(1914) 9 Episodes, color tinted
Pearl White, Crane Wilbur, Paul Panzer
This groundbreaking episodic serial (originally extended to 20 weeks from the original 13) was the first wildly successful American continued-story serial and influenced many more made in the next decade. Every two weeks Pauline (Pearl White) evaded different murderous attempts on her life. She survives the plots of her dastardly guardian Koerner (Paul Panzer) who wants her inherited fortune for himself and will stop at nothing to get it. The episodes are self-contained but each contains a new cliffhanging peril -- a giant rolling boulder (yep, Pauline was way ahead of Indiana Jones), a deadly balloon, etc., for Pauline to escape. A must for every serious serial collector's library.
Note: This DVD presents the 9-episode version of the serial released in Europe, as found on 9.5mm film, and is an english "re-translation" of the only version of the serial known to exist, so picture quality is less than should be expected of transfers made from 16mm or 35mm prints, but it's still pretty good.
All-new orchestra score.
1 Dual-layer DVD with printed face; List price $24.95 Special Squadron Member Price $19.95