The Great Movie Series

Part of the Encore Film Book Classics series, this is a reprint of the original text to The Great Movie Series by James Robert Parish. This comprehensive volume details 25 of the greatest sound film series even ever produced by Hollywood. It reveals the intriguing background behind such memorable movie series as: Andy Hardy, Blondie, Bomba, Boston Blackie, The Bowery Boys, Charlie Chan, Crime Doctor, Dr. Christian, Dr. Kildare, Ellery Queen, The Falcon, Francis the Talking Mule, Hopalong Cassidy, James Bond, Jungle Jim, The Lone Wolf, Ma and Pa Kettle, Maisie, Matt Helm, Mr. Moto, Philo Vance, The Saint, Sherlock Holmes, Tarzan, and The Thin Man. Each chapter provides a history of the big-screen series from its literary origins, including versions utilized for television and radio as well as the cinema. There are also biographies of each series' leading players, with revealing career studies on such well-known Hollywood stars as Mickey Rooney, Myrna Loy, William Powell, Johnny Weissmuller, Warner Oland, Marjorie Main, George Sanders, Arthur (Dagwood) Lake, Donald O'Connor, Maureen O'Sullivan, Warren William, Ann Sothern, William (Hopalong Cassidy) Boyd, Warner Baxter, Peter Lorre, Lew Ayres, Dean Martin, and Sean Connery, Every chapter contains a detailed filmography for each episode of the series, giving cast and character names, technical credits, running time, name of the producing studio, and year of release. This entertaining book explains why the series film was such a staple of Hollywood studios and how moviegoers found it reassuring to have a recurring group of familiar screen performers whose exploits they could follow and with whom they could identify when going to the cinema. This then is the lively and wonderful world of The Great Movie Series.