In Africa, pilot Mike Patton is persuaded by his business partner, Bob Simpson, to conduct a search for a missing heiress whose plane supposedly went down in the jungle, resulting in her never being seen again.
Encountering an indigenous tribe of natives, Bob recklessly shoots a man. He is taken before a woman, Greta, who is being treated like a high priestess. Bob is sentenced to die, but when she gets Mike off to herself, Greta pleads with him to help her escape.
During a struggle, a gun goes off and a guard is left dead. With the tribesmen in pursuit, Mike and Greta are betrayed by Bob, who has gone mad. But after he is killed by a spear, Mike and Greta make it to the plane and safely get away.
The film was the first to be produced by Robert L. Lippert's independent production company, Lippert Pictures.[1]
Lippert borrowed George Reeves to star and filming began in June 1948.[2]
Reception
A Los Angeles Times reviewer who saw the film in a theater called it "so corny" that the audience "died laughing when they weren't razzing on it."[3]
Despite this reaction, the film was widely seen, as one of the most watched movies in what were then all 48 states.[4] In 1950 the film was shown as part of a double feature with Treasure Island at the Five Points Theatre in Birmingham, Alabama as well several other theaters around the state.[5] In 1954 Jungle Goddess was shown as part of a double feature with a re-airing of The Lawless Nineties in several media markets.[6]
The film was popular enough for a follow-up Green Gold which became Thunder in the Pines.[7]
Home media
In 2006, Jungle Goddess was released on Region 1 DVD in the United States by VCI Home Video. The film was paired with another title starring George Reeves, Thunder in the Pines (1948).[8]
References
^Davis, Blair (2012). The Battle for the Bs: 1950s Hollywood and the Rebirth of Low-budget Cinema. Rutgers University Press. p. 84. ISBN978-0-813-55324-5.
^Schallert, E. (May 28, 1948). "Hodiak star in 'bribe,' carlson will produce". Los Angeles Times. ProQuest165839834.
^Schallert, E. (Oct 29, 1948). "Powell duels with sultry jane greer; outlaw queen". Los Angeles Times. ProQuest165854083.
^Davis, Blair (2012). The Battle for the Bs: 1950s Hollywood and the Rebirth of Low-budget Cinema. Rutgers University Press. p. 84. ISBN 978-0-813-55324-5.
^The Southern Movie Palace: Rise, Fall, and Resurrection by Janna Jones