Radar Secret Service, lobbycard, from left, Myrna Dell, John Howard, 1950. (Photo by LMPC via Getty Images)
I found this film on You Tube and took a chance on it because of the cast. It only ran an hour but it was badly needing a decent script.
Advertised as “G-Men! T-Men! Now R-Men! “
John Howard and Ralph Byrd work for a special unit which can help any branch of Government because of their radar skills!
A truck load of radioactive material is stolen and they are on the case.
Tom Neal, Tristram Coffin, Adele Jergens.
The ‘baddies’. Adele’s role reminds me of her part in Armored Car Robbery – she ditches Tom Neal for Tris Coffin.
Ralph Byrd, John Howard
Ralph Byrd plays Howard’s partner – he gets to mention Dick Tracy at one point – the role he was known for.
This is their ‘radar’ car which acts more like a metal detector .
Nice to see Myrna Dell, though her part is small. She could easily have played Adele Jergens’ role, but has a nice change from her usual characters, and helps the radar team.
The film runs more like a two-episode serial!
A good cast in search of a half decent script. A real shame.
One Lippert production to forget.
………….I enjoyed The Runaround (1946,Universal), with Ella Raines and Rod Cameron. With a plot line bearing similarities to It Happened One Night, Cameron is a private detective employed by wealthy Samuel S.Hinds to find his daughter (Ella Raines) who has run off to marry her boyfriend.
Also looking for the missing heiress is Broderick Crawford . With Frank McHugh in a small role as Cameron’s partner.
I ‘ve seen very few Rod Cameron films and always associated him with westerns, but he and Ella Raines made a great team, tossing insults back and forth while he tries to collect the $15,000 reward for her return.
And there’s a good twist at the end.
I’m catching up on two other Cameron titles, Double Jeopardy and Ride The Man Down (also with Ella Raines.) Both films on You Tube. And another Ella Raines film to cross off my list.
Vienna's Classic Hollywood
I fancy seeing Runaround. Anything with Ella Raines is worth a watch.
She’s always good.
I have Radar Secret Service in a Lippert box set and quite enjoyed it. You place a lot of emphasis on scripts but I never really notice them. It’s bad construction or lack of plausibility that gets me. Must give The Runaround a try, it wasn’t a success at the time.
When two of her other Universal films Time Out Of Mind and White Tie And Tails also flopped the studio dropped Ella’s contract.
hi vienna if you remember GUILTY BYSTANDER from terrible old VHS print on UTUBE check out this restoration..amazing rediscovery..great performances all around. cheers peter Its a fabulous sharp 1080p resolution of the film….
https://www.bynwr.com/articles/guilty-bystander-1950
On Wed, 10 Jun 2020 at 14:06, Vienna’s Classic Hollywood wrote:
> Vienna posted: ” I found this film on You Tube and took a chance on it > because of the cast. It only ran an hour but it was badly needing a decent > script. Advertised as “G-Men! T-Men! Now R-Men! “ John Howard and Ralph > Byrd work for a special unit which can hel” >
Thanks for the link, Peter.
Gave up on The Runaround at the three quarter mark. Rod and Ella tried hard but you need sparkling light comedy players for this kind of story.
Any Rod Cameron’s movies always watchable. I do like his westerns. Best regards.
I’m becoming a Cameron fan!
I think I was a bit hard on The Runaround in my previous post. I watched the rest of it this morning and Rod and Ella work very well together. I certainly didn’t see that twist coming. I was amused to see that Tudor style mansion with the sloping lawn which turns up in so many films, notably Strangers On A Train. Glad also that blog users have been alerted to the restored Guilty Bystander. Filmed independently in New York with former Warner’s players Zachary Scott and Faye Emerson it deserves to be revaluated. Bleak, tough and uncompromising. Please write a review Vienna.
Interesting to note that Faye Emerson and Zachary Scott were also in Her Kind Of Man.
And a good thriller Danger Signal1945.
Rod was one of the American actors who came to Britain in the fifties. Passport To Treason is a good little mystery about a supposed Peace Organisation which is a front for a Neo Nazi group. Rod works well with Lois Maxwell although she’s hardly on screen for the first half hour. Available for viewing on the Daily Motion site (not You Tube, enter title on Google)
I’ll definitively seek out The Runaround after seeing Cameron and Raines together in Ride the Man Down, a great little Western.
Speaking of Lippert productions, I just found The Tall Texan with Lloyd Bridges and Marie Windsor on ok.ru. Certainly a cheapo, but well worth watching.
It really deserves a dvd release. As does Ride The Man Down which I liked so much, I watched it again.
Yes, The Tall Texan is worth a look.