The Perils of Pauline

A sacred ivory disk is inscribed with an ancient sanskrit formula for a deadly poison gas discovered by ancient civilizations. The disk has been broken into pieces, scattered and buried in temples in distant lands. Armed with clues to the locations, Professor Hargraves (James Durkin) is on a quest to find the disk before it falls into the hands of evil Dr. Bashan (John Davidson). Bashan's goals are less noble than the professor's - to steal the disk and become "Emperor of the Universe." In great peril is Pauline (Evalyn Knapp), the professor's plucky and pretty daughter. Always ready to rescue her is Bob Warde (Craig Reynolds), a two-fisted American engineer. The two opposing teams journey from China to Borneo to India, confronting bombs, typhoons, leopards, killer apes, hostile natives, man-eating sharks, and treacherous thugs in a deadly game to possess the sacred disk. Their treacherous journey climaxes in a fiery showdown.

One of the great serials that inspired Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Perils of Pauline is twelve chapters of exciting, globe-trotting adventure. Evalyn Knapp's starring role in Pauline was the only serial work she did and it marked the peak of her thirteen year film career. Bad guy John Davidson's resume is replete with chapter plays, having appeared in The Adventures of Captain Marvel (1941), The Perils of Nyoka (1942), Secret Service in Darkest Africa (1943), Captain America (1944), The Purple Monster Strikes (1945) and many others.