South of Panama
Brief Synopsis
Cast & Crew
Jean Yarbrough
Roger Pryor
Virginia Vale
Lionel Royce
Duncan Renaldo
Sam "deacon" Mcdaniel
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
In Panama, hotel manager Burns intercepts a telegram intended for Janice Martin from her brother Paul, which tells her not to meet him at the airport. Burns, who wants a secret formula developed by Paul, alters the telegram to read that Jan should meet Paul at the airport, and instructs two thugs, Lake and Wilton, to follow her and kidnap Paul. Jan realizes she has been followed, however, and as Paul gets off the plane, she signals him not to greet her, then embraces journalist Mike Lawrence, a stranger, and asks him to play along with her. Jan and Mike unwittingly get into a taxi driven by one of Burns's men, and after he stops the car on a remote road, Mike knocks him out and drives away. Mike eludes Lake and Wilton, but Jan disappears when he stops at a roadside store so that she can make a phone call. Hoping to run into her again, Mike checks into her hotel. Jan, meanwhile, meets with Paul, who has developed a special protective paint for the Army which will aid in the defense of the Canal Zone, and they agree that they must continue to allow everyone to think that Mike is Paul. Jan performs at the hotel as a Latin singer named Dolores Esteban, and uses this disguise to avoid recognition by Mike. When the crooked cab driver confronts Mike in his room, demanding the formula, an unseen assailant stabs the cab driver to death, and the hotel doorman, Rodriguez Lincoln Jones, comes to Mike's aid. By the time the police arrive, however, Mike's room has been switched and the body has disappeared. Mike sees Jan in the lobby and follows her into the cellar, where they are accosted by Raynor, a spy who also wants the secret formula. Mike wrests the gun from Raynor, and leaves Rod guarding the man, but Raynor escapes, and Rod unexpectedly discovers the cab driver's body hidden in the cellar. The next morning, Paul goes to U.S. Army headquarters to prove that his protective paint, which effectively makes planes invisible, can be used to "hide" the Canal. That night, Lake and Wilton see Mike and "Dolores" go out on a date, and wait inside his room. However, they mistakenly shoot Raynor instead of Mike, and Mike escapes through Jan's room into a room next door, where he is knocked unconscious. Mike awakens later and discovers that Burns has taken him hostage. Mike responds flippantly to Burns questions after he realizes he is a spy. Burns then kidnaps Jan, but she and Mike are left alone in a room after Burns finds out he has the wrong man. Paul is kidnapped and brought back to the hiding place, but Jan and Mike have freed themselves and chase Burns and his thugs as they escape by car. Burns and his men are killed in a crash, and later, Mike visits "Dolores" backstage to tell her he is in love with Jan, and discovers that they are the same woman.
Director
Jean Yarbrough
Cast
Roger Pryor
Virginia Vale
Lionel Royce
Duncan Renaldo
Sam "deacon" Mcdaniel
Hugh Beaumont
Lucien Prival
Edward Keane
Jack Ingram
Lester Dorr
Warren Jackson
Crew
George R. Batcheller
Sam Brown
Alberto Colombo
Herb Pine
Ferrol Redd
Ben Roberts
Sidney Sheldon
Melville Shyer
Mack Stengler
Bill Strohbach
Frank Sylos
Guy V. Thayer Jr.
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
This film opens with the following written foreword: "The producers of this motion picture gratefully acknowledge the cooperation of the Royal Air Force for allowing them the use of the actual working models of the Hudson Bomber; and for their invaluable assistance. To the men of the R.A.F.-Democracy's first line of defense-this picture is respectfully dedicated." Writer Sidney Sheldon's name is misspelled "Sydney" in the onscreen credits.
