Bulldog Drummond
Encyclopedia
Bulldog Drummond is a British fictional character
, created by "Sapper", a pseudonym
of Herman Cyril McNeile (1888–1937), and the hero of a series of novels published from 1920 to 1954.
, M.C.
, a wealthy former WWI
officer of the fictional His Majesty's Royal Loamshire Regiment
, who, after the First World War, spends his new-found leisure time as a private detective. He places an advertisement in the local newspaper-
Demobilised Officer finding peace incredibly tedious would welcome diversion. Legitimate if possible; but crime of a humorous description, no objection. Excitement essential.
The character is partly based on McNeile's friend Gerard Fairlie
, who carried on writing Drummond books after McNeile's death.
Drummond is a proto-James Bond
figure and a version of the imperial adventurers depicted by the likes of John Buchan. In terms of the detective
genre, the first Bulldog Drummond novel was published after the Sherlock Holmes
stories, the Nayland Smith/Fu Manchu
novels and Richard Hannay
's first three adventures including The Thirty-Nine Steps
. The character first appeared in the novel Bulldog Drummond (1920), and this was followed by a lengthy series of books and adaptations for films, radio and television.
, the enemy of Sherlock Holmes
. This is additionally signaled by Drummond's suggestion, in The Third Round, that they fight a duel on a glacier, recalling the contest between Holmes and Moriarty at the Reichenbach Falls
. In his complex schemes for world-domination, he is also reminiscent of Sax Rohmer
's character, Fu Manchu
.
The title of the fifth Bulldog Dummond book, The Female of the Species refers to Rudyard Kipling
's line; "the female of the species is more deadly than the male". Drummond's adversary here is Peterson's (presumed—their relationship is never explicitly stated) mistress Irma, who in this and a number of following books seeks to kill Drummond in revenge for the death of her lover.
. Like Savage, Drummond was a muscular man with a group of followers who helped him in his adventures. But unlike him Drummond was not raised to fight crime, was not a doctor, was not a super-scientist, and did not use advanced technology. Doc Savage had a clinic upstate and used brain surgery to do the job.
In The Black Gang, Drummond and his men imprison a collection of saboteurs on a Scottish island under the command of a sergeant-major, who institutes a "boarding-school" regime of physical work and exercise—a precursor of the "short, sharp shock
" treatment advocated by some commentators for criminals.
Ian Fleming
, creator of James Bond, acknowledged that Drummond was an influence on Bond.
continued to write stories based on the character.
and racial
stereotypes. This was typical of British adventure stories of the period (e.g. Buchan's Greenmantle
, 1916), but McNeile's works are notable for their frequent hostile references to foreigners, especially Germans, and to Jews.
In The Final Count, for example, Russia is referred to as "ruled by its clique of homicidal alien Jews." Earlier in the book, one of Drummond's companions disguises himself as "a nasty-looking little Jew".
In The Female of the Species, Drummond disguises himself as a black henchman of the villainous Irma and, revealing himself to Irma and his astonished companions, explains: "Every beard is not false, but every nigger smells. That beard ain't false, dearie, and dis nigger don't smell. So I'm thinking there's something wrong somewhere."
from 1941 to 1954. Most post-war broadcasts were repeats. Bulldog was portrayed by Ned Weaver.
Episode Listing with first broadcast dates (where known):
19xx-xx-xx - Book Store
19xx-xx-xx - Death Ship
19xx-xx-xx - Fatal Right
19xx-xx-xx - Geiger Counter
19xx-xx-xx - Hubert s Museum
19xx-xx-xx - Murder off Catalina
19xx-xx-xx - White Star and the Ringer
1941-09-28 - The Richards Mob (Audition)
1941-09-28 - Hijacker
1941-xx-xx - Fiery Island
1941-xx-xx - Porcelain Ming Cat
1941-xx-xx - Ride In The Moonlight
1942-01-04 - Death Rides A Racehorse
1942-01-11 - Death Loops The Loop
1942-01-11 - A Study In Mink
1942-01-25 - The Circus
1942-05-12 - Death Uses Disappearing Ink
1942-05-19 - Death In The Deep
1942-06-17 - The Deadly Stand In
1942-06-29 - The Circus
1942-12-01 - Penny Arcade Story
1943-09-16 - Axis Submarine
1943-xx-xx - Devil Flat
1944-06-26 - Nazi Sub
1945-02-05 - The Fatal 50,000
1945-04-23 - Dinner of Death
1945-05-07 - Ride In The Moonlight
1945-08-13 - Help Wanted
1945-09-10 - Murder In The Death House
1945-09-17 - Death on the Diamond
1945-09-24 - Escape Into Death
1946-10-14 - Case of the Fatal Right
1947-01-17 - Claim Check Murders
1947-09-28 - Hijacker
1948-05-05 - Death Paints A Portrait
1948-06-16 - Death in the Deep
1948-12-01 - The Penny Arcade
1948-xx-xx - Blind Man's Bluff
1949-01-13 - Atomic Murders
A 30-minute episode of Douglas Fairbanks Jr Presents featured Bulldog Drummond in "The Ludlow Affair" (1957). Drummond (Robert Beatty
) was little more than a detective in London, aided by Kelly (Michael Ripper
). This episode is available on DVD.
' 1957 hit "Searchin'":
Bulldog (Drummond) is also one of the nicknames proposed by Jumbo for former British spy turned teacher Jim Prideaux in John le Carré
's Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
. This reflects his jingoistic spirit and determined attitude towards life, although Jim is not wealthy.
Philip José Farmer
and J. T. Edson included Bulldog Drummond in Tarzan
's extended family tree as the older brother of John 'Korak
' Drummond-Clayton and the great-uncle of Dawn Drummond-Clayton.
Drummond was mentioned in the quote: "You're a prohibition agent, not Bulldog Drummond " on season 1, episode 6 of HBO's series "Boardwalk Empire.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
, created by "Sapper", a pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
of Herman Cyril McNeile (1888–1937), and the hero of a series of novels published from 1920 to 1954.
Drummond
The Bulldog Drummond stories follow Captain Hugh "Bulldog" Drummond, D.S.O.Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
, M.C.
Military Cross
The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....
, a wealthy former WWI
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
officer of the fictional His Majesty's Royal Loamshire Regiment
Loamshire Regiment
Loamshire Regiment is a placeholder name used by the British Army to provide examples for its procedures. For example, the Loamshire Regiment is provided by the British Forces Post Office to show how to write a British Army address, and is used to set out specimen charges for violations of military...
, who, after the First World War, spends his new-found leisure time as a private detective. He places an advertisement in the local newspaper-
Demobilised Officer finding peace incredibly tedious would welcome diversion. Legitimate if possible; but crime of a humorous description, no objection. Excitement essential.
The character is partly based on McNeile's friend Gerard Fairlie
Gerard Fairlie
Francis Gerard Luis Fairlie was an English author and scriptwriter on whom Sapper based the character of Bulldog Drummond...
, who carried on writing Drummond books after McNeile's death.
Drummond is a proto-James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
figure and a version of the imperial adventurers depicted by the likes of John Buchan. In terms of the detective
Detective
A detective is an investigator, either a member of a police agency or a private person. The latter may be known as private investigators or "private eyes"...
genre, the first Bulldog Drummond novel was published after the Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
stories, the Nayland Smith/Fu Manchu
Fu Manchu
Dr. Fu Manchu is a fictional character introduced in a series of novels by British author Sax Rohmer during the first half of the 20th century...
novels and Richard Hannay
Richard Hannay
Major-General Sir Richard Hannay, KCB, OBE, DSO, Legion of Honour, is a fictional secret agent created by Scottish novelist John Buchan. In his autobiography, Memory Hold-the-Door, Buchan suggests that the character is based, in part, on Edmund Ironside, from Edinburgh, a spy during the Second Boer...
's first three adventures including The Thirty-Nine Steps
The Thirty-nine Steps
The Thirty-Nine Steps is an adventure novel by the Scottish author John Buchan. It first appeared as a serial in Blackwood's Magazine in August and September 1915 before being published in book form in October that year by William Blackwood and Sons, Edinburgh...
. The character first appeared in the novel Bulldog Drummond (1920), and this was followed by a lengthy series of books and adaptations for films, radio and television.
Peterson
The first four books deal with Drummond up against his arch-enemy Carl Peterson (who is also a master of disguise and uses many aliases). He is killed in the fourth book, The Final Count. Peterson is in part modeled on earlier types of super-villain, including Professor MoriartyProfessor Moriarty
Professor James Moriarty is a fictional character and the archenemy of the detective Sherlock Holmes in the fiction of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Moriarty is a criminal mastermind, described by Holmes as the "Napoleon of Crime". Doyle lifted the phrase from a real Scotland Yard inspector who was...
, the enemy of Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
. This is additionally signaled by Drummond's suggestion, in The Third Round, that they fight a duel on a glacier, recalling the contest between Holmes and Moriarty at the Reichenbach Falls
Reichenbach Falls
The Reichenbach Falls are a series of waterfalls on the River Aar near Meiringen in Bern canton in central Switzerland. They have a total drop of 250 m . At 90 m , the Upper Reichenbach Falls is one of the highest cataracts in the Alps...
. In his complex schemes for world-domination, he is also reminiscent of Sax Rohmer
Sax Rohmer
Arthur Henry Sarsfield Ward , better known as Sax Rohmer, was a prolific English novelist. He is best remembered for his series of novels featuring the master criminal Dr...
's character, Fu Manchu
Fu Manchu
Dr. Fu Manchu is a fictional character introduced in a series of novels by British author Sax Rohmer during the first half of the 20th century...
.
The title of the fifth Bulldog Dummond book, The Female of the Species refers to Rudyard Kipling
Rudyard Kipling
Joseph Rudyard Kipling was an English poet, short-story writer, and novelist chiefly remembered for his celebration of British imperialism, tales and poems of British soldiers in India, and his tales for children. Kipling received the 1907 Nobel Prize for Literature...
's line; "the female of the species is more deadly than the male". Drummond's adversary here is Peterson's (presumed—their relationship is never explicitly stated) mistress Irma, who in this and a number of following books seeks to kill Drummond in revenge for the death of her lover.
Influences
Bulldog Drummond undoubtedly had influences on pulp heroes, notably Doc SavageDoc Savage
Doc Savage is a fictional character originally published in American pulp magazines during the 1930s and 1940s. He was created by publisher Henry W. Ralston and editor John L...
. Like Savage, Drummond was a muscular man with a group of followers who helped him in his adventures. But unlike him Drummond was not raised to fight crime, was not a doctor, was not a super-scientist, and did not use advanced technology. Doc Savage had a clinic upstate and used brain surgery to do the job.
In The Black Gang, Drummond and his men imprison a collection of saboteurs on a Scottish island under the command of a sergeant-major, who institutes a "boarding-school" regime of physical work and exercise—a precursor of the "short, sharp shock
Short, sharp shock
The phrase "short, sharp shock" is a phrase meaning "punishment that is quick and severe." It was most famously used in Gilbert and Sullivan's 1885 comic opera The Mikado, where it appears near the end of the Act I song, "I Am So Proud"....
" treatment advocated by some commentators for criminals.
Ian Fleming
Ian Fleming
Ian Lancaster Fleming was a British author, journalist and Naval Intelligence Officer.Fleming is best known for creating the fictional British spy James Bond and for a series of twelve novels and nine short stories about the character, one of the biggest-selling series of fictional books of...
, creator of James Bond, acknowledged that Drummond was an influence on Bond.
Novels
After Herman Cyril McNeile's death in 1937, his friend Gerard FairlieGerard Fairlie
Francis Gerard Luis Fairlie was an English author and scriptwriter on whom Sapper based the character of Bulldog Drummond...
continued to write stories based on the character.
- Bulldog DrummondBulldog Drummond (novel)Bulldog Drummond was the first Bulldog Drummond novel, and was published in 1920 and written H. C. McNeile.The novel begins with ex-British Army Captain Hugh "Bulldog" Drummond, DSO, MC, a wealthy former World War I officer of the Loamshire Regiment, dashing and strong, but not handsome, placing an...
(1920, by McNeile) - The Black Gang (1922, by McNeile)
- The Third Round (1924, by McNeile)
- The Final Count (1926, by McNeile) "A scientist has invented a poison which will end war. He is seized, along with large quantities of the poison (which causes instantaneous death wherever it is sprayed). The kidnapper, an old enemy of Bulldog Drummond, intends to use the deadly invention for his own foul ends."
- The Female of the Species (1928, by McNeile) "Carl Peterson, a long-time villain, has been killed by Bulldog Drummond but Peterson's mistress escapes and turns the tables on the detective. She kidnaps Drummond's bride and plays a nerve-jangling game of hide-and-seek."
- Temple Tower (1929, by McNeile)
- The Return of Bulldog DrummondThe Return of Bulldog DrummondThe Return of Bulldog Drummond is a 1934 British thriller film directed by Walter Summers and starring Ralph Richardson, Ann Todd and Claud Allister. It was based on the 1932 novel The Return of Bulldog Drummond by H.C. McNeile.-Cast:...
(1932, by McNeile) - Knock-Out (1933, by McNeile)
- Bulldog Drummond at Bay (1935, by McNeile)
- The Challenge (1937, by McNeile)
- Bulldog Drummond on Dartmoor (1938, by Gerard FairlieGerard FairlieFrancis Gerard Luis Fairlie was an English author and scriptwriter on whom Sapper based the character of Bulldog Drummond...
) - Bulldog Drummond Attacks (1939, by Fairlie)
- Captain Bulldog Drummond (1945, by Fairlie)
- Bulldog Drummond Stands Fast (1947, by Fairlie)
- Hands Off Bulldog Drummond (1949, by Fairlie)
- Calling Bulldog Drummond (1951, by Fairlie)
- The Return of the Black Gang (1954, by Fairlie)
- Deadlier Than the Male (1966, by Henry Reymond)—from an original story by Jimmy Sangster
- Some Girls Do (1969, by Henry Reymond)—based on the film script by David Osborn & Liz Charles-Williams
Short stories by McNeile
- "Lonely Inn"
- "The Mystery Tour"
- "The Oriental Mind"
- "Thirteen Lead Soldiers"
- "Wheels Within Wheels"
Racism
McNeile's works are, to a modern reader, strongly laced with jingoismJingoism
Jingoism is defined in the Oxford English Dictionary as extreme patriotism in the form of aggressive foreign policy. In practice, it is a country's advocation of the use of threats or actual force against other countries in order to safeguard what it perceives as its national interests...
and racial
Racism
Racism is the belief that inherent different traits in human racial groups justify discrimination. In the modern English language, the term "racism" is used predominantly as a pejorative epithet. It is applied especially to the practice or advocacy of racial discrimination of a pernicious nature...
stereotypes. This was typical of British adventure stories of the period (e.g. Buchan's Greenmantle
Greenmantle
Greenmantle is the second of five novels by John Buchan featuring the character of Richard Hannay, first published in 1916 by Hodder & Stoughton, London...
, 1916), but McNeile's works are notable for their frequent hostile references to foreigners, especially Germans, and to Jews.
In The Final Count, for example, Russia is referred to as "ruled by its clique of homicidal alien Jews." Earlier in the book, one of Drummond's companions disguises himself as "a nasty-looking little Jew".
In The Female of the Species, Drummond disguises himself as a black henchman of the villainous Irma and, revealing himself to Irma and his astonished companions, explains: "Every beard is not false, but every nigger smells. That beard ain't false, dearie, and dis nigger don't smell. So I'm thinking there's something wrong somewhere."
Films and television
| Year | Title | Starring |
|---|---|---|
| Motion Pictures | ||
| 1923 | Bulldog Drummond Bulldog Drummond (1923 film) Bulldog Drummond was the first film adaptation of the Bulldog Drummond fictional character, starring Carlyle Blackwell Sr. and Evelyn Greeley, and directed by Oscar Apfel. The story was adapted by B.E... |
Carlyle Blackwell Carlyle Blackwell Carlyle Blackwell was an American silent film actor and a minor director and producer.Born in Troy, Pennsylvania, he made his film debut in the 1910 Vitagraph Studios production of Uncle Tom's Cabin directed by J. Stuart Blackton. Between then and 1930, when talkies ended his acting career, he... |
| 1925 | Bulldog Drummond's Third Round Bulldog Drummond's Third Round Bulldog Drummond's Third Round was the second silent film adaptation of the Bulldog Drummond character, starring Jack Buchanan and Betty Faire, adapted by Sidney Morgan from the novel The Third Round by H. C. McNeile, and directed by Morgan.... |
Jack Buchanan Jack Buchanan Walter John "Jack" Buchanan was a British theatre and film actor, singer, producer and director. He was known for three decades as the embodiment of the debonair man-about-town in the tradition of George Grossmith Jr., and was described by The Times as "the last of the knuts." He is best known in... |
| 1928 | Captain Swagger | Rod La Rocque Rod La Rocque -Biography:He was born Roderick La Rocque in Chicago, Illinois. He began appearing in stock theater at the age of seven and eventually ended up at the Essanay Studios in Chicago where he found steady work until the studios closed. He then moved to New York City and worked on the stage until he was... |
| 1929 | Bulldog Drummond Bulldog Drummond (1929 film) Bulldog Drummond is a detective film which tells the story of Captain Hugh "Bulldog" Drummond, a British officer bored with civilian life, who investigates an extortion case for a beautiful girl. The film stars Ronald Colman, Claud Allister, Lawrence Grant, Montagu Love, Wilson Benge, Joan... |
Ronald Colman Ronald Colman Ronald Charles Colman was an English actor.-Early years:He was born in Richmond, Surrey, England, the second son and fourth child of Charles Colman and his wife Marjory Read Fraser. His siblings included Eric, Edith, and Marjorie. He was educated at boarding school in Littlehampton, where he... |
| 1930 | Temple Tower Temple Tower Temple Tower is an American crime film directed by Donald Gallaher and starring Kenneth MacKenna, Marceline Day. and Peter Gawthorne.... |
Kenneth MacKenna Kenneth MacKenna Kenneth MacKenna was an American actor and film director, born Leo Mielziner, Jr. in Canterbury, New Hampshire.-Family:Parents were portrait artist Leo Mielziner, Sr.,... |
| 1934 | The Return of Bulldog Drummond The Return of Bulldog Drummond The Return of Bulldog Drummond is a 1934 British thriller film directed by Walter Summers and starring Ralph Richardson, Ann Todd and Claud Allister. It was based on the 1932 novel The Return of Bulldog Drummond by H.C. McNeile.-Cast:... |
Ralph Richardson Ralph Richardson Sir Ralph David Richardson was an English actor, one of a group of theatrical knights of the mid-20th century who, though more closely associated with the stage, also appeared in several classic films.... |
| Bulldog Drummond Strikes Back Bulldog Drummond Strikes Back Bulldog Drummond Strikes Back is a 1934 American comedy-mystery-adventure film directed by Roy Del Ruth. The film stars Ronald Colman and Loretta Young.-Plot:... |
Ronald Colman | |
| 1935 | Bulldog Jack Bulldog Jack Bulldog Jack is a 1935 film produced by Gaumont International, directed by Walter Forde, and starring Jack Hulbert, Fay Wray, Ralph Richardson; it also starred Atholl Fleming as Bulldog Drummond.... |
Atholl Fleming Atholl Fleming Atholl Fleming was a British actor and an Australian radio personality.He was the third of nine children of R. S. Fleming, a Scottish Baptist minister of Beckenham in Kent. After a fall as a child, he became deaf in his right ear... |
| 1937 | Bulldog Drummond's Revenge Bulldog Drummond's Revenge Bulldog Drummond's Revenge is a 1937 black-and-white detective film directed by Louis King, produced by Stuart Walker, and written by Edward T. Lowe Jr. and Herman C... |
John Howard John Howard (American actor) John Howard was an American actor noted for his work in film and television.-Background:Born John R. Cox, Jr. in Cleveland, Ohio, he was a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of what is now Case Western Reserve University. At college he discovered a love for the theater, and took part in student productions... |
| Bulldog Drummond at Bay Bulldog Drummond at Bay (1937 film) -Cast:*John Lodge as Hugh Drummond*Dorothy Mackaill as Doris Thompson*Victor Jory as Gregoroff*Claud Allister as Algy Longworth*Hugh Miller as Ivan Kalinsky*Leslie Perrins as Maj. Grayson*Richard Bird as Caldwell*Brian Buchel as Meredith*Jim Gérald as Veight... |
John Lodge John Lodge John Charles Lodge is an English musician, best known as bassist and singer of the longstanding rock group The Moody Blues.-Early years:... |
|
| Bulldog Drummond Comes Back Bulldog Drummond Comes Back Bulldog Drummond Comes Back is a 1937 American film starring John Barrymore and directed by Louis King.-Plot:The girlfriend of Captain Drummond is kidnapped by an enemy of Drummond seeking revenge, but Drummond and his friend Colonel Nielsen are hot on his his trail.-Cas :*John Barrymore as Colonel... |
John Howard | |
| Bulldog Drummond Escapes Bulldog Drummond Escapes Bulldog Drummond Escapes is a 1937 American film directed by James P. Hogan starring Ray Milland as Capt. Hugh "Bulldog" Drummond.-Plot:Captain High 'Bulldog' Drummond has just returned to England. As he is driving home in the dark, a young woman jumps out in front of his car. He misses her, but... |
Ray Milland Ray Milland Ray Milland was a Welsh actor and director. His screen career ran from 1929 to 1985, and he is best remembered for his Academy Award–winning portrayal of an alcoholic writer in The Lost Weekend , a sophisticated leading man opposite a corrupt John Wayne in Reap the Wild Wind , the murder-plotting... |
|
| 1938 | Bulldog Drummond's Peril Bulldog Drummond's Peril Bulldog Drummond's Peril is a 1938 American film directed by James P. Hogan. The film is based on Herman C. McNeile's novel The Third Round.-Plot:... |
John Howard |
| Bulldog Drummond in Africa Bulldog Drummond in Africa -Cast:*John Howard as Capt. Hugh Chesterton "Bulldog" Drummond*Heather Angel as Phyllis Clavering*H.B. Warner as Col. J.A. Nielsen*J. Carrol Naish as Richard Lane*Reginald Denny as Algernon "Algy" Longworth*E.E. Clive as "Tenny" Tennison... |
John Howard | |
| 1939 | Arrest Bulldog Drummond Arrest Bulldog Drummond Arrest Bulldog Drummond is a 1939 American film directed by James P. Hogan.- Cast :*John Howard as Capt. Hugh Chesterton "Bulldog" Drummond*Heather Angel as Phyllis Clavering*H.B. Warner as Col. J.A. Nielsen*Reginald Denny as Algernon "Algy" Longworth... |
John Howard |
| Bulldog Drummond's Secret Police Bulldog Drummond's Secret Police Bulldog Drummond's Secret Police is a 1939 American country house murder mystery film directed by James Patrick Hogan, based on an H. C. McNeile novel.... |
John Howard | |
| Bulldog Drummond's Bride Bulldog Drummond's Bride Bulldog Drummond's Bride is a 1939 American film directed by James P. Hogan.-Cast:*John Howard as Col. Hugh Chesterton 'Bulldog' Drummond*Heather Angel as Phyllis Clavering*H.B. Warner as Col. J.A. Nielson*Reginald Denny as Algy Longworth*E.E... |
John Howard | |
| 1947 | Bulldog Drummond at Bay Bulldog Drummond at Bay (1947 film) Bulldog Drummond at Bay is a 1947 American thriller film directed by Sidney Salkow and starring Ron Randell, Anita Louise, Patrick O'Moore and Terry Kilburn. The film is loosely based on the novel Bulldog Drummond at Bay by H. C... |
Ron Randell |
| Bulldog Drummond Strikes Back Bulldog Drummond Strikes Back Bulldog Drummond Strikes Back is a 1934 American comedy-mystery-adventure film directed by Roy Del Ruth. The film stars Ronald Colman and Loretta Young.-Plot:... |
Ron Randell Ron Randell Ronald Egan "Ron" Randell was an Australian-born American film and stage actor.-Biography:Randell was born in Sydney. He started his career as a stage and radio performer in his teens. He soon established himself as a leading male juvenile for radio, acting for 2KY Players, George Edwards, BAP... |
|
| 1948 | The Challenge | Tom Conway Tom Conway Tom Conway was a British film and radio actor, and elder brother of actor George Sanders.-Early life:... |
| 13 Lead Soldiers | Tom Conway | |
| 1951 | Calling Bulldog Drummond Calling Bulldog Drummond Calling Bulldog Drummond is a 1951 British crime film directed by Victor Saville and featuring Walter Pidgeon, Margaret Leighton, Robert Beatty, David Tomlinson, and Bernard Lee. It featured the character Bulldog Drummond created by the novelist Herman Cyril McNeile, which had seen a number of... |
Walter Pidgeon Walter Pidgeon Walter Davis Pidgeon was a Canadian actor, who starred in many motion pictures, including Mrs... |
| 1952 | Bulldog Drummond | Robert Beatty Robert Beatty Robert Beatty was a Canadian actor who worked in film, television and radio for most of his career and was especially known in the UK.-Career:Born in Hamilton, Ontario, Beatty began his acting career in Britain in 1939.... |
| 1966 | Deadlier Than the Male Deadlier Than the Male Deadlier Than the Male is a 1967 British action film featuring the character of Bulldog Drummond. It is one of the many take-offs of James Bond produced during the 1960s but based on an established detective fiction hero... |
Richard Johnson Richard Johnson (actor) Richard Johnson is an English actor, writer and producer, who starred in several British films of the 1960s and has also had a distinguished stage career. He most recently appeared in The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas.-Life and career:... |
| 1968 | Some Girls Do Some Girls Do Some Girls Do is a 1969 British comedy spy film directed by Ralph Thomas. It was the second of the revamped Bulldog Drummond films made following the success of the James Bond films of the 1960's.-Cast:... |
Richard Johnson |
| Television | ||
| Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Presents Episode: "Bulldog Drummond and The Ludlow Affair" |
Robert Beatty | |
Radio and television
A Bulldog Drummond radio series ran on the Mutual Broadcasting SystemMutual Broadcasting System
The Mutual Broadcasting System was an American radio network, in operation from 1934 to 1999. In the golden age of U.S. radio drama, MBS was best known as the original network home of The Lone Ranger and The Adventures of Superman and as the long-time radio residence of The Shadow...
from 1941 to 1954. Most post-war broadcasts were repeats. Bulldog was portrayed by Ned Weaver.
Episode Listing with first broadcast dates (where known):
19xx-xx-xx - Book Store
19xx-xx-xx - Death Ship
19xx-xx-xx - Fatal Right
19xx-xx-xx - Geiger Counter
19xx-xx-xx - Hubert s Museum
19xx-xx-xx - Murder off Catalina
19xx-xx-xx - White Star and the Ringer
1941-09-28 - The Richards Mob (Audition)
1941-09-28 - Hijacker
1941-xx-xx - Fiery Island
1941-xx-xx - Porcelain Ming Cat
1941-xx-xx - Ride In The Moonlight
1942-01-04 - Death Rides A Racehorse
1942-01-11 - Death Loops The Loop
1942-01-11 - A Study In Mink
1942-01-25 - The Circus
1942-05-12 - Death Uses Disappearing Ink
1942-05-19 - Death In The Deep
1942-06-17 - The Deadly Stand In
1942-06-29 - The Circus
1942-12-01 - Penny Arcade Story
1943-09-16 - Axis Submarine
1943-xx-xx - Devil Flat
1944-06-26 - Nazi Sub
1945-02-05 - The Fatal 50,000
1945-04-23 - Dinner of Death
1945-05-07 - Ride In The Moonlight
1945-08-13 - Help Wanted
1945-09-10 - Murder In The Death House
1945-09-17 - Death on the Diamond
1945-09-24 - Escape Into Death
1946-10-14 - Case of the Fatal Right
1947-01-17 - Claim Check Murders
1947-09-28 - Hijacker
1948-05-05 - Death Paints A Portrait
1948-06-16 - Death in the Deep
1948-12-01 - The Penny Arcade
1948-xx-xx - Blind Man's Bluff
1949-01-13 - Atomic Murders
A 30-minute episode of Douglas Fairbanks Jr Presents featured Bulldog Drummond in "The Ludlow Affair" (1957). Drummond (Robert Beatty
Robert Beatty
Robert Beatty was a Canadian actor who worked in film, television and radio for most of his career and was especially known in the UK.-Career:Born in Hamilton, Ontario, Beatty began his acting career in Britain in 1939....
) was little more than a detective in London, aided by Kelly (Michael Ripper
Michael Ripper
Michael Ripper was an English character actor born in Portsmouth.He began his film career in quota quickies in the 1930s and until the late 1950s was virtually unknown; he was seldom credited. He played one of the two murderers in Richard III. Ripper became a mainstay in Hammer Film Productions...
). This episode is available on DVD.
Later incarnations
- The 1973 BBC documentary Omnibus: The British Hero featured Christopher CazenoveChristopher CazenoveChristopher Cazenove was an English cinema, television and stage actor.-Early life and career:He was born Christopher de Lerisson Cazenove, the son of Arnold de Lerisson Cazenove and Elizabeth Laura in Winchester, Hampshire, but was brought up in Bowlish, Somerset...
playing Drummond, as well as a number of other such heroic characters, including Richard HannayRichard HannayMajor-General Sir Richard Hannay, KCB, OBE, DSO, Legion of Honour, is a fictional secret agent created by Scottish novelist John Buchan. In his autobiography, Memory Hold-the-Door, Buchan suggests that the character is based, in part, on Edmund Ironside, from Edinburgh, a spy during the Second Boer...
, Beau GesteBeau GesteBeau Geste is a 1924 adventure novel by P. C. Wren. It has been adapted for the screen several times.-Plot summary:Michael "Beau" Geste is the protagonist. The main narrator , by contrast, is his younger brother John...
, and James BondJames BondJames Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
. - Another parody, Bullshot CrummondBullshot CrummondBullshot Crummond is a stage play parodying the British pulp hero Bulldog Drummond. "Bullshot" was performed by Ron House, Diz White, John Neville-Andrews, Alan Shearman, and Derek Cunninghamwhen later made into a 1983 film, Bullshot....
, was originally staged as a play and subsequently made into a 1983 motion picture. - Kim NewmanKim NewmanKim Newman is an English journalist, film critic, and fiction writer. Recurring interests visible in his work include film history and horror fiction—both of which he attributes to seeing Tod Browning's Dracula at the age of eleven—and alternate fictional versions of history...
's short story "Pitbull Brittan" (1991), a savage parody of Bulldog Drummond and the state of Britain under Margaret ThatcherMargaret ThatcherMargaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990...
, features the eponymous adventurer's battle against an international conspiracy responsible for the 1984 Miners' Strike. Newman also used the character for a brief cameo appearance in his novel The Bloody Red BaronThe Bloody Red BaronThe Bloody Red Baron is a 1995 novel by British author Kim Newman. It is the second book in the Anno Dracula series and takes place thirty years after the former.-Plot:...
. - In 2004, Moonstone BooksMoonstone BooksMoonstone Books is an American comic book, graphic novel, and prose fiction publisher based in Chicago focused on pulp fiction comic books and prose anthologies as well as horror and western tales....
released a Bulldog Drummond comic book written by William Messner-LoebsWilliam Messner-LoebsWilliam Messner-Loebs is an American comic book writer and artist from Michigan, also known as Bill Loebs and Bill Messner-Loebs...
and illustrated by Brett Barkley. - In the graphic novelGraphic novelA graphic novel is a narrative work in which the story is conveyed to the reader using sequential art in either an experimental design or in a traditional comics format...
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black DossierThe League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black DossierThe League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier is an original graphic novel in the comic book series The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, written by Alan Moore and illustrated by Kevin O'Neill. It was the last volume of the series to be published by DC Comics. Although the third book to be...
, an elderly Drummond is one of the three Secret Service agents tasked to hunt down the heroes of the piece.
Pop culture
Despite the outdated images presented in the original books, Bulldog Drummond still appears as a popular culture reference. He is one of the heroes mentioned in The CoastersThe Coasters
The Coasters are an American rhythm and blues/rock and roll vocal group that had a string of hits in the late 1950s. Beginning with "Searchin'" and "Young Blood", their most memorable songs were written by the songwriting and producing team of Leiber and Stoller...
' 1957 hit "Searchin'":
- No matter where she's a-hidin', she's gonna hear me a-comin
- Gonna walk right down that street like Bulldog Drummond!
Bulldog (Drummond) is also one of the nicknames proposed by Jumbo for former British spy turned teacher Jim Prideaux in John le Carré
John le Carré
David John Moore Cornwell , who writes under the name John le Carré, is an author of espionage novels. During the 1950s and the 1960s, Cornwell worked for MI5 and MI6, and began writing novels under the pseudonym "John le Carré"...
's Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy is a 1974 British spy novel by John le Carré, featuring George Smiley. Smiley is a middle-aged, taciturn, perspicacious intelligence expert in forced retirement. He is recalled to hunt down a Soviet mole in the "Circus", the highest echelon of the Secret Intelligence...
. This reflects his jingoistic spirit and determined attitude towards life, although Jim is not wealthy.
Philip José Farmer
Philip José Farmer
Philip José Farmer was an American author, principally known for his award-winning science fiction and fantasy novels and short stories....
and J. T. Edson included Bulldog Drummond in Tarzan
Tarzan
Tarzan is a fictional character, an archetypal feral child raised in the African jungles by the Mangani "great apes"; he later experiences civilization only to largely reject it and return to the wild as a heroic adventurer...
's extended family tree as the older brother of John 'Korak
Korak
Korak [long "O"] is the ape name of John 'Jack' Clayton, the son of Tarzan and Jane.-History:Jack first appeared in the original Tarzan novels by Edgar Rice Burroughs. He was introduced as an infant in the non-Tarzan novel The Eternal Lover , in which the Ape Man and his family played supporting...
' Drummond-Clayton and the great-uncle of Dawn Drummond-Clayton.
Drummond was mentioned in the quote: "You're a prohibition agent, not Bulldog Drummond " on season 1, episode 6 of HBO's series "Boardwalk Empire.
External links
- Bulldog Drummond: An Overview by David L. Vineyard