Creating the illusion of free flight was a key element in the Rocket Man/Cody serials and by 1949, Republic's special effects team had it down to a science.  Back in 1936, the studio produced its first serial, Darkest Africa, which featured a legion of winged "batmen".  Larry Wickland, with the assistance of two young apprentices named Howard and Theodore Lydecker, carved slightly larger than life-sized dummies out of balsa wood.  The figures, with outstretched arms and arched backs, slid down steeply angled piano wire which ran on small wheels hidden in the hands and heels. When filmed outdoors in natural light, this method convincingly portrayed the swooping and soaring batmen.

Republic's weird but realistic flying dummy, circa 1936

In 1941, Republic brought its most fondly remembered flying hero to the screen in The Adventures of Captain Marvel.  Again the slightly oversized dummy, costumed to match star Tom Tyler, was used for many of the serial's flying sequences.  For close-up work, the crew devised what director William Witney described as, "...a cradle for the lead to lay in...".  The apparatus consisted of a chest piece supported by four wires, two thigh supports and wires in the heels of each boot.  The six-foot-four Tyler was then hoisted up in front of a process screen.  By manipulating the support wires, the actor essentially became a human puppet capable of being positioned for ascent, descent or rolled slightly to one side.

A similar method was used for Rocket Man's flying scenes.  Again, the oversized dummy sailed across the screen.  An actor, in this case stuntman Dave Sharpe, hung by wires in front of the process screen but the set-up used appears to be slightly different from the one employed for Captain Marvel.  Even after the film was doctored by Consolidated Film Industries and "passing clouds" were added to the foreground, two heavy, diagonal wires can be seen supporting Sharpe at the waist.  A couple of chapter endings feature Rocket Man plummeting out of control and if you look closely, you can see some of the slack support wire as Sharpe thrashes around.  Hey, what should we expect with a film budget of a hundred and sixty-five grand?

Although most of the flying sequences for Radar Men from the Moon were lifted from King of the Rocket Men, some new footage was added.  Actor George Wallace recalls the movie magic: "For scenes where Cody's flying through the clouds, they sent up a plane and took shots of clouds going by.  Then, they rear-projected this footage onto a screen, and I would work in front of the screen.  They built a platform just off-camera and attached a 2x4 to it, extending it out into camera range maybe, three feet.  Very easily, I would crawl out onto this 2x4, on my belly, and then they would close my jacket around the 2x4.  And there I would be, flying in front of those clouds. But sometimes- quite a few times- I would lose my balance and flip, and I would be hanging upside by my jacket, off this 2x4!"  The "belly board" technique was also used a few times in Zombies of the Stratosphere.  My favorite is the scene where Larry flies up behind a speeding panel truck, then reaches out to unlatch the rear doors, thus making a dramatic entrance into the vehicle.  An instant classic!

Getting the Rocket Man airborne combined the great leaping ability of stunt legend Dave Sharpe (who had earlier performed some amazing cliff dives and take-offs in Captain Marvel) and simple special effects.  Using a small trampoline which he designed, Sharpe would propel himself upward and off-camera where a pair of arms or pile of mattresses would break his fall.  A smoke mechanism, with hidden wires in the jacket sleeve, was activated by a small, hand-held trigger switch.  During most of these take-off sequences, Sharpe wore a special stunt helmet which featured a mesh visor instead of the standard solid one.  Evidently, one or two nose bleeds led to this modification.

Dave Sharpe triggers the rocket pack smoke mechanism

A variety of stuntmen, including Sharpe, Tom Steele and Dale Van Sickel donned the flying suit during action sequences in the three serials.  Even George Wallace occasionally got into the act.  He describes how director Fred Brannon got more "lift" out of his take-offs during the filming of Radar Men, "...they put up a high bar about eight feet off the ground.  Now, I would be bouncing off the trampoline and jumping up past the camera for the high bar which was a good shot.  I would grab the high bar and my feet would swing free, 'cause I was clear of the ground.  But being so hot and sweaty, I would lose my grip every so often and fall down onto my back!"