Fantômas

When I was a teenager I devoured the books of Edgar Wallace, and I would be very interested to know which of the talkies made up to 1942 based on his work are still extant and which are lost. I have listed all the films made as well as what I know concerning the status of the film. Does anybody know more?

The Squeaker 1930 (extant)
The Yellow Mask 1930
The Old Man 1931
The Ringer 1931
To Oblige a Lady 1931
The Calendar 1932
The Frightened Lady/Criminal at Large 1932
The Flying Squad 1932
Whiteface 1932 (lost)
The Jewel 1933
The Feathered Serpent 1934
The Green Pack 1934
The Man Who Changed His Name 1934
The Lad 1935 (extant)
Sanders oft he River 1935 (extant)
Chick 1936
The Crimson Circle 1936
Educated Evans 1936 (lost)
Prison Breaker 1936
Strangers on a Honeymoon 1936
The Frog 1937 (extant)
Mr Reeder in Room 13 1937 (extant)
The Squeaker 1937 (extant)
Kate Plus Ten 1938 (extant)
Old Bones of the River 1937 (extant)
The Return of the Frog 1938 (extant)
The Terror 1938 (extant)
Thank Evans 1938
The Gaunt Stranger 1938 (extant)
The Dark Eyes of London 1939 (extant)
The Flying Fifty-Five 1939
The Flying Squad 1939
The Four Just Men 1939 (extant)
The Mind of Mr Reeder 1939
The Missing People 1939
The Case of the Frightened Lady 1940 (extant)
The Door with Seven Locks 1940 (extant)
The Missing Million 1942


This is my first posting! I am chiefly interested in early British talkies (though I do like films made during the entire 1930s) which is perhaps rather foolish since here in Sweden it is even more difficult to get to see any of them. Though from what I've read it doesn't seem to be easy in Britain either...

elanortook

Sorry, can't add more to the list, but 'The Four Just Men' is a pretty good film if you ever get the chance to see it, though quite different from the book

CaptainWaggett

The Flying Squad 1939 - this is extant if it helps you

orpheum

I have many of those films.i have to say that i do enjoy watching these sort of films again.I was watching Clue Of The New Pin with Bernard Archer.I first saw this film at the ABC in Golders Green and i remebered roughly the device by which the murderer left the key to the locked door on the table by the murdered man.Any film that i can remember that from nearly 50 years later is a minor classic notwithstanding its humble origins.It is a pity that tv producers dont think of trying a series of Wallace thrillers.

Welcome To Highbury The Home Of Football

Fantômas

Thanks for the answers! I did once mail the British Film Institute but I suppose they have better things to do than answering emails from Sweden... It seems most film archives keep what they have as a closely guarded secret.

elanortook

Fantomas: did you email the research viewings department? (BFI | National Archive | Accessing the Collection | Research Viewing Service) They seem to know best what is in the BFI archives and available for viewing, though I have known it take a couple of emails to get a response.

Fantômas

First of all I'm sorry that it has taken so long to answer, I'm afraid I'm not good at being a member of a forum like this.

I'll try to email the research viewings department, thanks for the tip.

Regarding "The Clue of the New Pin": this was first filmed in 1929 with John Gielgud who in the end turned out to be the murderer. I saw a short clip from this film in a documentary about Edgar Wallace, the speaker said that it was "a role I'm sure he (Gielgud) wants to forget".

judgecerf

These are what I can vouch for as available for Wallace films made before 1942 based on his stories or for which he worked on the scripts. I've marked the ones also on your list with *:

*The Door with Seven Locks (1940) Norman Lee
*The Case of the Frightened Lady (1940) George King
The Green Archer (1940) James W. Horne
*The Gaunt Stranger (1938) Walter Forde
*Old Bones of the River (1938) Marcel Varnel
*Return of the Frog (1938) Maurice Elvey
Dangerous to Know (1938) Robert Florey
*The Terror (1938) Richard Bird
The Squeaker (1937) William K. Howard
Sanders of the River (1935) Zoltan Korda
Mystery Liner (1934) William Nigh
King Kong (1933) Merian C. Cooper
Before Dawn (1933) Irving Pichel
Der Joker (1926) Edgar Wallace

It's not a precise answer to your question but perhaps it helps. He's got a heap of books available through Project Gutenberg as well.