Parts 3 and 4 of the current version of Terror Island are considered missing. I previously did posts that described the missing scenes in chronological order for each part:
- Terror Island Part 3 (1 of 4)
- Terror Island Part 3 (2 of 4)
- Terror Island Part 3 (3 of 4)
- Terror Island Part 3 (4 of 4)
- Terror Island Part 4 (1 of 2)
- Terror Island Part 4 (2 of 2) Underwater Box Escape
The Catalina Island Museum Houdini exhibit (Houdini: Terror on the Magic Isle) which runs May 5th to Oct 7th, 2018 has a audio-visual presentation that reconstructs these missing parts based on my work above that is a must see.
The museum also currently pieces together other must see Houdini footage (courtesy of John Cox) of how the underwater box escape likely looked in Terror Island.
This post is about my search for the actual missing Underwater Box Escape footage from Part 4 of Terror Island..
According to The Motion Picture Herald, August 8, 1953:
…the same show [“You Asked for It”] is contrasting classic escapes: the one in “Terror Island,” in which the real Houdini escapes from an underwater sealed box, and the one in “Houdini”, in which Tony Curtis does the same. Paramount gets the credit, all along.
According to Linking Ring Vol 33 No. 7 Sep 1953:
The Baker Show ran a part of the original Houdini serial Terror Island showing the under water escape of Houdini from a packing case. Then a strip was shown from the new picture showing Tony Curtis duplicating the same feat, escaping from the packing case after being tossed into the ice covered Detroit River.
According to Linking Ring Vol 33. No. 6 August 1953:
There also was a showing of the real Houdini making one of his famous trunk escapes underwater and a scene from the Houdini picture showing Tony making the same escape. Very much the same.
According to Hugard’s MAGIC Monthly August 1953:
Recently Mrs. Bob Parrish asked for and got clips from an old Houdini picture and the latest Paramount film “Houdini”
According to Long Beach Independent, July 6, 1953:
YOU ASKED – One of Houdini’s most spectacular underwater escapes will be seen again when George Pal, producer of short movies guest with Art Baker on “You Asked For It” over KECA (7) at 8 p.m. Pal will show an old featurette of the great magician and casually introduce some film clips from his new movie, “Houdini”.
According to The Honolulu Advertiser, August 22, 1953 and [August 27, 1953]:
Houdini Appears [Houdini On TV]
One of Houdini’s most spectacular underwater escapes will be seen again when Producer George Pal guests on “You Asked For It” Thursday, Aug 27 at 7:30 p.m. over KGMB-TV. Pal brings with him 35 mm film of an old Harry Houdini featurette i which he demonstrates his famous underwater escape. Pal will show portions of his new Paramount film, “Houdini,” starring Tony Curtis as the great master of legerdemain.
According to Los Angeles Times, July 29, 1952 recently shared by John Cox at WildAboutHoudini:
Anthony Curtis, of the films is meanwhile busy at Paramount surveying old Harry Houdini silent films made about 1919 and 1920. Of particular interest, he finds, is “Terror Island,” directed by James Cruze…
So based on all the evidence above, it appears a more complete print of Terror Island existed at Paramount in 1952 and the footage of the missing underwater box escape was shown on “You Asked For It” in 1953.
Next week, I will share some screen shots and part of the transcript from when George Pal appeared on You Asked For It in 1953. So tune in next week to find out if this underwater box escape footage was found.
This is great. Can’t wait for next week!
We’re all familiar with the underwater footage of Houdini’s escape from a packing box that is normally associated with The Master Mystery. But is it possible this footage is actually from Terror Island? Trouble is, it matches so well with the scene in MM as the box sinks with his arm waving through the hole in the side.
I continue to be baffled why no photos of this TI escape appear to exist.
Having seen all 15 episodes of the MM, I can tell you that the MM footage we are familiar with is from the MM not TI.
From this write up it sounds like Reel 4 was taken out of the metal canister that contained the reels of Terror Island and was used for the You Asked For It show. It might be possible that Reel 4 was never returned back to the canister, and probably tossed out at a later time from the back tech room of that television studio.
Interesting, sounds like another Master Mystery, where they used footage for TV and never put back.
It’s the only thing I can think of that would explain the missing reel. The completed picture was divided into half a dozen or so reels. Those reels went into metal canisters that looked kinda like clam shells. Since the underwater packing box escape scene was the only part needed for that TV show, it appears the techs removed that particular reel from the canister and never bothered to put it back after it was used.
I think Leo had cracked it.
In TI’s day, film reels couldn’t be longer than 1000 ft. That became the standard reel length for post production work right up to the end. However, theaters projectors could eventually handle 2000 ft. reels, so when a release print is made, those 1000 ft reels are combined into one “A/B” reel (two 1000 ft loads). By the 1950s, there was an awareness of the hazards of nitrate stock, so Paramount’s archival print of TI was probably new and therefore what was in the canister were 3 A/B reels. So what would have been plucked out of the can for this promotion would have been Reel 2 A/B, and on this would be TI’s original Reels 3 & 4. Hence, when this reel was lost, two reels of TI where lost. Make sense?
Yeah it makes sense. I worked part time on and off as a projectionist in multiplex theaters for 22 years. I spliced together incoming films and broke down innumerable prints that had to go on many Thursday nights. Sometimes the reels on incoming films were tails out first–and I hated that.
So it appears Reel 2A/B was not returned back to its proper canister. Which begs the question: Where did it wind up? Tracking it down would be like looking for a needle in a haystack. The first place I’d look would be to search the reel closet where that TV show was produced. If that yields nothing then I would head to Paramount and see what they have in the odds and ends reel closet.
In March of 1970, Paramount donated “Terror Island” to the American Film Institute collection at the Library of Congress; this print is missing two reels (parts 3 and 4)
Boom! Last piece of the puzzle.