Don Winslow of the Navy (1942) – Chapter 9: Wings of Destruction

OUR STORY SO FAR (taken directly from the “crawl” that opens Part the Ninth): Don Winslow follows Scorpion suspects to the mining village. 

Tracing Prindle, a known Scorpion agent, brings him to the Tangita Gold Mine.  He finds his man, but while battling with him is accidentally knocked into an ore reduction chamber, just as the door is closed and locked by remote control.  As the deadly fumes from the boiling acid rise…

…Don is seriously boned.  I thought I might be, too, since two weeks ago I had to put Serial Saturdays in a state of limbo after carelessly allowing my Winslow DVDs to fall into that section of the house that swallowed up the little girl in that Twilight Zone episode.  But thanks to “Prince Barin,” formerly of Heritage Hill Media, a replacement set was dispatched swiftly to Rancho Yesteryear…and I thank him profusely for offering to do so at his expense.

Close approximation of Prince Barin offering me a lifeline (the bedroom rubble is fairly accurate)

But back to our exciting serial, it says here.  Scorpion agent Prindle (Robert Barron) rushes to the control room where a chemist named Taylor (Irving Mitchell) and his lackey (Eddie Polo) are twisting dials and pulling levers to their nerdlinger content.  “Quick!” barks Prindle.  “Open the reduction chamber—Winslow’s trapped in there!”

And thus we are presented with the epitome of the unintentional hilarity offered to us by Don Winslow of the Navy.  See, in most serials, the object of the villains is to dispatch the hero to the Happy Hunting Ground—but they can’t do that here, because The Scorpion (Kurt Katch) has issued orders that Winslow must be taken alive.  So now these three jamokes have to rescue the hero—that just strikes me tremendously funny, I guess.

The door to the reduction chamber is opened, and Prindle braves the noxious fumes to go in and pull Winslow’s sorry ass out of danger.  Prindle then carries Winslow down the corridor, and a separate P.O.V. establishes that Spencer Merlin (John Litel), a.k.a. “M-22” and The Scorpion’s second-in-command, is also entering the building at that time (the sign on a door reads “Administrative Offices & Reduction Tanks”).  Merlin pauses at the door momentarily; a gunshot then rings out, and Prindle falls to the corridor floor (and with no means of support, Don goes down with him).  The implication is that Merlin has dispatched his loyal henchie with a bullet, which prompted a “What the…front yard?” reaction from yours truly.

I swear I’m not making this up.  They say that human life is cheap in Casablanca, but apparently on Tangita it’ll run you a Costco price.  There is a method to the crafty Merlin’s madness, however: kneeling over the now-dead Prindle, Merlin removes some papers from his inside suit pocket and stuffs them in Prindle’s suit.  Then Merlin goes over to where the still-unconscious Don is lying on the floor, and as he attempts to bring him to, Taylor of Muppet Labs arrives with what appears to be a Bromo Seltzer.  “Here…give him this,” Taylor tells Merlin.  “It will neutralize the effects of the acid fumes” (And also rid him of that agita that’s been plaguing him for the last few chapters.)

“Close the door, Taylor,” responds Spence, “the fumes are spreading.”  And so there’s a shot of Taylor returning to the control room to issue that very command to his lackey.

DON (coming to): Merlin…that stuff seems to help…my head’s cleared a little…

MERLIN: Good…

At this point in the narrative, Don’s entourage—Lt. “Red” Pennington (Walter Sande), Michael Splendor (Wade Boteler), John Blake (Ben Taggart) and Seaman Chapman (Peter Leeds)—comes rushing into the building, since they have spent most of this time waiting out in the car with the motor running.

RED: Don!  What happened?  Huh?

DON (as they help him to his feet): I don’t know…the last thing I seem to remember is…

“…picturing myself on a boat on a river…with tangerine trees and marmalade skies…”

DON: …fighting two men…

SPLENDOR (pointing to the dead Prindle): Is that one of them?

DON: Yes…is he dead?

MERLIN: I think so, Commander…I saw you struggling with him—and I shot him to save your life…

“No…no, there’s no need to thank me…it’s just the kind of guy I am.”

DON: I’m sorry you did that, Merlin…we make it a rule in naval intelligence to capture men, not to kill them…

SPLENDOR: Sure, and he’s right…them spalpeens is worth more alive to be answerin’ questions than dead…

MERLIN: Why…sorry, Commander…I was only thinking of helping you…

“Ungrateful little pup…”  But soft!  It’s not a total loss, because faithful Seaman Chapman has discovered the documentation that Merlin planted on the deceased Prindle to throw our heroes off his scent.

DON: The Scorpion’s insignia!

RED: That proves he was a Scorpion agent!

DON: Yes…but was he M-22?

CHAPMAN: I believe he was, sir…these papers seem to prove it…

DON (as he rifles through the papers): Official orders…all addressed to M-22!

SPLENDOR: Well…I guess M-22 won’t be botherin’ us anymore…

RED: Boy—what a relief to have him out of the way…

DON: There were three men that worked in that mine…the other two may still be here…

MERLIN: Is there anything I can do to help, Commander?

“Other than refraining from shooting and killing off suspects, I can’t think of anything.”  Don asks Merlin for a guided tour of the mine, rationalizing that he might recognize the other two goons if he got the lay of the place.  Merlin agrees to accommodate him, and Red asks to go along—in the meantime, Splendor, Blake and Chapman will, in Mike’s words, “do a little investigatin’ of our own.”

There is then a cut to the radio room of the spies’ organization—the area where Merlin receives his weekly dressing-down from The Scorpion via TV screen.  Loyal radio man Parker (Ray Teal) is shuffling paper when henchman Corley (Lane Chandler) arrives on the scene:

CORLEY: Winslow and that red-headed stooge of his are inspecting the mine…

PARKER: Is M-22 with them?

CORLEY: Yeah…

PARKER: He ought to be smart enough to keep them from finding the secret entrance to this place…

CORLEY: I hope so…if they barge in here, it’ll be curtains for all of us!

Now…I don’t know if the news of Prindle’s demise has reached these two clowns yet—but I have to tell you: if I had learned that my boss put a bullet into one of my colleagues just to save his own neck, I’d be angling for a transfer at that point.  The scene then shifts back to inside the mine, as Merlin shows Don and Red “the last tunnel”—they’ve not run across any of the men Don is looking for, so they head over to the elevator that will take them topside.

DON (noticing the boarded-up mine section): Wait a minute…where does this lead?

MERLIN: A couple of natives were killed there in a cave-in…the tunnel was too dangerous to work so we had to abandon it…it’s been barricaded for over a year…there’s no way anyone could possibly get into that tunnel now…

As Merlin alibis for the closed-down section of the mine, Don and Red peer in for a closer look.  Merlin can be seen reaching into the inside of his suit, presumably to retrieve a revolver should our heroes get curious.  But since Red opines “Anybody’d be crazy to go into a place as dangerous as that looks,” the danger has passed—Merlin pulls his hand out of his suit, and the three of them take the elevator to the surface.

DON: Thanks very much, Merlin, for your cooperation…

MERLIN: Not at all, Commander…I’m glad to do anything I can to help you fellows round up that gang responsible for the sabotage of the naval base…

DON: I wish a few more people on Tangita felt that way about it…

RED: Well, at least we don’t have to worry about M-22 anymore…

“Yeah—how lucky were we that he was killed right before our very eyes with proper documentation and everything!”  Don and Red take their leave of Merlin, announcing they’re going to find the others, and as soon as our two heroes depart, Merlin goes back to the elevator and begins his descent into the secret section of the mine.  As he makes his way toward the radio room, he is stopped by agent Paul Barsac (John Holland), a.k.a. The Scorpion’s relative on the payroll.

BARSAC: M-22!  We’ve got the undersea oil well operating at full blast!  And they’re re-fueling the Z-40…

MERLIN (sarcastically): That’s fine…but all the undersea oil wells in the world won’t do us any good till Winslow’s out of the way…

BARSAC: What’s up?

MERLIN: You’ll find out in the radio room…I’d better report to The Scorpion…

Merlin and Barsac arrive in the radio room, and Merlin orders Parker to contact you-know-who—yeah, baby…it’s Scorpion time!

SCORPION: I’m waiting for your report, M-22…

MERLIN: Prindle is dead…I shot him to prevent his capture by Winslow…he would have talked and given away the whole set-up…

“He never could keep a secret.”

SCORPION: You did well…we must take no chances in losing our base on Tangita…

MERLIN: Winslow is becoming suspicious of the mine…have we your permission to dispose of him…permanently?

I don’t know why they cut to a shot here of Scorp looking off to his right as if he left something on the stove, but it kind of cracked me up.

SCORPION: If it is absolutely necessary…remove Winslow…nothing must interfere with our plans…and Winslow’s destroyer, the 620, must be torpedoed…our operations are at a standstill with that Navy ship in Tangita waters…the 620 must be destroyed…those are my orders…

“Okay, everybody—change of plans…we finally get to eliminate Winslow!”  Clearly The Scorpion’s not kidding around (well, it is the ninth chapter—you have to space these things out, you know)—but as always, there is dissension in the ranks.

BARSAC: Sink the 620?  Huh…The Scorpion must be crazy…

“I mean…Uncle Scorpion must be crazy…”

BARSAC: …if we do that, the Navy will only send down more destroyers and blow us off the map…

MERLIN: Easy, Barsac…those are his orders and we’ve got to carry them out…

“As ill-advised and just plain stupid as they may seem.”

BARSAC: Yes!  And if we miss this time…it’ll be curtains for all of us…

MERLIN: That’s why we can’t afford to miss…your first job is to put Winslow’s new plane out of commission…

Let’s see…about ten minutes have gone by…yeah, seems about right to introduce the plot for this chapter.  The scene shifts back to the warehouse, where Don is pacing the floor—this whole dead Prindle thing is a little too convenient for our hero to take in.

SPLENDOR: You’re not up to lettin’ The Scorpion get your nanny goat—are you, Don me boy?

What a strange, strange line.

DON: Not yet, Mike…but we’ve got to round up the rest of The Scorpion’s gang!

SPLENDOR: Well, that should be easier now with M-22 dead…

DON: I have a hunch that M-22 isn’t dead!  And if I’m right, that’s the clue we need!

Is this guy ever wrong about anything?  I could probably take him more seriously if just once in a while he would leap to a conclusion and then say afterward: “Clearly I didn’t know what I was thinking when I came up with that hypothesis…my bad, everybody!”

RED: But, Don…why would this man Prindle—the one that was shot—have M-22’s letters and papers in his pocket?

DON: I don’t know, Red—but I’m still not convinced it was M-22!

“That tattoo of his that read ‘I am M-22’?  Merely circumstantial evidence!”  Seaman Chapman hands Don a message from the 620, and Don informs Red that since Grady (Dirk Thane) has come down with a case of the sniffles, Red will have to take command of the destroyer until he recovers.

RED: What about your hunch on M-22?

DON: I’ll answer that when I’ve done more investigating up at the mine…right now, you’d better get out to the ship…oh, Chapman—radio the 620 that Lt. Pennington is taking over…

CHAPMAN: Aye aye, sir…

DON: I’m sorry, Red…but we can’t take any chances with the old 620…

RED: It’s okay, Don…I’d like to help you follow your hunch but I guess my job is to be where the Navy needs me most…

SPLENDOR (slapping him on the back): That’s the spirit, laddie…and with Commander Winslow’s permission, I’ll go with you—you’ll be wantin’ the advice of a man of my wisdom and experience…

Don and Red’s reaction to this is similar to one of those phony eruptions of laughter you hear at the end of a Hanna-Barbera cartoon; you know, the kind that results when Scooby Doo does something idiotic.  But the more I think about it, there might be a little cynicism behind the mirthful outburst—particularly since Splendor is a dumbass.

Don closes the door after Red and Mike, and then heads back toward his desk—and then realizing he’s forgotten something, snaps his fingers and walks into the adjoining office, where he finds his girlfriend Mercedes Colby (Claire Dodd) and Red’s main squeeze Misty Gaye (Anne Nagel).  Misty greets Don with “How are you, sailor—what’s the good word?”—and I kind of get the feeling that’s a phrase Misty uses often, if you know what I mean and I think you do.

DON: Not so good, I’m afraid, Misty…Red has just gone out to the 620…so I’m afraid your little dinner party with him will have to be postponed…

MISTY: Now isn’t that just my luck…a chance for a free meal, and something has to spoil it…

Oh, Misty…I’m sure there are plenty of other gobs on that island who’ll jump at the chance to buy you a chocolate bar upon hearing “How are you, sailor—what’s the good word?”  This seems as good a time as any for John Blake to enter the office—he may be the guy in charge of the construction company who’s building this naval base…but to me he’s one character this serial could do without.

BLAKE: Good news, Commander…I just talked with Simpson, my mechanic, out at the hangar…he’s fixed that trouble with the motor in your new plane…

DON: That’s great…I’ve been anxious to try that new model out ever since we unloaded it from the Baratavia…

BLAKE: Simpson’s tuning it up now…says she’s the sweetest model he ever saw…

DON: Oh, I’m glad to hear it—I could use a good plane on this assignment…

BLAKE: Yes…it might come in handy to locate The Scorpion’s hideout…

Provided it can fly underground, of course.  Don is going over to test it out…and speaking of the sweetest model he ever saw…

MERCEDES: Wait a minute, Don…you promised to take me up, and I’m going to hold you to that promise…

DON: Not this time, Mercedes…I haven’t tried it out yet…

MERCEDES: But, Don—I’ve helped you out before…and anyway, four eyes are better than two in locating The Scorpion’s headquarters…

DON: Okay, honey…but remember I haven’t tested it yet so it’s your responsibility…

And with that sexual innuendo out of the way, we cut to a shot of the airplane hangar, then follow it with an automobile pulling up outside.  Inside the car are Barsac, Corley and Spike (Ethan Laidlaw)…again, still on the Scorpion payroll despite the death of their alleged friend Prindle.  (Maybe they know something we don’t, like they’re divvying up Prindle’s bonus.)  Barsac emerges from the driver’s seat of the car.

BARSAC: Corley, you and Spike stay here…be ready if I need help…

CORLEY: Okay, Barsac…be sure you do a good job…

BARSAC: Heh…Winslow’s plane won’t even be able to taxi when I get through with it…

Barsac enters the hangar with the greatest of ease, and the only thing standing between him and the plane is a doughy mechanic (uncredited at the IMDb) who’s probably thinking about how his wife packed two Twinkies in his lunch that day.  Barsac tells this Simpson guy that he’s there to test the plane and when the mechanic asks him for his credentials he pulls a piece of paper out of his pocket and then drops it on the ground.  Simpson reaches down to pick it up and is hit by Barsac (d’oh!), who then drags him over to a storage area inside the hangar.  Barsac then starts up an acetylene torch, with the expressed purpose of burnin’ that mutha to the ground.

Not so fast, Mr. Barsac!  Don and Mercedes pull up in their car at this time (and again, Don doesn’t notice the car with the other two henchmen because his eyes are closed) and Don stops Mercedes from entering the hangar because he’s peered inside and states “That’s not Simpson in there…”  Mercedes recognizes Barsac, but Don tells Mercedes to cool her jets outside while he goes in and engages him mano-a-mano.  In their struggle, one of them kicks the torch aside and this happens:

Seriously?  You’re leaving oily rags around in a hangar where there are acetylene torches and gasoline and other flammable materials?  Who could have possibly foreseen this fire breaking out?  Well, as the blaze rages on and the stuntmen for Don and Barsac start throwing punches, Mercedes decides to venture into the hangar after being explicitly told not to.  The result is that she witnesses her boyfriend getting his ass kicked (seriously, Don—you suck at this fighting business; I bet you wish this was a Columbia serial) but there is a small blessing in that she helps him come to after he’s knocked unconscious from being slammed up against a locker.

MERCEDES: Don!  Don!  Don, are you all right?

DON: Where’s Barsac?

MERCEDES: He went out that door!

As they take off after them, Mercedes announces that they can’t get out that way because, fire.  That’s when Don remembers the plane, and the two of them climb into the cockpit where Don starts ‘er up.  Barsac returns to the bad guys’ car just in time to see Don and Mercedes taxi out of the hangar.

CORLEY: So…you took care of the plane…

SPIKE: And Winslow!

CORLEY: All you did was blow up a building!

In Barsac’s defense…he blowed it up real good.

BARSAC: Winslow isn’t human!  I tell you, he was out cold on the floor!

CORLEY: Well, for an unconscious guy he’s doin’ all right with that plane!

That may very well be the funniest line in the serial so far (it’s been a while since I’ve gone back and re-read previous chapters).  So it’s up in the air, Junior Birdman, with Don and Mercedes conversing in the friendly skies:

MERCEDES: That was a close call…but the plane certainly came through in fine style…

DON: She’s supposed to be the best in the air…

“Speaking of which…Mercedes—are you familiar with the Mile High Club?”

MERCEDES: You know, that’s certainly something—going through a fire without burning…

DON: Oh, that’s the new type fireproofing…maybe I’d better set ‘er down…

MERCEDES: Not until I’ve had my flight!

DON: Okay, skipper…we’ll circle the 620 and salute Red…

Back in the radio room at Scorpion Enterprises (“Fight like a butterfly, sting like a bee”) an impatient Merlin orders Parker to radio the Z-40 submarine and seek out the 620, because, damn it, Barsac has had plenty of time to destroy Winslow’s plane.  This is a cue for the filmmakers to lard the rest of this serial chapter with generous dollops of U.S. Navy stock footage, which ceases when we are brought aboard the 620 briefly for this dialogue exchange:

RED: Mike…I hope Don’s hunch about the Scorpion gang was right…

SPLENDOR: Sure, and ‘tis me hopin’ the same…those dirty rascals is made enough trouble for our new naval base… (As a plane flies overhead) A plane…sure, he’s headin’ straight for us!

RED: That’s not Don’s plane!

SPLENDOR: Then it must be one of those Scorpion devils!

Sure, and you’re right, ya cocky Irish bastard.  A plane has been launched from the decks of the Z-40 to put the 620 permanently out of commission—or as Splendor says, “That blasted idiot’s divin’ right onto us!”

More stock footage follows, with the 620 firing its anti-aircraft guns at the rude intruder…but by this time, Don and Mercedes have spotted the guy and they take off in hot pursuit, to the cheers of Red, Mike and the rest.  It’s tense going all the way…

…and then this happens…

You just had to show off for your girlfriend, didn’t you, Donny me lad?