Federal Operator 99
| Federal Operator 99 | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Directed by |
Spencer Gordon Bennet Yakima Canutt Wallace Grissell |
| Produced by | Ronald Davidson |
| Written by |
Albert DeMond Basil Dickey Jesse Duffy Joseph Poland |
| Starring |
Marten Lamont Helen Talbot George J. Lewis Lorna Gray Hal Taliaferro Bill Stevens |
| Cinematography | Bud Thackery |
| Distributed by | Republic Pictures |
|
Release date
|
|
|
Running time
|
12 chapters / 169 minutes (serial) 100 minutes (TV) |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Federal Operator 99 or F.B.I 99 on its edited television release, is a 1945 Republic film serial.
Crime Lord James 'Jim' Belmont escapes FBI custody and resumes his criminal empire, only to be thwarted at every turning point by Jerry Blake, the FBI's Operator 99...
Cline writes that this was a "somewhat uncharacteristic" serial for Republic due to its sophisticated villains, Lewis the frustrated pianist and his "confidant" (Cline's quotes) played by Gray, and an "obviously cultured, polished hero."
Federal Operator 99 was budgeted at $143,620 although the final negative cost was $153,737 (a $10,117, or 7%, overspend). It was the cheapest Republic serial of 1945.
It was filmed between 18 January and 14 February 1945. The serial's production number was 1497.
Special effects by the Lydecker brothers.
Federal Operator 99's official release date is 7 July 1945, although this is actually the date the sixth chapter was made available to film exchanges.
The serial was re-released on 8 October 1956 between the similar re-releases of King of the Rocket Men and Dangers of the Canadian Mounted. The last original Republic serial release was King of the Carnival in 1955.
Federal Operator 99 was one of twenty-six Republic serials re-released as a film on television in 1966. The title of the film was changed to FBI-99. This version was cut down to 100-minutes in length.
Source:
...
Wikipedia