Movie Serials Trivia Quiz

Answer: The Perils of Pauline

Considering that "The Perils of Pauline" itself was monstrously photographed in New Jersey and poorly directed, the presence of Pearl White, "The Stunt Queen" of silent movies, made it memorable. Here was the first use of the 'damsel in distress tied to the railroad tracks by the nasty mustachioed villain' theme.

This caricature was so overused that it became cliched over time. The title cards and subtitles were hilarious with unbelievable grammatical errors and misspellings; these were sent to France, translated there, and re-translated back; only these French version chapters (9 of 20) survive.

As to Koerner, he was "hoisted on his own petard" (died by his own hand). You might like to know that petard in French means "to break wind".

Answer: Les Vampires

Set in Paris, "Les Vampires" is the story of an unseen, nameless gang called The Vampires (well, that figures) which terrorize the city. It was condemned by critics and police as glorifying crime and immorality, the result being a box office bonanza. The gang is led by the Grand Vampire and his bewitching cohort Irma Vep played by Musidora, which made her an instant star.

Theda Bara starred in a January 1915 film as a vamp/femme fatale and in November of the same year Musidora adopted this persona.

She later starred in another Feuillade serial in 1916 called "Judex". The good guy is Philippe Guérande, a newspaper reporter hot on the heels of the baddies, who all end up dead. The wrong answers are the first three chapters in the serial.

Answer: The Exploits of Elaine

Elaine's dad is murdered to get some papers which might reveal the hiding place of "The Clutching Hand". Elaine obtains the help of a detective, who uses unbelievable scientific gadgets, and a newspaperman to attempt to track down the villain. Along the way she is confronted with a South American Indian, who uses curare dipped darts, a crazy scientist who invents killing machines, and a gang called "The Brotherhood of the Falsers".

She's also framed in a blackmail scheme by Wu Tang, who is the main antagonist in the next series. Good old Wu loves the devil and almost succeeds in sacrificing poor Elaine to the hell dweller.

The next sequel was "The New Exploits of Elaine" followed by the "The Romance of Elaine". The latter, along with another Pearl White serial "The Fatal Ring", are considered lost.

Answer: The Adventures of Kathlyn

"The Adventures of Kathlyn", like "The Romance of Elaine", is considered another lost film. Kathlyn was played by Kathlyn Williams, who in another film had a black leopard jump over her. On film it looked like the leopard jumps at her. Unfortunately it did on one take and she smartly covered her face and remained still until the trainer's whip cracked, thus escaping with minor cuts and bruises.

Then came Toodles the elephant who had killed two of his handlers. Undaunted, Kathlyn worked for a month with Toodles until he would, on her command, kneel and pick her up by his trunk. Know many stars of today that would chance this?

Answer: The Master Mystery aka The Master of Mystery

"The Master Mystery", a 15-episode thriller, introduced audiences to "Q The Automaton", one of the earliest robot bad guys. Within we find Floyd Buckley who was the voice of Popeye on radio. During the course of the film Harry escapes various seemingly impossible predicaments like being strapped in an electric chair, hanging by his feet over acid, bound under a descending elevator and six feet under in a coffin. All stunts were completed by Houdini himself although a double was used occasionally.

His legacy includes his continuing quest to debunk spiritualists and mediums alike and his hope that his wife could communicate with him after he died; she never did.

Answer: The Hazards of Helen

"The Hazards of Helen" debuted in 1914 and ended its run in 1917. Helen, a telegraph operator for a railroad, seemed to get her share in a day of runaway locomotives, bandits, and boxcars gone astray. Although sometimes helped by a hero, she usually managed to escape by her own wits leaving many a man to eat his words about the gentility of females.

At the time Helen was more popular than "The Perils of Pauline"; she was regarded as more adventurous and independent. Only about 17 episodes have survived, the most famous of these is number 26 "The Wild Engine".

Answer: The Mystery of the Double Cross

The warning he received was about a double cross, which he later saw on the arm of a mystery woman. Thus the title "The Mystery of the Double Cross" emerged. After a submarine attack, Peter Hale fails to find the woman. In New York, dad tells Peter that he is to marry a woman with a double cross on her arm to inherit his fortune but if she marries another, she gets the goodies. From there the film involves a gangster, a naive friend of Peter's dad, the friend's daughter (the one with the double cross) and the Masked Stranger, who means nothing but trouble.

This serial did not involve cliffhangers but each episode left the viewer perplexed as to what exactly is happening.

Answer: Patria

As usual the baddies were stopped in their tracks by our heroine "Patria", played by Irene Castle, better known for dancing with hubby Vernon. Needless to say that her dancing abilities and remarkable athletic prowess were showcased whenever and wherever possible. One example saw her diffuse a bomb while tightly bound to a chair. Warner Oland, who played Charlie Chan in many serials as well as feature films, was a supporting actor. Wallace Beery played Pancho Villa and 17 years later portrayed him in the film "Viva Villa". Rudolph Valentino, the "Latin Lover", also had a minor role. One other item of note was the film's pro-German propaganda which caused the U.S. Senate to conduct hearings after World War I.

Answer: The Ace of Scotland Yard

Both "The Ace of Scotland Yard" and its predecessor, "Blake of Scotland Yard", are considered to be lost. The plot of both revolves around Angus Blake, retired CID agent, and the Queen of Diamonds, a thief intent on stealing a cursed ring. A supporting actor in both films, Monte Montague, appeared in close to 200 features and serials from 1920 to 1954.

A later serial also entitled "Blake of Scotland Yard" had no similarities to its predecessor. This 1937 film was a horror 15 episode serial with one James Blake battling the 'Scorpion'.

Answer: Tarzan the Tiger

"Tarzan the Tiger" featured a naked Jane in one scene and the Apeman's first yell, which has been recorded for posterity. Hearing it may sound a bit weird but in those days it was considered amazing. This was the followup to "Tarzan the Mighty", also produced by Universal, which had Tarzan's love interest called Mary Trevor, also played by Miss Kingston. Tarzan had two previous serials produced by independents, and two subsequent ones.

In case you're wondering, the first naked female in film was Audrey Munson in 1915 or Australian swimming star Annette Kellermann in 1916, depending where you look. Do you remember the 1979 song "Video Killed The Radio Star"? Well, in similar fashion, Hedy Lamarr killed nudity in film from 1934 to 1960 because of overly suggestive nude scenes in a 1933 Czech film called "Ecstasy".