Dick Barton, Special Agent

1793. DICK BARTON, SPEC1AL AGENT (1948-England). With DON STANNARD. Dick Barton, ace detective who was the hero of an enormously popular 1940s British radio show, makes his screen bow in this rousing, tongue-in-cheek adventure/melodrama. The setting is a sleepy little Cornish fishing village, whose residents have been in the business of petty smuggling. When Barton and zany underlings Snowy and Jock arrive on the scene, ostensibly to take a holiday, the townspeople fear that the sleuth is investigating their activities. However, Barton is really on a case whose implications are far more serious. He’s seeking evidence against the heinous Dr. Sigmund Caspar, a biologist with a decided Germanic demeanor. Caspar fancies himself as the new Hitler, and is hatching an elaborate plot that will utilize germ warfare to destroy Mother England. A number of home office representatives who’ve come to the region have already mysteriously disappeared. It will be up to Barton to dodge everything from poison darts to “knock-out drops,” and contend with the kidnapping of his cronies, as he seeks to get the goods on Caspar. Will he succeed in safeguarding the future of England? As they said back in the 1940s, Dick Barton “always has an ace up his sleeve,” and “always gets his man.” 66 minutes. Adventure