The Galloping Ghost - 12 chapter serial (1931)

Clumsy

This was nothing more than a vehicle for a football superstar. Hollywood did the same for a few other sports figures, such as, Babe Ruth, with much the same results. Red Grange was a great halfback at the University of Illinois--he once scored four touchdowns against favored Michigan in 12 minutes. But he couldn't act a lick. It's downright shameful what the director allowed to happen. But if it's any consolation, none of the others in this serial could act any better. This is just a clumsy piece of work.

The story is thin, simplistic (not simple, simplistic). Red Grange is the star player for a fictional college. When his friend and teammate takes a bribe to fix a game, Red goes into action and ends up accused of taking a bribe himself before being expelled from the college. There's lots of fast action, chases, fistfights gallore with no one hurt, wrecked vehicles, daring leaps over embankments, even falling out of an airplane. Eventually, of course, all turns out OK, because Red is not only a great halfback, he has a sterling character. The gamblers are thwarted and integrity, where justified, is maintained.

There are a few good things, such as, marvelous views of Los Angeles streets, scenes long since gone; views of football games from another era; cars, planes, streetcars of the early Great Depression; the snicker of the "cripple" at the end of each episode. I'm not sure why I liked that cruel laugh, but I did. September 10, 2007

A football hero goes Hollywood

"The Galloping Ghost" was a famous sports nickname in the early 1920s. That was when a sportswriter gave the moniker to Harold 'Red' Grange, after he ran to gridiron glory for the University of Illinois. Red's most remarkable achievement came in a 1924 game against Michigan, when he returned the opening kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown, and went on to score three more TDs in the first quarter!

When Hollywood called in 1931, Grange quickly proved that as an actor he was a superb running back. In spite of his somewhat wooden delivery, the 12-part serial named after Grange really isn't that bad, thanks to a good supporting cast and script (by Ford Beebe).

THE STORY: Gamblers try to prevent Red and Buddy from playing in games they want to "fix."

The twelve chapters of THE GALLOPING GHOST are:

1. The Idol of Clay
2. The Port of Peril
3. The Master Mind
4. The House of Secrets
5. The Man Without a Face
6. The Torn $500 Bill
7. When the Lights Went Out
8. The Third Degree
9. The Sign in the Sky
10.The Vulture's Lair
11.The Radio Patrol
12.The Ghost Comes Back

Featured actors:

Harold 'Red' Grange - Red Grange
Francis X. Bushman Jr. - Buddy Courtland
Gwen Lee - Irene Courtland (Buddy's wife)
Dorothy Gulliver - Barbara Courtland (Buddy's sister)
Edward Hearn - Coach Harlow
Tom Dugan - Jerry, stuttering cabbie

also--
Stepin Fetchit - Snowball, football fan [Ch. 1]
Yakima Canutt - Henchman (uncredited)
Lon Chaney Jr. - Henchman (uncredited)
Fred 'Snowflake' Toones - Football fan [Ch. 1, 6] (uncredited)

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THE PERILS OF PAULINE is a 1934 "talkie" remake of the classic old silent-era serial. August 28, 2007

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