 A young John Wayne appeared in three of the Columbia oaters of Buck Jones and Tim McCoy. Above is Susan Fleming, Wayne, Jones, and William Walling in RANGE FEUD (Columbia, 1931).  Above, from L-to-R are Tim McCoy, John Wayne and an unidentified player in a scene from TWO-FISTED LAW (Columbia, 1932). Les Adams identified the unidentified player as Wallace MacDonald, who became a Columbia B film producer.  Above, Wayne gives assistance to George Hayes in his days before becoming 'Windy' in the Hopalong Cassidy films and 'Gabby' at Republic. The hoss in the background is Wayne's frequent travelin' companion, Duke.  Above, from L-to-R are Noah Beery, Sr., Noah Beery, Jr., Wayne and an unidentified player in THE TRAIL BEYOND (Lone Star/Monogram, 1934), one of Wayne's better films for producer Paul Malvern.  Above are Wayne and Shirley Jean Rickert in a scene from 'NEATH THE ARIZONA SKIES (Lone Star/Monogram, 1934) which was filmed at Monogram City, the Trem Carr Ranch and in the town of Newhall (just north of the San Fernando Valley). The river sequence was filmed in nearby Placerita Canyon on the Santa Clara River. Recognize Shirley? If not, think blonde hair and Our Gang/Little Rascals ... and visit her website at: http://www.measuresup.com. Shirley Jean writes: "I did all the riding in the picture except for going off the cliff. I did have to come out of the water after the cliff bit and, believe me, it was COLD. We were on location for most of the shoot and the cowboys were just great to me. They took care of me and made me rings and bracelets out of horsehair. My mother often told people how wonderful Wayne was. In her eyes, letting someone else have the camera was the ultimate in caring and a couple of times Wayne turned his back to the camera so I could have a close up."  From L-to-R are John Wayne, Yakima Canutt and a young Dennis Moore (billed as Denny Meadows) in THE DAWN RIDER (Lone Star/Monogram, 1935).  Above, Sheila Manners with a young John Wayne in a tender scene from WESTWARD HO (Republic, 1935), his first film under the Republic Pictures logo.  Above, Bob Kortman on the stage wheel converses with Douglas Cosgrove, and a young John Wayne has the drop on both in WINDS OF THE WASTELAND (Republic, 1936), one of the best of the Wayne oaters that was filmed soon after the formation of Republic. The film also included an outstanding stagecoach race. |