The Jade Box

• Release Year: 1930

Plot

Released in both sound and silent versions, this ten-chapter serial starred former cowboy ace Jack Perrin and chapterplay veteran Louise Lorraine. In chapter one, "The Jade of Jeopardy," Jack's father, Monroe Salisbury, is kidnapped by Francis Ford, who wants to get his greedy hands on a jade box purchased by Salisbury on one of his frequent trips abroad. In his attempts to secure the release of his father, Jack aligns himself with Ford's right-thinking daughter, Lorraine, but a mysterious figure known only as the Shadow keeps getting in the way. The box is finally restored to its rightful owner -- who, it turns out, is not Salisbury after all -- in the final chapter, "The Atonement." Silent screen stars Perrin, Lorraine, Salisbury, and Ford were joined by Wilbur Mack, Leo White, and Jay Novello in this low-budget and quickly forgotten potboiler directed by the busy Ray Taylor. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide