Killer Leopard

I expected far worse when I decided to watch a BOMBA episode, I mean a movie episode, because BOMBA, unlike JUNGLE JIM, was never adapted for the small screen. This story and acting are not as lousy as you could expect. I don't know exactly why, but there is something better, more serious, less lousy than usual in this poor man's TARZAN, in the line of JUNGLE JIM. The plot is closer to the first TARZAN films, in the thirties, than to the other jungle features of this period. Of course, it will remain a B picture, ambitionless, except entertain young audiences. I won't necessarily recommend it to you, but it's not a so bad film.

What can you say about a jungle adventure wherein the best performance is given by a leopard via stock footage? Johnny Sheffield's penultimate "Bomba" vehicle has the teen Tarzan tracking a bloodthirsty black leopard through the African wilds while an American movie actress needs Bomba's help in finding her embezzler husband (in the country to illegally acquire some hot diamonds). Sheffield, his loincloth hiked-up to cover his navel, tussles with the titular beast but otherwise doesn't get any exciting scenes here. Cheapie is typically over-saturated with stock footage and stock villains. Pretty Beverly Garland brings the picture some class, though she isn't allowed any personality and literally treads water while following Sheffield's lead. *1/2 from ****

KILLER LEOPARD (Allied Artists, 1954), produced and written by Ford Beebe, who also directed along with Edward Morey Jr., is the eleventh entry to the "Bomba" jungle adventures starring non-other than Johnny Sheffield. With the character created by Roy Rockwood in the "Bomba" books, this is the sort of material geared mostly for its juvenile Saturday matinee audiences. The movie itself sets its title character of the killer leopard as background material with more focus and extended scenes on its safari and a woman searching for her husband. The wife in question is played by the young Beverly Garland, best known for her television roles, mainly that as Barbara in the final three seasons (1969-1972) to the long-running sit-com, "My Three Sons" (1960-1972) starring Fred MacMurray. As much as Garland worked mostly on television dating back to the 1950s, she was a movie actress as well, something very few have realized in later years when she became a familiar television personality decades later.

Opening title: "On the fringe of the African jungle - Laghaso - a crossroads for adventures from the four corners of the continent." Linda Winters (Beverly Garland), is introduced as an American movie actress having come 8,000 miles to Africa searching for her missing husband, Fred (Donald Murphy), a former bookkeeper. She traces him down to the Café of the Three Dragons where he, earlier, had made arrangements with Charlie Pulham (Barry Bernard), to act as his guide to lead him to Sheridan's Compound to track down a batch of uncut diamonds to make him rich. The following morning finds Bomba, the jungle boy (Johnny Sheffield) riding his elephant. He then helps Jonas (Bill Walker), a native man just attacked by a dangerous killer leopard. Taking Jonas to the home cottage of his good friend, Deputy Andy Barnes (Leonard Mudie) to attend to his wounds, Bomba soon meets with Linda at his front door where she comes for further assistance. Bomba offers to track down her husband alone to Belden's Landing while she and Eli (Smoki Whitfield) travel through the jungle by jeep. Bomba finds the camp where Winters is staying to give him the news about his wife, but is told he wants nothing to do with her. Bomba runs back to tell Linda the news, only to spare her feelings by his blunt message. He agrees to guide Linda to the place where Winters is staying, but upon their arrival, they find Winters and his guide have moved on after their raft was cast adrift. As they journey further, all get themselves involved in individual segments with the killer leopard on their trail. Further danger soon awaits after Pulham leads Winters to Saunders (Harry Cording) a diamond smuggler, and his tough assistants.

A standard jungle adventure Bomba style, featuring typical stock footage of Bomba's animal friends. The killer leopard gets his share of several extreme close-ups as a reminder that this dangerous animal should not be overlooked in favor of the extended story involving both safari and jungle boy's guidance and assistance to the visiting characters. Highlights include Bomba and Linda swimming in the river, to find crocodiles resting on the surface on one side, and leopard and dangerous water buffalo on the other; and Bomba's one-on-one encounter with the killer leopard, but no threat to Johnny Weissmuller's similar nature in his earlier "Tarzan" series. Naturally there is betrayal amongst the greedy hunters to stir up some excitement. There's also in the cast including Russ Conway (Sergeant Maitland); and Rory Mallison (Officer Deevers), men of the law also searching for Fred Winters involving his crisis back in the states; Roy Glenn (Jonas); Milton Wood (Conji); and Martin Wilkins (Gambi). With Beverly Garland working more alongside Sheffield's Bomba, there are moments seen in her eyes where she seems more romantically interested in him than in her husband search. At 70 minutes, KILLER LEOPARD reaches its level agreeably to its point of interest.

Commonly presented on broadcast television dating back to the 1960s, notably a decade later on New York City's WOR, Channel 9's during its weekly Saturday morning "Jungle Adventure" series (1977-1979), this, and other "Bomba" adventures can be seen on cable television's Turner Classic Movies, where it premiered March 10, 2013. Next and last in the series: LORD OF THE JUNGLE (1955). (**)

This entry in the Bomba The Jungle Boy series has Johnny Sheffield with two problems. Movie star Beverly Garland has come to Africa trailing her worthless husband who has embezzled all kinds of money and the cops also want him. But Garland wants to make it right. But while she's out hunting him, there's a Killer Leopard on the lose and he's on the prowl for any and all concerned.

The husband is Donald Murphy and he's hired guide Barry Bernard to go into the interior to get some diamonds out for a little illegal smuggling. He really isn't interested in being Mr. Movie Star's husband any longer. Still Garland has a mission and she's got Bomba along for help.

Watching Garland and Murphy I was thinking of two show business marriages that of Fanny Brice and Nicky Arnstein and that of Doris Day and Marty Melcher. The writers could have been inspired by either or both of those.

Killer Leopard is an above average Bomba picture even though Sheffield is clearly getting too old to be a convincing jungle boy.

The penultimate Bomba movie starring Johnny Sheffield has our hero helping a movie star (Beverly Garland) trying to find her embezzler husband. But look out, Bomba, there's a killer leopard on the loose! At this point in the series it's becoming increasingly hard to care what Bomba is up to and why. Sheffield tries but it's all just so talky and dull, battle with the leopard notwithstanding. Pretty Beverly Garland is nice in this early role. Her in a bathing suit is one of the movie's only highlights. She would go on to much bigger things than most who guest-starred in this series. Regulars Smoki Whitfield and Leonard Mudie offer decent support. There's an unintentionally funny bit from actor Bill Walker as a native who, when we first meet him, is lying on the ground screaming "Bomba help!" in the most unconvincing manner possible. Picture the little old lady from the commercials shouting "I've fallen and I can't get up" and you'll get the idea.

Despite being jungle adventure films aimed mostly at kids, the Bomba series was more often than not pretty unexciting stuff. This is especially true of the later movies. This one drags even thought it's just 70 minutes long. The only real excitement comes from stock footage of animals and a fight scene between Bomba and a leopard that looks suspiciously like one from a previous Bomba movie. Fans will perhaps be amused by Bomba becoming involved with the marital problems between the movie star and her crook husband. Everybody else might want to find another to kill an hour.