The Amazing Exploits of the Clutching Hand

The Clutching Hand (in full, The Amazing Exploits of the Clutching Hand) is a 1936 15-episode serial produced by the Weiss Brothers based on the final Craig Kennedy novel of the 1934 same name by Arthur B. Reeve. A 70 minute feature film using a condensed version of the serial was also released in the same year. In it, the famous detective (portrayed by Jack Mulhall, who had portrayed the Black Ace in the serial The Mystery Squadron three years before) is assigned to solve the disappearance of Dr. Paul Gironda (Robert Frazer), a scientist who has developed a formula for synthesizing gold but vanishes before he has a chance to reveal it to his board of directors. It was the last Craig Kennedy serial and the only one to be filmed as a talkie. One of the criminals, Hobart, is played by Charles Locher, who is better known nowadays as Jon Hall, and it appears that Gironda is being held prisoner by Craig Kennedy's old foe, the Clutching Hand (a faceless presence apparently played by Bud Geary, an actor who was frequently cast in such roles, and voiced by Robert Frazer).