The Spider's Web (serial)

Lore & Background

The serial's plot centers on The Octopus, a masked crimelord garbed entirely in white, who demands tribute from railroad magnates and other captains of industry. Richard Wentworth, secretly The Spider, uses two .45 semi-automatic pistols and a knotted rope to swing about his surroundings. He also masquerades as underworld lowlife Blinky McQuade to infiltrate gangland. Only his assistants Jackson and Ram Singh, his butler Jenkins, and his fiancée Nita know his various identities. The Octopus is only ever seen by his henchmen while sitting in a throne-like chair, and he uses a false arm and hand to conceal a pistol. The serial follows the standard formula of fights, shoot-outs, and kidnappings, with each chapter ending in a cliffhanger spoiled by a trailer showing the rescue.

Reader's Guide

The Spider's Web was wildly successful when first released in 1938, becoming the most popular serial of that year according to The Motion Picture Herald and The Film Daily. It was such an exhibitor favorite that Columbia used it to launch a series of reissues in 1947. The serial made changes from the pulps, including a more theatrical costume for The Spider—a black suit and fedora with white web-like markings on his lightweight cape and full face mask—and renaming Commissioner Kirkpatrick to Commissioner Kirk. The violence was toned down to comply with the motion picture production code. The Spider has been noted as an influence on Spider-Man co-creator Stan Lee. A sequel, The Spider Returns, was released in 1941, with only Warren Hull and Kenne Duncan returning in their original roles.

Did You Know?

• The Spider's Web was the first serial to be adapted from a pulp magazine.
• The Octopus was created specifically for the serial and did not appear in the original pulp stories.
• The serial's costume for The Spider featured white web-like markings on a lightweight cape and a hood that left the face partially visible, differing from the pulp's all-black description.
• The serial was so popular that Columbia used it to launch a series of reissues in 1947.