Classic Sci-Fi Movies and TV Series

Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe is a 1940 American black-and-white science-fiction 12-chapter movie serial from Universal Pictures, produced by Henry MacRae and co-directed by Ford Beebe and Ray Taylor. The serial stars Buster Crabbe, Carol Hughes, Charles B. Middleton, Frank Shannon, and Roland Drew.[1] It was written by George H. Plympton, Basil Dickey, and Barry Shipman, and was adapted from Alex Raymond's syndicated newspaper comic strip of the same name from King Features Syndicate. Shown theatrically in 12 separate weekly "chapters", it was the last of the three Universal Flash Gordon serials made between 1936 and 1940. During the 1950s, all three Flash Gordon serials were syndicated to television by Motion Pictures for Television, along with many of Universal's other serial output. To avoid confusion with the imported Flash Gordon TV series airing around the same time, they were retitled Space Soldiers, Space Soldiers' Trip to Mars, and Space Soldiers Conquer the Universe. In 1966, Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe was edited down by King Features Syndicate into two feature-length films for television syndication: Purple Death from Outer Space and Perils from the Planet Mongo. In the early 1970s, a third feature version was re-edited for the 16 mm home movie market, using story material taken from the entire serial. It bore the title Space Soldiers Conquer the Universe and later appeared on television during the 1980s. Afterward, all three edited feature-length versions became available through various public-domain video sellers, first on VHS videotape and later on DVD. In the mid-1970s, all three complete Universal Flash Gordon serials were shown chapter-by-chapter by PBS stations across the U.S., bringing them to a new generation of science-fiction fans, two years before Star Wars and Close Encounters of the Third Kind. From the late 1980s onward, all three serials became available on the home video market under their original theatrical release titles, chapters, and running times. SYNOPSIS A deadly plague, known as the Purple Death, is ravaging Earth, leaving victims with a purple spot on their foreheads. The source of this catastrophic disease is traced back to Ming the Merciless, the tyrannical Emperor of Planet Mongo. Flash Gordon, along with Dr. Alexis Zarkov and Dale Arden, embarks on a perilous mission to Mongo to find a cure. The trio seeks the help of Prince Barin and battles Ming's forces, led by the ruthless Captain Torch. They discover an antidote, Polarite, in the remote northern Kingdom of Frigia. However, Ming captures Zarkov and Dale, forcing Flash to return to Earth to distribute the cure and save humanity. Flash returns to Mongo to free his friends and continue their fight against Ming. In a final daring act, Flash pilots a rocketship loaded with Solarite, a highly explosive material, directly into Ming's control tower, ending the tyrant's reign forever. Prince Barin assumes his rightful place as the peaceful ruler of Mongo, and with Ming's defeat, Dr. Zarkov declares that Flash Gordon has conquered the universe. CAST & CREW Buster Crabbe as Flash Gordon Carol Hughes as Dale Arden Frank Shannon as Dr. Alexis Zarkov Charles B. Middleton as Ming the Merciless Roland Drew as Prince Barin Shirley Deane as Princess Aura Lee Powell as Radio Officer Roka Don Rowan as Captain Torch Victor Zimmerman as Lieutenant Thong Anne Gwynne as Lady Sonja John Hamilton as Professor Gordon Edgar Edwards as Captain Turan William Royle as Captain Sudan Sigurd Nilssen as Count Korro Michael Mark as Professor Karm Byron Foulger as Professor Druk Directed by: Ford Beebe, Ray Taylor Written by: George H. Plympton, Basil Dickey, Barry Shipman, Alex Raymond (comic strip) Produced by: Henry MacRae Starring: Buster Crabbe, Carol Hughes, Charles B. Middleton, Frank Shannon, Roland Drew Cinematography: Jerome Ash, William A. Sickner Production companies: Universal Pictures, King Features Syndicate Distributed by: Universal Pictures Release date: March 3, 1940 Running time: 195 min (12 episodes) Country: United States Language: English NOTES Chapter titles "The Purple Death" "Freezing Torture" "Walking Bombs" "The Destroying Ray" "The Palace of Terror" "Flaming Death" "The Land of the Dead" "The Fiery Abyss" "The Pool of Peril" "The Death Mist" "Stark Treachery" "Doom of the Dictator"