through the picture). He spends most of his time murderously settling scores with old enemies, drawing the attention of police lieutenant Blair (Thomas Jackson), who like Murks seems well-past retirement age. Suspected of committing the murders, doctor's assistant Terry Evans (Robert Livingston) takes it upon himself to track down Murks, with the aid of pretty nurse Susan Drake (Adrian Booth). The ultimate fate of the so-called zombie is given away by the artwork in the film's opening credits. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Livingston, Adrian Booth, (more)
- 1946
Stagecoach thieves are stalked by Wells Fargo agent Grant who wants to bring them to justice. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1944
Perennial second lead Una Merkel and radio dialect comedian Parkyakarkus team up in the Monogram musical fantasy Sweethearts of the USA. While working in a defense plant, Patsy (Merkel) is rendered unconscious-or at least, more unconscious than usual. While knocked out, she dreams that she's a fearless detective, teamed with tangle-tongued Parkyakarkus on the trail of bank robbers. If things could get any sillier, they probably would, but unfortunately the film lasts only 63 minutes. Incidentally, Parkyakarkus' real name was Harry Einstein, and he was the father of comic actors Bob Einstein and Albert Brooks. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Una Merkel, Parkyakarkus [Harry Einstein], (more)
Lee Falk and Ray Moore's famous syndicated comic strip hero came to the screen in this 15 chapter serial produced by Rudolph C. Flotow for Columbia Pictures. Displaying unusually good judgment, the studio cast the still strapping former silent screen cowboy Tom Tyler as Geoffrey Prescott who, like generations of Prescotts before him, battles piracy and crime in Darkest Africa. Dressed in his trademark tights and black mask, The Phantom sallies forth to locate the lost city of Zolos, aided by his lovely fiancée, Diana Palmer (Jeanne Bates) and Ace, the Wonder Dog. The opposition is headed by the nefarious Dr. Bremmer (Kenneth MacDonald), but the good doctor is, in the long run, no match for the masked avenger who, in the final chapter, restores "Peace in the Jungle." One of Columbia's few worthwhile serials, The Phantom was yet another success for the popular and personable Tyler, who had earlier scored in the title role of Republic Pictures' The Adventures of Captain Marvel. Columbia filmed a belated and rather unnecessary sequel, The Adventures of Captain Africa (1949), starring John Hart, a bland actor who later played The Lone Ranger for one season on television when Clayton Moore went on strike. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
PRC's A Yank in Libya is distinguished by some of the oldest, grainiest stock footage ever seen in a mid-1940s film. Once past this aesthetic obstacle, however, the film isn't too bad. Walter Woolf King heads the cast as American war correspondent Mike Malone, on assignment in a papier-mache facsimile of Libya. Malone helps to squash a Nazi scheme to attack a British garrison, earning the everlasting gratitude of heroine Nancy Brooks (Joan Woodbury) and British consol Herbert Forbes (H. B. Warner). Reasonably amusing comedy relief is provided by radio dialectician Parkayarkus, aka Harry Einstein (the father of present-day comic actors Albert Brooks and Bob Einstein). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- H.B. Warner, Walter Woolf King, (more)
- 1942
In this western, set in the Western wilderness, a wily and dangerous wild stallion threatens all that enter his domain including humans. Only brave Chief Thundercloud can tame him. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1942
Glenda Farrell reprises her fast-talking girl reporter persona in PRC's Night for Crime. Ms. Farrell is cast as Susan, a big-city sob sister who investigates the murder of movie extra Ellen Smith (Marjorie Manners). Adding to the confusion, movie star Mona (Lina Basquette) disappears in the middle of an important production. As clues and suspects pile up, Susan and detective Joe (Lyle Talbot) try to solve the mystery without ending up as murder victims themselves. A Night for Crime was based on a story by Hollywood columnist Jimmy Starr, who appears on-screen with his journalistic colleagues Erskine Johnson, Edwin Schallert (father of actor William Schallert) and Harry Crocker. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Glenda Farrell, Lyle Talbot, (more)
- 1942
It should be obvious to fans of husky, muscle-bound cowboy star Johnny Mack Brown that he does not play the title role in Little Joe, Wrangler. That honor goes to Brown's perennial comic sidekick, Fuzzy Knight. Neither Brown nor Knight are the focal point of the story, however: Instead, Tex Ritter carries the dramatic weight of the yarn as a sheriff facing expulsion because of his inability to capture a notorious bandit. Wrongly arrested as that bandit, Johnny Mack Brown teams with Ritter to hunt down the genuine culprit. Meanwhile, Fuzzy Knight and the Jimmy Wakely Trio combine their musical talents to warble the title song. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Johnny Mack Brown, Tex Ritter, (more)
- 1942
In this upbeat WW II musical, a popular band joins the army with the idea of putting on shows for troops overseas. During rehearsals, a battle erupts and the musicians must exchange their musical instruments for guns and fight. Songs include: "Zip Your Lip," "I Must Have Priorities on Your Love," "Don't Fool Around with My Heart," "The Yanks are Coming," and "There Will Be No Blackout of Democracy." (Lew Pollack, Tony Stern, Herman Ruby, Sidney Clare). ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Henry King, Mary Healy, (more)
Miss V From Moscow was singled out by B-film historian Don Miller as "one of the worst movies ever made by any standards, certainly the worst movie of its year." Seen today, the film seems to be simply another mediocre wartime meller from the cramped studios of PRC. Lola Lane plays Soviet secret agent Vera Marova, who bears a striking resemblance to a Nazi spy. Taking advantage of this, she confounds the German high command in occupied Paris, and also comes to the rescue of downed American flyer Steve Worth (Howard Banks). Much of the dialogue is hilariously inept (perhaps intentionally so), with some of the biggest yocks provided by Noel Madison as a would-be Goebbels. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lola Lane, Noel Madison, (more)
- 1941
Arizona Cyclone is usually cited as the best of Johnny Mack Brown's Universal western series, if only because of the inventive direction of Joseph H. Lewis. Brown is cast as Tom, owner of a wagon-freight line who business is coveted by crooked banker Quirt (Dick Curtis). The villain will stop at nothing to get what he wants, and this includes ordering the murder of lovable old freight-liner Randolph (Herbert Rawlinson). Lacking enough evidence to prove Quirt's guilt, Tom bides his time until the inevitable showdown. Director Lewis' penchant from innovative camera angles is especially evident during the climactic gunfight sequence, a model of its kind and one from which Lewis himself borrowed in his much-later western classic Terror in a Texas Town. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Johnny Mack Brown, Fuzzy Knight, (more)
- 1941
Cowboy star Johnny Mack Brown launched his third season at Universal with the above-average entry The Masked Rider. Moseying into a sleepy South American town in search of jobs, Larry (Brown) and his pal Patches (Fuzzy Knight) are hired by a local mining concern. Our heroes soon discover that the mine's silver shipments are being plundered by a mysterious Masked Rider, who has recently added murder to his itinerary. Larry and Patches vow to expose the Rider's true identity and to stem his crime spree once and for all. Plot and action in The Masked Rider come to an abrupt half at the film's halway point, the better to spotlight the musical contributions of the Guadalajara Trio and the Jose Cansino Dancers; fortunately, this scene is entertaining enough to keep the fans happy while awaiting the next burst of action. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Johnny Mack Brown, Fuzzy Knight, (more)
- 1941
Not quite a B western but certainly no "A", Road Agent is kept alive by the boisterous byplay of stars Dick Foran, Leo Carrillo and Andy Devine. Summarily accused of murder, drifters Duke (Foran), Pancho (Carrillo) and Andy (Devine) are tossed into the hoosegow, only to be released when their alibi checks out. Far from offended by his ill treatment, Duke agrees to take the job of sheriff, retaining Pancho and Andy as his deputies. The gruesome threesome then sets about to solve a series of mysterious Wells Fargo robberies-which turns out to have been their secret mission all along! Dick Foran not only gets to sing from time to time, but also romances no fewer than two bright-eyed leading ladies, Annes Gwynne and Nagel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dick Foran, Leo Carrillo, (more)
