Drums Of The Desert

2862. DRUMS OF THE DESERT (1940-USA). With RALPH BYRD, LORNA GRAY, MANTAN MORELAND. Stalwart French Foreign Legion lieutenant Paul Dumont is sailing from Marseilles to Algeria. He is on his way to fulfill a two-year-long assignment to “teach the colonial troops a few new tricks.” Dumont is looking for one last fling on board the ship, as he is fully aware that his immediate future will be filled with sun, sand and hard work. His romantic spree starts when a wind-blown scarf sweeps into his face. That scarf belongs to mademoiselle Helene Laroche. Paul begins wining and dining Helene, and the two share an idyllic shipboard affair. Paul soon realizes that his feelings for Helene have deepened, and so he is dismayed to discover that upon the ship’s docking she disappears without a trace and without saying good-bye. When Paul arrives at the military outpost to which he has been assigned, he is surprised not only to discover Helene there, but that she is engaged to wed one of Paul’s fellow Legionnaires! What follows in a taut action-adventure tale which finds Paul battling his rival for the woman he loves amid a story rich in conflict with rebellious Arabs. Popular black actor/comic Mantan Moreland has one of his more colorful roles as Blue Williams, a sergeant in the Senegalese army who just so happens to hail from Harlem! 62 minutes. Adventure