Jean Rogers in
Flash Gordon (1936)
with Buster Crabbe
Jean Rogers in
Flash Gordon (1936)
with Buster Crabbe
EYE ON JEAN:
"Flash Gordon (1936)" is the movie to watch in order to fully appreciate the beauty of Jean Rogers.
This is the movie that made her a star. Jean gets plenty of screen time and the director often highlights
Jean's facial beauty with the use of soft close ups. Jean also wears costumes that emphasize her "assets."
In Chapter 3, Jean gets wet during the water capture by Shark Men.
In Chapter 5, Jean acts out perhaps the most memorable Hollywood scene of an imperiled heroine.
Only 20-years old when the serial was made, Jean Rogers played the part of Dale Arden to perfection,
creating the sexiest and most endearing movie heroine of all time.
~by JeanRogersFan
SUMMARY BY CHAPTERS
CHAPTER 1 - The Planet of Peril
Planet Mongo is on a collision course with Earth. Flash meets the lovely Dale Arden for the first time and they are immediately attracted to each other. They meet Dr. Zarkov and join him in rocketing to Mongo to save Earth. On Mongo, they meet the evil Emperor Ming who immediately has desires for Dale. Flash comes to the defense of Dale. Ming puts Flash in an arena with killer ape men. Meanwhile, Ming's daughter, Princess Aura, desires Flash and tries to help him. While Dale is held back, Aura enters the arena where she and Flash fall through a trap door to their apparent doom.
Hear Ming's Desire For Dale Arden
Ming immediately has his men deploy a net to catch the falling Flash and Aura, sparing them from death. Aura helps Flash leave the palace, while secretly scheming to separate him from Dale forever. Dale is taken away to Ming's palace to become his bride under hypnosis while Zarkov is put to work in Ming's laboratory. Flash finds an ally in Thun, Prince of the Lionmen and re-enter the palace to rescue Zarkov. Zarkov tells Flash that the course of the planet has been changed, averting a collision with Earth. He also tells Flash that Ming is forcing Dale to become his bride. While the wedding ceremony is underway, Flash with Thun rush out to rescue Dale. As the episode comes to a close, Flash is in a cave, caught in the lobster-like claws of a giant beast.
CHAPTER 3 - Captured by Shark Men
Thun rescues Flash by killing the beast with a ray gun. They enter the palace and save Dale, escaping through underground tunnels. As Dale's hypnosis wears off, she and Flash are captured by Kala, King of the Shark Men and an ally of Ming. Aura enlists Thun's help to go help Flash. Flash defeats Kala in a challenge, earning release for him and Dale. Kala reneges and plans to return Dale to Ming while putting Flash in a water tank to be killed by a giant octopus.
CHAPTER 4 - Battling the Sea Beast
Dale faints upon seeing Flash in the grips of a giant octopus. Meanwhile, Princess Aura and Thun arrive to save Flash. Dale awakes, but Aura has already deceived Flash into leaving with her, presumably to meet the others. On the way out, Aura destroys the life support system to Kala's underwater palace, hoping to kill Dale and Thun as they are left behind. Flash goes back to find his friends. While clutching Dale, the sea breaks through the walls and crash onto Flash and Dale.
CHAPTER 5 - The Destroying Ray
Ming uses a device to raise Kala's palace above the water, saving everyone including his daughter. Meanwhile, Prince Barin, the true ruler of Mongo, seeking to regain the throne approaches Zarkov and forms an alliance with the Earth party. While Flash, Dale and others try to escape Mongo, hawkmen capture Dale and Thun and take them to King Vultan's sky city. In Vultan's city, Thun is put to work in the atom furnace and Dale is terrorized by the boisterous Vultan. Barin and Zarkov join Flash and set out in Barin's ship to rescue Dale. As they near Vultan's city, their ship is shot down by Vultan's "melting ray."
Barin's ship falls into the gravity ray that supports Vultan's city, saving the lives of everyone on board, but making them captives of Vultan. Zarkov is put to work in Vultan's lab and Flash and Barin are sent to work in the furnace room. Aura tries to convince Dale that she must "admit" to loving Vultan instead of Flash in order to save Flash's life. Dale tries to play along, but Vultan wants Dale to prove it. He takes her to a room where she finds Flash tortured with electric sparks.
Dale faints upon seeing Flash electrocuted. Aura has Flash's life spared because she is in love with him. Zarkov revives Flash in the laboratory. Aura tries to blame Dale, but Flash reaffirms his commitment to her. Dale awakes and faces Vultan who says that Flash will be sent to Ming. Dale is sad and heartbroken. Flash makes his way to Vultan and Dale, but is caught and sent to the furnace room. Zarkov is forced to wire Flash with an electrical cable to keep him under control, but Zarkov later returns and releases the cable, putting it on the shovel instead. Meanwhile, Ming arrives to punish Vultan for holding Aura and his affianced bride Dale Arden. At that moment Flash throws the electrically charged shovel into the atom furnace, causing a huge explosion that rocks the city.
CHAPTER 8 - Tournament of Death
Flash escapes the furnace room and reaches the throne, but is re-captured. While the energy beams supporting the city are collapsing, Zarkov bargains with Vultan for everyone's release in exchange for saving the city. Vultan agrees and Zarkov saves the city, but Ming insisted that Flash earn his freedom in combat. Flash wins a sword fight against a masked Prince Barin who hoped to sacrifice himself, but Ming has another challenge for Flash. After the sword fight, Barin confesses to Flash that he is in love with Princess Aura. In the next challenge Flash fights an orangopoid. As the episode ends, Flash is on the verge of being killed by the beast.
CHAPTER 9 - Fighting the Fire Dragon
Aura rushes into the arena and helps Flash kill the orangopoid. Ming calls for a celebration at his palace where Flash and Barin can choose their brides as reward for surviving the challenges. At his palace, Ming orders the High Priest to "remove" Flash. The High Priest uses Aura to give amnesia drugs to Flash so he can be brought to the Tunnel of Terror to be killed by the Fire Dragon. Zarkov, Barin and Vultan learn of the plan and rush to save Flash, but Flash has already been taken to the Tunnel of Terror and the High Priest has awoken the Fire Dragon. As the dragon nears, the episode ends.
As the beast nears, Flash's friends arrive and Zarkov destroy the beast with a grendade. At Ming's palace, Flash can't remember his friend or choose a bride. Vultan protests Ming's actions and is imprisoned. Aura takes Flash away and Dale is heartbroken. Barin and Zarkov forceable take Flash to the lab and restore his memory. Meanwhile, Ming's men arrive to execute Flash. Flash is backed against a wall in the laboratory and the soldiers ready to fire their guns at him, but he vanishes into thin air.
CHAPTER 11 - In the Claws of the Tigron
The soldiers have fled in terror, but Zarkov explains that he has just made Flash invisible. Flash used his invisibility to warn Ming to leave him and his friend alone. Flash then frees Vultan from prison. Zarkov receives a message from Earth and make plans to return home. As Vultan, Zarkov and Flash load the ship with supplies, Aura sends soldiers to capture Barin and Dale. Barin takes Dale to a cave for safety, but Aura sends a Tigron into the caves after Dale. Flash, Zarkov and Vultanreturn to the laboratory and fight Ming's soldiers. Flash meets Barin and go to retrieve Dale. As Dale waits for Flash in the cave, the Tigron locates and attacks her at episode's end.
CHAPTER 12 - Trapped in the Turret
Flash arrives in time, wrestles the Tigron away from Dale and kills it. Barin convinces Aura that she can only win Flash's regard by helping him. Aura agrees and becomes an ally. Together, they approach Ming and win freedeom for everyone, but they don't trust Ming and plan to leave Mongo. Flash and his party plan a secret meeting at the turret house where Barin's ship will pick them up and take them to Vultan's palace. They ask Thun by video conference to meet them at the turret house. While Flash and his party wait for Barin's ship, it approaches and fires upon them. An apparent direct hit on the party ends the episode.
CHAPTER 13 - Rocketing to Earth
Flash and his friends escape through a trap door in the turret house. They find that Barin is a prisoner and free him. Vultan is injured so they take him to the laboratory for treatment. Meanwhile, Thun’s gyro ships start an attack against Ming. Ming's soldiers enter the lab and capture Flash and friends. They are brought before Ming, but Thun and his Lion men have stormed Ming’s palace. Ming flees during the melee and enters the sacred fiery palace of the Great God Tao, apparently ending his own life. Princess Aura with Barin by her side becomes the new ruler of Mongo. Meanwhile, the High Priest, acting on Ming’s final order, plants a time bomb aboard Zarkov’s rocket ship. As Flash, Dale and Zarkov fly home, their friends on Mongo discover the plan and radio a warning to the ship. Flash finds the bomb and gets rid of it in time. As the ship approaches Earth, Flash and Dale finally feel safe and share a passionate kiss. The End.
~ by JeanRogersFan