The Whispering Shadow
Encyclopedia
The Whispering Shadow is a Serial film, starring Béla Lugosi
in his first of five serial roles. Lugosi received $10,000, the highest known salary of his career, for this film. (He also received the same amount for The Mystery of the Marie Celeste
aka The Phantom Ship in 1935). The serial was filmed in only 12 days. It was the last film for actor Karl Dane
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in Universal's Dracula
- for example, using close ups of the actors' eyes - in order to take advantage of Bela Lugosi's fame as the star of that film. The shadow of The Shadow is not real; It was drawn in later by animators. Harmon and Glut comment on that "If Street & Smith, owners of the original [The] Shadow
of magazine and radio fame, had found out about the owner of the whisper, they might have sued."
The serial was later edited down to a feature length edition (as was common in those days).
Source:
Béla Lugosi
Béla Ferenc Dezső Blaskó , commonly known as Bela Lugosi, was a Hungarian actor of stage and screen. He was best known for having played Count Dracula in the Broadway play and subsequent film version, as well as having starred in several of Ed Wood's low budget films in the last years of his...
in his first of five serial roles. Lugosi received $10,000, the highest known salary of his career, for this film. (He also received the same amount for The Mystery of the Marie Celeste
The Mystery of the Marie Celeste
The Mystery of the Marie Celeste is one of the early films from Hammer Film Productions and was directed by Denison Clift. The leading actor is Béla Lugosi....
aka The Phantom Ship in 1935). The serial was filmed in only 12 days. It was the last film for actor Karl Dane
Karl Dane
Karl Dane was a Danish comedian and actor known for his work in American films, mainly of the silent film era. He worked alongside Rudolph Valentino, John Gilbert, and King Vidor. In 1926, he teamed up with George K. Arthur to form the successful comedy duo Dane & Arthur...
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Plot
The Shadow in The Whispering Shadow is the underworld mastermind. He has invented a device that makes him invisible but leaves his shadow visible (which does, indeed, whisper). Despite being the voice of The Shadow, Lugosi is a red herringRed herring
A red herring is a deliberate attempt to divert attention.Red herring may refer to:* Red herring , the informal fallacy of presenting an argument that may in itself be valid, but does not address the issue in question....
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Production
The cinematography mimicked that of Karl FreundKarl Freund
Karl W. Freund, A.S.C. was a cinematographer and film director most noted for photographing Metropolis , Dracula , and television's I Love Lucy .-Early life:...
in Universal's Dracula
Dracula (1931 film)
Dracula is a 1931 vampire-horror film directed by Tod Browning and starring Bela Lugosi as the title character. The film was produced by Universal and is based on the stage play of the same name by Hamilton Deane and John L...
- for example, using close ups of the actors' eyes - in order to take advantage of Bela Lugosi's fame as the star of that film. The shadow of The Shadow is not real; It was drawn in later by animators. Harmon and Glut comment on that "If Street & Smith, owners of the original [The] Shadow
The Shadow
The Shadow is a collection of serialized dramas, originally in pulp magazines, then on 1930s radio and then in a wide variety of media, that follow the exploits of the title character, a crime-fighting vigilante in the pulps, which carried over to the airwaves as a "wealthy, young man about town"...
of magazine and radio fame, had found out about the owner of the whisper, they might have sued."
The serial was later edited down to a feature length edition (as was common in those days).
Chapter titles
- Master Magician
- The Collapsing Room
- The All-seeing Eye
- The Shadow Strikes
- Wanted for Murder
- The Man Who Was Czar
- The Double Room
- The Red Circle
- The Fatal Secret
- The Death Warrant
- The Trap
- King of the World
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See also
- Béla Lugosi filmographyBela Lugosi filmographyBela Lugosi was in a large number of movies during the course of his career. The following list is believed complete.-1910s:*Nászdal *Az Ezredes *A Régiséggyüjtö *Leoni Leo *Casanova *Lulu...
- List of film serials
- List of film serials by studio