Margo Lane is a fictional character in ''

The Shadow The Shadow is a fictional character created by magazine publishers Street & Smith and writer Walter B. Gibson. Originally created to be a mysterious radio show narrator, and developed into a distinct literary character in 1931 by writer Walter ...

'' stories. Margo is a friend and companion to Lamont Cranston, and an agent for his alter ego, The Shadow, in the wealthy set. Her first appearance was in 1937 in ''The Shadow'' radio drama. Her first appearance in a print story was in ''The Thunder King'', a story in the June 15, 1941, issue of ''The Shadow Magazine''.

Origins

Margo was created for the radio version of ''The Shadow'' in 1937, because it was felt that having Harry Vincent as The Shadow's chief aid, and thus two male voices, would not provide sufficient "vocal contrast". Margo was based on socialite

Brenda Frazier Brenda Diana Duff Frazier (June 9, 1921 – May 3, 1982) was an American socialite popular during the Depression era. Her December 1938 debutante ball was so heavily publicized worldwide, she eventually appeared on the cover of ''Life'' maga ...

and '' You Can't Take It with You'' star

Margot Stevenson Margaret Helen Stevenson (February 8, 1912 – January 2, 2011) was an American film, stage and radio actress, known for her role as Margo Lane in the radio adaptation of ''The Shadow'', opposite Orson Welles in 1938. Early life She was ...

. The relationship between Lamont and Margo was modelled on the Thin Man film series. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Walter B. Gibson Walter Brown Gibson (September 12, 1897 – December 6, 1985) was an Americans, American writer and professional magic (illusion), magician, best known for his work on the pulp magazine, pulp fiction character ''The Shadow''. Gibson, under the ...

felt he could no longer write stories about spy rings, since they had now become a reality. Instead, he focused on

whodunit A ''whodunit'' or ''whodunnit'' (a colloquial elision of "Who asdone it?") is a complex plot-driven variety of detective fiction in which the puzzle regarding who committed the crime is the main focus. The reader or viewer is provided with the cl ...

s, which suited the Cranston persona of the Shadow. Thus, the character of Margo came to the fore, and eventually became a permanent fixture in the stories, finally being promoted to a full agent. Margo appears in at least 55 of the Shadow novels.

Character

While on radio Margo is The Shadow's confidante, in the novels Margo is depicted as a somewhat helpful nuisance who for years suspects but cannot prove the true identity of the Shadow, until finally in later years she becomes a full agent for the mysterious crimefighter.

Portrayal

She was portrayed on radio by

Agnes Moorehead Agnes Robertson Moorehead (December 6, 1900April 30, 1974) was an American actress. In a career spanning four decades, her credits included work in radio, stage, film, and television.Obituary ''Variety'', May 8, 1974, page 286. Moorehead was th ...

, who was followed by

, Marjorie Anderson, Lesley Woods,

Grace Matthews Grace Matthews (September 3, 1910 – May 15, 1995) was a Canadian actress in the era of old-time radio and the early years of television. She is perhaps best known for portraying Margo Lane in the radio program ''The Shadow''. Early years Matt ...

, and

Gertrude Warner Gertrude Warner (April 2, 1917 – January 26, 1986) was an American voice talent who played multiple characters on radio productions during the Golden Age of Radio. Early life Warner was born in Hartford, Connecticut, in 1917. Her father was ...

. In an unaired 1954 TV pilot,

Paula Raymond Paula Raymond (born Paula Ramona Wright; November 23, 1924 – December 31, 2003) was an American model and actress who played the leading lady in numerous movies and television series including ''Crisis'' (1950) with Cary Grant. She was th ...

played Margo Lane opposite

Tom Helmore Tom Helmore (4 January 1904 – 12 September 1995) was an English film actor. He appeared in more than 50 films between 1927 and 1972, including three directed by Alfred Hitchcock. Helmore was born in London, England and died in Longboat K ...

as The Shadow. On film,

Veda Ann Borg Veda Ann Borg (January 11, 1915 – August 16, 1973) was an American film and television actress. Early years Born in Boston, Massachusetts, to Gottfried Borg, a Swedish immigrant, and Minna Noble, Borg became a model in 1936 before winni ...

matched wits with

Victor Jory Victor Jory (November 23, 1902 – February 12, 1982) was a Canadian-American actor of stage, film, and television. He initially played romantic leads, but later was mostly cast in villainous or sinister roles, such as Oberon in ''A Midsummer N ...

's Shadow in 1940; Barbara Reed portrayed her three times in the mid-1940s with

Kane Richmond Kane Richmond (born Frederick William Bowditch, December 23, 1906 – March 22, 1973) was an American film actor of the 1930s and 1940s, mostly appearing in cliffhangers and serials. He is best known today for his portrayal of the character La ...

; and

Penelope Ann Miller Penelope Ann Miller (born Penelope Andrea Miller; January 13, 1964), sometimes credited as Penelope Miller, is an American actress. She began her career on Broadway in the 1985 original production of '' Biloxi Blues'' and received a Tony Award n ...

was Margo opposite

Alec Baldwin Alexander Rae Baldwin III (born April 3, 1958) is an American actor, comedian, and producer. In his early career, Baldwin played both leading and supporting roles in a variety of films such as Tim Burton's ''Beetlejuice'' (1988), Mike Nichol ...

in 1994's ''

''.

On the radio and in the novels

Margo's introduction to the novels created a storm of controversy reflected in the magazine's letters page. Older fans resented her intrusion, whereas newer readers, perhaps more familiar with the radio show than the pulp novel, accepted her readily. * In the novels her name is "Margo", while on radio it is "Margot". * In the novels she originally does not know Lamont is the Shadow, whereas on radio she does.

In other media

Comics

In the DC Comics book series ''

The Shadow Strikes! ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'', Margot is the daughter of a wealthy Southern land owner and a black prostitute. She is portrayed as one of the Shadow's chief agents.

Film

In the 1994 film, ''

'', Margo (

) has had

psychic A psychic is a person who claims to use extrasensory perception (ESP) to identify information hidden from the normal senses, particularly involving telepathy or clairvoyance, or who performs acts that are apparently inexplicable by natural laws, ...

powers her whole life. Her father, Dr. Reinhardt Lane (

Ian McKellen Sir Ian Murray McKellen (born 25 May 1939) is an English actor. His career spans seven decades, having performed in genres ranging from Shakespearean and modern theatre to popular fantasy and science fiction. Regarded as a British cultural i ...

), is a scientist working to develop a new type of power source, using an implosive device to be contained within a

beryllium Beryllium is a chemical element with the symbol Be and atomic number 4. It is a steel-gray, strong, lightweight and brittle alkaline earth metal. It is a divalent element that occurs naturally only in combination with other elements to form mi ...

sphere, which the villainous Shiwan Khan (

John Lone John Lone (; jyutping: zyun1 lung4; born October 13, 1952) is an American actor. He starred as Pu Yi in the Academy Award-winning film ''The Last Emperor'' (1987), for which he was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor. A veteran o ...

) tries to turn into a weapon. Lamont Cranston (

) and Margo first meet at the Cobalt Club, where they find they have an instant attraction. After they go out to dinner together, Lamont realizes that Margo has psychic powers and fears that she may uncover his

secret identity A secret identity is a person's alter ego which is not known to the general populace, most often used in fiction. Brought into popular culture by the Scarlet Pimpernel in 1903, the concept was widespread in pulp heroes and is particularly prevalent ...

as the Shadow if they spend more time together, so he vows never to see her again. However, when Khan begins controlling her father's mind, Margo approaches Lamont and Police Commissioner Wainwright Barth (

Jonathan Winters Jonathan Harshman Winters III (November 11, 1925 – April 11, 2013) was an American comedian, actor, author, television host, and artist. Beginning in 1960, Winters recorded many classic comedy albums for the Verve Records label. He also h ...

) for help. Khan hypnotizes Margo and orders her to kill the Shadow. She proceeds immediately to Lamont's mansion and (unsuccessfully) attempts to shoot Lamont, who breaks the trance. Upon waking from the trance, she realizes that Lamont is the Shadow and volunteers to help him defeat Shiwan Khan and rescue her father. Together they investigate the last known sighting of Khan, a mysterious empty lot that every one in the city - Lamont included - believes was once the site of the Hotel Monolith; in reality, the hotel is still standing as Khan's base, but he has hypnotised the entire city so that they are unable to see it. When Khan's henchman Farley Claymore (

Tim Curry Timothy James Curry (born 19 April 1946) is an English actor and singer. He rose to prominence for his portrayal of Dr. Frank-N-Furter in the film ''The Rocky Horror Picture Show'' (1975), reprising the role he had originated in the 1973 London ...

) traps the Shadow in a high-pressure tank filling with water, the Shadow uses his psychic powers to contact Margo and she comes to rescue him. In the

climax Climax may refer to: Language arts * Climax (narrative), the point of highest tension in a narrative work * Climax (rhetoric), a figure of speech that lists items in order of importance Biology * Climax community, a biological community th ...

of the movie, Margo helps her father defuse the detonation device within the beryllium sphere (that has now become an

atomic bomb A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bomb ...

), helping to save the day.

In the Wold Newton universe

*As part of the

Wold Newton family The Wold Newton family is a literary concept derived from a form of crossover fiction developed by the American science fiction writer Philip José Farmer. Origins In real life a meteorite, called the Wold Cottage meteorite, fell near Wold New ...

Philip José Farmer Philip José Farmer (January 26, 1918 – February 25, 2009) was an American author known for his science fiction and fantasy novels and short stories. Obituary. Farmer is best known for his sequences of novels, especially the ''World of Tiers ...

has suggested that Margo and

Lois Lane Lois Lane is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, she first appeared in ''Action Comics'' #1 (June 1938). Lois is an award-winning journalist for ...

are sisters. This notion was extended in the

Dick Tracy ''Dick Tracy'' is an American comic strip featuring Dick Tracy (originally Plainclothes Tracy), a tough and intelligent police detective created by Chester Gould. It made its debut on Sunday, October 4, 1931, in the ''Detroit Mirror'', and it ...

comic strip on November 8, 2014, when it was suggested that Margo and Lois are both sisters to Kandikane Lane.Dick Tracy on gocomics
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lane, Margo Comics characters introduced in 1937 Fictional female detectives Characters in pulp fiction The Shadow Fictional telepaths Fictional socialites Superhero film characters Female characters in comics