LIONEL ATWILL
March 1st, 1885 -- April 22nd, 1946

Above: Lionel Atwill as Sherlock Holmes' arch-enemy Professor Moriarty in SHERLOCK HOMES AND THE SECRET WEAPON (Universal, 1942), which starred Atwill’s friend Basil Rathbone as Holmes.

British-born actor Lionel Atwill is perhaps best known for his many roles in horror films such as MARK OF THE VAMPIRE, HOUSE OF DRACULA, HOUSE OF FRANKENSTEIN, MURDERS IN THE ZOO, and SON OF FRANKESTEIN, to name but a few, but Atwill did more than just horror films. He was a distinguished, first-class actor, appearing in major films such as CAPTAIN BLOOD, HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES, THE HIGH COMMAND, and TO BE OR NOT TO BE (in a hilarious comic role), and, most important to the serial fan, he appeared in four cliffhangers, in which his slightly devilish humor and subdued ghoulish relish was used to very good advantage.

Since Atwill was a fixture of sorts in Universal's horror films, it was only natural that the studio would decide to use him in one of their serials sooner or later. JUNIOR G-MEN OF THE AIR (Universal, 1942) was Atwill's first serial, and it cast him as an aristocratic Japanese spy named the Baron, who, with the aid of his Black Dragonfly society (obviously modeled on the real-life Japanese terror group, the Black Dragon) was dispatched to sabotage American defenses in order to weaken the American war effort. However, Lionel's plans meet opposition from an unlikely quarter--young junkyard workers Billy Halop, Gabriel Dell, Huntz Hall, and Bernard Punsly (better known as the Dead End Kids), who reluctantly (at first) join forces with G-men Frank Albertson and Richard Lane in order to defeat the spies. Despite rather heavy makeup (in order to appear Japanese), Lionel was his usual suavely villainous self in JUNIOR G-MEN OF THE AIR, and really seemed to enjoy the scope the serial gave him to "chew up the scenery". His excellent performance made a definite impression on serial audiences, who realized that a new, formidable heavy had entered the ranks of cliffhanger villainy.

Above: A poster for JUNIOR G-MEN OF THE AIR (Universal, 1942), Lionel Atwill's first serial. His sinister face is shown on the far left; the other faces, from left to right, belong to Bernard Punsly, Huntz Hall, Gabriel Dell, and Billy Halop.

Atwill's next serial gave him what was probably his very best cliffhanger role. As Doctor Maldor, frustrated museum curator in CAPTAIN AMERICA (Republic, 1943), he called himself “The Scarab” as he systematically murdered fellow scientists that he felt had "cheated" him out of his share of archeological discoveries and scientific fame on previous joint expeditions. When the masked crimefighter Captain America (Dick Purcell) interests himself in the murders, it becomes increasingly difficult for Lionel to carry off his planned retaliation, but he does his best, and wipes out most of the scientists (the only ones that survive are John Hamilton and Tom Chatterton) before Purcell stops him cold in the last chapter as the villain is attempting to mummify Gail Richards (Lorna Gray), Captain America's confidante who has discovered Maldor is the Scarab. The part of the mad genius Maldor was quite similar to some of the villains Atwill had played in his horror films, and he played the role with his customary evil relish, seeming to get particular enjoyment out of revealing his identity as the Scarab to his about-to-be-killed victims.

Above: Lionel Atwill (center), flanked by cohorts John Davidson (seated) and George J. Lewis, evaluates some ancient treasure stolen from one of Atwill's victims in this scene from CAPTAIN AMERICA (Republic, 1943), which gave Atwill his meatiest and most memorable serial role.

Atwill's third serial was another Universal outing--the Civil War western RAIDERS OF GHOST CITY in 1943. As a Prussian spy named Alex Morel, the devious Atwill pretended to sympathy with Confederate guerilla leader Clay Randolph (Regis Toomey) but really intended to use the gold Randolph was stealing from the Union army to finance Prussia's attempt to buy Alaska from Russia. Lionel was aided by Toomey's mercenary lieutenant Braddock (Jack Ingram) in his double-crossing, but he deceived Ingram too, by letting him believe that he only was only after the money, like him. Together with Trina Dessard (Virginia Christine), Atwill nearly pulled off all this complicated chicanery, but things went wrong when the war ended and Randolph became aware of his true motives. Morel had Randolph killed, but hero Steve Clark (Dennis Moore), Union officer and a West Point classmate of Randolph's, stepped in and put an end to Atwill's scheming with the help of Wells Fargo station owner Cathy Haines (Wanda McKay) and mysterious stranger Idaho Jones (Joe Sawyer).

Above: Alex Morel (Lionel Atwill) looks like he's getting the worst of it in this fight with Dennis Moore from RAIDERS OF GHOST CITY (Universal, 1944).

Atwill's final serial was also his final film. His role of Sir Eric Hazarias, a warmongering spy out to steal an atomic defense element called Meteorium 245 and sell it to the highest bidder in LOST CITY OF THE JUNGLE (Universal, 1946) promised to be another plum part for the great villain actor, but sadly, he died of pneumonia halfway through filming, and the serial was completed by the use of a double for him (whose scenes were shot over the shoulder) and by bringing in a second actor (John Mylong) who was supposed to be Hazarias's boss in secret. The scenes that Lionel filmed before his demise still showed him off to great advantage, as he confounded hero Russell Hayden (one of Hopalong Cassidy's sidekicks and a respected Western star in his own right) and his sidekick Keye Luke and duped Professor Elmore (John Eldredge) into aiding him in his quest for Meteorium. Despite the fact that he was in his last illness during the filming, Atwill couldn't help but give a brilliant performance. He was a true professional and an actor to the last.

Above: A lobby card for LOST CITY OF THE JUNGLE (Universal, 1946), Lionel Atwill's last serial and last screen appearance. He appears above the title lettering on the left hand side; next to him is heroine Jane Adams, and below the title lettering is sidekick Keye Luke.

Lionel Atwill, though he didn't do as many serials as some of the more prolific villains, nevertheless made his mark on cliffhangers. He furnished audiences with nasty villains in the classic serial heavy tradition, and yet somehow his portrayals seemed classier, slicker, and more polished than those of his many competitors. When the serial fan thinks of cliffhanger villains, the stocky-but-suave, charming-but-menacing, urbane-but-ruthless Lionel Atwill will always be one of the first he remembers.

Above: Lionel Atwill at his villainous best, as he issues instructions to his henchmen via radio in CAPTAIN AMERICA (Republic, 1943).