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Creators of the Script/Screenplay
and the Plot/Story/Character


Western film expert Les Adams co-authored Shoot-Em-Ups with Buck Rainey.  About twenty years ago, Les also wrote and published a series of softcover 'zines titled Yesterday's Saturdays, and each issue highlighted a couple dozen B westerns and included cast lists, plot synopsis, ad cuts, etc.  Les has a massive database on the B western and serial, and that database includes info on the heroes, heroines, supporting players, directors, producers, et al.

Following is a database run of those wonderful folks who worked behind the camera, authoring screenplays and developing the plots and stories used in the B western.

Some of the more prolific of these are Robert Emmett Tansey, Gerald Geraghty, Barry Shipman and Oliver Drake.  In these two listings, you will find the names of several talented women that helped in the creation of those western programmers - included are Frances Kavanaugh, Adele Buffington, Betty Burbridge, and Rose Gordon.


If you wish to find a particular name, simply use your web browser's 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'.  Click on that, and in the drop down menu, click on 'FIND' to do your search.  In web browsers such as Chrome, Firefox, Opera and others, you can also hit the Ctrl-F key combination to open the FIND box.


On the right are the husband and wife team of Rose Gordon, who was Writer-Script Supervisor and Vice President of Reliable Pictures, and director/producer Harry S. Webb, circa mid 1930s.

Webb began his career in the silent era, and was in charge of many 'Poverty Row' westerns starring the likes of Bob Steele, Tom Tyler, Jack Randall, more.  Webb's credits are under his own name as well as 'Henri Samuels'.

(Courtesy of the Robert Webb Family)



(Courtesy of Frances Kavanaugh & Robert Hecker)
Left is Frances Kavanaugh (1915 - 2009), one of several busy and talented women who did work 'behind the scenes' in the B westerns and serials.

Most of Frances' work was in the 1940s at Monogram and PRC with cowboy heroes Eddie Dean, Tom Keene, the Range Busters and the Trail Blazers.

More on Frances is at:
Cowgirl Hall of Fame: http://www.cowgirl.net/portfolios/frances-kavanaugh/
and her papers and ephemera are archived at the Autry National Center: http://collections.theautry.org/mwebcgi/mweb.exe?request=keyword;keyword=%22frances%20kavanaugh%22


Script/Screenplay creator statistics and credits from Les Adams follows.

Before proceeding, please take a look at the 'ground rules' on what each of the columns includes and does not include:
  • no silent film credits
  • no TV credits
  • no title-changed reissues or changed-for-TV titles
  • no foreign language (not an issue with the vast majority on this list)
  • no 'compilation' films
  • the Westerns column includes both B and A grade films
  • Serials and Shorts may be westerns or non-westerns
  • Features contains no western films
  • each column represents 'at least this many'
  • the only column that may be short is the 'Shorts' segment which is a work-in-progress data base

Date of this database run: 11/21/99
The list is sorted in WESTERN film order.


Script/Screenplay Author/Creator
Name Westerns Serials Features Shorts Total
OLIVER DRAKE 73 1 11 1 86
ROBERT (Emmett) TANSEY (Al Lane) 66 0 0 6 72
GERALD GERAGHTY 58 1 15 0 74
ELIZABETH (Betty) BURBRIDGE 57 1 17 0 75
BENNETT COHEN (Ben Cohn / Ben Cohen ) 57 3 3 5 68
J. BENTON CHENEY (Jack Cheney, Jack Benton) 54 0 2 0 56
BARRY SHIPMAN 51 14 7 0 72
EARLE SNELL 51 0 33 0 84
JOSEPH O'DONNELL 50 15 13 9 87
NORMAN S. HALL 49 22 2 0 73
ADELE BUFFINGTON (Jess Bowers/ Colt Remington ) 48 0 23 0 71
FRED MYTON 48 0 17 0 65
JACK (John Francis) NATTEFORD 48 2 33 0 83
HARRY FRASER (Weston Edwards,Harry O. Jones/Hoyt, Harry P. & Harry C. Crist) 43 10 1 1 55
CARL KRUSADA (Carl Hartman/Tom Gibson) 41 4 3 2 50
NORMAN HOUSTON 41 0 23 0 64
ED EARL REPP 34 0 0 5 39
BOB WILLIAMS (Robert Williams) 33 0 3 0 36
GEORGE H. PLYMPTON 32 74 9 0 115
DORIS SCHROEDER 30 0 1 0 31
MAURICE TOMBRAGEL 29 2 27 0 58
WILLIAM LIVELY 28 14 8 0 50
FRANCES KAVANAUGH 28 0 2 0 30
LUCI WARD 27 1 6 2 36
NATE GATZERT 28 3 0 0 31
HAROLD SHUMATE 25 0 30 0 55
DANIEL B. ULLMAN (Dan Ullman) 25 0 16 0 41
PAUL FRANKLIN 24 1 5 0 30
STUART ANTHONY 24 0 19 0 43
JOHN K. BUTLER 24 0 26 0 50
ROBERT N. BRADBURY 23 0 0 0 23
JOSEPH F. POLAND 22 31 2 0 55
DORRELL McGOWAN 22 0 34 O 56
STUART McGOWAN 22 0 30 O 52
WINSTON MILLER 20 4 12 0 36
ROSE GORDON 20 0 1 0 21
SHERMAN L. LOWE 19 12 33 2 66
G.A.DURLAM (Arthur Durlam, George A. Durlam, G. Arthur Durlam) 19 2 3 1 25
HARRISON JACOBS 19 0 1 0 20
ELIZABETH BEECHER 19 0 0 0 19
M. COATES WEBSTER 19 0 16 0 35
SLOAN NIBLEY 19 0 0 0 19
ALBERT DEMOND 18 7 55 0 80
MORTON GRANT 18 0 11 0 29
FORD BEEBE 17 10 13 0 40
SALLY WINTERS 17 0 0 0 17
WELLYN TOTMAN 16 0 19 0 35
MILTON H. (Milt) RAISON (shared George Milton w/ George W. Sayre) 16 0 16 0 32
CHARLES FRANCIS ROYAL 16 0     16
PATRICIA HARPER 15 2 0 0 17
FRANCES GUIHAN 15 0 2 0 17
OLIVE COOPER 14 0 25 0 39
BASIL DICKEY 14 59 9 2 84
DAN JARRETT 14 0 6 0 20
NORTON S. PARKER 14 0 6 0 20
ORVILLE H. HAMPTON 14 0 23 0 37
JACK CUNNINGHAM 13 0 12 0 25
MAURICE GERAGHTY 13 3 5 0 21
GEORGE WAGGNER (Joseph West) 13 0 36 0 49
ROBERT YOST 13 0 8 0 21
WILLIAM (Bill) RAYNOR 13 0 7 0 20
ARTHUR HOERL 12 12 37 0 61
JOHN RATHMELL 12 8 2 0 22
LOUISE ROUSSEAU 11 0 0 0 11
GEORGE W. (Wallace) SAYRE (shared George Milton w/ Milton Raison) 11 0 19 0 30
ALAN JAMES (Alvin J. Neitz) 11 1 1 0 13
STANLEY ROBERTS 11 0 13 0 24
JOHN T. NEVILLE (John Thomas Neville , Jack Neville) 11 0 33 0 44
ANTHONY COLDEWAY 11 0 24 1 36
THOMAS W. BLACKBURN (Tom Blackburn, Thomas Wakefield Blackburn ) 11 0 2 0 13
ARTHUR E. ORLOFF 11 0 3 0 14
CHARLES MARQUIS WARREN 11 0 2 0 13
RONALD DAVIDSON 10 33 3 0 46
LAMBERT HILLYER 10 0 9 0 19
L. V. JEFFERSON 10 0 1 0 11
LINDSLEY PARSONS 10 0 0 0 10
JACK TOWNLEY 10 0 30 0 40
FRANK H. YOUNG 10 0 0 0 10
GEORGE MORGAN 9 4 5 4 22
EDMUND KELSO 9 1 18 0 28
W. SCOTT DARLING 8 0 53 0 61
CLARENCE UPSON YOUNG 8 2 11 0 21
PAUL GANGELIN 8 0 15 0 23
ROBERT LEE JOHNSON 8 0 12 0 20
HARRY S. WEBB (Harry Samuels, Homer King Gordon, Harry Gordon) 8 0 1 0 9
BERNARD McCONVILLE 7 0 3 0 10
DOROTHY YOST 7 0 19 0 26
SAM ROBINS (Steve Braxton, Sam Robbins) 7 0 7 0 14
IRA WEBB 7 0 0 0 7
CHARLES E. ROBERTS (C.E. Roberts, Charles Edward Roberts, Chuck Roberts) 6 0 27 14 47
ANDE LAMB 6 6 2 0 14
CARL K. HITTLEMAN 6 0 2 0 8
ELIOT GIBBONS 6 0 2 0 8
DWIGHT CUMMINGS 6 0 2 0 8
AL MARTIN 5 4 36 0 45
MORGAN B. COX 5 15 2 0 22
MONROE TALBOT (Munro Talbot) 5 0 1 0 6
WILLIAM L. NOLTE 5 0 0 0 5
KAREN DE WOLF 5 0 40 0 45
ROY CHANSLOR 5 0 37 0 42
J. A. (Jesse) DUFFY 5 15 0 0 20
RANDALL FAYE 5 0 3 0 8
FRANKLYN ADREON (10 of 19 serials were westerns) 2 19 4 0 25
The above script/screenplay creator credits/statistics is the property of, and copyright ©1999-2005 by Les Adams



The creation of a basic 'story' or plotline, as well as one or more of the characters that would appear in a film, were often credited to non-Hollywood authors who wrote books, short stories or magazine pieces.  In the following list, several of these 'book authors' are included since they were given film credit for one or more of:

1) the story
2) one or more characters
3) "based on a story or characters or an idea created by ..."

For example, Clarence E. Mulford penned (most of) the Hopalong Cassidy novels, so he is given credit for the story/character creation in the Hoppy films.  Likewise with Fred Harman, the creator of the Red Ryder comic strip.  Another example is Zane Grey and there were a number of films based on his writings.



Novels authored by Zane Grey were the basis for many A and B grade westerns. Above are two well-worn ZG books among the Old Corral collection - neither book is very valuable, and both titles are familiar to western movie fans.


On the left is the cover of another well-worn book in the Old Corral collection. The Coming Of Cassidy by Clarence E. Mulford was originally published in 1908 and was Mulford's sixth Hopalong novel.

This (not very valuable) book was published in 1913 by the A. L. Burt Company, New York.

There's one illustration in the book which is in color. You can see the illustration at the Maine Memory Network: http://www.mainememory.net/bin/Detail?ln=8670


Story and/or character statistics and credits from Les Adams follows.

Before proceeding, please take a look at the 'ground rules' on what each of the columns includes and does not include:
  • no silent film credits
  • no TV credits
  • no title-changed reissues or changed-for-TV titles
  • no foreign language (not an issue with the vast majority on this list)
  • no 'compilation' films
  • the Westerns column includes both B and A grade films
  • Serials and Shorts may be westerns or non-westerns
  • Features contains no western films
  • each column represents 'at least this many'
  • the only column that may be short is the 'Shorts' segment which is a work-in-progress data base

Date of this database run: 11/21/99
The list is sorted in WESTERN film order.


Story and/or Character Creators
Name Westerns Serials Features Shorts Total
ROBERT (Emmett) TANSEY (Al Lane) 69 0 1 0 70
OLIVER DRAKE 66 1 7 1 75
CLARENCE E. MULFORD 66 0 0 0 66
WILLIAM COLT MacDONALD 63 0 0 0 63
ZANE GREY 61 2 2 0 65
BENNETT COHEN (Ben Cohn / Ben Cohen ) 50 1 2 5 58
JAMES OLIVER CURWOOD 50 0 1 0 51
J. BENTON CHENEY 44 0 2 0 46
JOSEPH O'DONNELL 39 9 5 7 60
JACK (John Francis) NATTEFORD 38 2 32 0 72
BARRY SHIPMAN 38 3 5 0 46
GERALD GERAGHTY 36 2 6 0 44
ED EARL REPP 34 1 0 2 37
NORMAN S. HALL 34 4 1 0 39
ADELE BUFFINGTON (Jess Bowers/ Colt Remington) 33 0 11 0 44
DANIEL B. ULLMAN (Dan Ullman) 32 0 12 0 44
CARL KRUSADA (Carl Hartman/Tom Gibson) 30 0 1 0 31
BASIL DICKEY 30 27 4 6 67
ELIZABETH (Betty) BURBRIDGE 28 1 8 1 38
ROBERT N. BRADBURY 28 0 0 0 28
FRED HARMAN 27 0 1 0 28
HARRY FRASER (Weston Edwards, Harry O. Jones/Hoyt, Harry P. & Harry C. Crist) 25 3 0 1 29
WILLIAM LIVELY 25 10 10 0 45
MAURICE TOMBRAGEL 25 0 9 0 34
LUCI WARD 24 1 3 1 29
WILLIAM HENRY PORTER 23 0 4 0 27
ROBERT (Bob) WILLIAMS 23 0 4 0 27
BERNARD McCONVILLE 23 0 4 0 27
NORMAN HOUSTON 22 0 13 0 35
PETER B. KYNE (sometimes credited for other's originals) 21 3 28 0 52
NATE GATZERT 19 0 0 0 19
WELLYN TOTMAN 18 1 11 0 30
M. COATES WEBSTER 18 0 10 0 28
PAUL FRANKLIN 18 0 3 0 21
SALLY WINTERS 17 0 1 0 18
SLOAN NIBLEY 17 0 0 0 17
RON ORMOND 15 0 4 0 19
EARLE SNELL 15 0 12 0 27
FORD BEEBE 15 6 0 0 21
DORRELL McGOWAN 15 0 26 0 41
STUART McGOWAN 15 0 25 0 40
HAROLD SHUMATE 15 0 26 0 41
JOHNSTON McCULLEY 14 4 0 0 18
G.A.DURLAM (Arthur Durlam, George A. Durlam, G. Arthur Durlam) 14 1 3 0 18
MILTON H. (Milt) RAISON (shared George Milton w/ George W. Sayre) 14 0 18 0 32
FRANK GRUBER 14 0 7 0 21
W.R.BURNETT 13 1 19 0 33
JOSEPH F. POLAND 13 16 0 0 29
SHERMAN L. LOWE 13 10 22 2 47
JOHN K. BUTLER 13 0 15 0 28
ARTHUR E. ORLOFF 13 0 3 0 16
THOMAS W. BLACKBURN (Tom Blackburn, Thomas Wakefield Blackburn ) 13 0 1 0 14
LOUIS L'AMOUR 13 0 1 0 14
FRANCES KAVANAUGH 13 0 2 0 15
CHARLES FRANCIS ROYAL 12 0 5 0 17
LINDSLEY PARSONS 12 0 0 0 12
JAMES FENIMORE COOPER 12 1 0 0 13
DORIS SCHROEDER 11 0 0 0 11
ERNEST HAYCOX 11 0 0 0 11
LUKE SHORT 11 0 1 0 12
L. V. JEFFERSON 11 0 1 0 12
JAMES EDWARD GRANT 11 0 17 0 28
MAX BRAND (Evan Evans, Frederick Faust) 10 0 17 0 27
GEORGE WAGGNER (Joseph West) 10 0 16 0 26
STUART ANTHONY 10 0 9 0 19
ROSE GORDON 10 0 0 0 10
HAROLD BELL WRIGHT 9 0 2 0 11
ALAN JAMES (Alvin J. Neitz) 9 1 1 0 11
JACK TOWNLEY 9 0 30 0 39
FRANK H. YOUNG 9 0 0 0 9
MONROE TALBOT (Munro Talbot) 9 0 1 0 10
GEORGE W. (Wallace) SAYRE (shared George Milton w/ Milton Raison) 9 0 18 0 27
ARTHUR HOERL 9 2 36 0 47
EDMUND KELSO 9 1 12 0 22
LAMBERT HILLYER 9 0 10 0 19
CARL K. HITTLEMAN 9 0 2 0 11
RONALD DAVIDSON 8 24 4 0 36
J. A. (Jesse) DUFFY 8 14 0 0 22
MAURICE GERAGHTY 8 4 3 0 15
ANTHONY COLDEWAY 8 0 14 1 23
ALBERT DeMOND 8 7 20 0 35
STANLEY ROBERTS 8 0 10 0 18
WILLIAM L. NOLTE 8 0 0 0 8
J. P. McCARTHY 8 0 0 0 8
PAUL GANGELIN 8 0 7 0 15
LAURIE YORK ERSKINE (most attributed to two books and character) 8 0 0 0 8
HARRY F. OLMSTEAD 8 0 0 0 8
WINSTON MILLER 8 1 8 0 17
ALAN LeMAY 8 0 2 0 10
HARRY S. WEBB (Harry Samuels, Homer King Gordon, Harry Gordon) 8 0 1 0 9
JOHN T. NEVILLE (John Thomas Neville , Jack Neville) 7 0 24 0 31
WILL JAMES 7 0 0 0 7
REX BEACH 7 0 8 0 15
W. C. TUTTLE 7 1 2 0 10
GEORGE MORGAN 7 4 2 4 17
JACK LONDON 7 0 10 0 17
ROY CHANSLOR 7 0 20 0 27
BORDEN CHASE 7 0 12 0 19
CHARLES MARQUIS WARREN 7 0 4 0 11
JOHN RATHMELL 6 4 5 0 15
WILLIAM (Bill) RAYNOR 6 0 7 0 13
WALT COBURN 6 0 0 0 6
CHARLES E. ROBERTS (C.E. Roberts,Charles Edward Roberts, Chuck Roberts) 6 0 17 14 37
CONNIE LEE 6 0 3 0 9
IRA WEBB 6 0 0 0 6
MARION JACKSON 5 0 1 0 6
BRET HARTE 5 0 1 0 6
MORTON GRANT 5 0 3 0 8
STEVE BRAXTON (Sam Robins, Sam Robbins) 5 0 6 0 11
JACK CUNNINGHAM 5 0 1 0 6
KAREN DE WOLF 5 0 12 0 17
FORBES PARKHILL 5 0 1 0 6
GEORGE H. PLYMPTON (10 of the 19 serials were westerns) 0 19 0 0 19
The above story and character creators credits/statistics is the property of, and copyright ©1999-2005 by Les Adams



(From Old Corral collection)

Robert Emmett Tansey produced and directed the above Tom Keene oater for Monogram under his 'Robert Emmett' and 'Robert Tansey' name variations ... and Tansey and Frances Kavanaugh collaborated on the story. Keene is wrestling a Winchester away from Rocky Camron (Gene Alsace), and Camron was a frequent player in films crafted by Robert Tansey. Stuntwoman and great rider Betty Miles is shown in the bottom right corner of this lobby card.



(From Old Corral collection)

Kermit Maynard starred in a bunch of mountie and traditional horse operas for Maurice Conn's little Ambassador Pictures company in the 1930s, and the stories on many of these were credited to Northwoods adventure writer James Oliver Curwood.



Links


There's a section on the Old Corral called "The Geraghty's of Hollywood" which includes info on Gerald and Maurice Geraghty.

The Readers of the Purple Sage website has info on Zane Grey and silent and sound movies and TV shows based on his writings: http://www.genordell.com/stores/western/ZaneGrey.htm

And you'll also find a Zane Grey film list at the Zane Grey's West Society website: http://www.zgws.org/zgmovies.html

The official Hopalong Cassidy/Sagebrush Entertainment website has a list of the Hopalong Cassidy novels authored by Clarence E. Mulford as well as the later Hoppy adventures written by Louis L'Amour: http://www.hopalong.com/novels.htm

There's some photos of Clarence Mulford and Cassidy novel book jackets at the Maine Memory Network:
http://www.mainememory.net/bin/SwishSearch?heading=Coming%20of%20Cassidy--Book%20illustrations
and
http://www.mainememory.net/bin/SwishSearch?heading=Mulford,%20Clarence%20Edward,%201883-1956

Mike Newton wrote a 1994 piece in Classic Images about his friend Barry Shipman. Newton donated his collection of Barry Shipman's letters and videos to Albertsons Library at Boise State University, and the article is available on their website: http://library.boisestate.edu/Special/FindingAids/fa90Mem.shtm

A profile on James Oliver Curwood is at: http://www.sdl.lib.mi.us/history/curwood.html

The Bentley Historical Library at the University of Michigan has the James Oliver Curwood papers and ephemera: http://quod.lib.umich.edu/b/bhlead/umich-bhl-851315?rgn=main;view=text

You can view/download many James Oliver Curwood novels from Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/1487

And there's more info on Curwood at: http://www.shiawasseehistory.com/curwood.html



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