A criminal mastermind known as The Crimson Ghost is out to steal a device called the Cyclotrode, which can short-circuit all electrical current on the planet.

The Crimson Ghost

Chapter 10: The Trap That Failed

And Duncan got Diana’s collar removed just in the nick of time! Ash, posing as Dr. Gage, pulls the plug on the magnetic machine just as Duncan removes the collar and it explodes in a flash of light. Fight! Duncan knocks Ash out and sets up his plan. Handcuffed, Ash watches as one armed guard relieves the other, but it’s a trick! The new guard was sent by the Crimson Ghost and knocks the first guard out, then frees Ash. While he is escaping, Duncan arrives. Fight! Ash is able to escape in a getaway car parked in the alley. But surprise, Ash! It’s an elaborate plan set up by Duncan, and you’ve fallen for it! Your getaway car is bugged and Duncan can now follow you straight to the Crimson Ghost’s hideout. Duncan soon arrives at the hideout, cold steel drawn. He sneaks in to surprise the Crimson Ghost and what appears to be that guy that was working on a safe at the radio store with Ash way back when. Anyway, Duncan, curious to find out the identity of the Crimson Ghost, removes the skull mask. But it’s Ash! Duncan, you’ve been one-upped. The real Crimson Ghost now comes up from behind, with his cold steel drawn. Quickly, Duncan pulls the steampipe trick, blowing hot steam at the Crimson Ghost. Fight! A massive brawl breaks out while Hi-Test Fuel leaks from a barrel pierced by a gunshot. Sparks erupt and the hideout goes up in a blaze! While Duncan and Ash are grappling, the Crimson Ghost lays a chair to the back of Duncan (a move any ECW fan would be proud of!), knocking him out. The Crimson Ghost and Ash then grab the heavy water and escape the inferno.

One of the most entertaining serials to be released by Republic Pictures, this mystery employed yet another inscrutable invention, a counter atomic device known as Cyclotrode X, sought after by yet another cloaked villain, The Crimson Ghost of the title. But just like the well-known criminologist Duncan Richards (Charles Quigley) and his lovely assistant Diana Farnsworth (Linda Stirling), the Saturday Matinee kids had a tough job spotting the person hiding behind the hideous disguise. The studio took no chances this time and ingeniously cast stunt-man Bud Geary to embody the villain while several actors supplied the voice, including I. Stanford Jolley, whose role was minor but who received fourth-billing and was therefore highly suspect. When The Crimson Ghost was unmasked in the 12th and final chapter, he proved to be yet another actor, Joseph Forte, who had enacted a character seemingly above suspicion. Instead of feeling cheated, however, the young target audience subconsciously enjoyed the above-average writing and fine direction by the talented William Witney and Fred C. Brannon, and no one complained. Quigley and Stirling were at the top of their serial game, and to the bemused surprise of more recent viewers, television’s Lone Ranger, Clayton Moore, played one of the master villain’s henchmen, a cold-hearted gangster. The Crimson Ghost was also released in an edited feature version, retitled Cyclotrode. In 1966, yet another edited version was given the title Cyclotrode X.

Cast and Crew:

* Charles Quigley
* Linda Stirling
* Clayton Moore

# Writers: Albert DeMond, Basil Dickey

# Director: Fred C. Brannon, William Witney

Production Company: Republic Pictures
Original Air Date: 1946
Audio & Video: Mono – Released in Black and White (Colorized version)

Additional details in:

The Crimson Ghost in IMDB | The Crimson Ghost in Wikipedia

Be Sociable, Share!

• 

Watch some more full episodes:

Staff Picks