ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN / "The Mind Machine" - 1952

In today's super adventure, a mobster kidnaps a scientist and takes possession of his invention. The crook then uses the device to damage the minds of people testifying before an investigative committee, and the victims die a short time later. Superman races to find the mobster before Lois Lane testifies at the committee hearing.

Dr. Stanton is working on his invention to help mental patients for the betterment of mankind... Three mobsters enter the lab where they take the machine and doctor away after knocking the doc's assistant to the ground, and they warn him, do not call the police if you ever want to see your boss again!

The assistant goes to the Daily Planet and sees Clark who he knows him from a press conference where the doctor told the public about the machine. Clark takes an interest in the kidnapping, of course!

Here's the hoodlums at their hideout. There's Curly, Lou the boss and Al. They're reading the newspaper which has a classified ad that has a reward for whoever knows the whereabouts of the doctor. Lou knows it's a trap, so just grabs the doc and has him warm the machine up.

He tunes it in on the investigative committee where the witness is ready to name names in the criminal activities in Metropolis.

But the second he's ready to say, Lou Cranek, the mob boss tells him to say that he's never heard of the person, then the man goes into a psychosis and leaves the courthouse...

The man then gets super paranoid, he goes into the street and commandeers a woman's car and drives like a bat outta Hell trying to get away from Clark and Lois, the lady faints. He drives into the country and stops after the car gets a flat. He sees a bus with children in it and steals it while the driver is trying to fix the brakes. Lois and Clark show up in their little Nash Rambler. Clark tells Lois and the bus driver to go chase the bus while he stays with the fainted woman... He then changes and Superman takes off.

Our hero stops the bus, and when Lois and the bus driver show up...

They find the man dead in the driver's seat!

It gets really weird about here, Clark and the doctor's assistant (who's flying the plane) use radar to try and locate the place the doc's located. Since the mind machine uses so much power, they finally locate the place. So, Clark punches the pilot and knocks him out, puts the plane on auto-pilot and jumps out.

Lois is testifying before the committee, as soon as the viewer becomes clear, Lou can give her a deadly command...

Luckily, Superman shows up just in the nick of time. Al fires away with his gun but to no avail.

As Superman toys with the gangsters, Dr.Stanton destroys his devilish machine.

Al breaks a vase over Superman's head, then gets knocked on his ass!

He tells the doctor to call the police for him because he has one last thing to do, land the airplane safely as it just ran out of gas...

Of course everyone wants to know where Clark was during the whole ordeal... Tune in again tomorrow for another dose of what you need, here at The Dungeon!!..

DICK TRACY - "The Plot To Kill Nato" Unaired TV Pilot (1967)

Tonight I've got a real Weird Wednesday feature for you, the 1967 unaired pilot for a TV show based on the Dick Tracy comics, titled what else, but "Dick Tracy!"

This go round Ray MacDonnell is the Dick in the driving seat!

When this gig failed, Ray settled in at the soap opera "All My Children" for the next 41 years and/or 688 episodes as Joe Martin.

The title of this pilot episode was the uplifting, "The Plot To Kill Nato."

"Dick Tracy" was brought to you by the same people who did "Batman," and it's prety obvious! The only thing that is missing is the "Zap" and "Pow" visual sound effects!

"Batman" regular as King Tut, Victor Buono is the villianess Mr. Memory!

From looking at these credits, you might get the idea this is a cartoon, but it is not!

Jan Shutan was also in "Dracula's Dog," and "The Outer Limits" Episode "The Inheritors Pt. II."

They were obviously planning on a longer run when they made these opening credits, because Tess Trueheart never even shows up in this pilot episode!

Ken Mayer started out in "Space Patrol," and went on to be in what looks like almost every western show that was on in the 60's.

Monroe Arnold was also in shows like "My Favorite Martian," "Bewitched," and "The Munsters."

This would have been Jay Blood's only acting appearance if it had aired, and Bonnie Braids, like Tess Trueheart, was not even in this episode, but after this, she was Jan Brady for many years!

The infamous two way wrist radio and TV.

 

The infamous two way wrist radio and TV realized!

The reason I'm showing you all these cartoon images from the credits is because this "best copy" that you can watch on YouTube is barely watchable, and almost impossible to get any decent stills from!

A big nod of Dick Tracy's chapeau to Mr. KD for telling me this "Dick Tracy" show existed!

Victor Buono makes almost anything worth watching, even this!

AND.....one of the cooler features of the "Dick Tracy" show is that the theme was composed and performed by one of the most popular surf bands of all time, The Ventures!

So here you go kids, it's only a little over 28 minutes long, if nothing else, at least listen to the theme!

CHARLIE CHAN In "The Jade Mask" - 1945

Today, Charlie Chan is brought in to solve a mystery after an eccentric scientist goes missing in his mansion with a hidden lab, secret panels, a suspicious butler and greedy relatives with unusual talents. It boils down to... Where's the body? How can a dead man walk? And, how can a murder be done in full view of detectives and witnesses?

It stars Sidney (22 roles as Charlie Chan) Toler, Mantan (My Hero!) Moreland, Edwin (BLOOD ALLEY) Luke, Hardie (THE MAD DOCTOR OF MARKET STREET) Albright, Frank (HOUSE OF FRANKENSTEIN) Reicher, Janet (THE TWONKY) Warren and Cyril (THE INVISIBLE MAN'S REVENGE) Delevanti.

The story starts with this bizarre scene of the scientist Harper and his assistant working in their little gas chamber. What they're doing is a mystery at this point, with their gas masks and all...

Well, Harper is paranoid about security so no one except him and the butler, Roth, in the household knows anything about where his secret papers are hidden.

Then it happens, Harper is working in his lab when he gets a dose of poison gas!

Charlie Chan is called in to solve the mystery of the disappearing scientist. Holy crap, there's a pile of misfits to question, and none of them really like each other!

Charlie does some investigating and discovers the dead scientist, he pulls the curtain and viola, the body was still in the lab!.. What the?

Charlie and the sheriff question the butler, who's rather dodgy about the matter.

By far, the strangest person there is Harper's assistant, Walter Meeker. He always stops the show when he speaks up. He accuses Roth of murdering Harper...

In the meantime, Charlie and one of the women find the secret room and vault where Harper hides his papers. When they open the vault, they find a woman there, she's removed and lives through the ordeal.

Charlie grabs the papers and puts them in his pocket for safe keeping...

Mute housemate Michael Strong is played by Lester Dorr, right, who the heck is Lester Dorr? Well, get this, he has an astronomical 495 acting credits!!!!! Anyway, things get super complicated near the end, Michael has a clue for Charlie, but falls dead from a poison dart that nobody knows from where it came. Did I mention that Harper was also making human sized marionettes and puppets, and robots, for the war effort?

Walter comes in and starts with some insane crap and twisted insight about the case.

Charlie, who has all the clues now, has the sheriff grab the assistant and he pulls a mask off of the impersonator for all to see... He then points at one of the women and accuses her of being an accomplice to murder. He also informs her that the maniac also tried to kill HER!

She turns on him. Hey, they're married!! He's a quick change artist and impersonator, she's a puppet master, both trying to get their hands on the papers! So, everything turns out swell, but Birmingham (Mantan) wants to get the Hell away from that house!

As the sheriff is driving back to town, Birmingham catches up and asks him how far into town, then speeds away!.. So, we'll be back on Wednesday with more treats for you, here at The Dungeon!!..