Buck Rogers (1939)

Buck Rogers (1939)


     The music cue information is provided for the 12-chapter movie serial, inclusive for every chapter in the film. The film source the music was recorded from, along with the name and time of the music cues and composers is listed. In some cases, if the music was public domain, the arranger is listed after the composer name. Example; Liszt/Roemheld. It is not clear if some of the classical music used in the films was actually recorded for them, so "classical" denotes these cues instead a film source name.

Chapter   1: Tomorrow's World
Chapter   2: Tragedy on Saturn
Chapter   3: The Enemy's Stronghold
Chapter   4: The Sky Patrol
Chapter   5: The Phantom Plane
Chapter   6: The Unknown Command
Chapter   7: Primitive Urge
Chapter   8: Revolt of the Zuggs
Chapter   9: Bodies Without Minds
Chapter 10: Broken Barriers
Chapter 11: A Prince in Bondage
Chapter 12: War of the Planets


Author's Notes:
Buck Rogers (1939)

     Buck Rogers was created in the form of a newspaper strip by Phil Nowlan and Dick Calkins in 1929. The comic strip was syndicated by John F. Dille Company across America. It had no tie-in with Flash Gordon, created in 1934, by Alex Raymond. In fact, the Buck Rogers strip was considered to be a rival and was science-fiction, compared to the science-fantasy of Flash Gordon.

     In 1938, Universal decided to acquire the rights to Buck Rogers and make a filmed movie serial, based on the comic strip. The success of Flash Gordon was the deciding factor for their decision and they wanted to create another successful franchise at the time. The studio cast Buster Crabbe in the role of Buck Rogers. His recent fame in portraying Flash Gordon was the reason for him getting the part. By this time, his hair color had reverted back to its natural brown, with a subtle hint of blonde in his hair, having it dyed to play Flash Gordon.

     The 12-chapter serial is considered among film aficionados to belong in the quartet of space serials that Universal produced. Co-starring in the film was Constance Moore as Wilma Deering, Jackie Moran as Buddy Wade, Anthony Warde as Killer Kane, and C. Montague Shaw as Dr. Huer. The film also co-starred serial stars such as Jack Mulhall as Captain Rankin, Philson Ahn as Prince Tallen, Guy Usher as Aldar, Henry Brandon as Captain Laska, and Wheeler Oakman as Lieutenant Patten.

     The screenplay was written by Norman S. Hall and Ray Trampe. Ford Beebe and Saul A. Goodkind provided good direction, with Barney A. Sarecky serving as producer of the serial. Location shooting took place at Red Rock Canyon, three hours northeast of Hollywood. The filming began on September 6th and it wrapped on October 21st, 1938. The final budget of the serial came in at $185,000. The editing of the serial film began on October 28th, 1938. Finally, the music score was recorded on December 9th. The film's release prints utilized Kodak Sonochrome Verdante color film stock. This type of film was the same kind Trip to Mars had, with the errie, green tint.

     Buck Rogers premiered in movie houses on April 11, 1939. However, many in the audience had a jaded opinion of the science-fiction serial and considered it to be a second-rate Flash Gordon. The obvious reason for the objections and disapproval of the serial film was Buster Crabbe's affinity and appeal as Flash Gordon, and the audience could not see him playing Buck Rogers in the same time period. But, the 1939 serial does very well for being science-fiction in nature.

     This shot down the success of Buck Rogers quickly and Universal had to decide if they were going make a sequel or abandon the project and return to making a third Flash Gordon serial. The latter decision of having Flash and his party return was appealing to them, so Buck Rogers was no more. Forty years later, Buster Crabbe made a special appearance in the television adaptation of "Buck Rogers in the 25th Century". He played Brigadier Gordon in the first season episode, "Planet of the Slave Girls". It was aired on September 27, 1979.

     The serial opens with Colonel Buck Rogers and Buddy Wade piloting the dirigible over the Arctic wastelands. They are carrying a new invention called Nirvano gas onboard, and they are instructed to inhale it, just as the blizzard becomes too severe to fly in. Little do they know, the Nirvano gas will put them to sleep until help arrives. The dirigible crashes in the wastelands and help never makes it, even after a search is called into effect.

     Buck and Buddy are found 500 years later by two Hidden City pilots in the year 2440 on Earth. They two servicemen take them to a secret underground stronghold that is apparantly organized by a group of rebels who are seeking refuge. There, they meet the brilliant Dr. Huer, who is a scientific genius that has an incredible laboratory, complete with fantastic weapons and inventions. The reason for this clandestine operation is because of a manical tyrant named Killer Kane. He is often referred to as "the leader Kane" by his legion of super gangsters and councilmen.

     Buck and his party travel to Saturn to seek the help of Prince Tallen, so they can join forces and dispose of the tyrant. But the leader Kane has already deployed Captain Laska and his men to manipulate Prince Tallen in siding with them against Buck and the rebels. Buck and his party must endure several perilous adventures with the Zugg men, not to mention fighting off Kane's crafty soldiers, led by Captain Laska. They safely return to Earth, only to be shot down and captured by Kane's gangsters once again. They are finally rescued and take part in a great air battle to wrestle away Kane's power and control from the universe.

     The practice of tracking music scores was legally halted by the American Federation of Musicians in April 1938. The reason for this move was due to a lack of employment among the musicians. This legality would guarantee them steady employment at the studios. The entire library of existing music scores at Universal Pictures were all re-recorded that year.

     Subsequent music scores would be re-recorded as per request, but in most cases, they were junked and discarded. This would result in tracking the previously re-recorded scores at the studio. Since the music department initially re-recorded all of the music scores, they would be allowed to track them, in the case of poorly done scores that could not be used for a film production.

     Charles Previn is credited as the musical director in the opening credits of the 1939 serial film. He arrived at Universal in March of 1936, just as Heinz Romeheld completed his score for Dracula's Daughter and left the studio. He was an excellent composer and conductor who had previously worked in Broadway and radio in New York City. He loved classical music and was of great value to the staff at the studio. Shortly after his arrival, new sound equipment was installed in Universal's music department.

     Previn is credited as musical director for Buck Rogers, but it was a common method to give department heads screen credit in film. He didn't conduct the re-recordings for Buck Rogers in December 1938 and no one really knows who did. It's possible that it could have been Hans J. Salter or Frank Skinner. In any case, it remains unknown and no studio documents and memos exist to say who the conductor was for the serial film's music score.

     The music tracks used in Buck Rogers were previously heard in Flash Gordon and Trip to Mars, but those were the original music soundtracks culled from Universal's library. In the event of re-recording older music scores with newer equipment, with the orchestra kept to a minimum number of musicans, is going to result in many of them sounding fresher than the originals, but in some cases, the body of the music is lost.

     The downside of this is that many of the rescores do not have the same fullness and tone the original scores had. In some cases, some music tracks sound even better than the originals, but this is heard with a lesser frequency in Buck Rogers. In making them sound newer, the conductor is going to have the orchestra speed them up or slow them down. On the other hand, some music tracks appear to sound identical to their original counterparts.

     Subtle changes heard in the music scores could be the result of using newer musical instruments and to avoid repetition in order to keep them sounding fresher. The latter would certainly be a stronger reason, as when it comes to rescoring previous music tracks, they can't sound identical to their original counterparts. In the end, it is up to the conductor and what he thinks is best suited for the changes in the music during the re-recording sessions.

     Buck Rogers's main title is a re-recording of the title music from The Great Impersonation (1935). It was originally composed by Roemheld for the feature-film. It is a grand and colorful melody that has a faster tempo than the original. It is juxtaposed very nicely with Roemheld's main title from Dracula's Daughter (1936). After the third chapter elapses into play, the second title and the expanded cast credits are edited down for running time.

     The chapter forewards of Buck Rogers use the scrolling foreward that travels up the screen. This excellent visual technique is later seen in Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe (1940). A new re-recording of a Bride cue entitled "Monster Breaks Out" accompanies the forewards in chapters two, four and five of the serial. The main title from The Invisible Man is a more lively re-recording that accompanies the forewards in chapters six through twelve, but somehow ended up accompanying the foreward in chapter three of the serial.

     The music used for every chapter conclusion is a re-recording of the "Finale" music from The Werewolf of London. One small exception is heard in chapter ten, which favors to use "Shirley's Theme #3" from Bombay Mail for the "end title" in the serial. How this switch of music occured during post-production of Buck Rogers appears to have no explanation at hand.

     Newly re-recorded tracks from Bombay Mail, The Bride of Frankenstein, Dracula's Daughter, The Invisible Man and The Werewolf of London are used to an equal degree in the 1939 serial. In the case of Bombay Mail, the theme cue entitled "Governor's March" has the Pomp and Circumstance segment cut out of the track, where it was heard in Trip to Mars. A new selection from the 1934 film is the exciting Oriental theme entitled "Bombay Station", that is used four times in the serial. The romantic ballad entitled "Shirley's Theme #1" is heard twelve times in the serial, too.

     New music selections from The Bride of Frankenstein are used in the serial to a good degree. "The Creation, Pt. II" is used twenty-six times, but the organ, piano, strings, and timpani drum were not used for the re-recordings. Parts of the cue were changed in the score, resulting in the theme cue sounding too thin in quality. In the case of "Female Monster Music", the organ and strings were omitted from the score and replaced by the xylophone. This makes the theme sound more lively in turn.

     "Monster Breaks Out" has the "Chase" written on the end of it, to create a new music cue. It is heard twenty times in the serial. The strange "Pretorius' Entrance" is used eighteen times and has been sped up in the scoring, but this great Waxman cue sounds good in the serial film, no matter how you hear it. "You Will Need a Coat" retains its flavor, even though the pizzicati strings were replaced with the xylophone for a more lively effect. Lastly, the "Processional March" is used three times, and still holds up well in the serial film.

     The main title from The Invisible Man is used for the in-flight sequences in Buck Rogers. This re-recorded version of the Roemheld cue has a faster tempo than the original, but still sounds great in the serial. The ominous and dark cue from Dracula's Daughter entitled "Transylvania" is used nine times in Buck Rogers. It is primarily heard underscoring fight scenes and some cliff-hanger endings in the serial film.

     Music selections from The Werewolf of London are heard in Buck Rogers. Its main title is used three times, along with "The Fight" being used seven times in the 1939 serial. The "Appassionato" and "Finale" theme cues are used a good number of times in the serial film as well. They do sound thinner than the original 1934 score, but do the film justice in the scenes that required them.

     New music selections are introduced in various chapters of Buck Rogers. One cue entitled "London Arrival" is from Great Expectations (1934). Its first section can be heard in the first scene located in chapter one of the serial. The other several uses have the main theme heard, that was used in sentimental scenes in Buck Rogers. "The Chase" is a fast-paced agitato used nine times to underscore chase and action sequences in the serial. It was written by Roemheld for The Great Impersonation (1935).

     One of the best theme cues used in the serial film was from the Mystery of Edwin Drood (1935). The cue is entitled "Death Storm". This fast, turbulent and grandiose theme was composed by Edward Ward. He wrote it to underscore a storm scene in the 1935 film. It is used twelve times in Buck Rogers, mainly to underscore fight scenes. Its first use is in chapter one of the serial. It underscores the storm moving out from the Arctic wastes, with the squadron of bi-planes searching for Buck and Buddy in the missing dirigible. The stock clip of the bi-planes was taken from The White Hell of Pitz Palu (1930).

     Two music selections from The White Hell of Pitz Palu are used in the 1939 serial and they sound just as good as the original 1930 score by Roemheld. The first cue is entitled "Lyrical Suspense" which is a brief, colorful and mournful theme used eleven times in Buck Rogers. The other cue is the playful, energetic and dance-like "Scherzo" theme, that is used nine times in the serial.

     The feature-length version of the serial was released in 1939 under the title of Planet Outlaws. The serial was condensed to 71-minutes, but contained the same music tracks and it was seen in theatrical re-release during the 1940's and early 50's. In 1953, the feature version was licensed for television distribution on independent stations under the Filmcraft and Goodwill banners. Changes were made in the way of adding extra footage and voice narration. In all versions, the flow of the music tracks was the same as in the serial version, but a good deal of the music score was cut, while the prints were edited for running time.

     In 1966, another version was prepared from the serial, with a longer running time of 91-minutes and re-titled Destination Saturn. In the late 1960's, all three Flash Gordon serials and Buck Rogers were released to television by A.B.C. Films, Inc. They were seen in their original release form with no alterations made to the prints. One slight exception was the re-made main title cards read Buck Rogers vs. the Planet Outlaws.

     Shortly after Star Wars was released, Crystal Pictures acquired Buck Rogers and released the serial film in revival theaters. It was distributed once again for television under the Filmcraft banner, but the prints were second generation 16mm film stock of lesser quality. This is the print that was later used for the DVD version distributed by VCI Entertainment.


     In Filmfax #79, Buster Crabbe spoke fondly about working on Buck Rogers:

     "Buck Rogers was the fifth serial in my career, a 12-episode affair directed by Ford Beebe and Saul Goodkind. It was a story about two Earthlings frozen in suspended animation (a fore-runner of cryogenics?) who are awakened in the 25th century. A battle between the forces of good and evil had erupted in the universe, and the destiny of Earth hung in the balance. Although the art of rocketry and laser weaponry had reached a very advanced state, the American government of the future was quick to recognize the superior intelligence of Buck Rogers, and persuaded him to champion their cause at the rank of lieutenant colonel.

     Buck was a brunette, like me, which was nice for a change. Jackie Moran played the part of Buddy, my 20th century companion, which gave us a sort of Batman and Robin relationship, while the love interest was provided by Constance Moore in the role of Wilma, 25th century American (see Constance Moore interview on page 60). Killer Kane (Anthony Warde) sought to overpower the American stronghold a last bastion against Kane's dictatorship from America's hidden city, buried snugly within a mountain range.

     Kane's principal weapon other than the omnipresent disintegrator pistols was a contraption known as the amnesia helmet, a device that, when affixed to a captive's head, made him robot-like and easily manipulated. Kane's robot slaves worked in the dynamo room, supplying power to run his city. Both sides maintained rocket ships as their major source of transportation and warfare (no one knew what a ballistic missile was, in those days, so warfare of the future was perceived as being from manned vehicles). As with Flash Gordon, similar rocket ships were used; slow, bulky, and symptomatic of human gastrointestinal distress in sound effect.

     Buck instinctively knew the right side from the wrong, and volunteered his services. With the battle on Earth at a stalemate, Kane sought alliance from the creatures of Saturn, so Buck, a natural diplomat, raced to the ringed planet with a similar idea in mind. The two antagonists became locked in a struggle for the foreign ally Kane promising wealth and a share of Earth in return for help, while Buck tried to achieve detente. I offered the all-American principles of truth, justice, and morality ideals that didn't go very far when it came to feeding hungry Saturnians so Kane won Saturn to his side for an episode or two. With unruffled galactic poise, Buck continued his diplomatic maneuvering until he succeeded in causing enough vacillation to keep Saturn neutral. With that attained, Buck switched to leading the assault on Kane's city. The Americans had to find a way to penetrate the dynamo room.

     Kane's domain was protected by a television monitoring system. By manipulating a dial, Kane could observe every part of his city from a control panel in his office. He even had the ability to zoom in for close-ups. (No fan ever asked where all the TV cameras were supposed to be located, and Universal didn't labor over trying to explain it. It was all ahead of its time, anyway, so who would be the wiser?)

     Buck, in order to gain access to Kane's city, utilized the anti-gravity belt a rocket kit, attached to his back, which enabled him to fly through the air ala the "real" Buck Rogers in the comic strip. However, Universal used them primarily for descending, rather than for flying around the set, since a downward motion was easier to facilitate than an upward or lateral one. We confined the belts to jumping out of buildings or disabled ships, because shooting such scenes was a slow process, and therefore costly.

     In one scene, Buddy and I were gyrating through the atmosphere in a rocket ship when we were attacked by Kane's forces. Blasted out of the sky, Buddy and I jumped to safety by using our belts. A shell of the rocket ship was elevated on the sound stage about eight feet above the floor. A film loop of clouds rushing by was shown on a back-screen to give the illusion of a rocket hurtling through the sky, and wind from a large fan furthered the deception as we crawled out onto the rocket's stabilizers. One at a time, we jumped to a padded area below camera range. The director would cut, the ship's shell would be rolled out of the way, piano wires would be attached to our "anti-gravity" belts, and the cloud film would become stationary. Hoisted 15 feet up, the cameras would roll again and we would be lowered by "rocket power" slowly to the Earth.

     In the end, Buck triumphed, taking over the dynamo room and using the amnesia helmets to work against Killer Kane. For his valor, Buck was promoted to full colonel, and given the hand of lovely Wilma Deering. The serial was subsequently shown under a variety of re-released titles, as a feature movie called Planet Outlaws, Rocket Ship, and Destination Saturn."


     Click the film titles on to read a comprehensive listing of the musical contributions heard in the serials:

Flash Gordon | Flash Gordon's Trip to Mars | Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe
Buck Rogers