Movie review - "The Lion Man" (1936) **

Cheapie which was I think the first leading role for Jon Hall. That's how he was billed in the version I saw but I think that was a re-release after Hall became famous. Hall was billed as "Charles Loucheur".

It's stuff about a man who goes to live in a desert with his kid. He is killed (quite sad to see the boy embracing his dad's corpse) and he is raised by another Arab. It's similar to stuff Hall/Loucheur later made with Maria Montez: there's a white woman, a native woman hot for him.

I saw a poor copy of it - the photography was lousy. The handling is awkward and clunky. Hall is amiable - handsome, virile, all that. He doesn't appear until 30 minutes in (it's a one hour movie) but holds the screen.

I had read this was based on an Edgar Rice Burroughs story but apparently it wasn't and Burroughs sued them to try and get the name changed because he thought people would think it was based on Tarzan and the Lion or The Lad and the Lion. See here. Eventually they came to a settlement where they agreed that it was based on the story see here.

Ride of the Valkyries is used on the soundtrack. Presumably music stock.