Product Details

• Actors: Ralph Byrd, Michael Owen, Jan Wiley, Ralph Morgan, John Davidson
• Directors: William Witney;John English
• Format: Color, Dolby, DVD, NTSC
• Language: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 2
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: VCI Entertainment
• DVD Release Date: October 21, 2008
• Run Time: 263 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B001EI5BWE
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #45,509 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Chester Gould modeled his famous comic strip sleuth on the features of square-jawed actor Jack Holt, but it is Ralph Byrd who became the definitive Dick Tracy on the big screen. In this action-packed chapter play, Tracy battles the Ghost, a fiendish master criminal who has the ability to make himself invisible. One of the Ghost's less savory ambitions is to wipe out New York City with a gigantic tidal wave. Can Dick Tracy save the Big Apple from being swallowed up by the sea? Don't miss a single thrilling minute! Bonus Features: Episode Selection, Intro by Max Allan Collins, Photo Gallery Product Specs: 1-DVD9 & 1-DVD5; Dolby Digital; 263 minutes; B&W; 1.33 Aspect Ratio; MPAA NR; Year 1941; SRP - $29.99

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Mr Jim, a puppet poster for VCI???, February 27, 2009

By	Modrnknght (Hollywood, CA United States) - See all my reviews

The serial itself is excellent, but I am tired of seeing Mr. Jim, an obvious company owner of VCI or employee, who keeps posting these "reviews" for every one of their serial DVDs, listing them all as perfect and lisitng so much fluff that one knows who he works for. Let the product speak for itself. It doesn't need a shill!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best of the four Dick Tracy serials, May 7, 2009

By	Neal C. Reynolds (Indianapolis, Indiana) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Well, I think so anyway. Bill Witney and John English directed the three sequels to the original and established themselves and Repulic studios as masters of the serial genre with the choreographed fights, well crafted chapter endings, and overall care in making these entertaining.I put this one above the other Dick Tracy serials because they really outdid themselves in packing it with continuous action and imaginatively crafted scenes including ones in the middle of chapters which rivaled the chapter endings. This one does have a higher body count than most serials. There are six suspects who may be the invisible "Ghost" at the beginning and only two still alive by the start of the final chapter.One very unusual thing to note is that unlike most of Republic's crime serials, there is no "economy chapter" in which we have flashbacks to scenes in previous chapters.If you enjoy serials, you should love this one.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Dick Tracy vs Crime Inc (1941) ... Ralph Byrd ... VCI Ent (2008)", October 18, 2008

By	J. Lovins "Mr. Jim" (Missouri-USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

VCI Entertainment and Republic Pictures present based on Chester Gould's comic strip creation..."DICK TRACY VS CRIME INC" (27 December 1941) (263 mins) (Glorious Black & White) (Dolby digitally remastered) -- Dick Tracy is a long running comic strip featuring a popular and familiar character in American pop culture --- Dick Tracy is a hard-hitting, fast-shooting, and supremely intelligent police detective who has matched wits with a variety of often grotesquely ugly villains --- Created by cartoonist Chester Gould in 1931, the strip made its debut appearance on October 4, 1931, distributed by the Chicago Tribune Syndicate --- Gould wrote and drew the strip until 1977 --- Chester Gould retired from comics in 1977; his last Dick Tracy strip appeared in print on Sunday, December 25 of that year --- The following Monday, Dick Tracy was taken over by Max Allan Collins and longtime Gould assistant Rick Fletcher --- Gould's name remained in the byline for a few years after his retirement as a story consultant -- (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

Under the production staff of:
William Witney - Director
Jon English - Director
William J. O'Sullivan - Associate Producer
Ronald Davidson - Screenwriter
Norman S. Hall - Screenwriter
William Lively - Screenwriter
Joseph O'Donnell - Screenwriter
Joseph F Poland - Screenwriter
Walter Bullock - Musical Score
Cy Feuer - Musical Score
Reggie Lanning - Cinematographer
Tony Martinelli - Film Editor
Edward Todd - Film Editor
Fred C. Brannon - Art Assistant Property Master
Howard Lydecker - Special Effects
Theodore Lydecker - Special Effects

With an introduction by Max Allan Collins (author of Dick Tracy comic strip 1977-1993) before the first chapter --- Story line and plot, with 15 Chapters of vintage serial episodes loaded with action sequences --- Our story opens as Dick Tracy (Byrd) and his agents must battle a villain known only as "The Ghost" --- Can this fiend make himself invisible --- How can you fight something you can't see, or can we --- This looks like the best serial in the Dick Tracy series, as our favorite detective must come up to the plate and hit a homerun --- Which one of the members of the city crime council is "The Ghost" --- The fight scenes are something to behold, pure magic --- Why is this villain so bent on destroying and raising havoc during these wonderful episodes, wish they would never end --- But see for yourself (can we see the Ghost), as Tracy outwits this evil man and his diabolical plans to bring an end to Dick Tracy and Republic Pictures --- And how about the Republic stunt team with Bud Wolfe (stunt double for Ralph Byrd), David Sharpe, Duke Taylor, Ken Terrell ....meanwhile back to our Republic Serial which is always good till the last drop and this serial is no exception.

BIOS:
1. Ralph Byrd (as Dick Tracy)
Date of Birth: 22 April 1909 - Dayton, Ohio
Date of Death: 18 August 1952 - Tarzana, California

2. Chester Gould (creator of Dick Tracy)
Birth Date: 20 November 1900 - Pawnee, Oklahoma
Died: 11 May 1985 - Woodstock, Illinois

3. Ralph Morgan (brother of actor Frank "Wizard of Oz" Morgan)
Birth Date: 06 1883 - New York City, NY
Died: 11 June 1956 - New York City, NY

4. William Witney (Director)
Birth Date: 15 May 1910
Died: 17 March 2002 - Pioneer, CA

5. John English (Director)
Birth Date: 25 June 1903 - Cumberland, England, UK
Died: 11 October 1969 - Los Angeles, CA

the cast includes:
Ralph Byrd ... Dick Tracy
Michael Owen ... Billy Carr
Jan Wiley ... June 'Eve' Chandler
John Davidson ... Lucifer
Ralph Morgan ... J.P. Morton
Kenneth Harlan ... Police Lt. Cosgrove
John Dilson ... Henry Weldon
Howard C. Hickman ... Stephen Chandler
Robert Frazer ... Daniel Brewster
Robert Fiske ... Walter Cabot
Jack Mulhall ... Jim Wilson
Hooper Atchley ... Arthur Trent
Anthony Warde ... John Corey

CHAPTER TITLES:
1.The Fatal Hour
2.The Prisoner Vanishes
3.Doom Patrol
4.Dead Man's Trap
5.Murder at Sea
6.Besieged
7.Sea Racketeers
8.Train of Doom
9.Beheaded
10.Flaming Peril
11.Seconds to Live
12.Trial by Fire
13.The Challenge
14.Invisible Terror
15.Retribution

If you crave adventure, drama and plenty of action then this is the place for you --- check out another release from VCI Entertainment with Serials and B-Westerns, you can't go wrong.

1. DICK TRACY - SERIAL (1937) (VCI #8273)
2. DICK TRACY RETURNS (1938) (VCI #8503)
3. DICK TRACY'S G-MEN (1939) (VCI #8504)
4. DICK TRACY - RKO CLASSIC COLLECTION (1945, 1946, 1947) (VCI #8528)
(Dick Tracy Detective; Dick Tracy vs. Cueball, Dick Tracy's Delimma & Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome)

Special footnote, why is it our hero Dick Tracy never gets his clothes dirty during these episodes.

Hats off and thanks to Robert Blair and his staff at VCI Entertainment --- VCI was named in Variety and Hollywood Reporter as the first company to produce and release motion pictures directly to the home marketplace --- order your copy now from Amazon or VCI Entertainment where there are plenty of copies available on DVD, stay tuned once again for top notch releases --- VCI are experts in releasing long forgotten films and treasures to the collector -- looking forward to more Nostalgic Collections.

Total Time: 263 mins on DVD ~ VCI Entertainment 8526 ~ (10/21/2008)