The Best (and Worst) of the West! Reviews and Observations on B-Westerns by Boyd Magers Review Archives

Search/Find: If you wish to find a particular review of a film title or movies by a cowboy hero, simply use your web browser's built-in FIND function and that will allow you to search down this page for your keywords.  In the upper left of your screen, you should see the word 'EDIT' on both Netscape and Internet Explorer.  Click on that, and in the drop down menu, click on 'FIND' to do your search.  In Netscape or Internet Explorer, you can also hit the Ctrl-F key combination to open the FIND box (hold down the Ctrl Key in the lower left of your keyboard, and press the key for the letter F).  In the 'Find What' box, type in a word or short phrase like buck jones, or sunset carson, or republic, or monogram.  When done typing, begin the search by clicking on the 'Find Next' button which will take you to the first occurrence of that word or phrase (or to the end of this page, if no match is found).  Keep clicking on the 'Find Next' button to continue down to all the matches.

Printing this webpage: I would suggest you do NOT attempt to print this.  When last I checked, this would require a bunch of pages to print.  Plus the reviews are not in any particular order, so it would be difficult to wade through all those pages looking for a film title, western hero, etc.  If you wish to have this information locally on your PC, I would recommend you click on "File" and then do a "save as" in Internet Explorer or Netscape. And save this page on your hard drive (as an .htm or .html file type).  If you also want Boyd's picture, the red stars and garbage can, put your mouse pointer on each image, click with your right mouse button, and do a "save image or picture as" to the same area on your hard drive where the main page will be saved.  The Search/Find function noted above will work on webpages saved to your hard disk.

Individual film reviews - as well as the complete The Best (and Worst) of the West! film review collection - is copyright ©2000-2007 by Boyd Magers. All rights reserved.

The Ratings

Superior

Good

OK

Poor

A real dud !

 LAWLESS BORDER (1935 Spectrum)
The border patrol (John Elliott) is trying to stop illegal arms smugglers who are supplying Mexican revolutionary forces led by Joe De La Cruz. Government agent Bill Cody and his Mexican counterpart, Martin Garralaga, lull the outlaws (express agent Ted Adams, Roger Williams, Budd Buster, former silent lead Bill Patton) into submission, all the while lulling us to sleep watching Cody fall in love with Adam's sister, Molly O'Day. Reissued by Miramar as BORDER VICTORY.

 DRIFTIN' RIVER (1946 PRC)
Outlaws realize with the coming of the railroad comes people --- and law. So their concentration is bent on stopping the advancement of railing equipment and supplies for the iron horse. Government agents Eddie Dean and Roscoe (Soapy) Ates are sent on a Cavalry remount journey, to purchase horses for soldiers guarding the railroad. When Eddie agrees to buy rancher Shirley Patterson's herd, a traitorous ranchhand spy of hers, Lee Bennett, tips off the gang's boss, saloon owner Dennis Moore. Bennett and Moore's men (Robert Callahan, Lee Roberts) steal the herd to prevent the sale. They also brutally ambush and murder a detachment of Cavalry and, later, gun down Patterson's foreman, William Fawcett, who has been appointed Sheriff. To get the goods on them, Eddie gets in with the gang posing as outlaw Whistlin' Sam. Eddie's about to made a round-up when the real Whistlin' Sam (Wiley Grant) happens by. The familiar plot is a remake of producer Robert Tansey and screenwriter Frances Kavanaugh's WILD HORSE STAMPEDE ('43) w/Trail Blazers. Watch for Marion Carney (unbilled) as a saloon girl. Late in life Carney married veteran B-western heavy Terry Frost, and still later she was Lash LaRue's 12th or 13th (who's counting by now?) and last wife. The upbeat "Way Back In Oklahoma" written by Dean and Johnny Bond is sung by Eddie and the Sunshine Boys. Much of the footage was recycled for Dean's TIOGA KID ('48).

 KING OF THE BANDITS (1947 Monogram)
The origins of the Cisco Kid are traced to O. Henry, the American writer who introduced the character in his short story, The Caballero's Way in 1904. Over the years O'Henry's story provided the inspiration to a number of features with a wide variety of actors portraying Cisco (Warner Baxter, Cesar Romero, Duncan Renaldo and Gilbert Roland). Roland's portrayal was spicier with more of the daring rogue and womanizer. He drank, he smoked, he loved the ladies, often by reciting poetry written for the screen by Roland himself. Following Roland, Duncan Renaldo provided a much cleaner image of Cisco, aimed more toward a juvenile audience. KING OF THE BANDITS is Roland's final outing as Cisco in which he takes the blame for a string of stagecoach robberies perpetrated by a phony Cisco (Anthony Warde). Problem is, under Christy Cabanne's direction, the film moves slower than molasses. The most interesting segment is the opening in which Pancho (Chris Pin Martin) dreams he and Cisco are being executed by a firing squad. Cowboy cancer alert: Cisco smokes incessantly.

 STORM OVER WYOMING (1950 RKO)
Two-gun Tim Holt and his senorita-loving pal, Richard Martin as Jose Gonzales Bustamonte Rafferty, stop the lynching of Richard Powers (he used to be Tom Keene), foreman of the Flying X Cattle Ranch, by Bill Kennedy, foreman of the Big M Sheep Ranch. Hired by the cattlemen, led by Kenneth MacDonald, Tim and Chito find themselves in the middle of a cattleman/sheepherder range war. Soon it becomes clear Kennedy (with his flunky Holly Bane) is fanning the feud to cover up his rustling activities. Two girls, sheep ranch owner Noreen Nash, and quite good newcomer Betty Underwood as a saloon girl (she sings one song) with whom Chito flirts. Another Holt hit with beautiful Idyllwild, CA, location photography by J. Roy Hunt.

 DESERT GOLD (1936 Paramount)
Zane Grey's tale of desert greed had been filmed three times before, but this was the only talkie version --- and it isn't good. Monte Blue wants to mine gold on the hidden land in the Superstition Mountains belonging to Indian Chief Buster Crabbe (badly miscast). Blue and his men (Frank Mayo, Walter Miller) torture Crabbe trying to make him reveal the whereabouts of the mine. When that doesn't work, mining engineer Tom Keene (he's really the star despite the bigger billing of Buster Crabbe and Robert Cummings) and eastern tenderfoot Cummings are hired by Blue to find the mine. Meanwhile, Keene is romancing dentist Raymond Hatton's daughter, Marsha Hunt. Eventually, with the help of Glenn (Leif) Erickson, Blue's brother, Keene saves Crabbe, helps the Indians and wins Hunt. Problem with the picture lies in director James Hogan's mixture of slapstick comedy (Cummings' constant silliness; a stage passenger, James P. Burtis, imitating Oliver Hardy; Raymond Hatton in banter with Cummings) and straight western adventure. The picture manages to generate some real excitement in the last 10 minutes, but it's too late to overcome the prior foolishness.

 THE LAST BANDIT (1949 Republic)
It's outlaw brother (Forrest Tucker) against reformed outlaw brother (William Elliott) with gorgeous Adrian Booth and a million dollars in express company gold caught in the middle. Tucker (and his gang --- Grant Withers, George Chesebro, feisty old saloon owner Minna Gombell) and Booth try to involve Elliott in their elaborately planned train robbery but, when he won't cooperate, they frame him, making railroad official Jack Holt and railroad security man Andy Devine believe Bill is part of the well-staged hold-up in which the outlaws hide the train and stolen gold on a long forgotten railroad spur line. Some great Joe Kane directed action footage around picturesque Red Rock Canyon and Vasquez Rocks, CA. Big budget Trucolor remake of Bob Steele's GREAT TRAIN ROBBERY ('41). Adrian Booth sings "Love Is Such a Funny Thing" to the tune of "Careless Love".

 WHIRLWIND HORSEMAN (1938 Grand National)
Ken Maynard comes looking for his partner, Budd Buster, only to find he's being held prisoner by crooked banker Kenneth Harlan and his ranihans (Glenn Strange, Dave O'Brien, Roger Williams, Lew Meehan) until Budd reveals on whose ranch he discovered oil. Along the way Ken helps rancher Joe Girard and his daughter, pretty green-eyed Joan Barclay. Nothing new here except the casting of William 'Bill' Griffith (1897-1960) as Maynard's saddle-pal Happy. It was the character player's only western until an important role in Whip Wilson's RANGE LAND ('49).

 PINTO CANYON (1940 Metropolitan)
Cattle rustlers, the scourge of the southwest, brought to justice by battlin' Sheriff Bob Steele. Bob suspects one of the rustlers (Kenne Duncan) is the brother of Steele's girl, Louise Stanley. The rustler boss, Ted Adams, places notorious gunman George Chesebro in as Bob's deputy to spy on him. When one of Adams' rustlers, Steve Clark, is discovered by Steele, Chesebro guns him down before Clark can give up the name of his boss. Steele fires Chesebro and eventually he and his deputy, Jimmy Aubrey, round-up the gang when Duncan owns up to his connection to the rustlers. Director Raymond K. Johnson (1901-1977) began in '31, bouncing around the fringes of mainstream Hollywood at Puritan and Spectrum (several Fred Scott westerns). He then helmed, ineptly for the most part, several Jack Randalls at Monogram and this final (of 8) Steele Metropolitans. By 1941 he'd disappeared from directing and relegated himself to an assistant cameraman. Note Steele's pinto horse is Tex, later ridden by Jack Randall, John King, Raymond Hatton, Art Davis and even heavy Jack Ingram. Jimmy Wakely later rode Tex, but the pinto's name was, by then, changed to Lucky. Wakely liked the horse so much, according to Merrill McCord in his new book BROTHERS OF THE WEST, that he bought him in 1945 but later allowed Tex/Lucky to be given away as a prize on the Queen For a Day radio program.

 UNDERCOVER MAN (1935 Booth Dominion)
The interest here is seeing Charles Starrett in a Mountie uniform a few years before he donned one in his long-running Columbia series. This Canadian made quickie (directed by Sam Newfield) has Mountie Starrett tracking down a modern day gang of vicious bank robbers led by, it's finally discovered, Kenne Duncan. Adrienne Dore is the girl. Pretty slow going.

 DRUMS ACROSS THE RIVER (1954 Universal-International)
Under Nathan Juran's clear direction, this is one of Audie Murphy's best from his early screen years. Audie is a young freight-line operator who teams with businessman Lyle Bettger to invade Ute Indian land for gold exploration. Then, realizing Bettger is actually intent on starting an Indian war for his own profit, Audie joins his father, Walter Brennan, in an attempt to thwart the conflict. Framed for a gold robbery and sentenced to hang, Audie is rescued by Bettger when the devious crook learns only Audie knows where the gold is hidden. Audie leads Bettger and his men into an Indian ambush and clears his name. Bettger was then at the peak of his career and made a formidable heavy for Audie in this and his next film, DESTRY. Hugh O'Brian (a year away from becoming TV's WYATT EARP) clad entirely in black, makes only a brief appearance midway as a professional gunman, but steals every scene he's in. Lisa Gaye, Debra Paget's sister, and one of the most prolific actresses in TV westerns in the '50s and '60s, has a thankless role as Audie's girl.

 SOUTH OF CALIENTE (1951 Republic)
Roy Rogers owns a transportation service for horses. Dale Evans rejoins the Rogers pictures after a year or so away from the camera as a rancher in financial trouble forced to sell her favorite race horse, Miss Glory, to save the ranch. Dale hires Roy to transport the prize race horse to Mexico for the sale but Dale's crooked horse trainer, Douglas Fowley, and his henchman Frank Richards (in his best role) plan a horsenapping during the trip, killing handler Willie Best. Fowley knows without the cash for Miss Glory, Dale will lose the ranch to him. He also plans, with a dye job, to enter Miss Glory in the sweepstakes as a ringer. But Dale has Roy, Pat Brady and the Roy Rogers Riders on her side. It's a good one for horse lovers as Trigger also figures in prominently, but it's reduced in value by vaudevillian Pinky Lee's malarkey that just doesn't jell in a RR western. His moments on screen smack more of a Leon Erroll comedy short.

 THE MASKED RIDER (1941 Universal)
Not the best, not the worst in the 13 film run of Johnny Mack Brown/Nell O'Day co-starrers. Mine owners Guy D'Ennery and O'Day are being continuously raided by the White Mask gang. That the gang is actually bossed by mine superintendent Grant Withers is pretty obvious from the outset, although the story keeps it "secret" until Nell's old friend Johnny Mack Brown and his pal Fuzzy Knight unmask Withers. D'Ennery's daughter, incidental to the plot, is Virginia Carroll. A pre-Republic Roy Barcroft is Wither's henchman. Much is made about Fuzzy Knight singing to Carmela Cansino, but thankfully the four Spanish-tinged songs are left to the Guadalajara Trio.

 A LAWMAN IS BORN (1937 Supreme)
Wanted outlaw Johnny Mack Brown replaces his friend, Sheriff Earle Hodgins, after he is gunned down, and a lawman is born. Brown inherits the job of settling the squabble between the small ranchers led by Frank LaRue and his daughter Iris Meredith, and the big ranchers under Warner Richmond and Dick Curtis. Meanwhile, dirty-deed-doer Charlie King, who is infatuated with Meredith-Brown's girl, secretly works for Richmond to stir up trouble. When lawman Steve Clark comes to town, Richmond learns Brown used to be an outlaw and tries to use the information against him. Unusual story with a few new twists from Harry Olmstead. Al St. John is the titular sidekick, running a general store. Noteworthy also that Brown performs some of his flashy gun tricks.

 SHADOWS ON THE RANGE (1946 Monogram)
"Don't try to figger it out now", Johnny Mack Brown tells leading lady/ranch owner Jan Bryant at one point. You too may need a scorecard to determine at one point who's who, with who and when as Brown plays a deep double game to save Jan's ranch from shyster lawyer John Merton and his accomplices (weak-kneed Ted Adams, crooked deputy Jack Perrin, Cactus Mack, Marshall Reed, Terry Frost, Pierce Lyden and Lane Bradford). More double-crosses and pretenses in this Jess Bowers script than in 10 other Bs. Usual background extra in dozens of westerns, Ray Jones has more lines in this Brown than in anything I've ever seen him in. Probably Perrin's biggest role since his '20s-'30s starring days.

 MAN TRAILER (1934 Columbia)
Buck Jones' last at Columbia, for awhile, is a remake of his first at Columbia in 1930, THE LONE RIDER. The plot was remade again in 1939 as THUNDERING WEST with Charles Starrett. Buck Jones breaks away from cattle rustler Arthur Vinton's gang (Lew Meehan, Dick Botiller, Artie Ortego) but ends up saving a stagecoach strongbox (which he'd planned to rob himself) by routing Vinton's boys. Also rescuing Sheriff Clarence Geldert's daughter (Cecilia Parker), Buck is acclaimed a hero and made town marshal. The Vinton gang makes a raid on the town and involve Buck who must then ride and fight like never before to prove his innocence.

 RED TOMAHAWK (1967 Paramount)
Another of A. C. Lyles' "over-the-hill" all-star westerns. Cavalry captain Howard Keel overacts wildly as he comes to Deadwood to warn the town of a possible Sioux attack after Custer's massacre at the Little Big Horn. At first treated with mistrust, the townspeople fail to heed his warnings. Befriended by Scott Brady (as Ep Wyatt --- a play on --- you guessed it) and Broderick Crawford as the town wheeler-dealer, Keel learns of the existence of two gatling guns --- hidden away by saloon madame Joan Caulfield as Dakota Lil. Needing the guns for the Cavalry, Keel must then fight the townspeople for use of the guns. As usual, the interest in Lyles' westerns lies in spotting the former stars. Don Barry and Henry Wills are two Army deserters; Richard Arlen is the telegrapher; Wendell Corey is the town rabble rouser; Tom Drake is a wild eyed preacher; Roy Jenson and Dan White are miners; Reg Parton and Saul Gorss are townsmen and Ben Cooper is a young Cavalry Lieutenant. Old-hand Republic director R. G. Springsteen handles the action well aided by doses of mismatched stock footage but Jimmie Haskell's music score is limp.

 DALLAS (1950 Warner Bros.)
It may run 94 minutes, be in Technicolor, star Gary Cooper and have all the top flight production of Warner Bros.' behind it, but DALLAS remains (like many Randolph Scott WB flicks) a big-budget B-western. Three vicious brothers plunder Gary Cooper's plantation and murder his family. The former Confederate officer vows revenge and is helped by the new tenderfoot local lawman, Leif Erickson. The two men exchange identities. At Antonio Moreno's rancho, Erickson reveals Cooper's plans to Moreno's pretty daughter, Ruth Roman, to whom Erickson is engaged. Meanwhile, Cooper guns down Zon Murray, the youngest of the outlaw brothers. In the shoot-out he is wounded and goes to Moreno's hacienda to recover, where he and Roman fall in love. Cooper then trails the second brother (vicious but stupid Steve Cochran) and eliminates him. The third, and smartest brother, Raymond Massey, brings his renegade gang to the rancho to destroy or capture Moreno's family. Good action direction from Stuart Heisler and second unit work from B. Reeves Eason. Finely photographed by Ernest Haller with a rousing Max Steiner score. Nice support from luscious Barbara Payton as a saloon girl, Reed Hadley as a cartoonish Wild Bill Hickok and Monte Blue as the sheriff.

 WILD BEAUTY (1946 Universal)
Uninvolving human interest horse story with a strong pre-"Broken Arrow" plea for understanding the plight of the Indians, especially at one point when physician Don Porter delivers what amounts to more of a speech than dialogue. Porter looks pretty bored with the whole picture, deadpanning it all the way whether it's sorrow, anger, love or joy. Actually, the story revolves around kid actor/stunt rider Robert 'Buzzy' Henry who nurses a wild colt, the Wild Beauty of the title, back to health and helps to prevent rancher Dick Curtis (and his men, Pierce Lyden and Roy Brent) from slaughtering a herd of wild horses for their hides to be made into shoe leather for unscrupulous Eastern businessman Robert Wilcox. There's a secondary love story triangle between Porter, schoolmarm Lois Collier and Wilcox. Uninspiringly produced and directed by Wallace Fox.

 SPURS (1930 Universal)
Hoot Gibson and young Buddy Hunter track down a band of rustlers in their secluded Lone Pine mountain hideout replete with gatling gun. A friend of Hoot's Dad (Robert Homans) has been murdered by the rustlers (Cap Anderson, William Bertram and lapsed silent star Pete Morrison) led by undercover boss Philo McCullough. All the while Hoot tries to win the affections of Helen Wright. This early sound effort features Hoot's pal Pee Wee Holmes singing in the bunkhouse. After hearing him it's a wonder any further "singing cowboys" were ever allowed in westerns! Early sound release suffers from immovable microphones, therefore static camera placement.

 OLD OKLAHOMA PLAINS (1952 Republic)
Rex Allen fights Uncle Sam's first enemies of mechanization. It's 1926 and the Cavalry is experimenting with tanks vs horses. There's to be a cross country race between horses and tanks with ex-Cavalry officer Rex Allen called back to Army service to help clear the free range for the race. The ranchers are afraid the free range will become a test range for the Army, and, if tanks win out over horses, Roy Barcroft loses out on $100,000 in horse sales. So he and his helper Fred Graham plan sabotage on the tank trail. Slim Pickens is Rex's sidekick. It's a loose remake of Republic's ARMY GIRL ('38) with lots of borrowed stock footage.

 WYOMING HURRICANE (1944 Columbia)
Another of Russell Hayden's under-rated, continuous action B's with plenty of western swing music (five tunes) from Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys (all written by Cindy Walker). Dishonest café operator Tris Coffin (and his gun-hawks Paul Sutton, Bob Kortman) murders local lawman Joel Friedkin, placing the blame on the boyfriend (Hayden) of the lawman's daughter (Alma Carroll) so Coffin can have the field clear with Alma. Believe it or not, Dub 'Cannonball' Taylor is a doctor! Would you trust your life to this rural bumpkin? There's one hilarious belly-laugh when Cannonball is mixing up medicine to drug Sheriff Hal Price.

 TRAIL RIDERS (1942 Monogram)
When Charlie King's outlaw gang robs the bank and guns down Sheriff Kenne Duncan, the Sheriff's Marshal father (Steve Clark) sends the Range Busters (John King, Dave Sharpe, Max Terhune) to restore peace and find the murderer of his son. Palace Saloon owner King and his gang (Kermit Maynard, Bud Osborne, Frank Ellis) are masquerading as Vigilantes and have roped rancher Forrest Taylor's son, Lynton Brent, into their employ. Eventually, seeing the error of his ways, Brent 'fesses up to the lawmen and his hard riding sister, Evelyn Finley. Very basic Frances Kavanaugh penned, Bob Tansey directed B-western. For whatever reason, when 'Crash' Corrigan left the Range Busters group for four films, the director of all previous R B titles, S. Roy Luby, left also. Producer George W. Weeks brought in Tansey. When Corrigan returned for the final four films, Luby also returned. Somehow, a loyalty between Corrigan and Luby seems quite evident here.

 DAYS OF BUFFALO BILL (1946 Republic)
The cards stacked against him, Sunset Carson and toothless Tom London are framed by card sharps James Craven and Rex Lease for the shooting of hard-luck gambling loser Jay Kirby. Learning Kirby discovered gold on his ranch before his death, the two gamblers form an uneasy alliance with banker/forger Ed Cobb to take the ranch away from Kirby's sister, Peggy Stewart, who is unaware of the gold but owes the banker for her brother's debts. When she tries to raise the money by selling off her herd of horses, the outlaws strike and all her hands quit. Peggy then hires Sunset and Tom, unaware they are suspected of her brother's killing. When she does learn, she tries to kill Sunset but he escapes and eventually discovers the truth about Kirby's murder. Plenty of typical hard-edged action in the Sunset Carson manner (including a wild fist-fight finale on the Republic cave-set) but somehow, Sunset seems more laid-back, ill at ease and uncomfortable than usual in the dramatic scenes. Incidentally, there's not a hint of 'Buffalo Bill' or his 'Days'.

 RAIDERS OF THE BORDER (1944 Monogram)
Lightweight Johnny Mack Brown, poorly directed, especially in crucial action sequences, by John McCarthy (1885-1962) whose career as a writer/director goes back to the early '20s. All his work over the years tends to be slow-paced. McCarthy doesn't develop well the Jess Bowers (aka Adele Buffington) plot of rustlers (Ed Cobb, Stanley Price, Dick Alexander) trading their hijacked beef for stolen jewels smuggled in pottery by Indian-hogan-habitating-hermit Ray Bennett. Ellen Hall is the trading post owner from whom the rustlers are stealing. U.S. Marshals Brown and Raymond Hatton (bringing a few bright spots to the picture feigning deafness with his ear horn) investigate. Remade as ARIZONA TERRITORY ('50) with Whip Wilson.

 PRAIRIE MOON (1938 Republic)
Gene Autry meets the Dead End Kids! Store owner Stanley Andrews and his rustlers (Warner Richmond, Ray Bennett, Bud Osborne, Tom London) are using on-the-lam gangster William Pawley's ranch as a hideout for their stolen cattle. When Pawley is gunned down by lawmen, he makes childhood friend Gene Autry promise to care for his three boys who are "orphans" in Chicago. The little tough guys (Tommy Ryan, Walter Tetley, David Gorcey) resent Gene (and pal Smiley Burnette) at first when he brings them West to live on the ranch to which they are heirs. Eventually, Gene teaches the tough kids the difference between right and wrong as they help bring to task Andrews' rustlers. Shirley Deane is the schoolteacher with one of her students being Buster (Brad) Slaven, seen to better advantage in post WWII westerns with Lash LaRue, Eddie Dean and Jimmy Wakely. Art Baker (later of TV's popular YOU ASKED FOR IT) is a judge. David Gorcey is the brother of Leo Gorcey of the East Side Kids/Bowery Boys films of which David was seen in several. Walter Tetley is best known as the Great Gildersleeve's nephew, LeRoy, on radio. Band leader Peter Potter became famous as a deejay on "Peter Potter's Platter Parade" and "Jukebox Jury". An in-joke reference to THE LONE RANGER serial, also '38, has Tetley riding a wooden horse, shouting "Hi-Yo, Silver" . When he falls off, Ryan snaps, "Don't worry, he'll get up in the next episode." Gene sings-and yodels, which he didn't always do, "In the Jailhouse Now".

 BELLS OF SAN ANGELO (1947 Republic)
A seminal Roy Rogers film. The first of the rougher, tougher, harder-edged Rogers films (under director William Witney). The last film for leading lady Dale Evans, until after their marriage later on New Year's Eve '47. This was the last time we'd see Dale with any sensuality. When she returned in 1949 for SUSANNA PASS and others she bore a new wholesomeness that carried over into Roy and Dale's TV series. Roy gets a new sidekick in Andy Devine (Gabby Hayes had left after HELDORADO in late '46, and Republic filled in for one film with Olin Howlin before selecting Devine who would stay on until Evans' return.) In Trucolor, at 78 minutes, it's Roy's second longest film, beaten by MY PAL TRIGGER by one minute. It's a tough story of murder and smuggling with Roy a Border Patrol investigator tracking down a treacherous gang of silver thieves and murderers (led by John McGuire) illegally operating a silver mine. Dale is a hack western fiction writer coming to the border locale looking for material. The real shock to Rogers fans that makes this western memorable, is when Roy is thoroughly beaten up at the mine by Dave Sharpe and Fred Graham. Witney wanted to skew the direction of B-westerns slightly to show even the cowboy hero can be vanquished when faced with overwhelming odds. He also showed us the first hint of blood, bruises and torn garments in garish Trucolor. The one drawback to Sloan Nibley's script is the silly sub-plot of comic Sheriff Andy Devine turning out to actually be an English Earl by relationship, bringing in Englishman Olaf Hytten and an implausible fox hunt in the desert. Bob Nolan and the Sons of the Pioneers have good parts, contributing "Lazy Day" and "Cowboy's Dream of Heaven". Easily, one of Roy's best.

 THUNDERING HOOFS (1941 RKO)
Crooked lawyer Archie Twitchell tries to underhandedly buy Charles Phipps and daughter Luana Walters' struggling stageline cheaply so he can resell it at a profit. Tim Holt and his pals Ray Whitley and Lee 'Lasses' White go to work for Walters, throwing Twitchell and his gunnies' (Monte Montague, Frank Ellis, Bob Kortman) plans awry. A few unusual plot twists but needed a dose of more action. This film is a location lover's delight --- using the RKO ranch, Jauregui Ranch, Iverson's and Corriganville. It also offers a trio of surprises in the supporting cast. Fred Scott (wearing a mustache), the singing cowboy star of a series of Spectrum B's from '36-'40, is the guitar-playing but non-singing leader of the Six Bar Cowboys. Spade Cooley joins them on fiddle and a pre-Chito Richard Martin has a non-speaking role as he takes a turn around the dance floor.

 RIDING THE SUNSET TRAIL (1941 Monogram)
Crooked rancher Kenne Duncan has his men (Tom Seidel, Earl Douglas, Sherry Tansey) ambush Duncan's half-brother, rancher Jimmy Aubrey. With Aubrey dead, Duncan inherits Aubrey's ranch with a forged will-leaving Aubrey's real heirs, daughters Betty Miles and Sugar Dawn out in the cold. When Duncan orders the girls off the ranch and takes their cattle, Tom Keene and his pal Frank Yaconelli intervene. Soft voiced but tough Betty Miles has a great chase sequence, evading the bad guys. Yaconelli has a lot of really unfunny stuff over bear traps. Gene Alsace (aka Rocky Camron) is a south of the border badman who ends up helping Keene. Western Boo-Boo: In Keene's fight with Duncan about 15 minutes into the film, Tom's final haymaker starts with a right cross, but the follow through is with his left arm. Remade by producer/director Bob Tansey as TUMBLEWEED TRAIL ('46) with Eddie Dean.

 NAVAJO KID (1945 PRC)
Bob Steele's tracking down the murderer of father #643. Or is he? The Indian agent Bob believed was his Dad is murdered and robbed. At that point Bob discovers the agent is only the man who raised him with the Navajos after Apache raiders killed his parents. Bob soon discovers the killers are Stanley Blystone, Charles King and Edward Howard. He also discovers his real father is alive and turns out to be-Well, watch and see. It's the one surprise in an otherwise routine PRC. Leading lady Caren Marsh, in her only B-western, is cute but inconsequential to the plot. Bob Steele had been grinding 'em out since late 1927, a pretty spectacular 19 year run, third only to Buck Jones and Ken Maynard. (We're counting silent and talkie films here.) This was the first of the last series of four for Steele.

 RIDERS OF THE DEADLINE (1943 United Artists)
Texas Rangers Hopalong Cassidy, Andy (California) Clyde and Jimmy Rogers champion the cause of young Richard Crane (later star of TV's ROCKY JONES, SPACE RANGER) who has fallen in with bad company at Anthony Warde's gambling joint. The threesome support Crane when his Ranger appointment comes through, but Crane is indebted to crooked banker William Halligan who puts the squeeze play on Crane in order to use him and his sister Frances Woodward's ranch for his border-hopping gun smuggling activities in league with Warde and his top gun Robert Mitchum. When Crane refuses to help them, the gang frames him, then with the conniving aid of crooked sheriff Hugh Prosser, kill Crane and blame Hoppy for trying to help Crane escape. Supposedly cashiered out of the Rangers, Hoppy joins Warde's gang. Unusual for a Cassidy picture, Hoppy calls his horse Topper by name. Watch for roper Montie Montana as one of the Rangers. Bennett Cohen wrote the screenplay, and it's a redo of his own DESERT BANDIT ('41) with Don Barry.

 OLD LOS ANGELES (1948 Republic)
Warmed over B situations inflated to 87 minutes with songs (Estelita and Catherine McLeod) and romantic trifles between John Carroll and Estelita (even Carroll sings a little). William Elliott (with pal Andy Devine in tow) leaves Missouri for California to join his brother (Henry Brandon) and prospect for gold. Upon arrival he finds his brother has been killed, his claim stolen, and outlaws, led by saloon owner Joseph Schildkraut in cahoots with crooked Marshal Grant Withers, terrorizing the countryside in a land grab spree. Elliott meets Schildkraut's saloon entertainer, McLeod, who is secretly a government agent working to get the goods on Schildkraut. Eventually, the hotshot of the gang, John Carroll, becomes power-mad and kills Schildkraut and everyone else who could help him run the gang. Elliott, learning also Carroll is the one who murdered his brother, faces Carroll in a shootout on the streets of old L.A. Stretched about 30 minutes beyond its ability to hold interest.

 GUNPOINT (1965 Universal)
Audie Murphy's last western for Universal is a hodge-podge of faked studio sets, impressive St. George, Utah, locations, contrived plotting (from Mary and Willard Willingham) and liberal doses of stock footage from earlier Murphy westerns. Therein lies one of this film's primary interests --- guessing from which films various action sequences were lifted (NIGHT PASSAGE, KID FROM TEXAS, CIMARRON KID, KANSAS RAIDERS, SIERRA, even Jimmy Stewart's BEND OF THE RIVER). Audie is sheriff of a tough town who leads a posse in pursuit of an outlaw gang (led by Morgan Woodward) who have kidnapped saloon singer Joan Staley after robbing a train. The posse gradually dwindles to three, Murphy, the rescued Staley and saloon owner Warren Stevens who wants the robbery loot --- and Staley --- for himself. Also with Edgar Buchanan, Royal Dano, David Macklin, Denver Pyle, Roy Barcroft, Kelly Thorsden, Nick Dennis. Technicolor. Directed by Earl Bellamy --- but a lot of credit has to go to editor Russell Schoengarth for tying together all the stock.

 ROLL THUNDER ROLL! (1949 Equity)
The third of four Cinecolor Jim Bannon Red Ryder outings finds him helping Mexican Robin Hood, El Conejo (overplayed by I. Stanford Jolley), who is being framed by saloon owner Ace Hanlon (Glenn Strange), barber Lee Morgan and gunman Lane Bradford for their banditry. Barber Morgan's niece is Nancy Gates who is in love with Sheriff Steve Pendleton. Don Kay Reynolds --- Little Brown Jug --- is Little Beaver, Emmett Lynn is Buckskin hamming it up, (trying to steal every scene he's in) and Marin Sais makes a good Duchess. Bannon's double is Rocky Shahan who later gained fame as trail drover Joe Scarlett on TV's RAWHIDE. There's a montage of action stock footage from Eddie Dean Cinecolor westerns. Working title for this one was COUNSELOR AT GUN LAW. The final title refers to Ryder's horse, Thunder.

 MYSTERY RANGE (1947 Dorado)
You'll squirm in your seat waiting for this painful excuse for a western to conclude. Written/directed/produced by Ande Lamb, the "story" has Jim Lambert on trial for the murder of his brother. Circuit riding judge Lee 'Lasses' White and his deputy Don Haggerty ferret out the real killer. The only reason to suffer this bore is to watch as yet undeveloped actor Jack Elam steal the show as a half-wit. Also with singer Texas Jim Lewis, Ruth Whitney (she's also in TEXAN MEETS CALAMITY JANE '50 with Lasses, also directed by Lamb), veteran heavy Forrest Taylor and a whole bevy of unknowns. At the time this was made, late 1946, Lamb and White had just finished two Jimmy Wakely features together (MOON OVER MONTANA, WEST OF THE ALAMO).

 WICHITA (1955 Allied Artists)
Joel McCrea is Wyatt Earp, marshal of wide open cowtown, Wichita, Kansas, in another Hollywood mixture of fact and fancy, mostly the latter. In reality, in 1874 Earp was hired as a policeman in Wichita where his brother James was a bartender and James' wife ran a brothel. Wyatt moved to Dodge City in 1876. Bat Masterson (Keith Larsen) is a young newspaper reporter (working for editor Wallace Ford). Actually, Bat was a buffalo hunter in 1874 and most likely first met Wyatt in Dodge in 1876. Masterson became deputy sheriff in 1877, then sheriff. His newspaper work didn't come until the last few years of his life in New York City. (He died in 1921.) But forget the question of whether the film does an accurate job with reality, it presents great action and drama under director Jacques Tourneur for a tightly scripted (Dan Ullman) 81 minutes as Earp brings law and order to wild and wooly Wichita. Excellent support from Walter Coy (a railroad man), Vera Miles (his daughter --- and Keith Larsen's real life wife), Edgar Buchanan (bad Doc Black), Walter Sande (boss of trail herders), Lloyd Bridges (hothead gunman), Rayford Barnes, Jack Elam, Bob Wilke (trail herders), Peter Graves (Morgan Earp), John Smith (Jim Earp), Carl Benton Reid (Mayor). Tex Ritter sings the title tune.

 SING, COWBOY, SING (1937 Grand National)
Tex Ritter and pal Al St. John stop a freight wagon raid in which Louise Stanley's Dad is killed. In a drive-out, Karl Hackett and his badmen (Charles King, Tex Palmer, Chick Hannon) want exclusive rights to the freight hauling business. There's a spectacular finish with one of the wildest, unscripted wagon and horse wrecks ever filmed. Earlier, Tex and Charlie have another of their two-fisted barroom set-tos after Charlie declares, "This place ain't big enough for the two of us." Tex sings four songs including his "Goodbye, Old Paint" and there's one by Tex Ritter's Tornadoes led by Rudy Sooter. Horace Murphy and Snub Pollard are in this film but are not yet the Ritter sidekicks Stubby (or Anninias) and Pee Wee that they would become in the next few films. Here Murphy is the local sheriff and Pollard is his dopey prisoner.

 ARIZONA LEGION (1939 RKO)
George O'Brien, working undercover to secretly form the Arizona Rangers with Judge Edward Le Saint, is ostracized by his sweetheart (and Le Saint's daughter) Laraine Johnson (later Laraine Day) and other townsmen for his association with a gang of bandits led by Whiskey Joe (Harry Cording). Because of his undercover work, O'Brien nearly loses his girl to unlikable, wimpy young Army lieutenant Carlyle Moore Jr. before O'Brien learns Cording's gang is secretly bossed by Commissioner Tom Chatterton and saloon owner William Royle. This is the first of several films with Chill Wills as O'Brien's sidekick Whopper Hatch, bold teller of tall tales. Okay, but nothing special for O'Brien.

 ROARING WESTWARD (1949 Monogram)
Tough town-tamer Marshal Jack Ingram kills young Buddy Swan by mistake, believing him to be a claim-jumper. Buddy, a friend of Jimmy Wakely's, has been on vacation at Aunt Claire Witney's ranch and is a student at the newly formed Sheriff's association school for wayward boys. Trouble is, the benefactor left a large trust fund to support the school with the provision if any boy got into trouble within five years after the fund was started, the trust would be revoked. It's up to Wakely (and pal Dub 'Cannonball' Taylor) to worm his way into the claim jumping gang (Kenne Duncan, Dennis Moore, Holly Bane) and prove Buddy innocent. Trying to help, Marshal Ingram's daughter, pretty blonde Lois Hall interferes and nearly messes up Jimmy's well laid plans. Strong Ronald Davidson story directed by Oliver Drake. But sadly, not a song in earshot for Wakely's last-produced B-western over a healthy 5 year period ('44-'49).

 LAWLESS EMPIRE (1945 Columbia)
One of the first group of eight Durango Kids made with Dub Taylor and Tex Harding as sidekicks before Smiley Burnette arrived at Columbia and a certain sameness settled into the Durango epics. This one's the old story of greed and power as gambler John Calvert and his range renegades (Ethan Laidlaw, George Chesebro) try to drive out all the homesteaders. But their real boss turns out to be --- surprise, surprise --- kindly Doc Forrest Taylor. Charles Starrett as Steve becomes marshal while his alter-ego, The Durango Kid, works slightly outside the law to bring the gang down. Action is stymied at one point as sky pilot Tex Harding, leading lady Mildred Law, and Bob Wills' Texas Playboys all join in on a dreary dirge, "Farther Along". Much better is Wills with Tommy Duncan on "Home In San Antone", "Stay All Night" and "Devilish Mary".

 SIX BLACK HORSES (1962 Universal-International)
Burt Kennedy's taut script for this basically three-person western recycles several ideas and lines from Kennedy's Budd Boetticher directed Randolph Scott films. One whole sequence in which a group of Coyotero Apaches (led by Henry Wills) try to trade Joan O'Brien for a horse is a copy of a scene from RIDE LONESOME ('59). Kennedy also recycled his famous "Some things a man can 't ride around." line from Scott's TALL T ('57). Kennedy's own "A man needs a purpose to ride this land" was likewise recycled here by Dan Duryea who, with Audie, has been hired by O'Brien to make a four day trek to escort her across hostile Indian territory to reach her husband. On the way, we learn Duryea killed O'Brien's husband, so she now wants revenge --- to see him dead. Murphy does his usual adequate job while Duryea performs his third (and best) go-round with Audie (RIDE CLEAR OF DIABLO, NIGHT PASSAGE). Overall, with recycled ideas from Kennedy, and the lack of biting direction that Budd Boetticher was able to instill in Burt's scripts, SIX BLACK HORSES under Harry Keller's direction comes off as a slightly plodding story, enlivened now and then by violent outbursts. Republic vets George Wallace, Roy Barcroft and Bob Steele all have small roles.

 SUNSET IN THE WEST (1950 Republic)
Plenty of action but uninspiring songs in this William Witney directed Trucolor Roy Rogers adventure that finds gun runners using a train to escape and hide their spoils. Gun runners William Tannen and Gaylord (Steve) Pendleton are working for rare gun collector Pierre Watkin. Aging Sheriff Will Wright is in danger of losing his job unless he, with the help of Roy, Foy Willing and the Riders of the Purple Sage, can track Watkin down. Pretty Penny Edwards is Wright's daughter in her first Rogers film, but there's no romance, just friendship. (At one point Penny scribbles a beard onto a wanted poster of Roy Barcroft --- who is not in the movie.) Strangely, Republic regular Estelita is billed above Edwards and has far less to do, just sing a song in the cantina and look suitably Spanish. Guess she had a good agent and was employed by Republic earlier, so. Comedy relief in the capable hands of Gordon Jones, a barber and deputy.

 CHECK YOUR GUNS (1948 PRC)
Lean and tough, Joseph O'Donnell's screenplay is all-out action as Ray Taylor directs with a surer hand than usual making this one of Eddie Dean's best. Plain and simple, there's no law and order in Red Gap until Eddie Dean and Roscoe Ates clean-out the bottom-dwelling element: I. Stanford Jolley, George Chesebro, Terry Frost, Lane Bradford, Marshall Reed, Mikel Conrad and Russell Arms (later a singer on TV's YOUR HIT PARADE) and crooked judge William Fawcett. Andy Parker and the Plainsmen sing and Eddie duets with pretty Nancy Gates.

 OLD TEXAS TRAIL (1944 Universal)
In Galveston, crooked businessman Joseph H. Greene hires George Eldredge to thwart pretty Marjorie Clements and her father, Harry Strang, from putting her postal road stagecoach line through Texas before her option rights expire. Eldredge's man Art Fowler kills Strang, then wounds and trades clothes with Rod Cameron, the trouble shooter on the way to help finish the road. Meanwhile, the heavies have hired unscrupulous Virginia Christine (later Mrs. Olsen on TV coffeemercials) to operate a saloon where all Marjorie's men are influenced against finishing work on the road. Cameron is helped by silly insurance salesman Fuzzy Knight. With Cameron's credentials, and clothes, Eldredge has henchman Ed Cobb impersonate Cameron for Marjorie and Eddie Dew, her foreman. Now Cobb is in a position to sabotage the work. Cameron, meanwhile, is taken for Fowler by Christine and her bunch and manages to undermine Cobb's sabotage efforts. And if you think that plot's complicated, wait til you see the rest. It's a fast moving merry mix-up with screenwriter William Lively borrowing some plot elements from his BILLY THE KID'S RANGE WAR ('41). The windup is a wild stagecoach ride over an unimproved cattle trail with the badmen about to blow up the coach at Rock Creek Bridge. As usual in some Universal westerns, some of the comedy elements are played too broadly by Fuzzy Knight, Christine McIntyre and Sheriff Jack Clifford. George Turner has a small role as one of the outlaws. He later starred in Republic's SON OF ZORRO serial ('47) then seemed to forever disappear. Merle Travis sings "Ridin' Down That Old Texas Trail", a Fleming Allan song, while Eddie Dew and Ray Whitley sing "Trail Dust" (not the same as the one heard in a Hoppy western).

 SINGING GUNS (1950 Republic)
Bland but likeable Vaughn Monroe in the first of his two Republic starrers. Vaughn is wanted outlaw Rhiannon who has stashed a million dollars in gold stolen from Great Western Mine Co. who have done him wrong in the past. Determined to capture Rhiannon is Sheriff Ward Bond who is critically wounded in a fight with the outlaw. Suffering an attack of conscience, Rhiannon takes a chance and brings Bond into the town doc, Walter Brennan. Appreciating what he's done, and not realizing who he really is, the town appoints the outlaw Sheriff until Bond is well. Rhiannon accepts, at first with ulterior motives to rob Great Western, but eventually begins to appreciate being on the right side of the law. Monroe also falls for Bond's girl, Ella Raines-and she for him. When Bond recovers he discovers what has happened and sets out to jail Rhiannon and regain his girl. In a terrific scene in the saloon, Monroe cleverly croons "Singing My Way Back Home" to Great Western owner Jeff Corey. Monroe also belts out his 1949 hit "Mule Train". Watch for both Billy Gray and Elinor Donahue in bit parts --- the pair co-starred as Robert Young's children on TV's FATHER KNOWS BEST in '54. Listen to the narrator's voice --- it's Republic badman Roy Barcroft.

 PHANTOM GOLD (1938 Columbia)
Jack Luden's B-western career was over practically before it started. This was the last of four produced by Larry Darmour for Columbia release. Darmour was responsible for the Ken Maynard, Bob Allen and Jack Luden series released by Columbia --- seemed like Darmour was getting farther and farther away from success until he next signed Gordon (Bill) Elliott to finish out the four remaining westerns he'd contracted to produce for Columbia. With Luden, Darmour had tried various approaches, in this one he tries a trio --- Luden, singer Art Davis and black actor Jimmy Robinson as Pancake, which actually worked quite well and might have developed into something if given a chance. (Although it is kinda odd to watch Luden strumming a gee-tar while Art sings!) Luden and his pals find Forrest Taylor's orphaned son, Barry Downing and his dog Tuffy, on the prairie after outlaws wiped out his parents in a robbery. The outlaws (Slim 'Rattler' Whitaker, Hal Taliaferro, Whitaker's lady friend Marin Sais, Jack Ingram) scheme to start a phony gold rush to bring people and cash back to their ghost town by salting an old mine that's petered out. Into this town ride Luden and his entourage. Beth Marion is the cute blonde Luden romances who works in Sais' diner. Highlight of the film are the outrageous comical scenes between Whitaker and Sais. Well directed by Joseph Levering and nicely photographed by the always more than competent James S. Brown Jr. who had lensed many westerns for Darmour. Brown went on to shoot the Ellery Queen series, many of the Crime Doctor entries, several good Bowery Boys and other later westerns with Jimmy Wakely, Eddie Dean and Lash LaRue.

 TOPA TOPA/CHILDREN OF THE WILD/KILLERS OF THE WILD (1938 Pennant; 1939 Grand National; 1940 Times Exchange)
Even though it's release title got stronger each time, the film is still a total loser. A wolf dog (Silver Wolf) is falsely accused of the murder of a trapper (Trevor Bardette), a crime committed by LeRoy Mason who lusts after Bardette's daughter, Helen Hughes (later Joan Valerie). Naturalist James Bush sets things right. Possibly notable for the inclusion of Jack Kirk, Rudy Sooter and his group who do a couple of songs at a dance.

 BORDER OUTLAWS (1950 Jack Schwartz Prod./United International/Eagle Lion)
Rustlers of Douglas Woods' cattle are receiving smuggled diamonds in exchange for beef from a black-cloaked Phantom Rider-not too difficult to figure out it's Bill Kennedy posing as an easterner who can't ride well at Spade Cooley's Dungaree Dude Ranch. Enter special agent Bill Edwards, a 6' 5" lanky, low-key non-actor who came from rodeo into westerns at the tail end of the era. He left acting and became an artist creating covers for paperbacks as well as painting fine art scenes. Edwards died in 2000 at 81. Edwards and Cooley join forces to track down the gang (John Laurenz, George Slocum, Johnny Carpenter). Maria Hart, as Woods' niece, sings one song while Spade and the boys fiddle around. Stuntman/director Richard Talmadge has his brothers --- the Metzetti Boys --- perform all sorts of tumbling routines as comedy relief. Different --- but out of place! So low budget that not even one head of cattle is seen in this rustling story!

 GUN SMOKE (1935 Kent)
Adapted from GUNSMOKE ON THE GUADALUPE by Paul Evans Lehman, who also possibly wrote the script, although no screenwriter credit is given. Billed as a Montie Montana produced western, it was Willis Kent who financed the film, simply paying Montie for the use of his name which Kent hoped would help sell the picture. Also, possibly included in the deal, was Montana's paint horse which "star" Buck Coburn rides. The same year Kent starred Montie in CIRCLE OF DEATH. With both GUNSMOKE and CIRCLE OF DEATH, Kent was searching for a cowboy "star" to replace his now defunct Reb Russell series. Neither clicked, so Kent stayed with exploitation features under the Real Life Dramas banner (WAGES OF SIN, MAD YOUTH, PACE THAT KILLS etc.) until 1940. Kent died in 1966 at 87. Buck Coburn is better known as Gene Alsace playing heavies in B-westerns from '35-'42 under that name before he, or producer Robert Tansey, changed his moniker to Rocky Camron when Tansey co-starred him in some Trail Blazers at Monogram. Born in 1902, Camron died in 1967. Disreputable law-shark Philo McCullough and his hired gunnies led by Bud Osborne run 20,000 sheep onto the cattle ranch of Henry Hall and his beautiful daughter, Marion Shilling, in revenge for Hall's refusal to let Osborne court Shilling. Hall and Shilling are helped by new hand Buck Coburn and his friends (Roger Williams, Ben Corbett, Nelson McDowell, Dick Botiller) who suspect McCullough actually takes orders from Lloyd Ingraham who was run off his range 25 years ago by Hall. That night, Hall's son was born on the open range and Hall's wife died. Ingraham gave up his son for adoption and lost track of him over the years. Possibly you can guess who the long-lost son turns out to be! Poorly acted (as most Kent films are), crudely directed (by Bartlett Carre) and saddled with stilted western pulp-fiction dialogue. Many prints carry the title GUNSMOKE OVER THE GUADALUPE.

 SADDLE BUSTER (1932 RKO)
Scripted by Oliver Drake, well-directed by Fred Allen (not the radio comedian), this rodeo yarn defies the conventional B-western with heroes and outlaws. Star rodeo rider Tom Keene goes to work for Fred Burns' outfit and is cajoled by flirting Marie Quillan, a female rodeo rider, into riding Burns' most vicious horse, Wild Fury. Severely thrown and stomped by the animal, Keene develops a haunting fear of ever breaking horses again. Alone in the mountains, he must confront his inner fears so he may return to the rodeo and once again mount the notorious Wild Fury. Unfortunately, budgeted at $38,000, the film grossed only $25,000 and RKO put Keene back in more conventional westerns. Jack Kirk and cowboys sing several songs including "Girl of My Heart" and Fred Burns performs some fancy rope tricks.

 ARIZONA BOUND (1941 Monogram)
Filmed in Prescott, Arizona, the summer of '41 saw the first of one of the most beloved and well-remembered B-western series ever made. The Rough Riders (Buck Jones, Tim McCoy, Raymond Hatton) was the inspiration of producer Scott Dunlap to star two near-legendary B-cowboys in a series with a well known sidekick. Monogram, in need of a strong series, bought the premise and eight Rough Riders features were made before, with the onset of WWII, Colonel Tim McCoy, a long-time reservist, was placed on active duty. Jones and Hatton carried on (with Rex Bell replacing McCoy) in the dismal DAWN ON THE GREAT DIVIDE ('42). Before more could be made, Buck died tragically in the Cocoanut Grove fire in Boston the night of November 28, 1942. (Buck actually survived the fire but died two days later.) From there, Monogram lured Johnny Mack Brown away from Universal and the "series" carried on with Brown (as Nevada Jack McKenzie) and Hatton remaining as Sandy Hopkins. Although there had been "trio" westerns before (3 Mesquiteers, Range Busters), the Rough Riders created the concept of two former stars co-starring together. The idea was repeated by Monogram with Ken Maynard/Hoot Gibson (and later Bob Steele) as the Trail Blazers, James Newill and Dave O'Brien (and later Tex Ritter) as The Texas Rangers, even Republic joined Tom Tyler with Bob Steele in their 3 Mesquiteers series when Bob Livingston left the second time. Then, there were other one-off hybrids such as Roy Rogers' gathering of stars for BELLS OF ROSARITA ('45) and TRAIL OF ROBIN HOOD ('50). Screenwriter of all 8 Rough Riders entries, Jess Bowers' story here has Buck Jones drawn from retirement on his ranch to go to the lawless town of Mesa City, overrun by saloon owner Tris Coffin and his hired gun-throwers (Slim Whitaker, Ben Corbett, Gene Alsace). Luana Walters' stageline is being plagued by holdups, more than her sweetheart Dennis Moore can handle. Joining Buck are Tim McCoy (posing as a Sky Pilot) and Raymond Hatton as a cattleman. The first half is a bit slow as the characters of Jones, McCoy and Hatton are established in their first film, but the second half literally explodes as Buck goes to chewin' gum and the Rough Riders ride again! Watch for another former star, Bob Baker, at the tail end of the picture as Sheriff Bat Madison.

 PHANTOM STAGECOACH (1957 Columbia)
It's all-out action as badmen Hugh Sanders and his gunslicks (John Doucette, Lane Bradford) seek to drive rival stageline operator Frank Ferguson out of business. William Bishop (a highly under-rated actor who should have "starred" in more westerns) saves one of Ferguson's stages and goes to work for the stageline operator only to immediately butt heads with Richard Webb (later TV's CAPTAIN MIDNIGHT) who is in love with Sander's niece Kathleen Crowley and is secretly in league with Sanders. Directed with all the verve Ray Nazarro put into his Durango Kid B's and enlivened by a generous amount of stock from TEXAS, STAGE TO TUCSON and other fine Columbias. Good supporting cast includes Perry Helton, Lane Bradford, Eddy Waller, Dennis Moore, Kermit Maynard, perennial Sheriff Ray Teal, Maudie Prickett.

 WEST OF EL DORADO (1949 Monogram)
Johnny Mack Brown is on the trail of $10,000 stolen bank loot. Only the late Kenne Duncan's little brother Teddy Infuhr knows where it's hidden (in the lining of his coat) and he ain't telling. Also after the cash are outlaws Marshall Reed, Boyd Stockman and Duncan's old partner Terry Frost and his gang. Johnny must win the confidence of young Teddy-and that's gonna be tough as Brown's the one who killed his brother, Duncan, in a shoot-out. Johnny gets help from Old Brimstone (Milburn Morante) and ranch hand Max Terhune and his dummy Elmer --- both of whom work for Reno Browne. Bill Potter gets to sing a song. Why, I have no idea. Somebody must have heard some talent I do not. Johnny performs some gun tricks.

 NIGHT STAGE TO GALVESTON (1952 Columbia)
Not one of Gene Autry's best Columbias. The banditry is not strongly developed (main heavy Robert Livingston doesn't appear til halfway through the picture), the pacing is off and it lacks the hard-edged Columbia action most Autrys of this period contained. For the first half, Gene basically stands around smiling, letting the plot develop. In a plot similar to Charles Starrett's WHIRLWIND RAIDERS ('48) (both were written by Norman S. Hall), the Texas Rangers are disbanded and the corrupt state police take over. Gene and pal Pat Buttram re-form the Rangers and restore law and order, all the while managing to look after little Judy Nugent, orphaned after outlaws killed her father (Harry Lauter). They eventually turn her over to blustery newspaper owner Thurston Hall and his daughter-editor Virginia Huston while Gene and Pat fight the heavies --- Robert Bice, Frank Sully, Riley Hill, Clayton Moore (on a salary dispute hiatus from THE LONE RANGER TV series), Ben Weldon, Harry Cording --- who all come and go with no regularity. One nice scene has Gene and Judy reciting "The Lord's Prayer".

 LIGHTNIN' CRANDALL (1937 Supreme/Republic)
This contains one of the truly great Bob Steele/Charles King barroom battles. Story has lightnin' fast Bob Steele leaving Texas trying to outrun his gunfighter reputation but winding up in the middle of an Arizona range war when he tries to help Lois January and her father Frank LaRue. Lois' brother Dave O'Brien is on the run from rancher Charlie King for killing one of his men in self defense. King tells Lois he'll call off the hostilities only if she'll marry him --- which she has no intention of doing. While in town, Steele meets up with old friend Earl Dwire, the man who taught him everything he knows about gun-fighting, who is now working for King --- which means Steele will have to face his instructor, gun to gun. Short story writer E. (Edward) B. (Beverly) Mann's story was adapted for the screen by Charles Francis Royal. Mann also wrote the original stories for BOSS RIDER OF GUN CREEK, STORMY TRAILS, GUNS FOR HIRE, GUNS IN THE DARK, RIDIN' THE LONE TRAIL, STAMPEDE and others.

 IN OLD COLORADO (1941 Paramount)
Wealthy cattleman Stanley Andrews and his foreman Morris Ankrum fence off their water holes so as to keep out Andrews' matronly nester-neighbor Sarah Padden and her attractive daughter Margaret Hayes (who found fame in '55 as the sensuous high school teacher in BLACKBOARD JUNGLE) whom Andrews blames for raids on his cattle herds. Ma Padden likewise blames Andrews for her losses. Naturally, it's a group in the middle stirring up trouble for their own profit --- Weldon Heyburn, one of Padden's own men (James Seay), and Andrews' foreman, Ankrum. Ma Padden writes a letter to old friend Buck Peters of the Bar 20 to sell her cattle so she can meet her bank notes, so naturally Peters sends his best men to help her with $20,000 in cash to make the purchase --- Hoppy, Lucky (Russell Hayden) and California (Andy Clyde). Once there, Hoppy easily ferrets out the real troublemakers. Russell Hayden is credited in publicity material as a contributing screenwriter but the on-screen credits only list Norton S. Parker and J. Benton Cheney. Too much screen time is given over to Padden's cook, double talk artist Cliff Nazarro.

 RUSTLER'S ROUNDUP (1946 Universal)
Ex-Marshal/town tamer Kirby Grant arrives in Rawhide planning to buy a few cattle and settle down but finds the town run by a corrupt element (Sheriff Earle Hodgins and three rustler brothers-Ed Cobb, Frank Marlo, Ethan Laidlaw). At first reluctant to get involved, he changes his mind after leading lady Jane Adams' father, Eddy Waller, is murdered by Cobb. Being appointed U.S. Marshal, with the help of pal Fuzzy Knight, Kirby brings the gang to justice in a gun-battle riddled action finish. You've never seen so many riders, buckboards and wagons racing hell-bent over hill and dale, crossing rivers in a mad dash to reach town and help Kirby. Kirby sings a couple of songs and Jane sings "Vote For Cal Dixon" based on "Vote For Emily Morgan" from Johnny Mack Brown's SILVER BULLET. The name Cal Dixon comes from Brown's LAW AND ORDER. RUSTLER'S ROUNDUP utilizes story elements from both Brown films --- even crediting Sherman Lowe/Victor McLeod (LAW AND ORDER) for the original story. Screenplay here assigned to Jack Natteford. Western Boo Boo: In calling juror names, Judge Charles Miller reads off the name "Pete Hannigan" twice.

 BELLE STARR'S DAUGHTER (1947 20TH Century Fox)
New Marshal George Montgomery raids the outlaw laden Cherokee Flats held by Belle Starr (Isabel Jewell --- who also played the lady outlaw in BADMAN'S TERRITORY '46). Fleeing, nasty "Bittercreek" (Rod Cameron) and his wimpy pal, William Phipps, kill Belle in an argument. Belle's daughter, Rose of Cimarron (Ruth Roman) winds up working in a beanery in Montgomery's town, where they begin to fall in love until Cameron's new gang (including Jack Lambert) arrives and leads Rose astray, making her believe it was Marshal Montgomery who killed her mother. Good support from Wallace Ford, Charles Kemper and a host of B-vets in lesser parts-Kenneth MacDonald, John Cason, Carol Henry, Chris Pin Martin, Christine Larson, Charles Stevens, Lane Chandler, Bill Kennedy, Harry Harvey, William H. Ruhl. George may be the star, but Cameron steals the picture in the larger and far showier role as bandit Bittercreek. Solidly in the "famous outlaws" cycle of the late '40s, but surprise, surprise, historically inaccurate as Belle's children were Pearl (fathered by outlaw Cole Younger) and Edward. The real Belle was bushwhacked mysteriously.

 HOLLYWOOD COWBOY (1937 RKO)
A minor entry in the George O'Brien canon of westerns, but an all-important one to director George Sherman and those of us who benefited from his work for four decades. While on location in Lone Pine, CA, director Ewing Scott was injured in a car accident. O'Brien suggested assistant director Sherman take over. So happens, Sol Siegel and a Republic crew were in the area and saw little Georgie directing O'Brien, a major western star. Back at Republic, they gave him a full-shot helming the 3 Mesquiteers WILD HORSE RODEO ('37) which proved to be one of the best of their series and a major directorial career was launched. (See WILD HORSE RODEO.) Movie cowboy O'Brien and sourpuss pal George Caits get involved with a city administration fighting to kick out the gamblers and grifters (Charles Middleton) forming a Cattleman's Protective Association, the old shakedown game, charging cattlemen (and women-like tough ol' Maude Eburne and her lovely niece Cecilia Parker) one cent a pound. Retitled WINGS OVER WYOMING for TV.

 WANDERERS OF THE WEST (1941 Monogram)
From Montana to Arizona, cattleman Tom Keene searches the west for the rustler/killer of his dad. During his wanderings, he meets Tom Siedel, unaware he is the killer, and becomes friends with him. Siedel learns the truth before Keene and involves Keene with a band of rustlers (Stanley Price, Gene Alsace). Inevitably, the showdown must come. Now get this, Price plans to steal a government buffalo herd, take 'em to Mexico, breed 'em with cattle and come up with cattleo. Gene Alsace turns right to the camera, "I wonder if he's been drinkin'." This film also uses one of the most implausible cliches in westerns (used dozens of times) as little Sugar Dawn rides to round-up all the ranchers from all over the range in a short period of time. A job that would actually take 2-3 days! Cheap Bob Tansey written and produced Monogram, but different enough in pot (and weirdness) with a few really good lines to raise it above the norm.

 TAMING OF THE WEST (1939 Columbia)
After "peaceable man" Wild Bill Saunders (Bill Elliott) brings in killer Lane Chandler (in one of the most exciting, dramatic beginnings to any B-western), the decent citizens of Prairie Port (fiery restaurant owner Iris Meredith, Judge Ethan Allen, handyman Dub 'Cannonball' Taylor) appoint Elliott marshal to tame the town's helldorado gang (Dick Curtis, James Craig, Stanley Brown, Art Mix and Bob Woodward bossed by banker Kenneth MacDonald). Unadulterated excitement all the way. One of Wild Bill's finest hours.

 LONE AVENGER (1933 KBS/World Wide)
Ken Maynard returns to town after a lengthy absence on the day of his banker father's death, at what appears to be by his own hand. With a huge bank shortage, townspeople believe Ken's father was stealing from his own bank and took his own life. But Maynard knows his Dad was murdered and sets out to bring in the real embezzler, bank VP Niles Welch and his cohorts Al Bridge and William Norton Bailey. Comedy relief, such as it is, supplied by Nip (Charles King) and Tuck (Ed Brady). Film tends toward the town-bound talky side but sports an interesting --- if a bit drawn-out, finale in a driving rainstorm.

 OVERLAND STAGE RAIDERS (1938 Republic)
Little Georgie Sherman cranks up the action content full throttle for this modern day 3 Mesquiteers adventure that involves trains, planes, parachutes, buses, cattle thieves and plenty of gun-blazing thrills. Although the railroad and its coming is often a focal point in B-westerns, actual trains are seldom seen. (Cost?) OVERLAND STAGE RAIDERS is one of the few to make full use of a horse/train chase/shootout action sequence --- and it's a rouser! As part owners of an airport, the 3 Mesquiteers (John Wayne, Ray 'Crash' Corrigan, Max 'Lullaby' Terhune) convince the owner of the Oro Grande Gold Mine to make his shipments by air rather than stagecoach, as the coaches have been surreptitiously robbed over and over by stageline owner Gordon Hart's gang. But when even the airplane is hijacked (the bandits are tipped off by disgruntled, duplicitous airport employee Archie Hall), the Mesquiteers and airline co-owners Anthony Marsh and his sister Louise Brooks are given 24 hours to recover the stolen gold. Watch for Ralph Bowman as a pilot. He'd soon become better known as John Archer. This was leading lady Louise Brooks' last role. She'd been a big star in late silents here and in Europe, but her career had slid since her return from Germany. Director George Sherman tracked Brooks down living in a run-down apartment and helped her resolve some problems so she could make the film. After the picture, Brooks left Hollywood within a couple of years and returned home to Wichita, Kansas. She later moved to New York where she did a lot of writing, including her biography.

 CORONER CREEK (1948 Columbia)
Strong revenge yarn based on a Luke Short story. The long trail leads Randolph Scott to Coroner Creek in search of the renegade white man who led a band of Indians on a stagecoach raid in which Scott's fiancée was killed. In town Scott is befriended by hotel operator Marguerite Chapman as well as rancher Sally Eilers (who in real life was now married to the producer of the film, Harry Joe Brown). Eilers hires Scott as she fights to keep her ranch from greedy George Macready who operates a freight line. Scott is immediately at odds with Macready's man Forrest Tucker who captures Scott, and, in one of the most brutal, vicious scenes in westerns, cruelly stomps on Randy's gun hand. When Scott later gets the upper hand, he returns "the favor" by stomping on Tucker's hand. Although Chapman reminds Scott "Vengeance is mine", he counters with "an eye for an eye". Eventually, Scott ekes out his violent revenge on Macready. Wallace Ford is Eilers' ranch hand and Edgar Buchanan is the Sheriff and father of Barbara Reed who is married to wife abuser Macready. Gorgeously filmed in Cinecolor around Sedona, Arizona, anyone who saw this originally has never forgotten it for its locale grandeur as well as its well developed, although vicious, adult themes. A pivotal film in Scott's career.

 BORN TO BATTLE (1935 Reliable)
Working for the Cattlemen's Association, Cyclone Tom Tyler and his pals Julian Rivero and Nelson McDowell go undercover to investigate a cattle rustling ring. Tom hires out to Charles King, William Desmond and Dick Alexander to drive out rustling nesters while Rivero and McDowell go to work for platinum blonde Jean Carmen and her father Earl Dwire to protect their house. Turns out Alexander is the real rustler. Oliver Drake's story is a bit unusual in that one of the principal good guys is killed midway. Actually, Drake's story is a remake of his own TROUBLE BUSTERS ('33) for Jack Hoxie. Much of it was also incorporated into William Lively's DEATH RIDES THE RANGE ('40). Note that Jimmy Aubrey plays two different small roles back to back.

 MARKED TRAILS (1944 Monogram)
After Bob Steele's lawman uncle (Steve Clark) is knifed and killed by criminals Mauritz Hugo and femme fatale Veda Ann Borg, Steele, who has resisted becoming a marshal, changes his mind and gets hot on the trail of the rangeland Bonnie and Clyde who are now pulling some sort of convoluted oil swindle in another town. Bob's pal, Hoot Gibson (basically assuming a sidekick role here), goes undercover, posing as a dude town-builder. Steele also goes undercover, posing as a tough outlaw and joins Charles Stevens' outlaw gang who are working for Hugo. It's an unfocused mish-mash plot from J. (John) P. McCarthy who also directed.

 UNDERCOVER MAN (1942 United Artists)
Hopalong Cassidy battles border raiders! Sounds promising, but the plot and execution is dull and lifeless, short on visual action, long on explanatory dialog and overburdened with too much supposed comedy-fill dealing with Andy Clyde and Mexican Chris-Pin Martin's eating habits and romancing of Eva Puig. Incidentally, Paramount consulted with Mexican authorities regarding the script and casting in keeping with the "good neighbor" policy being promoted at the time. As a result of requests by Mexican authorities, Mexican characters were played by actors of Mexican descent --- Antonio Moreno, Eva Puig, Chris-Pin Martin, Martin Garralaga, Joe Dominguez and Tony Roux. Ella Boros, originally set to play a lead, was replaced by Esther Estrella. American outlaws, led by Pierce Lyden, have been crossing the border for raids into Mexico while simultaneously Americans have been raided by Mexican bandits, straining relations between the two countries. Ranger Captain Jack Rockwell and his deputy John Vosper send for Hopalong Cassidy and his pals Andy Clyde and Jay Kirby (whose screen name is changed from Johnny to Breezy for this one entry). The trio travels to Mexico and meet up with rancher Antonio Moreno, his daughter Esther Estrella, their American friend Nora Lane and her son Alan Baldwin. The undercover mystery man boss of the raiders impersonates both Hoppy and Moreno throwing suspicion on both men. But who is the black-clad leader of the raiders? Sounds interesting but in execution is pretty dull.

 PARDON MY GUN (1942 Columbia)
Thrill-a-minute action as water company surveyor Charles Starrett stumbles into a plot by crooked Judge Noah Beery and his gunnies (Dick Curtis, Ted Mapes, Lloyd Bridges) to steal $100,000 from cattleman Guy Usher --- money earmarked for a dam to establish electric power. The daughter of sheepherder Joel Friedkin, pretty Alma Carroll, witnesses Usher tossing the money satchel into the bushes as Beery's gunmen chase down and kill him. Carroll hides the money to stop the killers from getting it but they soon kidnap her, hoping to force her to tell them where she stashed it. At one point, when Starrett and Carroll are themselves accused of Usher's death, photographer 'Arkansas' Arthur Hunnicutt testifies on their behalf. Involved and intricate story from Wyndham Gittens who spent most of his time cranking out dozens of serials for Mascot (PHANTOM OF THE WEST, VANISHING LEGION, LIGHTNING WARRIOR) and Universal (FLAMING FRONTIERS, FLASH GORDON'S TRIP TO MARS) and even Columbia (CAPTAIN MIDNIGHT, HOLT OF THE SECRET SERVICE). Texas Jim Lewis and his Lone Star Cowboys (who fall somewhere between the Hoosier Hot Shots and Bob Wills) give out with three tunes.

 CORNERED (1932 Columbia)
The good citizens of Bandera Gap turn against their respected sheriff, Tim McCoy, when Tim's old friend, Niles Welch (falsely accused of the murder of his girl Shirley Grey's father), breaks jail. Removed of his badge, Tim, following a trail of broken match sticks found at the murder scene, finds his way to another town where Welch has also come in search of the real killer --- rustler Noah Beery Sr., who plays it mad-dog outrageous. A pre-code western, it ends with McCoy about to take Beery who exclaims, "The hell you will!" Contains one of the best fights of Tim's western career with Bob Kortman. Art Mix has a nice little role as Tim's deputy, Pee Wee Holmes is a drunk and Walter Brennan (in an early role) is noticed as the court bailiff. Exciting start, slow trial section for 20 minutes, then its non-stop excitement. Much better than the remake, Charles Starrett's TWO FISTED SHERIFF in '37. Also quite similar in plot structure to Buck Jones' RED RIDER serial.

 SEVEN WAYS FROM SUNDOWN (1960 Universal-International)
Audie Murphy is a fresh recruit Texas Ranger given the job of tracking down the killer of his brother, another Texas Ranger. He's assigned the job by Ranger Capt. Kenneth Tobey who is the man actually responsible for Audie's brother's death. Audie captures his prey, Barry Sullivan, but is frequently forced to enlist his help. Crisp direction from Republic vet Harry Keller and a well-written screenplay from Clair Huffaker make this one of Audie's best. The easy, gentle authority of Murphy contrasts perfectly with the bravura display of smooth charm and cunning savagery from Sullivan. Venetia Stevenson, with whom Audie developed a real-life affair, is the token "girl back home". Their on-screen chemistry is obvious.

 ROMANCE ON THE RANGE (1942 Republic)
Fur thieves are operating on the range. One of them, Glenn Strange, says to another who asks about that "wailing sound", "That's just some cowboys singing themselves to sleep!" Sure enough, Roy Rogers and the Sons of the Pioneers are singing "Cowboy Serenade" while a cowhand watches over the cattle. But when the cowhand spots the fur thieves and is killed by one of them (Roy Barcroft), Roy and the boys set out after the gang, actually bossed by Edward Pawley, ranch business manager for New York socialite Linda Hayes who comes west with friend Sally Payne to find out what is happening. Coincidentally, Payne has been "dating" Pioneer Pat Brady through a matrimonial club. Linda immediately falls for Roy, but he, at first, sees her as a "snooty eastern owner". After several typical Republic misunderstandings, Roy and Linda get together as the Sons sing "Romance Rides the Range". Gabby Hayes is in there too, hooked on one of those tricky "finger-games". Working title of the film was SPRINGTIME IN THE ROCKIES which was relinquished to 20th Century Fox for $1,160 for use as a Betty Grable picture.

 LOADED PISTOLS (1949 Columbia)
Leisurely paced Gene Autry effort with a mystery angle befitting Charlie Chan or Sherlock Holmes. Old timer Leon Weaver, rancher Robert Shayne, young Russell Arms, waiter Vince Barnett and stalwart Jack Holt are all present at a dice game when the lights suddenly go out and Gene's friend Stanley Blystone is shot and killed. Russell Arms (later of TV's YOUR HIT PARADE) is suspected because his gun was used. Russ' sister, Barbara Britton (the only leading lady ever to receive above the title co-star billing with Gene), defends him when Autry investigates and roots out the real killer. There are two major action pieces --- a bust-up-the-joint fight with Fred Kohler Jr. and a furious stagecoach chase at the end. Gene sings the title song and "When the Bloom Is On the Sage". Watch for bits by old time silent comics Snub Pollard (Pee Wee in some Tex Ritter titles) and Heinie Conklin.

 FIGHTING BILL CARSON (1945 PRC)
Look out! Sneaky I. Stanford Jolley urges all the ranchers to put their money in Fuzzy St. John's newly established bank. Fuzzy as my banker? Not if I was a rancher! Of course, Jolley's idea is to have all the money in one place, making it easier for he and his polecats (Kermit Maynard, John Cason) to rob. One neat plot turn has leading lady Kay Hughes, who gets a teller's job in Fuzzy's bank, turn out to be Jolley's niece who is just toiling there to get the combination to the safe for her rotten uncle. Our old pal Buster Crabbe nabs the crooks, natch. Ends with Fuzzy doing an old vaudeville money-counting routine which is always humorous. Shortest running time at 50 1/2 minutes of all the PRC Crabbes. I wonder if John L. Buster, a minor outlaw killed early on, is the son of perennial PRC player Budd Buster? This is one of only two credits John L. ever amassed --- the other is Crabbe's PRAIRIE BADMEN ('46).

 ARIZONA TRAIL (1943 Universal)
When Johnny Mack Brown left Universal for other pastures at Monogram (replacing the Rough Riders on their releasing slate), Universal tried a few top-lining Brown's former co-star, Tex Ritter, now paired up with either Dennis Moore or Russell Hayden. But within a year, Ritter too was gone (he hooked up with lowly PRC) and Rod Cameron was in at Universal. Sidekick Fuzzy Knight remained the one common denominator at Universal, no matter who the star was. Discharged from Roosevelt's Rough Riders, Tex Ritter and pal Fuzzy Knight head home to Arizona where Tex meets Janet Shaw, a nurse who is caring for Erville Anderson, Tex's Dad. Problem is, Tex is not welcomed by his estranged father who has disinherited him in favor of legally adopted ranch foreman Dennis Moore. Trouble brews between Tex and Dennis, but eventually they join forces to rout land grabbing, heavy-set, pill-rollin' Doc Joseph J. Greene with land baron Jack Ingram and his gun-galoots Glenn Strange, Art Fowler. Johnny Bond and his Red River Valley Boys (including Wesley Tuttle) contribute several songs including "Let's Go" recycled from WEST OF CARSON CITY ('40) when it was sung by Bob Baker.

 MEN OF THE PLAINS (1936 Colony)
Postal inspectors Rex Bell and John Elliott are on the trail of train robbers. The case gets complicated when Bell encounters an old girlfriend, Joan Barclay, now engaged to wimpy George Ball, one of the bandits tied in with suave Forrest Taylor and his gang (Charlie King, Roger Williams). Catch this --- Bell's character name is James Dean! Bit player Jimmy Aubrey turns up in two separate roles --- as a messenger at the start, then later as one of the outlaws. Routine stuff well handled by director Robert Hill and cameraman Robert Cline who did fine work on B's from '32-'47 with Harry Carey, Jack Perrin, Bob Steele, Fred Scott, Range Busters, Tom Keene, Buster Crabbe, Newill/O'Brien, Eddie Dean and others (even several East Side Kids entries).

 RODEO RHYTHM (1942 PRC)
Amateurish, juvenile time-waster is simply an excuse to put the Roy Knapp Rough Rider Kids, the Joe Mackey Riding Group and others into a rodeo arena in an effort to save their orphanage from foreclosure by nasty old skinflint John Frank. A mustached Fred Scott in his last "western" (if you can call it that) belts out several songs as does Pat Dunn, a booming baritone "cowboy singer" you'll wish you never heard. Produced by Del Cal Theatres, Inc. Pass this up at all costs! Cowboy cancer alert: Fred puffs on his pipe.

 PRIDE OF THE PLAINS (1944 Republic)
Bob Livingston's return to Republic after leaving the 3 Mesquiteers in 1941 is a remake of a 1937 Mesquiteers film, HIT THE SADDLE, requiring Livingston to don his old Stoney Brooke outfit for part of the film to match stock footage director Wallace Fox planned to use. With his return to Republic, Livingston took over the aborted Eddie Dew as John Paul Revere series, with Livingston now called simply Johnny Revere. Respected citizen Kenneth MacDonald heads a gang illegally capturing and slaughtering wild horses. To arouse public opinion against the state law protecting wild horses, MacDonald's henchman, Yakima Canutt, paints a trained vicious black stallion to look like the pinto leader of the wild herd. Controlling the black with a whistle, Yak has the stallion kill the foreman of Charles Miller's ranch. Certain the wild horses are not truly vicious, Livingston and veterinary pal Smiley Burnette (sort of a buffonish early horse whisperer) refuse to sign a petition to repeal the law, which puts Bob and his brother, Sheriff Stephen Barclay as Inspector for the Game Commission, at loggerheads. To force the issue, MacDonald and Canutt's gang (Bud Geary, Kenne Duncan, Jack Kirk) cause a stampede, this time trampling Miller to death. Miller's daughter, Nancy Gay, and Barclay turn against Livingston when he still refuses to believe the wild horses are guilty. In the end, the pinto Livingston believed innocent and saved, in turn saves Livingston's life. Bob Williams and John K. Butler revised Oliver Drake's original script from HIT THE SADDLE, spicing it up with an ongoing, charming war of words between Livingston and Gay. Incidentally, Gay, who was quite good, disappeared after two other Republic westerns, MAN FROM THE RIO GRANDE ('43) w/Don Barry and OVERLAND MAIL ROBBERY ('43) w/Bill Elliott.

 PRAIRIE PALS (1942 PRC)
They really ripped this Texas Marshals entry off fast. Shoddy production values from director Peter Stewart (Sam Neufeld/Newfield) even by PRC standards. You can hear mumbling, off camera background voices several times during the course of the film, the worst being just as Art Davis bulldogs an outlaw off his horse. Listen for him (or his stunt double) to yell, "Here we go!". Marshals Art Davis and Bill Boyd infiltrate a gang led by saloon owner I. Stanford Jolley (listen for him to fluff a line --- no retakes). Jolley is having his snakes (Charlie King, John Merton, Kermit Maynard) hold a chemist prisoner in a cave. The chemist, Jack M. Holmes, knows the secret of turning Vanadium ore into synthetic gold. As the local ranches are rife with Vanadium, Jolley's gang is systematically raiding the ranchers, driving them off their land. The chemist's daughter, Esther Estrella, poses as a waitress in Jolley's establishment hoping to get a lead on where the badmen have stashed her Pop. Not faring well in busting up the gang, Art and Bill send for their pal, Marshal Lee Powell. There is one clever scene in the saloon where Art picks out Morse code on his guitar strings for Powell to pick up on. Several songs as usual, including "You'll Be Sorry" written by Fred Rose and Gene Autry and "Prairie Moon" by Johnny Lange and Lew Porter which they previously used in Fred Scott's SONGS AND BULLETS ('38). PRC let no grass grow under Al 'Fuzzy' St. John's feet --- he squeezed in an appearance here (unbilled) as leader of the ranchers while simultaneously sidekicking with George Houston in the Lone Rider series and Buster Crabbe in the Billy the Kid films. Fuzzy made 17 films in '42, even moonlighting away from PRC for some Don Barrys at Republic and a role in the big budget VALLEY OF THE SUN at RKO.

 WESTERN GOLD (1937 20TH Century Fox)
Producer Sol Lesser had been active in the western field since 1933, primarily in series entries starring George O'Brien and Richard Arlen for release through 20th Century Fox. But now, Lesser was unable to negotiate a loan-out from Columbia for Arlen to complete his contract of six westerns for Lesser. (SECRET VALLEY had already been made.) Big band singer Smith Ballew was signed by Lesser to replace Arlen, making 5 pictures altogether --- this was the first, and is a disappointment considering the behind-the-scenes talent familiar with westerns that was involved --- director Howard Bretherton, assistant director George Sherman and writer Earle Snell. As it is, the film is quite tame, without hero Ballew even getting in the "final shot". During the Civil War, President Lincoln (Frank McGlynn Sr.) personally assigns Cavalry officer Smith Ballew to root out the gold thieves (LeRoy Mason, Al Bridge) preventing western gold from reaching the east and the National Gold Reserve. Most of the gold is being looted from Wells Fargo stages run by Howard Hickman and his daughter Heather Angel, whom Ballew, naturally, falls for. Some completely unnecessary "comedy" is injected by Victor Potel and Lew Kelly. A barbershop sequence grinds the film to a screeching halt midway. Texan Smith Ballew had his own big band in college, and later in Chicago. He also sang and recorded at various times with Joe Venuti, Red Nichols, The Dorseys, Benny Goodman and Glenn Miller. Smith sings several songs here, in particular "Tenting Tonight On the Old Campground" and a great rendition of "Camptown Races". However, his screen presence was rather bland and uninspiring and, after completing the aborted Arlen series, he was never a lead again, although he did appear in a few other westerns over the years with Gene Autry, Johnny Mack Brown and Jimmy Ellison.

 KANSAS TERRITORY (1952 Monogram)
Although Wild Bill Elliott is wanted in Kansas on old Civil War charges, he returns to the territory when he learns his brother has been shot and killed. To Bill's confusion, he finds everyone in town hated his detestable brother and resent him because of his name. Some of them even attempt to bushwhack him. Convinced his brother has been wronged and misunderstood, Bill comes to believe his brother's saloon owner partner, I. Stanford Jolley, was the murderer. With overwhelming comments about his "outlaw" brother from Peggy Stewart (who was engaged to the brother), her crippled father (Lyle Talbot), two rough-neck brothers --- Marshall Reed and Lane Bradford, and the town councilmen (Lee Roberts, attorney House Peters Jr., Piece Lyden, Ted Adams), Bill gradually comes to realize his mission was a mistake but is still determined to gun down his brother's killer. But who is the real killer? Plenty of tough action and dialogue from screenwriter Dan Ullman and director Lewis Collins. Definitely one of Wild Bill's best latter-day Monogram B's.

 FIGHTING LEGION (1930 Universal)
Fugitives Ken Maynard and Frank Rice help a dying Texas Ranger (Bob Walker) who was pursuing them. The ranger then excuses the rambunctious cowboys for shooting up the town if they'll take his place in bringing to justice an outlaw gang in Bowden. Later, mistaken for a Texas Ranger, Ken becomes the lawman in Bowden where he's up against town bosses Stanley Blystone, Ernie Adams and Jack Fowler who try to lay the death of the ranger on Ken because Ken is romancing the girl, Dorothy Dwan, the boss wants. There are some broad comic moments in a barroom brawl with the Hook brothers (Les Bates, Slim Whitaker and Bill Nestell) and this early Maynard talkie is a bit long at 70 minutes but, overall, plenty of fun.

 COVERED WAGON DAYS (1940 Republic)
The 3 Mesquiteers (Robert Livingston, Duncan Renaldo, Raymond Hatton) ride to clear the name of Renaldo's brother! The Mesquiteers arrive to attend the wedding of Renaldo's brother, Paul Marion, to Kay Griffith. Meanwhile, trading post owner George Douglas and his henchmen (Tom London, John Merton) are buying Mexican silver at 30¢ an ounce and selling it across the border at $1.29 against the Bland/Ellison act. The gang is smuggling the silver from a mine on the Mexican side through a secret tunnel they've dug that opens into an old mine on the U.S. side owned by Marion's uncle. Afraid they 'll be discovered when the uncle (Guy D'Ennery) decides to begin working the old mine, Douglas' men kill the uncle, placing the blame on Marion. There's plenty of non-stop stunts, thrills, action and excitement as the Mesquiteers fight to clear Marion's name. At one point, Livingston dons his Lone Rangerish mask, using a whip long before LaRue or Wilson. Incidentally, despite the title, there's not a covered wagon in sight. Leading lady Kay Griffith soon retired and married actor Broderick Crawford. Republic reused Earle Snell's story for MAN FROM THUNDER RIVER ('43) w/ Bill Elliott. The rewrite screenplay was then credited to J. Benton Cheney.

 GLORY TRAIL (1936 Crescent)
First "historical epic" from E. B. Derr's new Crescent Pictures Corp. to star Tom Keene. At the close of the Civil War, former soldiers headed west to open up new territory. The Bozeman Trail into Sioux Territory is opened and Ft. Phil Kearny in Wyoming is established. It's here that former Confederate Captain Tom Keene and Union Lieutenant Frank Melton clash. Redleg renegades Walter Long and Allan Greer lure Union troops away and steal the ammunition wagon which is then recovered by Keene's men. This, and other action set-pieces all take place off screen and are only discussed until the 57 minute point at which time the "big"Indian battle lasts all of two minutes! Gloming onto Joan Barclay gives the viewer the only interest in this dreary, tedious, overwrought 63 minute melodrama. Derr's Crescent was off and failing! Edward B. Derr, a corporation lawyer, came to Hollywood in the mid-'20s with Joseph P. Kennedy, having been associated with the unscrupulous Kennedy since WWI shipbuilding days in Massachusetts. Derr worked for Kennedy at FBO, holding power of attorney for Gloria Swanson til 1930. For a time he worked for MGM before starting up Crescent. When Crescent folded in '39, Derr produced a few for Monogram and PRC, briefly reactivating Crescent in 1946 to reissue REBELLION and OLD LOUISIANA under new titles and building up leading lady Rita Cansino who had struck it big as Rita Hayworth. GLORY TRAIL is definitely not one for "political correctness". Although John Lester Johnson (as Toby) rides along with Keene, he's definitely, at times, subservient. "I ain't nobody, I's just Toby." There are "colored folks" and "drumsticks" remarks and Johnson is referred to as "black boy". As well, Etta McDaniel is Joan Barclay's servant and at one point is told not to be "impudent". However, at the end, a mass wedding is performed and McDaniel and Johnson are included.

 BRAND OF HATE ('35 Supreme)
Strapling Bob Steele is in love with Lucile Browne, daughter of new homesteader William Farnum. Both Farnum and Steele's father, Charles French, approve of what appears to be a hot romance. All that changes when Farnum's long-lost worthless half brother (George Hayes) shows up and moves in to Farnum's house with his two no-count sons, James Flavin and Archie Ricks. Hayes threatens to expose the fact Farnum was once in jail if Farnum doesn't let them hide out there. To keep Bob from harm, both Lucile and her father pretend to rebuff Bob. The situation escalates when Bob's father is shot by the rustler family, Bob's dog, Pardner, is shot and wounded, Lucile's little brother, Mickey Rentschler is abused, and Hayes' two sons begin to look at Lucile with lust in their eyes. Steele goes on a rampage of revenge! One time silent star Bill Patton is one of Bob's ranch hands. Early on, Supreme quite often offered adult themes in their B-westerns, elevating them just a bit beyond the juvenile Saturday afternoon market. From 1934-1938 Steele made 32 westerns for A. W. Hackel's Supreme outfit.

 SILVER ON THE SAGE (1939 Paramount)
Windy (Gabby Hayes) and Lucky (Russell Hayden), in charge of a herd of cattle from the Bar 20 set for delivery to rancher Frederick Burton, find them mysteriously rustled before they can complete the sale. Investigating, Lucky is suddenly accused of the murder of Burton. Lucky believes foreman Dave Talbot (Stanley Ridges) guilty-but he was in town playing cards with Hopalong Cassidy who has just arrived in town and is sizing up the situation --- undercover. Unknown to Hoppy and Lucky, saloon owner Earl Brennan is Talbot's twin brother, although he usually "appears" different by disguising himself with glasses, hairstyle and clothing. The twins therefore "alibi" one another. When Hoppy exposes their "double" dealing, Brennan and his gang (Roy Barcroft, Sherry Tansey, Ed Cassidy, Jim Corey) head for the desert, where they trap a pursuing Hoppy among the cactus. Watch for Buzz Barton in a bit role as one of Burton's ranch hands. Wen Wright is one of the Bar 20 boys as well as doubling for William Boyd. Very entertaining 67 minutes.

 ROUGH TOUGH WEST (1952 Columbia)
A tough mining town is ablaze with corruption until the Durango Kid takes a hand to put out the flames. Charles Starrett is invited to town by his old Ranger buddy, Big Jack Mahoney ("Buck High, Ranger!"). Mahoney, now owner of a local gaming palace, and engaged to singer Carolina Cotton, leads Starrett to believe he is an honest and generous businessman, then appoints Starrett town marshal. Unknown to Starrett or Carolina, Big Jack plans to bilk local miners, using his henchman, Marshall Reed, to carry out his dirty work. Fiery local newspaper editor Valerie Fisher wages a campaign against Big Jack. When Reed and his ruffians try to wreck her office, Starrett begins to doubt his old friend's honesty. As the Durango Kid he operates against Big Jack while maintaining his position as marshal. Eventually, the viciousness of Reed turns even Mahoney against him. A battle rages in which Fisher's grandson, crippled Tommy Ivo, is trapped in a burning town. Smiley Burnette (gratefully well limited in this one) is the local fire chief along with Pee Wee King and His Slowpokes Band. Carolina sings/yodels two songs with the group. Watch for former Durango Kid director Fred Sears as an actor in this one --- in two roles. Mainly as bewhiskered miner Pete Walker, but also as the town doctor. This is one of the few Durango films that screen billed both his horses, Raider and Bullet. The series, which began in 1945, was about to end its twelve year run; only two more, JUNCTION CITY and KID FROM BROKEN GUN, both unavailable for viewing currently, were made before one of the most popular B-western series ever made rode its final trail. This film was remade as an episode of TV's TALES OF THE TEXAS RANGERS.

 FIGHTING SHADOWS (1935 Columbia)
Good script from Ford Beebe with some unusual elements, directed by David Selman (19??-1957) who shepherded several McCoys and Starretts about this time. Mountie Tim McCoy relentlessly tracks down a gang terrorizing trappers into selling them their furs for next to nothing. In the region Tim butts heads with an old nemesis, Ward Bond, both men are in love with Geneva Mitchell. Tim suspects Bond is involved in the fur trading racket along with helpless little squirt, timberland agent Otto Hoffman. Si Jenks is Tim's trapper friend. Young Ward Bond's excellent acting elevates this B beyond the norm. He and McCoy face off in possibly the best screen brawl of Tim's career. Bob Allen, soon to have his own series, is another Mountie. You'd think McCoy's military bearing would make him a natural for more Mountie roles, but his was his only one.

 HELL BENT FOR LEATHER (1960 Universal-International)
Director George Sherman, responsible for a goodly number of B's at Republic in the '30s and '40s, as well as several above average Universal westerns in the '50s, turns in a good one with Audie Murphy amidst the spectacular backdrop of the Alabama Hills of Lone Pine. Horse trader Murphy has his horse stolen by outlaw Jan Merlin, but not before Audie grabs his shotgun. Opportunistic, reward-hungry lawman Stephen McNally deliberately mistakes Audie for Merlin, handcuffs him and plans to kill him before he reaches prison. Audie escapes, taking schoolteacher Felicia Farr hostage as they escape to a town where he believes the vicious Merlin, the only man who can clear him, may be hiding. McNally, normally quite dependable, is allowed to rant and rave to a near ludicrous degree as the corrupt marshal. Small roles go to Allan Lane as a townsman and Bob Steele as a rancher.

 JESSE JAMES AT BAY (1941 Republic)
Roy Rogers' final historical western is a double-header, with Roy playing both Jesse James as a Robin Hood-like figure and badman Clint Burns. It's a very complex script from James Webb that needed more than 56 minutes to do it justice. When farmers are being land-swindled by crooked railroad magnate Pierre Watkin and his double-dealing lawyer Hal Taliaferro, Sheriff Gabby Hayes sends for his ol' pal Jesse James who robs from Watkin then pays him back the overdue farmer's mortgages with Watkin's own money. Along comes Jesse look-a-like Clint Burns who Watkin hires to impersonate Jesse to sully Jesse's "good" name. Becoming involved are two of the dumbest Eastern girl newspaper reporters ever seen --- Sally Payne and Gale Storm. Even when they realize who's who they can't seem to figure it out, or tell anyone! Needless to say, historically, none of this is to be taken with any grain of seriousness. Roy sings one song to Gale and Paul Sells and Ken Card perform a novelty number. But big changes were in store at Republic for Roy. With Roy's next film, RED RIVER VALLEY, the historical west was gone and Roy came into the modern era, adding the Sons of the Pioneers and much more music and light-heartedness.

 ON TOP OF OLD SMOKY (1953 Columbia)
Showfolks Gene Autry and the Cass County Boys are mistaken for Texas Rangers after they help out Gail Davis who is being harassed by optician and rock collector Grandon Rhodes and his no-goods (Kenne Duncan, Robert Bice, Zon Murray and saloon gal Shelia Ryan) because they want Gail's land for the valuable Isinglass on it. Gene's pal Smiley Burnette operates a stageline. Gene sings the popular title tune and he and Smiley have a ball dueting on Hank Williams' "I Hang My Head and Cry", a real highlight from all of Gene's Columbias. Bit of a weak ending dilutes the impact.

 THE DRIFTER (1944 PRC)
This merry chase of Who's Who plays more like one of those Leon Erroll Mexican Spitfire comedies in which Leon and Lord Epping are constantly mistaken for one another. Believe it or not, there's even an extended in-one-door-out-the-other comic situation mix-up here. To top it off, Buster Crabbe's sidekick, Al 'Fuzzy' St. John, comes across a bicycle at the end and does a comedy routine on it. Basically, Drifter Davis, an exact double for Crabbe, has been impersonating him in order to cover up a series of bank robberies staged by him, businessman Ray Bennett, and the manager of Carol Parker's medicine show (Jack Ingram) where Drifter works as a sharpshooter when he's not being a bank robber. Cowboy cancer alert: as Drifter, Buster smokes.

 SIX GUN MESA (1950 Monogram)
Involved Adele Buffington plot is heavy on story, light on action. Lawman Johnny Mack Brown helps cattleman Riley Hill when Hill is blamed for the murder of Holly Bane by the badguys (Leonard Penn, Marshall Reed, Carl Mathews, George De Normand). Gail Davis is the girl, and as sweet and cute as she is, it's easy to see why she didn't sing in other pictures.

 GUNFIGHT AT DODGE CITY (1959 United Artists)
Joel McCrea's last film after a fabulous 30 year career --- until he and Randy Scott came out of retirement in '62 for RIDE THE HIGH COUNTRY. GUNFIGHT is a highly sanitized tale of gambler Bat Masterson (McCrea) who becomes County Sheriff in Dodge City, Kansas, after his brother Ed (Harry Lauter) is gunned down while campaigning for Sheriff against the gang controlling politics led by current Sheriff Don Haggerty. The basic story is "mildly" accurate. Bat Masterson moved to Dodge in 1876 and became deputy sheriff while his brother Ed was town marshal. Ed was killed in a gunfight and Bat was elected Sheriff. Closely allied with the gambling in Dodge (he runs an honest saloon with Nancy Gates in the film) he was voted out of office in 1879. In the film, Bat loses his badge by illegally helping friend Ben Thompson (Walter Coy) get his half-wit brother (Wright King) out of a hanging and is then re-elected after gunning down crook Haggerty. The picture alludes to Wyatt Earp being lawman concurrently in Wichita while in fact that was circa 1874 and Wyatt was deputy marshal in Dodge in 1878 while the described events were taking place. That's where the real Wyatt and Bat became friends, controlling (along with Luke Short) gambling and prostitution. A subplot here of a fictional conflict between Bat and gunman Dave Rudabaugh (Richard Anderson) is never fully developed and feels as if the editor's scissors were employed along the way. Speedily directed by Joseph M. Newman with good support from John McIntire (town doctor) and Julie Adams (Lauter's fiancée).

 BORDER ROUNDUP (1942 PRC)
Badman I. Stanford Jolley and his rattlers (Charlie King, Frank Ellis, Nick Thompson, Curley Dresden) kidnap kindly John Elliott intending to force him to reveal the whereabouts of his gold mine. The Lone Rider, George Houston, and his pal, Fuzzy St. John (How can he be alone if Fuzzy's always there?), along with Dennis 'Smoky' Moore, intercede to help Elliott's daughter Patricia Knox (wearing clothes and hairstyle right out of the 1940s rather than the 1880s) find her Pop. The badguys use carrier pigeons to transfer messages between their hideout and Jack Kirk's blacksmith shop in town. After Houston intercepts one of these messages, there's a hilarious scene in a coffee shop between Houston and slow-witted Frank Ellis. There's also some other funny scenes between Fuzzy and Ellis over a gold mine. It's the only scripting credit for Stephen Worth. Was that a pseudonym or didn't PRC appreciate his oddball sense of humor? If all Houston's unmemorable songs sound Fred Scottish, it's because Johnny Lange and Lew Porter previously wrote material for Scott's Spectrum series and a lot of their stuff tended to sound alike.

 BLACK BANDIT (1938 Universal)
A good plot short on action content degrades this to one of Bob Baker's lesser efforts. Twin sons (Bob and Don) of Arthur Van Slyke are quite different in nature. Bob is kind and good natured, Don is jealous and ill-tempered. After an argument, Don runs away from home, eventually riding the outlaw trail as the Black Bandit. Bob grows up to be a lawman, not realizing, at first, he's pursuing his own brother (both roles played by Baker). You can probably guess the ending. The girl is Marjorie Reynolds. Bob's pal is Hal Taliaferro. The Black Bandit's henchman is Carleton Young. The four songs are all by Fleming Allan. One odd scene early on is badly filmed, making it look like Hal Taliafer