Hands Up is a lost 1918 serial film starring Ruth Roland, George Cheseboro, and George Larkin that was written by Pathe's Chief of Serial Production, Wilson Gilletts.
The Plot[]
An American female reporter gets more of a story than she bargained for when she is mistaken for the lost princess of a tribe of Native South Americans. Abducted by their shaman, the villain of the piece, she is taken to Southern California and then to the village where the tribe lives, to be sacrifice to their leader. Her fiance, "Hands Up," follows her trail to the Strange Ranch, enduring a series of perils along the way that culminate in his receiving an injury to his face in Chapter Six. Once his face has been healed, "Hands Up" finally makes it to the Indian village, rescues his fiancee and defeats the evi high priest in hand to hand combat for a spectacular finale to this Pathe Production., establishing Echo firmly as the lost heiress of Strange Ranch.
The Comments[]
This was the serial that elevated the actress Ruth Roland, who portrayed the female reporter, to serial stardom. The original "Hands Up," George Cheseboro, joined the army and so another actor named George Larkin took his place. I only wish I knew how the filmmakers explained the change in lead actor from Cheseboro to Larkin, though!
References[]
Hands Up! Wikipedia entry
Hands Up! IMDB entry
Bound and Gagged by Kalton R. Lahue
Continued Next Week by Kalton R. Lahue, page 62