Lost and missing B-westerns, shorts and serials

In the past several years we've reviewed every sound B-western available for viewing either on VHS or DVD here in The Old Corral. However, there are over 150 B-westerns, shorts and serials still "lost", the preponderance of them being Charles Starrett Columbias, certain Monogram titles and plenty of early 1930s low budget affairs. At any rate - here's the list of B-westerns, shorts and serials that are MIA. If you know the whereabouts of any of these titles on film, VHS or DVD, please contact Boyd Magers or Chuck Anderson.

... Boyd Magers

The Old Corral website was started in 1998, and over the years, I've received many e-mails asking the whereabouts and status of westerns and serials. Thankfully, most titles are available. But among the lost and missing, there's three films - and one series - that seem to be on the want/wish list of many people. The most requested lost/missing film is THE OREGON TRAIL (Republic, 1936) which starred John Wayne. Next are the Allan Lane serial DAREDEVILS OF THE WEST (Republic, 1943) and Johnny Mack Brown's MONTANA DESPERADO (Monogram, 1951). And there are lots of people looking for Charles Starrett Columbias. Thanks to Boyd for assembling this list.

... Chuck Anderson

Lost ... and found ... and new titles added:

January 13, 2009: thanks to Earnie Price for the heads up on Tex Ritter's ROLLIN' WESTWARD (Monogram, 1939). Alpha Video/Oldies.com released that film, paired up with Tex's ROLLING HOME TO TEXAS (Monogram, 1941), on a DVD double feature in late February, 2009: http://www.oldies.com/product-view/5753D.html

January 17, 2009: thanks to Michael Nella for advising that the Robert Shayne "Santa Fe Trail" short GUN TO GUN (Warners, 1944) is included in the Warners Errol Flynn Westerns Collection (which has Flynn's MONTANA, ROCKY MOUNTAIN, SAN ANTONIO and VIRGINIA CITY). GUN TO GUN is on the MONTANA DVD.

February 24, 2009: WANDERER OF THE WASTELAND (Paramount, 1935) with Buster Crabbe added to the listing.

April 1, 2009: SOUTH OF SONORA (West Coast Studios, 1930) with Buffalo Bill Jr. added to the list.

January 12, 2010: added the John Carroll ROSE OF THE RIO GRANDE (Monogram, 1938) to the list. Carroll did this Zorro knock off about a year after starring in the ZORRO RIDES AGAIN cliffhanger.

February 1, 2010: Michael Nella e-mailed that Sinister Cinema is releasing three of the Charles Starrett westerns, COLORADO TRAIL (1938), SPOILERS OF THE RANGE (1939) and WEST OF SANTA FE (1938). Sinister's website is at: http://www.sinistercinema.com/

May 18, 2010: Alpha/Oldies.com has released the Jack Donovan TWISTED RAILS (Imperial, 1934) - but it's NOT a western. From Boyd Magers: Very nice little B-movie from Imperial w/ Philo McCullogh as the heavy ... loads of action, but it's a 1930s railroad movie.

July 19, 2010: added two more Charles Starrett/Durango Kid westerns to the list - LIGHTNING GUNS (Columbia, 1950) and RIDIN' THE OUTLAW TRAIL (Columbia, 1951).

LOST AND MISSING B-WESTERNS, WESTERN SHORTS, AND SERIALS
Sound era films only during the period from approximately 1929 - mid 1950s
No A-Westerns, No TV Westerns, No "spaghetti" westerns or "Eurowesterns"

JOHN CARROLL:
Rose of the Rio Grande (1938)

AL LANE:
Galloping Kid (1932)

ALLAN LANE:
Daredevils of the West (1943) serial (some chapters are available - see footnote at bottom of the page)

ART MIX:
West of the Rockies (1929)

BILL CODY:
Dugan of the Badlands (1931)
Land of Wanted Men (1932)

BOB CUSTER:
Parting of the Trails (1930)

BOB STEELE:
Ranger's Code (1933)

BOB STEELE/HOOT GIBSON:
Trigger Law (1944)

BUDDY ROOSEVELT:
Lightnin' Smith Returns (1931)
Valley of Badmen (1931)

BUD 'N' BEN:
Ridin' Gents (short) (1934)

BUFFALO BILL JR.:
Bar L Ranch (1930)
South of Sonora (1930)
Cheyenne Kid (1930)
Trails of the Golden West (1931)
Riders of Golden Gulch (1932)
Trails of Adventure (1935)

BUSTER CRABBE:
Nevada (1935)
Wanderer of the Wasteland (1935)

BUZZ BARTON:
Cyclone Kid (1931)

CHARLES STARRETT:
Mysterious Avenger (1936)
Code of the Range (1936)
Secret Patrol (1936)
Dodge City Trail (1936)
Trapped (1937)
Westbound Mail (1937)
One Man Justice (1937)
Call of the Rockies (1938)
FOUND Colorado Trail (1938)
Law of the Plains (1938)
FOUND West of the Santa Fe (1938)
Texas Stampede (1939)
North of the Yukon (1939)
FOUND Spoilers of the Range (1939)
Two Fisted Rangers (1940)
West of Abilene (1940)
Prairie Stranger (1941)
Medico of Painted Springs (1941)
Pinto Kid (1941)
Thunder Over the Prairie (1941)
Royal Mounted Patrol (1941)
Riders of the Northland (1942)
Overland to Deadwood (1942)
Riding Through Nevada (1942)
Cowboy in the Clouds (1943)
Robin Hood of the Range (1943)
Hail to the Rangers (1943)
Law of the Northwest (1943)
Riding West (1944)
Cowboy from Lonesome River (1944)
Sagebrush Heroes (1945)
Rustlers of the Badlands (1945)
Frontier Gunlaw (1946)
El Dorado Pass (1948)
Quick on the Trigger (1948)
Horsemen of the Sierras (1949)
Renegades of the Sage (1949)
Outcast of Black Mesa (1950)
Texas Dynamo (1950)
Across the Badlands (1950)
Raiders of Tomahawk Creek (1950)
Lightning Guns (1950)
Ridin' the Outlaw Trail (1951)
Fort Savage Raiders (1951)
Kid from Amarillo (1951) (last half exists)
Hawk of Wild River (1952)
Junction City (1952)

CONWAY TEARLE:
Judgement Book (1935)
Trails End (1935)

DENNIS MORGAN:
Ride, Cowboy, Ride (short) (1939)
Singing Dude (short) (1940)

GASTON SANTOS (SANDS):
A Bullet for Billy the Kid (1963)

GEORGE J. LEWIS:
Pecos Dandy (1934)

GEORGE O'BRIEN:
Fair Warning (1931)
Gay Caballero (1932)
Frontier Marshal (1934)

HARRY JAMES/ROBERT CLARKE:
Outlaw Queen (1956)

HERB JEFFRIES:
Harlem on the Prairie (1938)

JACK DONOVAN:
FOUND - but not a western Twisted Rails (1934)

JACK HOLT:
Border Legion (1930)
End of the Trail (1936)

JAMES MURRAY:
In Line of Duty (1931)

JACK PERRIN:
Overland Bound (1929)
Beyond the Rio Grande (1930)
Ridin' Law (1930)
Wild West Whoopee (1931)
Kid from Arizona (1931)
Sheriff's Secret (1931)
Lariats and Six Shooters (1931)
.45 Calibre Echo (1932)

JACK RANDALL:
Land of Fighting Men (1938)
Riders From Nowhere (1940)

JIMMY WAKELY:
Cowboy Cavalier (1948)

JOHN BOWERS:
Mounted Fury (1931)

JOHN KIMBROUGH:
Lone Star Ranger (1942)

JOHNNY MACK BROWN:
Montana Desperado (1951)

JOHN WAYNE:
Oregon Trail (1936)

KEN CURTIS:
Rhythm Roundup (1945)

KENNE DUNCAN:
Powder River Gunfire (25 minutes) (1948)

KIRBY GRANT:
Singing Spurs (1948)
Fangs of the Artic (1953)

LANE CHANDLER:
Riders of the Rio (1931)
Reckless Rider (1932)
Battling Buckaroo (1932)

NOAH BEERY JR.:
Five Bad Men (1935)
Devil's Canyon (1935)

RANDOLPH SCOTT:
Wild Horse Mesa (1932)
Sunset Pass (1933)
Last Roundup (1934)
Home on the Range (1935)

RAY WHITLEY: (20 minutes each)
Prairie Papas (1938)
Bar Buckaroos (1940)
Prairie Spooners (1941)

RED RIVER DAVE:
Hidden Valley Days (27 minutes) (1948)

REX BELL:
Man From Arizona (1932)

REX LEASE:
Lone Trail (1932)

RICHARD ARLEN:
Santa Fe Trail (1930)
Helldorado (1934)

RICHARD DIX:
West of the Pecos (1934)

ROBERT FRAZER:
Two Gun Caballero (1931)

ROBERT SHAYNE:
FOUND Gun to Gun (20 minutes) (1944)

TED WELLS:
Defying the Law (1935)

TEX RITTER:
Song of the Buckaroo (1939)
FOUND Rollin' Westward (1939)
Arizona Frontier (1940)

TEX WILLIAMS (25-30 minutes each):
Girl from Gunsight (1949)
Pecos Pistol (1949)
FOUND Silver Butte (1949)
South of Santa Fe (1949)
Cactus Caravan (1950)
Ready to Ride (1950)
Rustler's Ransom (1950)
Thundering Rails (1950)
Prairie Pirates (1950)

TOM KEENE:
Dude Wrangler (1930)
Romance of the Rockies (1937)

TOM SANTSCHI:
White Renegade (1931)

TOM TYLER:
'Neath Western Skies (1930)
Man from Death Valley (1931)
Partners of the Trail (1931)
Galloping Thru (1932)
Vanishing Men (1932)
Man from New Mexico (1932)
Clancy of the Mounted (serial) (1933)

TOM WYNNE:
Desert Mesa (1935)

WALLACE MACDONALD:
Tex Takes a Holiday (1932)
King of the Wild Horses (1933)

WALLY WALES:
Trails of Peril (1930)
Hell's Valley (1931)

WAYNE MORRIS:
Texas Badman (1953)

WHIP WILSON:
Gunman (1952)
Montana Incident (1952)

WILLIAM TRAVIS:
West of the Rockies (20 minutes) (1941)

GUY MADISON:
Any of the TV episodes edited into theatrical features with the theatrical titles:
Yellow Haired Kid (1952)
Trail of the Arrow (1952)
Ghost of Crossbones Canyon (1952)
Behind Southern Lines (1952)
Border City Rustlers (1953)
Two Gun Marshal (1953)
Six Gun Decision (1953)
Secret of Outlaw Flats (1953)
Two Gun Teacher (1954)
Trouble on the Trail (1954)
Outlaw's Son (1954)
Marshals In Disguise (1954)
Timber Country Trouble (1955)
Match Making Marshal (1955)
Titled Tenderfoot (1955)
Phantom Trails (1955)
(all the TV episodes that go to make up these features do exist)

Regarding the Allan Lane DAREDEVILS OF THE WEST serial: The complete serial is not available on VHS or DVD. However, chapters 2, 4, 5, and 12 have been in circulation for years. In 2008, the complete serial was shown at the Serial Squadron's Serialfest in Newton, Pennsylvania (courtesy of the Brigham Young University Republic Serial Archive and James D'Arc, curator of the archive). The BYU Archive DAREDEVILS was shown at the 2009 Lone Pine Film Festival. Plans are to show this cliffhanger at the Memphis Film Festival on June 3-5, 2010.

(Courtesy of Les Adams)

Above is the title lobby card from TWO GUN CABALLERO (William Pizor, 1931) which had Robert Frazer in the title role. Frazer is on the left with the twin six-shooters, and in the photo, he's in the center seat.

(Courtesy of Les Adams)

One of the early sound Mountie flicks was MOUNTED FURY (Sono-Art/World Wide, 1931) and starred John Bowers. Bowers was a silent screen star, but his career faded with the coming of sound. Attending a party in 1936, Bowers walked into the Pacific Ocean, committing suicide. Scuttlebutt is that his death was the inspiration for the fictional (and suicidal) 'Norman Maine' character in the 1937 and 1954 versions of A STAR IS BORN.

(Courtesy of Les Adams)

Above - a lobby card from THE VALLEY OF BADMEN (Syndicate, 1931), a Buddy Roosevelt oater directed by Jack Irwin. In the photo inset are Buddy and Charles 'Slim' Whitaker.

(Courtesy of Les Adams)

In the above lobby card from RIDERS OF THE RIO (Round-Up Pictures, 1931), Sherry Tansey is about to take a board to hero Lane Chandler who is poundin' away on an unidentified player.

(Courtesy of Les Adams)

Above is the title lobby card from THE MAN FROM NEW MEXICO (Monogram, 1932) which starred Tom Tyler.

(Courtesy of Ed Tabor)

Above from L-to-R are Andy Shuford, Sheila Mannors (Sheila Bromley) and Bill Cody in LAND OF WANTED MEN (Monogram, 1932). Shuford is also shown in the round inset on the bottom right corner.