3895  Silver Dollar  First National, 1932. 84 min. D: Alfred E. Green. SC: Carl Erickson and Harvey Thew. With Edward G. Robinson, Bebe Daniels, Aline MacMahon, Jobyna Howland, De Witt Jennings, Robert Warwick, Russell Simpson, Harry Holman, Charles Middleton, John Marston, Marjorie Gateson, Emmett Corrigan, Wade Boteler, William Le Maire, David Durand, Lee Kohlmar, Theresa Conover, Leon Ames, Virginia Edwards, Christian Rub, Walter Rogers, Niles Welch, Wilfred Lucas, Herman Bing, Bonita Granville, Walter Long, Charles Coleman, Frederick Burton, Willard Robertson, Alice Wetherfield. A Kansas farmer moves to Colorado for a gold rush but goes broke only to get rich with a silver strike and rise politically before becoming involved in a scandal. Entertaining soap opera.

3896  The Silver Horde  RKO Radio, 1930. 75 min. D: George Archainbaud. SC: Wallace Smith. With Evelyn Brent, Joel McCrea, Louis Wolheim, Raymond Hatton, Jean Arthur, Gavin Gordon, Blanche Sweet, Purnell Pratt, William B. Davidson, Ivan Linow, Robert Homans, William H. O’Brien, Dick Curtis, Bud Flanagan (Dennis O’Keefe). A saloon entertainer helps a young salmon fisherman whose business is threatened by a crook. Good production values highlight this Rex Beach adaptation.

3897  Silver Lode  RKO Radio, 1954. 80 min. Color. D: Allan Dwan. SC: Karen De Wolfe. With John Payne, Lizabeth Scott, Dan Duryea, Dolores Moran, Emile Meyer, Harry Carey, Jr., Morris Ankrum, John Hudson, Robert Warwick, Stuart Whitman, Alan Hale, Jr., Frank Sully, Paul Birch, Florence Auer, Roy Gordon, Edgar Barrier, John Dierkes, Myron Healey, Hugh Sanders, Lane Chandler, Byron Foulger, Gene Roth, Roy Jordan, Ray Jones. On his wedding day a man is accused of murder and he runs away to prove his innocence. Sturdy action melodrama.

3898  Silver on the Sage  Paramount, 1939. 68 min. D: Lesley Selander. SC: Maurice Geraghty. With William Boyd, George Hayes, Russell Hayden, Stanley Ridges, Ruth Rogers, Frederick Burton, Jack Rockwell, Roy Barcroft, Ed Cassidy, Jim Corey, Sherry Tansey, Bruce Mitchell, Wen Wright, George Morrell, Frank O’Connor, Buzz Barton, Herman Hack, Dick Dickinson, Hank Bell, Bud McClure. Lucky is falsely accused of murder and Hoppy and Windy help him escape from the law as Cassidy seeks to uncover the brains behind a cattle rustling gang. Action filled “Hopalong Cassidy” feature with an amusing finale.

3899  Silver Queen  United Artists, 1942. 81 min. D: Lloyd Bacon. SC: Bernard Schubert and Cecile Kramer. With George Brent, Priscilla Lane, Bruce Cabot, Lynne Overman, Eugene Pallette, Janet Beecher, Guinn Williams, Roy Barcroft, Eleanor Stewart, Arthur Hunnicutt, Sam McDaniel, Spencer Charters, Cy Kendall, Georges Renavent, Francis X. Bushman, Franklyn Farnum, Marietta Canty, Herbert Rawlinson, George Eldredge, Fred “Snowflake” Toones, Frederick Burton, Ed Cassidy, Jason Robards, Wilbur Mack, Henry Otho. A young woman gambles to raise money to pay her father’s debts while her fiance invests her winnings in a silver mine. Passable viewing—nothing more.

3900  Silver Raiders  Monogram, 1950. 55 min. D: Wallace Fox. SC: Dan Ullman. With Whip Wilson, Andy Clyde, Virginia Herrick, Leonard Penn, Dennis Moore, Patricia Rice, Reed Howes, Riley Hill, Marshall Reed, George DeNormand, Kermit Maynard, Ed Cassidy, Frank Hagney, Frank Ellis. A Texas Ranger infiltrates a gang smuggling silver ore across the Mexican border into the United States. Pretty good Whip Wilson vehicle.

3901  Silver Range  Monogram, 1946. 53 min. D: Lambert Hillyer. SC: J. Benton Cheney. With Johnny Mack Brown, Raymond Hatton, Jan Bryant, I. Stanford Jolley, Terry Frost, Eddie Parker, Ted Adams, Frank LaRue, Cactus Mack, Lane Bradford, Bill Willmering, George Morrell, Dee Cooper. A cattle rancher helps a former peace office in finding a kidnapped man and those behind a silver smuggling operation. Nicely done, compact dual bill item.

3902  Silver River  Warner Bros., 1948. 110 min. D: Raoul Walsh. SC: Stephen Long- street and Harriet Frank, Jr. With Errol Flynn, Ann Sheridan, Thomas Mitchell, Bruce Bennett, Tom D’Andrea, Barton MacLane, Monte Blue, Jonathan Hale, Alan Bridge, Arthur Space, Art Baker, Joseph Crehan, Harry Woods, Franklyn Farnum, Otto Reichow, Rose Ford, Bud Osborne, Henry (Harry) Morgan, Russell Hicks, Jerry Jerome, Frank McCarroll, Ian Wolfe, Fred Kelsey, Ben Corbett, Eddie Parker, Dan White, Norman Jolley, Harry Strang, James Harrison, Norman Willis, Bob Stephenson, Marjorie Bennett. An ex–Civil War officer becomes a gambler and then a rancher who almost loses everyone he cares for due to greed. Okay Errol Flynn feature, but not up to his earlier Westerns.

3903  Silver Spurs  Universal, 1936. 60 min. D: Ray Taylor. SC: Joseph Poland. With Buck Jones, Muriel Evans, J.P. McGowan, George Hayes, Dennis Moore, Beth Marion, Robert Frazer, Bruce Lane, Charles K. French, William Lawrence, Earl Askam, Kernan Cripps, Eddy Waller, Helen MacKeller. A cowboy comes to the defense of a rancher harassed by rustlers. Very good Buck Jones film, produced by the star.

3904   Silver Spurs  Republic, 1943. 65 min. D: Joseph Kane. SC: John K. Butler and J. Benton Cheney. With Roy Rogers, Smiley Burnette, John Carradine, Phyllis Brooks, Jerome Cowan, Joyce Compton, Dick Wessel, Hal Taliaferro, Forrest Taylor, Charles Wilson, Byron Foulger, Bob Nolan and The Sons of the Pioneers (Tim Spencer, Lloyd Perryman, Pat Brady, Hugh Farr, Karl Farr), Kermit Maynard, Tom London, Jack Kirk, Jack O’Shea, Slim Whitaker, Arthur Loft, Eddy Waller, Bud Osborne, Fred Burns, Henry Wills. Roy Rogers is accused of killing is ex-boss by the swindler responsible for the crime. Villain John Carradine adds class to this entertaining Roy Rogers entry that boasts an exciting shootout finale and good stunt work.

3905  Silver Stallion  Monogram, 1941. 59 min. D: Edward Finney. SC: Robert Emmett (Tansey). With David Sharpe, LeRoy Mason, Chief Thundercloud, Walter Long, Janet Waldo, Thornton Edwards, Fred Hoose, Thunder (horse), Captain Boots (dog). Three partners are forced to become thieves as one of them tries to find the man who framed his brother. Modest action film marred by too much stock footage, although David Sharpe, LeRoy Mason and Chief Thundercloud are likable triad heroes.

3906  The Silver Star  Lippert, 1955. 73 min. D: Richard Bartlett. SC: Richard Bartlett and Ian MacDonald. With Edgar Buchanan, Marie Windsor, Lon Chaney, Earle Lyons, Richard Bartlett, Barton MacLane, Morris Ankrum, Edith Evanson, Michael Whalen, Steve Rowland, Robert Kramer, Earl Hansen, Jill Richards, Charles Knapp, Tim Graham. A pacifistic sheriff does not want to face three gunmen hired to kill him with an old time lawman coming to his defense. Low grade production is highlighted by the work of veterans Edgar Buchanan, Marie Windsor and Lon Chaney, plus Jimmy Wakely singing the title song.

3907  The Silver Trail  Reliable, 1937. 58 min. D: Raymond Samuels (Bernard B. Ray). SC: Bennett Cohen and Forrest Sheldon. With Rin Tin Tin, Jr., Rex Lease, Mary Russell, Ed Cassidy, Roger Williams, Steve Clark, Slim Whitaker, Oscar Gahan, Sherry Tansey, Tom London, Snub Pollard, Margaret Mann. A man and a dog join forces to stop crooks who are murdering miners in order to put together a silver combine. Cheap dual bill item allegedly based on the James Oliver Curwood story “Mystery of the Seven Chests.”

3908  Silver Trails  Monogram, 1948. 53 min. D: Christy Cabanne. SC: J. Benton Cheney. With Jimmy Wakely, Dub Taylor, Christine Larson, George J. Lewis, Pierce Lyden, Whip Wilson, William Norton Bailey, Fred Edwards, Robert Strange, Bob Woodward, Bud Osborne. In California crooks try to steal land by causing a feud between settlers and ranchers. One of the better Jimmy Wakely films thanks to good direction and a flashy performance by Whip Wilson in a supporting role.

3909  The Silver Whip  20th Century–Fox, 1953. 73 min. D: Harmon Jones. SC: Jesse Lasky, Jr. With Dale Robertson, Rory Calhoun, Robert Wagner, Kathleen Crowley, James Millican, Lola Albright, J.M. Kerrigan, John Kellogg, Harry Carter, Ian MacDonald, Robert Adler, Clancy Cooper, Burt Mustin, Dan White, Paul Wexler, Bobby Diamond, Jack Rice, Charles Watts. Wanting to be like a sheriff and stage guard he admires, a young man takes the job of stagecoach driver and runs into outlaws. A good cast adds some life to this otherwise average outing.

3910  Silver Wolf  Blue Rider Pictures, 1999. 90 min. Color. D: Peter Svatek. SC: Michael Amo. With Michael Biehn, Roy Scheider, Shane Meier, Kimberely Warnat, Lynda Boyd, Trevor Roberts, Ron Sauve, T.J. Shanks, Reg Tupper, Shaun Johnston, Don MacKay, Jade Pawluk, John Hawkes. Going to live with his uncle in the wilderness following the death of his father during a ski strip, a teenager helps an injured wolf and forms a bond with the animal. So-so outdoor adventure with scenic Canadian Rockies locales.

3911  Silverado  Columbia, 1985. 132 min. Color. D: Lawrence Kasdan. SC: Lawrence Kasdan and Mark Kasdan. With Kevin Kline, Scott Glenn, Kevin Costner, Danny Glover, John Cleese, Rosanna Arquette, Brian Dennehy, Linda Hunt, Jeff Goldblum, Marvin J. McIntyre, Brad Williams, Sheb Wooley, Jon Kasdan, Todd Allen, Kenny Call, Bill Thurman, Meg Kasdan, Dick Durock, Gene Hartline, Autry Ward, Jacob Kasdan, Rusty Meyers, Zeke Davidson, Lois Geary, James Gammon, Troy Ward, Roy McAdams, Ray Baker, Joe Seneca, Lynn Whitfield, Jeff Fahey, Patricia Gaul, Amanda Wyss, Earl Hindman, Tom Brown, Jim Haynie, Richard Jenkins, Jerry Biggs, Sam Gauny, Ken Farmer, Bill McIntosh, Charles Seybert, Jane Beauchamp, Jerry Block, Ben Zeller, Pepe Serna, Ted White, Ross Loney, Walter Scott, Bob Terhune, Brion James, Bob Morgan, Mark Kasdan, Richard Lester, Matthew Hotsinpiller. Two drifters join forces and arrive in the town of Silverado where they oppose a corrupt boss who controls the law. Overlong but pretty good look at the mythical West.

3912  Sin Town  Universal, 1942. 74 min. D: Ray Enright. SC: W. Scott Darling and Gerald Geraghty. With Constance Bennett, Broderick Crawford, Anne Gwynne, Patric Knowles, Andy Devine, Leo Carrillo, Ward Bond, Arthur Aylesworth, Ralf Harolde, Charles Wagenheim, Billy Wayne, Hobart Bosworth, Jack Mulhall, Paul Bryar, Rebel Randall, Jean Trent, Oscar O’Shea, Eddy Waller, Clarence Muse, Ben Erdway, Ed Peil, Sr., Harry Strang, Guy Usher, Victor Zimmerman, George J. Lewis, Larry McGrath, Murray Parker, Frank Hagney, Neeley Edwards, Jack C. Smith, Kernan Cripps, Art Miles, Charles Marsh, Frank Coleman. A pair of confidence operators arrive in a town where a lynch mob is after the murderer of a newspaper editor. A good cast and a fast pace make this potboiler an adequate diversion.

3913  Sing, Cowboy, Sing  Grand National, 1937. 60 min. D: Robert North Bradbury. SC: Robert Emmett (Tansey). With Tex Ritter, Louise Stanley, Al St. John, Karl Hackett, Charles King, Bob McKenzie, Budd Buster, Heber Snow (Hank Worden), Chick Hannon, Horace Murphy, Snub Pollard, Tex Palmer, Jack C. Smith, Oscar Gahan, Herman Hack, Milburn Morante, Rudy Sooter, Clyde McClary, Jack Evans, Sherry Tansey, Buck Morgan, Rube Dalroy, Tex Ritter’s Tornadoes. Two cowpokes masquerade as entertainers to find out who killed a young woman’s father, the proprietor of a shipping franchise. Good scenic locations and an action filled climax help this Tex Ritter vehicle which also benefits from a quartet of songs, including the very good title tune.

3914  Sing Me a Song of Texas  Columbia, 1945. 66 min. D: Vernon Keays. SC: Elizabeth Beecher and J. Benton Cheney. With Rosemary Lane, Hal McIntyre and His Orchestra, The Hoosier Hot Shots (Charles “Gabe” Ward, Ken Trietsch, Paul “Hezzie” Trietsch, Gil Taylor), Tom Tyler, Guinn Williams, Slim Summerville, Carole Mathews, Noah Beery, Pinky Tomlin, Marie Austin, Foy Willing and The Riders of the Purple Sage, James T. “Bud” Nelson, Reed Howes, Kermit Maynard, Forrest Taylor, Davison Clark, Vernon Dent, Victor Travers, John Tyrrell, Joel Friedkin. A rich rancher invites his two nieces to visit and then poses as a cook in order to decide which one will inherit his fortune. Light hearted Western with a number of musical interludes.

3915  The Singer Not the Song  Warner Bros./Rank, 1961. 129 min. Color. D: Roy Baker. SC: Nigel Balchin. With Dirk Bogarde, John Mills, Mylene Demongeot, Laurence Naismith, John Bentley, Leslie French, Eric Pohlmann, Nyall Florenz, Roger Delgado, Philip Gilbert, Shelia Gallagher, Selma Vaz Dias, Laurence Payne, Jacqueline Evans, Lee Montague, Serafina Di Leo. In a Mexican village the new priest vies for control of the people with a bandit while trying to fend off the lust of a local beauty. Overlong, dull melodrama.

3916  Singin’ in the Corn  Columbia, 1946. 65 min. D: Del Lord. SC: Elwood Ullman, Monte Brice, Isabel Dawn and Richard Weil. With Judy Canova, Allen Jenkins, Guinn Williams, Alan Bridge, Charles Halton, Robert Dudley, Nick Thompson, George Chesebro, Ethan Laidlaw, Frances Rey, Frank Lackteen, Guy Beach, Jay Silverheels, Rodd Redwing, Dick Stanley, Charles Reynolds, Si Jenks, Pat O’Malley, Chester Conklin, Mary Gordon, The Singing Indian Braves, Chief Yowlachie. A carnival mind reader inherits a ranch that is supposedly haunted as crooks try to steal it from local Indians, the rightful owners. More rustic comedy hokum from Judy Canova, sure to please her fans.

3917  Singin’ Spurs  Columbia, 1948. 62 min. D: Ray Nazarro. SC: Barry Shipman. With The Hoosier Hot Shots (Charles “Gabe” Ward, Ken Trietsch, Paul “Hezzie” Trietsch, Frank Kettering), Kirby Grant, Patricia (Barry) White, Lee Patrick, Jay Silverheels, Dick Elliott, Billy Wilkerson, Chester Clute, Marion Colby, Red Enger, Riley Hill, Patricia Knox, Billy Cypert, The Shamrock Cowboys. One of the Hoosier Hot Shots marries a rich widow to get money needed to stage a campaign to help Indians irrigate their lands. Silly cornpone Western musical comedy. Also called Singing Spurs.

3918  The Singing Buckaroo  Spectrum, 1937. 60 min. D-SC: Tom Gibson. With Fred Scott, Cliff Nazarro, Victoria Vinton, William Faversham, Howard Hill, Roger Williams, Rosa Caprino, Carl Mathews, Dick Curtis, Augie Gomez, Shorty Miller, Wade Walker, Oscar Gahan, The Singing Buckaroos. A cowboy helps a young woman who has taken money for safekeeping since her father is the hostage of crooks after the currency. Entertaining Fred Scott musical opus.

3919  The Singing Cowboy  Republic, 1936. 56 min. D: Mack V. Wright. SC: Dorrell McGowan and Stuart McGowan. With Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, Lois Wilde, Lon Chaney, Jr., Ann Gillis, John Van Pelt, Earle Hodgins, Earl Eby, Ken Cooper, Harrison Greene, Wes Warner, Jack Rockwell, Tracy Layne, Fred “Snowflake” Toones, Oscar Gahan, Frankie Marvin, Jack Kirk, Audrey Davis, George Pearce, Charlie McAvoy, Alfred P. James, Pat Carson, Harvey Clark. A cowboy crooner becomes the guardian of a girl, who needs an operation, after her mine owner father is murdered and he tries to raise the money. Fine interpolation of music, story and action make this Gene Autry film a good one.

3920  The Singing Cowgirl  Grand National, 1939. 59 min. D: Samuel Diege. SC: Arthur Hoerl. With Dorothy Page, Dave O’Brien, Vince Barnett, Ed Peil, Sr., Dix Davis, Stanley Price, Warner Richmond, Dorothy Short, Paul Barrett, Lloyd Ingraham, Ethan Allen, Eddie Gordon, Merrill McCormick, Leonard Trainor. A woman rancher takes in a boy who parents were killed by rustlers and she sets out to help round up the gang. This third, and last, musical Western starring Dorothy Page is average.

3921  Singing Guns  Republic, 1950. 91 min. Color. D: R.G. Springsteen. SC: Dorrell McGowan and Stuart McGowan. With Vaughn Monroe, Ella Raines, Walter Brennan, Ward Bond, Jeff Corey, Barry Kelley, Harry Shannon, Tom Fadden, Ralph Dunn, Rex Lease, Mary Baer, Jimmie Dodd, Denver Pyle, John Doucette, Richard Emory, George Chandler, Billy Gray, Mary Eleanor (Elinor) Donahue, Douglas Hughes, Stanley Blystone, Wallace Scott, Roy Barcroft (voice). A notorious outlaw saves the life of the lawman tracking him and with a new identity becomes the sheriff of a small town. Bandleader-singer Vaughn Monroe makes a very convincing Western star in this entertaining “A” production in which he sings “Mule Train.”

3922  The Singing Hill  Republic, 1941. 61 min. D: Lew Landers. SC: Olive Cooper. With Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, Virginia Dale, Mary Lee, Spencer Charters, Gerald Oliver Smith, George Meeker, Wade Boteler, Harry Stubbs, Cactus Mack, Jack Kirk, Chuck Morrison, Monte Montague, Hal Price, Fred Burns, Herman Hack, Jack O’Shea, Frankie Marvin, Forrest Taylor, Dan White. When a young woman wants to sell the ranch she inherited her neighbors fear it will bring an end to the open range. Average Gene Autry opus. Also known as Singing Hills.

Singing Hills see The Singing Hill

3923  Singing on the Trail  Columbia, 1946. 65 min. D: Ray Nazarro. SC: J. Benton Cheney. With Ken Curtis, Jeff Donnell, Guy Kibbee, Dusty Anderson, Guinn Williams, Four Chicks and a Chuck (Chuck Goldstein), Deuce Spriggins and His Band, The Plainsmen, The Hoosier Hot Shots (Charles “Gabe” Ward, Ken Trietsch, Paul “Hezzie” Trietsch, Gil Taylor), Ian Keith, Matt Willis, Sam Flint, Joe Haworth, Eddy Waller, Carolina Cotton, Jody Gilbert, Coulter Irwin. The Hoosier Hot Shots are cheated out of a ranch by a crook and two cowboys come to their rescue. Another featherweight Western musical comedy from Columbia’s “B” unit.

3924  The Singing Outlaw  Universal, 1938. 56 min. D: Joseph H. Lewis. SC: Harry O. Hoyt. With Bob Baker, Joan Barclay, Fuzzy Knight, Carl Stockdale, Harry Woods, LeRoy Mason, Ralph Lewis, Glenn Strange, Georgia O’Dell, Jack Rockwell, Ed Peil, Sr., Jack Kirk, Bob McKenzie, Budd Buster, Lafe McKee, Hank Worden, Art Mix, Chick Hannon, Herman Hack, Jack Montgomery, Curley Gibson, Francis Walker. In order to find out who killed a U.S. marshal, a cowboy takes on his identity and goes after a rustling gang. Despite a fine supporting cast, this Bob Baker musical outing is sub-standard.

3925  The Singing Sheriff  Universal, 1944. 60 min. D: Leslie Goodwins. SC: Henry Blankfort and Eugene Conrad. With Bob Crosby, Fay McKenzie, Fuzzy Knight, Iris Adrian, Samuel S. Hinds, Edward Norris, Andrew Tombes, Joseph Sawyer, Walter Sande, Doodles Weaver, Jean Trent, Donald Kerr, Pat Starling, Louis Da Pron, Spade Cooley and Orchestra. The son of a prominent citizen arrives in town incognito and immediately gets involved with the sheriff and outlaws. Slim musical vehicle for bandleader Bob Crosby.

Singing Spurs see Singin’ Spurs

3926  The Singing Vagabond  Republic, 1935. 54 min. D: Carl L. Pierson. SC: Oliver Drake and Betty Burbridge. With Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, Ann Rutherford, Barbara Pepper, Warner Richmond, Frank LaRue, Grace Goodall, Niles Welch, Tom Bower, Robinson Neeman, Henry Roquemore, Ray (Corrigan) Bernard, Allan Sears, Bob Burns, Charles King, Chief Big Tree, Chief Thundercloud, Marie Quillan, Elaine Shepard, Edmund Cobb, George (Montgomery) Letz, Celia McCanon. June Thompson, Janice Thompson, Marion O’Connell. A young woman, who has run away from home to join a traveling show, is rescued by a cavalry captain when her wagon train is attacked. Okay Gene Autry outing, with more music than action.

3927  Single Handed Sanders  Monogram, 1932. 61 min. D: Lloyd Nosler. SC: Charles A. Post. With Tom Tyler, Margaret Morris, Loie Bridge, Robert Manning, G.D. Wood (Gordon DeMain), John Elliott, Hank Bell, Fred “Snowflake” Toones, Theodore Lorch, Lafe McKee, Glenn Strange, Frank Ellis, Helen Gibson, Al Haskell, Barney Beasley, F.R. Smith, Rose Plummer, S.S. Simon. A blacksmith, whose brother is a crook, tries to save his girl and their town from a gang led by a senator. Poorly made, creaky Tom Tyler feature.

Single Shot Poker see The Heart of Texas Ryan

3928  Sinister Journey  United Artists, 1948. 59 min. D: George Archainbaud. SC: Doris Schroeder. With William Boyd, Andy Clyde, Rand Brooks, Elaine Riley, John Kellogg, Don Haggerty, Stanley Andrews, Harry Strang, Herbert Rawlinson, John Butler, Wayne Treadway, Snub Pollard, Will Orlean. The Bar 20 trio tries to help a man clear himself of murder charge and get him reunited with his girl friend. Mild “Hopalong Cassidy” film that plays better as a truncated segment of the Hoppy TV series.

3929  Sioux City Sue  Republic, 1946. 68 min. D: Frank McDonald. SC: Olive Cooper. With Gene Autry, Lynne Roberts, Sterling Holloway, The Cass County Boys Jerry Scoggins, Bert Dodson, Fred Martin), Richard Lane, Ralph Sanford, Ken Lundy, Helen Wallace, Pierre Watkin, Edwin Wills, Minerva Urecal, Frank Marlowe, LeRoy Mason, Kenne Duncan, Harry V. Cheshire, George Carleton, Sam Flint, Tex Terry, Tristram Coffin, Frankie Marvin. In order to pay off debts and save his ranch, a singing cowboy is persuaded by a pretty talent scout to make a movie only to find out his voice is used in an animated feature for a donkey. Gene Autry’s first feature after World War II service is a pleasant affair, although more for comedy and music than traditional genre values.

3930  Siringo  Rysher Entertainment, 1994. 90 min. Color. D: Kevin G. Cremin. SC: Peter A. Kinloch. With Brad Johnson, Chad Lowe, Stephen Macht, Keith Szarabajka, Floyd “Red Crow” Westerman, William Sanderson, George Aguilar, Maggie Baird, Michael Horton, Apesanahkwat, Barry Corbin, Crystal Bernard, Jerry Wayne Bernard, Roger Rook, Logan Senn, Sonny Skyhawk, Thomas Sminkey, Brigitta Stenberg, Patricia Van Ingen. A lawman, his rookie deputy and a former hooker team to bring in an escaped convict who has committed armed robbery. Much gunplay but little interest here.

3931  Sitting Bull  United Artists, 1954. 105 min. Color. D: Sidney Salkow. SC: Jack De Witt and Sidney Salkow. With Dale Robertson, Mary Murphy, J. Carrol Naish, Iron Eyes Cody, John Litel, William Hopper, Douglas Kennedy, Bill Tannen, Joel Fluellen, John Hamilton, Thomas Browne Henry, Felix Gonzalez, Al Wyatt. A pro–Indian soldier is falsely accused of helping Chief Sitting Bull at the time of the Custer massacre. Silly, boring and over long, this pseudo-historical piece is notable only for J. Carrol Naish’s fine performance in the title role.

3932  Sitting Bull at the Spirit Lake Massacre  Sunset, 1927. 72 min. D: Robert North Bradbury. SC: Ben Allah. With Bryant Washburn, Ann Schaeffer, Jay Morley, Shirley Palmer, Thomas Lingham, Chief Yowlachie, James O’Neil, Bob (Steele) Bradbury, Jr., Fred Warren, Leon Kent, Lucille Ballart. A scout falls for a pretty girl but their romance is interrupted by an Indian uprising led by Chief Sitting Bull. Pretty good low budget affair, from producer Anthony J. Xydias, with a chance to see Bob Steele in his pre-series days. Also called With Sitting Bull at the Spirit Lake Massacre.

3933  Six Black Horses  UniversalInternational, 1962. 80 min. Color. D: Harry Keller. SC: Burt Kennedy. With Audie Murphy, Dan Duryea, Joan O’Brien, George Wallace, Roy Barcroft, Bob Steele, Henry Wills, Phil Chambers, Richard Pasco, Charles Regis, Dale Van Sickel. A woman hires two men to lead her through Indian territory as she plans to kill one of them, a gunman who murdered her husband. Good drama highlighted by Dan Duryea’s slick villain portrayal.

3934  Six Feet Four  Pathé, 1919. 70 min. D: Henry King. SC: Stephen Fox (Jules Furthman). With William Russell, Vola Vale, Harvey Clark, Al Ernest Garcia, Charles K. French, Jack Brammall, Jack Collins, John Gough, Clarence Burton, Calvert Carter, Perry Banks, Ann Schaffer, John Carter. A crooked lawman teams with a rancher in trying to blame two robberies on another cattleman whose spread they want. Action filled silent galloper starring William Russell at his peak.

3935  Six Gun  Wood Entertainment, 2008. 91 min. Color. D: Scott Perry. SC: Luke Hill. With Tommy Hill, Bill Wise, Sue Rock, Robert Graham, Michael Hankin, Marlene Peralez, Maurice Ripke, Matthew Rimmer, Kerry Awn, Gordon Capps, Yvonne Lynn, DanI Marco, Dahell Hall, Kevin Flood, Joe King Carrasco, Sarah Agor, Tom Adkins, Mark Jeffrey Miller, Eric Perry, Ben Morrison, Douglas Taylor. An aging bounty hunter, needing money to save his ranch, goes after the killer of three cowboys. Tacky, low grade affair filmed in Texas.

3936  Six Gun Decision  Allied Artists, 1953. 54 min. D: Frank McDonald. SC: Maurice Tombragel and William Raynor. With Guy Madison, Andy Devine, Lyle Talbot, Gloria Saunders, David Sharpe, Robert Bice, Fred Hoose, Zon Murray, Jim Connell, Peggy Stewart, Fred Kohler, Jr., Tom Steele, Michael Vallon, Don Hayden, Hank Patterson, Parke MacGregor. Wild Bill Hickok and his pal Jingles look into the pre-election killing of a newspaper editor and stop angry citizens from hanging a Pony Express rider. Passable theatrical compilation from “The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok” (1951–58) TV episodes “Border City Election” and “Pony Express vs. Telegraph.”

3937  Six Gun Gold  RKO Radio, 1941. 57 min. D: David Howard. SC: Norton S. Parker. With Tim Holt, Ray Whitley, Jan Clayton, Lee “Lasses” White, Lane Chandler, LeRoy Mason, Eddy Waller, Davison Clark, Harry Harvey, Jr., Slim Whitaker, Jim Corey, Fern Emmett, Lew Meehan, Ethan Laidlaw, David Sharpe, Ken Card. A young man, whose brother has been kidnapped by gold thieves, tries to find him and get to the bottom of the robberies. Interesting Tim Holt vehicle.

3938  Six Gun Gospel  Monogram, 1943. 55 min. D: Lambert Hillyer. SC: Jess Bowers (Adele Buffington) and Ed Earl Repp. With Johnny Mack Brown, Raymond Hatton, Inna Gest, Kenneth MacDonald, Roy Barcroft, Edmund Cobb, Mary MacLaren, Isabel Withers, Eddie Dew, Bud Osborne, Milburn Morante, Artie Ortego, Lynton Brent, Kernan Cripps, Tom London, Lew Porter, Jack Evans, Chick Hannon, Lew Morphy, Jack Daley, Rube Dalroy, Jack Tornek. Two lawmen, one masquerading as a preacher, try to find out who is behind the hijacking of gold shipments. The same old plot is given a fairly good treatment in this “Nevada Jack McKenzie” segment.

3939  Six Gun Justice  Spectrum, 1935. 57 min. D: Robert Hill. SC: Oliver Drake. With Bill Cody, Ethel Jackson, Wally Wales, Budd Buster, Donald Reed, Roger Williams, Frank Moran, Ace Cain, Bert Young, Buck Morgan, Jimmy Aubrey, Blackie Whiteford, Bud Pope. A U.S. marshal is injured trying to help a former outlaw who has double crossed his gang and plans to return the money they stole. Slim production values from producer Ray Kirkwood mar this otherwise interesting tale.

3940  Six Gun Law  Columbia, 1948. 54 min. D: Ray Nazarro. SC: Barry Shipman. With Charles Starrett, Smiley Burnette, Nancy Saunders, Paul Campbell, Hugh Prosser, George Chesebro, Curley Clements and His Rodeo Rangers, Billy Dix, Robert Wilke, Bob (John) Cason, Ethan Laidlaw, Pierce Lyden, Bud Osborne, Budd Buster, Slim Gault. A rancher is falsely accused of murdering the local sheriff and forced to sign a confession by the gang leader who makes him the new sheriff, thinking he can control him, not realizing the accused is the Durango Kid. Fair series outing.

3941  Six-Gun Law  Buena Vista, 1963. 78 min. Color. D: Christian Nyby. SC: Maurice Tombragel. With Robert Loggia, James Dunn, Lynn Bari, Annette (Funicello), Jay C. Flippen, Patric Knowles, Audrey Dalton, James Drury, Kenneth Tobey, R.G. Armstrong, Grant Withers, Edward Colmans. When a notorious rustler is murdered an English rancher is charged with the shooting. Entertaining affair issued in Europe theatrically; originally a segment of Walt Disney’s show on ABC-TV, telecast February 6, 1959, as “Attorney at Law” in “The Nine Lives of Elfego Baca” mini-series.

3942  Six Gun Man  Producers Releasing Corporation, 1946. 59 min. D-SC: Harry Fraser. With Bob Steele, Syd Saylor, Jean Carlin, Bud Osborne, Brooke Temple, I. Stanford Jolley, Budd Buster, Roy Brent, Jimmie Martin, Stanley Blystone, Steve Clark, Dorothy Whitmore, Ray Jones, Jimmy Aubrey, Buck Morgan. Rustlers are terrorizing the citizens of a small town and two U.S. marshals try to stop them. Ragged PRC effort, mainly for Bob Steele fans.

3943  Six Gun Mesa  Monogram, 1950. 57 min. D: Wallace Fox. SC: Adele Buffington. With Johnny Mack Brown, Gail Davis, Riley Hill, Leonard Penn, Marshall Reed, Steve Clark, Milburn Morante, Carl Mathews, Bud Osborne, George DeNormand, Stanley Blystone, Holly Bane, Frank Jaquet, Artie Ortego, Merrill McCormick. A town boss tries to blame the foreman of a cattle herd for the murder of his wranglers but a lawman suspects the plot. Fair Johnny Mack Brown vehicle; shows the wear on the genre with the coming of the 1950s.

3944  Six-Gun Rhythm  Grand National/Arcadia, 1939. 55 min. D: Sam Newfield. SC: Fred Myton. With Tex Fletcher, Joan Barclay, Ralph Peters, Reed Howes, Bud McTaggart, Ted Adams, Walter Shumway, Slim Hacker, Carl Mathews, Art Davis, Robert Frazer, Sherry Tansey, Kit Guard, Art Mix, Jack O’Shea, Frank Ellis, George Morrell, Tex Phelps, David Sharpe, Jack C. Smith. A singing football player returns home to Texas to find his sheriff father missing and the area infested with outlaws. Tex Fletcher’s only oater is a fairly pleasant affair except for an obtrusive canned music track although the star does warble several tunes, including “Git Along Little Doggies” and “Lonesome Cowboy.”

3945  Six Gun Serenade  Monogram, 1947. 55 min. D: Ford Beebe. SC: Bennett Cohen. With Jimmy Wakely, Lee “Lasses” White, Jimmie Martin, Kay Morley, Steve Clark, Pierce Lyden, Bud Osborne, Chick Hannon, Cactus Mack, Ray Jones. Ranchers get a group of cowboys out of jail in order to stop a gang of cattle thieves. Good direction and script lift this Jimmy Wakely vehicle a bit above the usual for the singing star.

3946  Six Gun Trail  Victory, 1938. 59 min. D: Sam Newfield. SC: Joseph O’Donnell. With Tim McCoy, Nora Lane, Alden Chase, Ben Corbett, Karl Hackett, Donald Gallaher, Ted Adams, Kenne Duncan, Sherry Tansey, Bob Terry, Jimmy Aubrey, George Morrell, Frank Wayne, Hal Carey, Jack “Tiny” Lipson, Lew Porter, Ray Henderson, Herman Hack, James Sheridan (Sherry Tansey), Buck Morgan, Wally West, Oscar Gahan, Artie Ortego, Clyde McClary, Barney Beasley, Rube Dalroy. A Justice Department investigator, masquerading as a Chinese, heads to a small town to capture a gang trying to sell stolen gems. Surprisingly good Sam Katzman production, although more for plot, acting and direction than budget; the second entry in Victory’s “Lightning Bill Carson” series.

3947  6 Guns  Asylum Home Entertainment, 2010. 95 min. Color. D: Shane Van Dyke. SC: Geoff Meed. With Barry Van Dyke, Sage Mears, Greg Evigan, Brian Wimmer, Geoff Meed, Shane Van Dyke, Carey Van Dyek, Jason Ellefson, Jonathan Nation, Erin Marie Hogan, Peter Sherayko, Anya Benton, Valerie Garcia, Kenny A. Remmel, Riley Polanski, Becky Byrum, Don Harrington, Rick Roat, Tom Troutman, Cathi Harrington, Cody Williams. A gunman trains a young girl who wants to take revenge on the gang who murdered her family. So-so direct to video Western.

3948  Six Reasons Why  ThinkFilm, 2008. 88 min. Color. D-SC: Jeff Campagna and Matthew Campagna. With Dan Wooster, Mads Koudal, Christopher Harrison, Colm Feore, Jeff Campagna, Matthew Campagna, Aaron Harrison, Romas Stanullis, Geoff Kolomahz, Anastasia Tubanos, Mike Celia, Rudy Jahchan, Casey McKinnon, Rosie (horse). A quartet of men, all with pasts, unite to bring law and order to the town of Badland. Ethereal, but confusing, futuristic oater.

3949  Six Shootin’ Sheriff  Grand National, 1938. 59 min. D: Harry Fraser. SC: Weston Edwards. With Ken Maynard, Marjorie Reynolds, Warner Richmond, Jane Keckley, Bob Terry, Harry Harvey, Sr., Walter Long, Earl Dwire, Ben Corbett, Lafe McKee, Tom London, Richard Alexander, Glenn Strange, Roger Williams, Bud Osborne, Ed Peil, Sr., Milburn Morante, Carl Mathews, Richard Cramer, George Morrell, Jim Corey, Herb Holcombe, Buck Morgan, Jack Evans, Fred Parker, Bud Pope. An outlaw is accidentally made the town’s sheriff and when his old gang arrives on the scene he tries to warn them away but when they pull a robbery he gets on their trail. Poor production values hurt this Ken Maynard film; hardly one of his better efforts.

3950  Skin Game  Warner Bros., 1971. 102 min. Color. D: Paul Bogart. SC: Pierre Marton. With James Garner, Lou Gossett, Susan Clark, Brenda Sykes, Edward Asner, Andrew Duggan, Henry Jones, Neva Patterson, Parley Baer, George Tyne, Royal Dano, Pat O’Malley, Joel Fluellen, Napoleon Whiting, Juanita Moore, Cort Clark, Jim Boles, George Wallace, Robert Foulk, Bill Henry, Tom Monroe, Don Haggerty, Claude Stroud, Forrest Lewis, James McCallion, Dan Borgaze, Reg Parton, Bob Steele. Before the Civil War, two con men, one black and the other white, travel through the South with the latter “selling” the former and the two splitting the profits. Entertaining genre comedy remade for TV as Sidekicks (q.v.).

James Garner in Skin Game (Warner Bros., 1971).

3951  Skipalong Rosenbloom  United Artists, 1951. 72 min. D: Sam Newfield. SC: Dean Riesner and Eddie Forman. With Maxie Rosenbloom, Max Baer, Jackie Coogan, Hillary Brooke, Fuzzy Knight, Jacqueline Fontaine, Raymond Hatton, Ray Walker, Sam Lee, Al Shaw, Joseph Greene, Dewey Robinson, Whitey Haupt, Carl Mathews, Artie Ortego. An Eastern gunslinger plans to put an end to lawlessness caused by a bad man. Broad genre take-off, starring the two boxing greats, with lots of slapstick; reissued as The Square Shooter.

3952  Skull and Crown  Reliable, 1935. 60 min. D: Elmer Clifton. SC: Bennett Cohen and Carl Krusada. With Rin Tin Tin, Jr., Regis Toomey, Jack Mulhall, Molly O’Day, James Murray, Lois January, Jack Mower, Tom London, George Chesebro, Robert Walker, John Elliott, Milburn Morante, Jack Evans, Jimmy Aubrey, George Hazel. A Customs Patrol officer and his dog are after smugglers with the lawman finding out one of them murdered his sister. A somewhat stark but nevertheless interesting poverty row affair with a fine cast.

3953  Sky Bandits  Monogram, 1940. 62 min. D: Ralph Staub. SC: Edward Halperin. With James Newill, Louise Stanley, Dave O’Brien, William Pawley, Ted Adams, Bob Terry, Dwight Frye, Joseph Stefani, Dewey Robinson, Jack Clifford, Kenne Duncan, James Farley, Karl Hackett, Eddie Fetherston, Don Brodie, Harry Harvey, Snub Pollard, Marin Sais, Earl Douglas. Looking into the disappearance of a plane carrying gold from a Yukon mine, two Canadian Mounties uncover crooks using a mysterious ray. The use of sci-fi makes this “Renfrew of the Royal Mounted” entry (the last in the series) interesting although its plot is similar to Yukon Flight (q.v.).

3954  Sky Full of Moon  Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1952. 73 min. D-SC: Norman Foster. With Carleton Carpenter, Jan Sterling, Keenan Wynn, Robert Burton, Elaine Stewart, Emmett Lynn, Douglass Dumbrille, Jonathan Cott, Rex Bell, Fred Kohler, Jr., Syd Saylor, Sara Taft, G. Pat Collins, Cliff Clark, Chubby Johnson, Jean Ransome, Mitchell Lewis, Leon Alton, Joe Dominguez, Paul Kruger, Sheb Wooley (voice). A young rodeo cowboy falls for a jaded Las Vegas gambling house hostess. Okay modern-day comedy with only the second half taking place in the Nevada countryside; Rex Bell appears as himself and Sheb Wooley provides the signing voice of the Balladeer.

3955  A Sky Full of Stars for a Roof  Documento Film, 1968. 100 min. Color. D: Giulio Petroni. SC: Alberto Areal and Franceso Martino. With Guiliano Gemma, Mario Adorf, Madga Konopka, Rick Boyd (Federico Boido), Cris Huerta, Julia Menard, Anthony M. Dawson, Sandro Dori, Franco Baludcci, Peter Branco, Franco Lantieri, Ivan Scarauglia, Angiolino Rizzieri, John Bartha, Mimmo Poli, Victor Israel, Benito Stefanelli, Alberto Dell’Acqua (Robert Widmark), Luciano Bonanni, Piero Magalotti, Maria Gustafson, Alfonso de la Vega. After a stagecoach massacre, a gunman joins forces with a gullible bungler as they try to avoid a vicious man out to kill the gunfighter for his father. A top notch Ennio Morricone score and quite a bit of comedy highlight his Italian production originally called ...E per Tetto un Cielo di Stelle (And for a Roof a Heaven of Stars).

3956  Sky High  Fox, 1922. 72 min. D-SC: Lynn Reynolds. With Tom Mix, Eva Novak, J. Farrell MacDonald, Sid Jordan, William Buckley, Adele Warner, Wynn Mace, Pat Chrisman. An immigration officer is assigned to find out who is smuggling Chinese across the Mexican border into the United States. Thrill packed, entertaining Tom Mix silent feature.

3957  The Sky Pilot  Associated First National, 1921. 68 min. D: King Vidor. SC: John McDermott. With John Bowers, Colleen Moore, David Butler, Harry Todd, James Corrigan, Donald MacDonald, Kathleen Kirkham. In the Canadian northwest a minister gets a rough reception from the local cowboys but he later saves the life of a ranch owner’s daughter. This silent melodrama holds up rather well; some prints run 45 minutes.

3958  Slaughter Trail  RKO Radio, 1951. 78 min. Color. D: Irving Allen. SC: Sid Kuller. With Brian Donlevy, Gig Young, Virginia Grey, Andy Devine, Robert Hutton, Terry Gilkyson, Lew Bedell, Myron Healey, Emmett Lynn, Ken Koutnik, Eddie Parks, Ralph Peters, Ric Roman, Lois Hall, Rosemary Clooney, Boyd “Red” Morgan, Robin Fletcher, Jody Gilbert, Ralph Volkie, Fenton Jones, Kenneth Otto, Toni Whaethel. Escaping after a robbery, and assisted by a woman, an outlaw gang murders three Indians and a fort commander. Passable action melodrama with “A” trappings.

3959  Slay Ride  CBS-TV/20th Century–Fox, 1972. 100 min. Color. D: Robert Day. SC: Anthony Wilson and Rick Husky. With Glenn Ford, Edgar Buchanan, Victor Campos, Peter Ford, Leslie Parrish, Gerald S. O’Loughlin, Tony Bill, John Schuck, Anne Seymour, Sam Chew, Harry Lauter, Bernie Casey, Hunter Von Leer, Mark Jenkins, Jill Banner, Dehl Berti. The sheriff of a southwestern community tries to solve a murder case but find the situation is complicated by an Apache, a chronic confessor. Well done feature originally telecast as two episodes of “Cade’s County” (CBS-TV, 1971–72).

3960  Slim Carter  Universal-International, 1957. 82 min. Color. D: Richard Bartlett. SC: Montgomery Pittman. With Jock Mahoney, Julie Adams, Tim Hovey, William Hopper, Ben Johnson, Joanna Moore, Walter Reed, Bill Williams, Barbara Hale, Maggie Mahoney, Roxanne Arlen, Jean Moorehead, Donald Kerr, Jim Healey. A young orphan, who has won a contest, spends a month with his favorite cowboy star, with the actor changing from an egotist who eventually wants to adopt the boy. Surprisingly good Hollywood satire with a fine performance by Jock Mahoney as the flawed Western hero.

3961  A Small Town in Texas  American International, 1976. 96 min. Color. D: Jack Starrett. SC: William Norton. With Timothy Bottoms, Susan George, Bo Hopkins, Morgan Woodward, John Karlen, Art Hindle, Hank Rolike, George “Buck” Flower, Clay Tanner, Mark Silva, Santos Reyes, Debi Bieberly, Claude Ennis (Jack) Starrett, Jr., James N. Harrell, Ron McPherson, Leotis Duffie, Kathryn Lacy, Starrett Berry, L.B. Stele, Joe Michel, Fay Armstrong, James Brewer, Amy Andrewartha, Randee Lynne Jensen. Following a five year hitch in prison, a man returns home to find his wife involved with the lawman who framed him. Standard modern-day Western with lots of auto and bike action.

3962  Smith!  Buena Vista, 1969. 102 min. D: Michael O’Herlihy. SC: Louis Pelletier. With Glenn Ford, Nancy Olson, Dean Jagger, Keenan Wynn, Warren Oates, Chief Dan George, Frank Ramirez, Jay Silverheels, James Westerfield, Christopher Shea, Roger Ewing, Ricky Cordell, Gregg Palmer, William Bryant, Fred Aldrich, Eric Clavering. A rancher tries to help an Indian boy falsely accused of murder. Easygoing Disney feature filmed in Oregon and Washington.

3963  Smoke in the Wind  Adelphi Film Distributors, 1976. 94 min. Color. D: Joseph Kane. SC: Eric Allen. With Walter Brennan, John Ashley, John Russell, Myron Healey, Susan Houston, Linda Weld, Henry Kingi, Adair Jameson, Dan White, Lorna Thayer, Billy Hughes, Jr., Bill Foster, Jack Horton, Bill McKenzie. Following the Civil War, Confederate veterans return to their Arkansas mountain homeland only to be denounced as traitors to the cause. Made in 1971, this pedestrian feature’s main interest is Joseph Kane’s direction (it was his final film) and a fine cast.

3964  Smoke Jumpers  CBS-TV/20th Century–Fox, 1956. 45 min. D: Albert S. Rogell. SC: Art Cohn. With Dan Duryea, Joan Leslie, Dean Jagger, Richard Jaeckel, Robert Armstrong, Brett Halsey, Lawrence Dobkin, Robert Bray, Bobs Watson, Don Kennedy, John Conte (host). When the leader of a fire fighting unit is the only survivor of a forest blaze, he is accused of sacrificing his men in order to save himself. Well acted drama, a small screen remake of Red Skies of Montana (q.v.), shown as an episode of “The 20th Century–Fox Hour” (CBS-TV, 1955–57) on November 14, 1956.

3965  Smoke Lightning  Fox, 1933. 63 min D: David Howard. SC: Gordon Rigby and Sidney Mitchell. With George O’Brien, Nell O’Day, Betsy King Ross, Frank Atkinson, Virginia Sale, Douglass Dumbrille, Morgan Wallace, Clarence Wilson, George Burton, Fred Wilson. A small orphan girl is about to be cheated by her crooked uncle and his lawman cohort but a cowboy protects her. Entertaining adaptation of Zane Grey’s novel Canyon Walls.

3966  Smoke Signal  Universal-International, 1955. 88 min. Color. D: Jerry Hopper. SC: George F. Slavin and George W. George. With Dana Andrews, Piper Laurie, Rex Reason, William Talman, Douglas Spencer, Gordon Jones, William Schallert, Bill Phipps, Robert Wilke, Pat Hogan, John Day. After Indians attack and destroy a frontier post, the survivors head for safety aboard flatboats on the Colorado River. Action filled and enjoyable drama.

3967  Smoke Tree Range  Universal, 1937. 60 min. D: Lesley Selander. SC: Arthur Henry Gordon. With Buck Jones, Muriel Evans, Edmund Cobb, John Elliott, Robert Kortman, Donald Kirke, Ted Adams, Ben Hall, Dickie Jones, Lee Phelps, Charles King, Earle Hodgins, Mabel Concord, Eddie Phillips, Bob McKenzie, Slim Whitaker. A cowboy helps an orphaned girl whose cattle are being rustled by outlaws. Fine Buck Jones vehicle, produced by the star.

3968  Smokey Smith  Supreme, 1935. 58 min. D-SC: Robert North Bradbury. With Bob Steele, Mary Kornman, George Hayes, Warner Richmond, Earl Dwire, Horace B. Carpenter, Tex Phelps, Archie Ricks, Herman Hack Vane Calvert, Bert Dillard, Tex Palmer. A cowboy is determined to find the outlaws who murdered his parents. Another revenge angle oater from Bob Steele and his director-writer father, Robert North Bradbury, and a good one.

3969  Smoking Guns  Universal, 1934. 65 min. D: Alan James. SC: Ken Maynard. With Ken Maynard, Gloria Shea, Walter Miller, Jack Rockwell, William Gould, Harold Goodwin, Robert Kortman, Ed Coxen, Edgar “Blue” Washington, Etta McDaniel, Slim Whitaker, Bob Reeves, Jim Corey, Wally Wales, Edmund Cobb, Fred McKaye, Martin Turner, Hank Bell, Horace B. Carpenter, Roy Bucko, Buck Bucko, Ben Corbett, Blackjack Ward, Bud McClure, Cliff Lyons. Falsely accused of a crime, a cowboy heads to the jungles of South America and is followed by a Texas Ranger with the two becoming friends and when the lawman is attacked by crocodiles and later dies, the cowpoke takes his identity and returns home to clear himself. Ken Maynard’s final Universal film, which he also wrote, is fun if taken tongue-in-cheek.

Smoking Guns (1942) see Billy the Kid’s Smoking Guns

3970  Smoking Trails  Madoc Sales, 1924. 63 min. D: William Bertram. With Bill Patton, Alma Rayford, William Bertram, Tom Ross, Jack House, Adrian Rayford, Maine (Bud) Geary, Horace B. Carpenter. A Texas Ranger works at a ranch where the owner’s cattle are rustled by a gang working for a banker out to get the man’s spread. Drawn out, cheap production spotlighting vapid hero Bill Patton.

3971  Smoky  Fox, 1933. 69 min. D: Eugene Forde. SC: Stuart Anthony and Paul Perez. With Victor Jory, Irene Manning, LeRoy Mason, Hank Mann, Frank Campeau, Leonard Snegoff, Will James. A cowboy befriends and tames a beautiful stallion who has been made hostile by bad men. Okay program feature, the first of a trio of films based on the Will James book with the author appearing in this version.

3972  Smoky  20th Century–Fox, 1946. 87 min. Color. D: Louis King. SC: Lillie Hayward, Dwight Cummings and Dorothy Yost. With Fred MacMurray, Anne Baxter, Burl Ives, Bruce Cabot, Esther Dale, Roy Roberts, J. Farrell MacDonald, Max Wagner, Guy Beach, Howard Negley, Bud Geary, Harry Carter, Bob Adler, Victor Kilian, Herbert Heywood, Douglas Spencer, Stanley Andrews. A man befriends, tames and trains a wild stallion who has a hatred of humans. Satisfying second screen version of Will James’ book.

3973  Smoky  20th Century–Fox, 1966. 103 min. Color. D: George Sherman. SC: Howard Medford. With Fess Parker, Diana Hyland, Katy Jurado, Hoyt Axton, Robert Wilke, Armando Silvestre, Jose Hector, Ted White, Chuck Roberson, Bob Terhune. A wrangler captures and trains a black stallion but his brother beats the animal who tramples him and escapes. Fair third production of the Will James work.

3974  Smoky Canyon  Columbia, 1952. 55 min. D: Fred F. Sears. SC: Barry Shipman. With Charles Starrett, Smiley Burnette, Jack (Jock) Mahoney, Dani Sue Nolan, Tristram Coffin, Larry Hudson, Chris Alcaide, Sandy Sanders, Forrest Taylor, Charles Stevens, Leroy Johnson, Boyd “Red” Morgan, Frank O’Connor, Blackie Whiteford, Chick Hannon, Dick Botiller, Gerald Mohr (narrator). Sheep men are blamed for the slaughter of cattle with a government agent investigating and learning that crooked ranchers are behind the trouble by trying to deplete their herds in order to raise prices. Fast moving, compact “Durango Kid” episode.

3975  Smoky Mountain Melody  Columbia, 1948. 61 min. D: Ray Nazarro. SC: Barry Shipman. With Roy Acuff, Guinn Williams, Russell Arms, Sybill Merritt, Jason Robards, Harry V. Cheshire, Fred F. Sears, Trevor Bardette, Carolina Cotton, Tommy Ivo, Jack (Jock) Mahoney, John Elliott, Sam Flint, Ralph Littlefield, Eddie Acuff, Heinie Conklin, Olin Howlin, The Smoky Mountain Boys. A singer gets a three month trial at running a ranch but the late owner’s son tries to sabotage his chances. Pleasant country music Western starring the great Roy Acuff and His Smoky Mountain Boys, including Bashful Brother Oswald (Pete Kirby).

3976  Smoky River Serenade  Columbia, 1947. 67 min. D: Derwin Abrahams. SC: Barry Shipman. With Ruth Terry, Paul Campbell, Guinn Williams, Virginia Hunter, The Hoosier Hot Shots (Charles “Gabe” Ward, Ken Trietsch, Paul “Hezzie” Trietsch, Gil Taylor), Carolina Cotton, Cottonseed Clark, Paul E. Burns, Russell Hicks, Emmett Vogan, Michael Towne, Sandy Sanders, Lulu Mae Bohrman, The Boyd Triplets, The Sunshine Boys (Freddie Daniel, M.H. “Ace” Richman, J.D. Summer, Eddie Wallace), Texas Rose Bascom, Billy Williams. Several entertainers come to the aid of a good hearted ranch owner whose land is sought by a conniving businessman. Ten songs are the highlight of this hayseed musical comedy Western.

3977  Smoky Trails  Metropolitan, 1939. 55 min. D: Bernard B. Ray. SC: George Plympton. With Bob Steele, Jean Carmen, Murdock MacQuarrie, Jimmy Aubrey, Frank LaRue, Ted Adams, George Chesebro, Carleton Young, Steve Clark, Montie Montana, Frank Wayne, Bob Terry, Bruce Dane, Rube Dalroy. A cowpoke tries to capture an outlaw gang before they commit murder. Barely passable Bob Steele vehicle from producer Harry S. Webb.

3978  Snake River Desperadoes  Columbia, 1951. 55 min. D: Fred F. Sears. SC: Barry Shipman. With Charles Starrett, Smiley Burnette, Monte Blue, Don Kay “Brown Jug” Reynolds, Tommy Ivo, George Chesebro, Boyd “Red” Morgan, John Pickard, Charles Horvath, Sam Flint, Duke York, Herman Hack, Al Wyatt. The Durango Kid tries to keep peace when a series of Indian raids, actually perpetrated by white men dressed as braves, take place. Well done action film in the “Durango Kid” series.

3979  Snarl of Hate  Bischoff, 1927. 60 min. D: Noel Mason Smith. SC: Ben Bellah. With Johnnie Walker, Mildred June, Jack Richardson, Wheeler Oakman, Silverstreak (dog). When his prospector brother is murdered a man sets out to track down the killer. Johnnie Walker plays both the hero and victim in this average silent drama.

3980  Snow Dog  Monogram, 1950. 63 min. D: Frank McDonald. SC: William Raynor. With Kirby Grant, Elena Verdugo, Rick Vallin, Milburn Stone, Richard Karlan, Jane Adrian, Hal Gerard, Richard Avonde, Duke York, Guy Zanette, Chinook (dog). While trailing the killer of a fellow officer, a Northwest Mounted Policeman uncovers an outlaw gang using wolves to murder their victims. Average outing in Kirby Grant’s north woods series, supposedly based on the works of James Oliver Curwood.

3981  Snowbeast  NBC-TV, 1977. 96 min. Color. D: HerbWallerstein. SC: Joseph Stefano. With Bo Svenson, Yvette Mimieux, Clint Walker, Robert Logan, Sylvia Sidney, Michael J. London, Thomas Babson, Kathy Christopher, Ann McEncroe, Richard Jamison, Prentiss Rowe. At a Western ski resort during a winter carnival, the owners try to suppress evidence that a murderous monster is on the rampage. Pretty fair TV horror thriller.

3982  Snowfire  Allied Artists, 1958. 73 min. Color. D-SC: Dorrell McGowan and Stuart McGowan. With Don Megowan, Molly McGowan, Claire Kelly, John Cason, Michael Vallon, Melody McGowan, Rusty Wescoatt, Bill Hale, Paul Keast. After her father captures a wild white stallion, a young girl sets him free and earns his friendship. Nice low budget family film.

Snowman see Land of No Return

3983  So This Is Arizona  Big 4, 1931. 55 min. D: J.P. McGowan. SC: Joe Lawliss and David Kirkland. With Wally Wales, Buzz Barton, Fred Church, Lorraine La Val, Tete Brady, Don Wilson, Gus Anderson, Joe Lawliss, Jack Russell. An Arizona Ranger reluctantly has to bring in his girl’s outlaw brother, causing her to reject him. Rawboned, ragtag galloper from producer John R. Freuler.

3984  Sodbusters  Atlantis Films/Showtime, 1994. 98 min. Color. D: Eugene Levy. SC: Eugene Levy and John Hemphill. With Kris Kristofferson, John Vernon, Fred Willard, Wendel Meldrum, Max Gail, Steve Landesberg, John Hemphill, Don Lake, Lou Wagner, George Buza, Cody Jones, Lela Ively, Maria Vacratsis, Earl Pastko, James Pickens, Jr., Henry Ramer, Jack Duffy, John Friesen, Ronnie Hawkins, Chandler Nicol, Natalie Radford, Dean McDermott, Gerry Quigley, Wayne Robson, Jonathan Scarfe, Robert Mayor. In 1875 Colorado homesteaders find themselves at odds with a corrupt cattle baron and his railroad allies. Okay TV Western comedy.

3985  Soft Boiled  Fox, 1923. 78 min. D-SC: John G. Blystone. With Tom Mix, Billie Dove, Joseph Girard, L.C. Shumway, Tom Wilson, Frank Beal, Jack Curtis, Charles Hill Mailes, Harry Dunkinson, Wilson Hummell. A cowboy tries to control his temper with his uncle betting him he cannot do so for a month and during that time he has to endure insults to his sweetheart without becoming angry. Humorous Tom Mix outing that will please his fans.

3986  Sol en Llamas (Flaming Sun). Rosas Films, S.A., 1962. 95 min. D: Alfredo B. Crevenna. SC: Edmundo Baez and Alfredo B. Crevenna. With Antonio Aguilar, Maricruz Olivier, Irma Dorantes, Domingo Soler, Beatriz Aguirre, Fernando Soler, Hector Godoy, Jose Chavez, Antonio Raxel, Lidia Franco, Manuel Arvide, Eduardo Moreno, Gloria Leticia Ortiz, Raul Mena, Jose Dupeyron. The son of a wealthy man takes the side of poor workers being abused by local tyrants. This Mexican Robin Hood imitation is fairly entertaining.

3987  Soldier Blue  Avco-Embassy, 1970. 114 min. Color. D: Ralph Nelson. SC: John Gay. With Candice Bergen, Peter Strauss, Donald Pleasence, Bob Carraway, Mort Mills, Jorge Rivero, Dana Elcar, John Anderson, Martin West, Jorge Russek, Marco Antonio Arzate, Ron Fletcher, Barbara Turner, Aurora Clavell. Indians attack a paymaster’s detachment and leave only two survivors, a private and a woman planning to marry a lieutenant for his money. Pro-Indian feature is excessively violent with little to offer.

Candice Bergen and Peter Strauss in Soldier Blue (Avco Embassy, 1970).

3988  The Soldiers of Pancho Villa  Unifilms-Cimex, 1958. 90 min. Color. D: Ismael Rodriguez. SC: Ricardo Garibay and Jose Luis de Celis. With Dolores Del Rio, Maria Felix, Emilio Fernandez, Pedro Armendariz, Antonio Aguilar, Flor Silvestre, Tito Novaro, David Reynoso, Ignacio Lopez Taro, Cuco Sanchez, Irma Torres, Miguel Manzano, Lupe Carriles, Manuel Trejo Morales, Jose Carlos Mendez, Armando Gutierrez, Jose Munoz, Antonio Haro Oliva, Humberto Almazan. During the Mexican Revolution two women of different social classes love a peasant general follower of Pancho Villa. Fine Mexican feature with several well staged battle sequences, but hurt by mediocre dubbing; originally released as La Cucaracha.

3989  The Sombrero Kid  Republic, 1942. 56 min. D: George Sherman. SC: Norman S. Hall. With Don “Red” Barry, Lynn Merrick, Robert Homans, John James, Joel Friedkin, Rand Brooks, Stuart Hamblen, Bob McKenzie, Lloyd “Slim” Andrews, Anne O’Neal, Kenne Duncan, I. Stanford Jolley, Bud Geary, Frank Brownlee, Bill Nestell, Hank Bell, Curley Dresden, Jack O’Shea, Pascale Perry, Griff Barnett, Chick Hannon, Merrill McCormick, Ed Cassidy, Jack Evans, Tommy Coats, Roy Bucko, Buck Bucko, Rose Plummer, Bill Wolfe. A cowboy is forced to become an outlaw by the man who murdered the peace officer he thought was his father. Rather complicated and grim Don Barry vehicle, but full of action nonetheless. Bob McKenzie just about steals the show as the jovial Judge Tater.

3990  Something Big  National General, 1971. 108 min. Color. D: Andrew V. McLaglen. SC: James Lee Barrett. With Dean Martin, Brian Keith, Honor Blackman, Carol White, Ben Johnson, Albert Salmi, Don Knight, Joyce Van Patten, Denver Pyle, Merlin Olsen, Robert Donner, Harry Carey, Jr., Judi Meredith, Edward Faulkner, Paul Fix, David Huddleston, Bob Steele, Chuck Hicks, John Kelly. During the Mexican War outlaws battle each other for the possession of a Gatling Gun. There is nothing to brag about in this big budget affair.

Dean Martin in Something Big (National General, 1971).

3991  Something for a Lonely Man  NBC-TV/Universal, 1968. 98 min. Color. D: Don Taylor. SC: John Fante and Frank Fenton. With Dan Blocker, Susan Clark, John Dehner, Warren Oates, Paul Petersen, Don Stroud, Henry Jones, Stanley Kenyon, Edgar Buchanan, Tom Nolan, Dub Taylor, Grady Sutton, Joan Shawlee, Iron Eyes Cody, Ralph Neff, Conlan Carter. A blacksmith tries to redeem himself in the eyes of the people he brought West only to have their town bypassed by the railroad. Dan Blocker fans will like this light weight feature made for TV.

Something Is Out There see Day of the Animals

3992  Something New  Nell Shipman Productions, 1920. 57 min. D-SC: Nell Shipman and Bert Van Tuyle. With Nell Shipman, Bert Van Tuyle, L.M. Wells, William (Merrill) McCormick, Laddie (dog). Unable to locate a horse, a man uses a car to travel across the desert to rescue his writer girlfriend from Mexican bandits. Fun action fest with harrowing driving sequences; filmed in the Mojave Desert and financed by the Maxwell Motor Company to show off its 1920 model.

3993  Sometimes a Great Notion  Universal, 1971. 113 min. Color. D: Paul Newman. SC: John Gay. With Paul Newman, Henry Fonda, Lee Remick, Michael Sarrazin, Richard Jaeckel, Linda Lawson, Cliff Potts, Sam Gilman, Lee De Broux, Jim Burk, Roy Jenson, Joe Maross, Roy Poole, Charles Tyner, Hal Needham, Dean Smith. An old time logging baron refuses to take part in a strike against a big lumber company and ends up in a great deal of trouble as a result. Poor modern-day action feature, although its cast tries hard. TV title: Never Give an Inch.

3994  Somewhere in Sonora  Warner Bros., 1933. 57 min. D: Mack V. Wright. SC: Joe Roach. With John Wayne, Henry B. Walthall, Shirley Palmer, J.P. McGowan, Ann Fay, Frank Rice, Billy Franey, Paul Fix, Ralph Lewis, Slim Whitaker, Jim Corey, Blackie Whiteford, Bob Fleming, Frank Ellis, Pat Harmon, Joe Dominguez, Glenn Strange, Bud Osborne, G. Raymond Nye, William McCall, Jack Hendricks, Jack Evans, Jim Corey, Art Dillard, Richard Botiller, Barney Beasley, Charles Le Moyne. Falsely accused of wrongdoing during a stagecoach race, a cowboy goes to Mexico where he uncovers a plot to rob a mine belonging to his girl’s father. John Wayne fans will enjoy this remake of the 1927 Ken Maynard (who is seen in stock shots), First National film of the same title.

3995  Son of a Bad Man  Screen Guild, 1949. 64 min. D: Ray Taylor. SC: Ron Ormond and Ira Webb. With Lash LaRue, Al St. John, Noel Neill, Michael Whalen, Zon Murray, Frank Lackteen, Francis McDonald, Jack Ingram, Steve Raines, Chuck (Bob/John) Cason, Don C. Harvey, Edna Holland, William Norton Bailey, Sandy Sanders, Doye O’Dell. U.S. marshals Lash LaRue and Fuzzy Q. Jones head for a town whose citizens have been beset by a gang led by the mysterious El Sombre. Lash LaRue’s last Screen Guild series film is fast on action and sure to please his followers.

3996  The Son of a Gun  William L. Sherry Service, 1919. 68 min. D: G.M. Anderson. SC: G.M. Anderson and Jesse J. Robbins. With G.M. (Broncho Billy) Anderson, Joy Lewis, Fred Church, Frank Whitson, A.E. Whiting, Mrs. A.E. Whiting, Paul Willis, Harry Todd. The town’s lovable no good becomes a hero when he stops a gang of swindlers. Broncho Billy Anderson’s final starring film is worth a look just to see the screen first cowboy’s star; otherwise an average silent Western with an ingratiating star.

3997  Son of a Gunfighter  Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1966. 92 min. Color. D: Paul Landres. SC: Clarke Reynolds. With Russ Tamblyn, Kieron Moore, James Philbrook, Fernando Rey, Maria Granada, Aldo Sambrell, Antonio Casas, Ralph Browne, Julio Perez Tabernero, Barta Barri. A cowboy teams with a bounty hunter to get revenge on his father but eventually the boy and his old man join forces to fight an outlaw gang after a woman’s ranch. Fair Spanish oater, released there as El Hijo del Pistolero (The Son of a Gunfighter).

3998  Son of Belle Starr  Allied Artists, 1953. 70 min. Color. D: Frank McDonald. SC: D.D. Beauchamp and William Raynor. With Keith Larsen, Dona Drake, Peggie Castle, Regis Toomey, James Seay, Myron Healey, Frank Puglia, Robert Keys, I. Stanford Jolley, Paul McGuire, Lane Bradford, Mike Ragan, Joe Dominguez, Alex Montoya. Growing to adulthood, Belle Starr’s son attempts to prove he is not an outlaw like his famous mother. There is very little to recommend this tired outing.

3999  Son of Billy the Kid  Screen Guild, 1949. 64 min. D: Ray Taylor. SC: Ron Ormond and Ira Webb. With Lash LaRue, Al St. John, Marion Colby, June Carr, George Baxter, Terry Frost, John James, House Peters, Jr., Clarke Stevens, Bob Duncan, Cliff Taylor, William Perrott, Felipe Turich, Rosa Turich, I. Stanford Jolley, Bud Osborne, Eileen Dixon, Jerry Riggio, Frazer McMinn. A special U.S. marshal is assigned to a community terrorized by a gang after mortgages on land wanted by an incoming railroad. Lash LaRue vehicle moves along fast enough to cover its budget and script deficits.

4000  The Son of Davy Crockett  Columbia, 1941. 59 min. D-SC: Lambert Hillyer. With Bill Elliott, Iris Meredith, Dub Taylor, Richard Fiske, Kenneth MacDonald, Eddy Waller, Don Curtis, Edmund Cobb, Steve Clark, Harrison Greene, Lloyd Bridges, Curley Dresden, Paul Scanlon, Frank Ellis, Richard Botiller, Tom London, Merrill McCormick, Martin Garralaga, Lew Meehan, Jack Ingram, Frank LaRue, Sven Hugo Borg, Emmett Lynn, Herman Hack, Horace B. Carpenter, Eddie Laughton, Oscar Gahan, Russ Powell, Hank Bell, Fred Parker, Jack Evans, Ray Jones, Roy Bucko, Jack Montgomery. President Ulysses S. Grant sends Davy Crockett’s son to the unclaimed territory of Yucca Valley as the government’s unofficial representative to overthrow a tyrant and his hired killers. Well written and directed segment in the pseudo-historical series Bill Elliott did for Columbia.

Son of Django see Return of Django

4001  Son of Geronimo  Columbia, 1952. 15 Chapters. D: Spencer Gordon Bennet. SC: Arthur Hoerl, Royal K. Cole and George H. Plympton. With Clay(ton) Moore, Bud Osborne, Tommy Farrell, Rodd Redwing, Marshall Reed, Eileen Rowe, John Crawford, Zon Murray, Rick Vallin, Lyle Talbot, Chief Yowlachie, Sandy Sanders, Bob (John) Cason, Wally West, Frank Matts, Frank Ellis, Anthony Dante, Al Cantor. A frontier scout tries to bring peace between settlers and Indians but the latter are led by a brave who claims to be Geronimo’s son and who is in cahoots with renegade whites. Clayton Moore is the main asset of this anemic cliffhanger although it is nice to see Bud Osborne (as wagon trail boss Tulsa) in a major role.   

4002  Son of God’s Country  Republic, 1948. 60 min. D: R.G. Springsteen. SC: Paul Gangelin. With Monte Hale, Pamela Blake, Paul Hurst, Jason Robards, Jay Kirby, Jim Nolan, Steve Darrell, Francis McDonald, Fred Graham, Herman Hack. In order to capture an outlaw gang, a U.S. marshal pretends to be a crook so he can locate the bad men. Pretty fair Monte Hale vehicle.

4003  Son of Jesse James  P.E.A./Apolofilm, 1965. 90 min. Color. D: Antonio Del Amo (Adrian Hoven). SC: Pino Passalacqua and Marcello Fondato. With Robert Hundar (Claudio Undari), Mercedes Alonso, Adrian Hoven, Luis Induni, Ralph Baldwin (Raf Baldassare), Roberto Camardiel, Janos (John) Bartha, Joe Kamel, Pier Caminnecci, Jose Jaspe, Robert Johnson, Jr. Jesse James’s grown son is falsely accused of murder by Bob Ford, the man who killed his famous father. As pseudo-historical fare this Italian production, made as Solo Contro Tutti (One Against All), may hold some interest.

4004  Son of Oklahoma  World Wide, 1932. 57 min. D: Robert North Bradbury. SC: Burl Tuttle and George Hull. With Bob Steele, Josie Sedgwick, Julian Rivero, Carmen LaRoux, Earl Dwire, Robert Homans, Henry Roquemore, Jack Perrin, Si Jenks, Dick Dickinson, Jack Kirk, Herman Hack, Jack Evans, Silver Tip Baker. A cowboy, separated from his family for seventeen years by an outlaw, sets out to find them. Pretty good Bob Steele feature with plenty of action.

4005  Son of Paleface  Paramount, 1952. 95 min. Color. D: Frank Tashlin. SC: Frank Tashlin, Robert L. Welch and Joseph Quillan. With Bob Hope, Jane Russell, Roy Rogers, Bill Williams, Lloyd Corrigan, Paul E. Burns, Douglass Dumbrille, Harry Von Zell, Iron Eyes Cody, Wee Willie Davis, Charley Cooley, Charles Morton, Don Dunning, Oliver Blake, Al Ferguson, Leo J. McMahon, Felice Richmond, Charmeinne Harker, Isabel Cushin, Jane Easton, Homer Dickinson, Lyle Moraine, Hank Mann, Michael A. Cirillo, Chester Conklin, Flo Stanton, John George, Charles Quirk, Frank Cordell, Willard Willingham, Warren Fiske, Jean Willes, Jonathan Hale, Cecil B. DeMille, Bing Crosby, Robert L. Welch, Rose Plummer, Geraldine Farnum, Flo Stanton, Marie Shaw. A tenderfoot goes West to collect an inheritance and ending up with only debts he decides to marry a buxom, and rich, young woman. Amusing follow-up to The Paleface (q.v.).

4006  Son of Roaring Dan  Universal, 1940. 63 min. D: Ford Beebe. SC: Clarence Upson Young. With Johnny Mack Brown, Fuzzy Knight, Nell O’Day, Jeanne Kelly (Jean Brooks), Robert Homans, Tom Chatterton, John Eldredge, Ethan Laidlaw, Lafe McKee, Richard Alexander, Eddie Polo, Bob Reeves, Frank McCarroll, The Texas Rangers, Chuck Morrison, Lloyd Ingraham, Jack Shannon, Ben Taggart, Ralph Peters, Ralph Dunn, Jack Montgomery. When his father is murdered a cowboy pretends to be the tenderfoot son of a fellow rancher to catch the killers. Well done Johnny Mack Brown film with a trio of well interpolated songs.

4007  Son of the Border  RKO Radio, 1933. 55 min. D: Lloyd Nosler. SC: Wellyn Totman and Harold Shumate. With Tom Keene, Julie Haydon, Edgar Kennedy, David Durand, Creighton (Lon, Jr.) Chaney, Charles King, Alan Bridge, Claudia Coleman, Yakima Canutt, Lew Meehan, Murdock MacQuarrie, George Sowards, Bud Pope, Ken Cooper, Nick Cogley. After her fiance is shot by a cowboy during a gunfight with bank robbers, a young woman vows revenge and later uses the man’s younger brother to carry out her plan. Well made galloper with strong performances from the cast.

Poster for Son of the Border (RKO Radio, 1933).

4008  Son of the Morning Star  ABC-TV, 1991. 187 min. Color. D: Mike Robe. SC: Melissa Mathison. With Gary Cole, Rosanna Arquette, Stanley Anderson, Edward Blatchford, George Dickerson, Rodney A. Grant, Tom O’Brien, Terry O’Quinn, Nick Ramus, Floyd “Red Crow” Westerman, Tim Ranson, Robert Schenkkan, David Strathairn, Dean Stockwell, Bryce Chamberlain, Peter Leitner, George K. Sullivan, Demina Becker, George American Horse, Ron Hunter, Sheldon Peters Wolfchild, Michael Medeiros, Mike Casey, Sav Farrow, Wendy Feder, Patrick Johnston, Eric Lawson, Jay Bernard, Kimberly Norris, Russ Walks, Buffy Sainte-Marie (voice). Two women tell their sides of the story regarding General Custer and the events leading up to the Battle of the Little Big Horn. Overlong TV movie.

4009  A Son of the Plains  Syndicate, 1931. 59 min. D-SC: Robert North Bradbury. With Bob Custer, Doris Phillips, J.P. McGowan, Edward Hearn, Gordon DeMain, Al St. John, Art Mix, Bob Burns, Jack Evans, Blackie Whiteford, Artie Ortego, Jane Crowley, Eve Humes. A deputy sheriff is torn between his duty and the love of a woman whose father helps another man in a holdup. Very poor movie made worse by Bob Custer’s BAD acting. Film does contain an amusing sequence at the Yucca Saloon where a jaded gal sings its theme song, “On the Banks of the Wabash”(!), and Al St. John has a few good comic moments as a drunk. Reworked as Blue Steel (q.v.).

4010  Son of the Renegade  United Artists, 1953. 57 min. D: Reg Browne. SC: John Carpenter. With John Carpenter, Lori Irving, Joan McKellan, Valley Keene, Jack Ingram, Henry Wills, Verne Teters, Bill Coontz, Bill Ward, Roy Canada, Whitney Hughes, Ewing Brown, Freddie Carson, Pat McGeehan (narrator). Returning home, the son of a notorious outlaw meets with resentment until he uncovers a robbery plan. Low grade John Carpenter outing, but worth a look for his followers.

4011  Son of Zorro  Republic, 1947. 13 Chapters. D: Spencer Gordon Bennet and Fred C. Brannon. SC: Franklin Adreon, Basil Dickey, Jesse Duffy and Sol Shor. With George Turner, Peggy Stewart, Roy Barcroft, Ed Cassidy, Ernie Adams, Stanley Price, Edmund Cobb, Kenneth Terrell, Wheaton Chambers, Fred Graham, Eddie Parker, Si Jenks, Jack O’Shea, Jack Kirk, Tom Steele, Dale Van Sickel, Tom London, Mike J. Frankovich, Pierce Lyden, Rocky Shahan, Charles King, Ted Adams, John Daheim, Pascale Perry, Gil Perkins, Ted Mapes, Tex Terry, Art Dillard, Joe Phillips, George Bell, Duke Taylor, Post Park, Al Ferguson, Cactus Mack, Bud Wolfe, Newton House, Frank O’Connor, Tommy Ryan, Carl Sepulveda, George Chesebro, Howard Mitchell, Frank Ellis, Tommy Coats, Silver Harr, Ralph Bucko, Roy Bucko, Doc Adams, Joe Balch. After the Civil War, a cavalry officer returns home to find the area controlled by dishonest politicians and he revives the character of Zorro to stop them. Pretty good pseudo-Zorro cliffhanger that was reissued in 1956; the previous year Republic used the Zorro plot motif in an entirely modern-day detective serial, Daughter of Don Q, starring Adrian Booth and Kirk Alyn.

4012  Son of Zorro  Films Triunfosa, 1974. 86 min. Color. D: Franck G. Carroll (Gianfranco Baldanello). SC: Mario DeRiso, Joaquin Luis Romero Marchent, Guido Zurli and Gianfranco Baldanello. With Robert Widmark (Alberto Dell’Acqua), Fernando Sancho, Elisa Ramirez, William Berger, George Wang, Marina Malfatti, Marco Zuanelli, Franco Fantasia, Giorgio Dolfin, Marcello Monti, Mario Dardanelli, Marcello Simoni, Lorenzo Piani, Pietro Riccione, Andrea Fantasia, Carlos Bravo. A nobleman takes on the guise of Zorro and teams with an Army colonel to subdue a tyrant in Old California. Respectable Italian-Spanish co-production filmed as Il Figlio di Zorro (The Son of Zorro) and also called Man with the Golden Winchester.

4013  Song of Arizona  Republic, 1946. 68 min. D: Frank McDonald. SC: M. Coates Webster. With Roy Rogers, George “Gabby” Hayes, Dale Evans, Lyle Talbot, Tommy Cook, Bob Nolan and The Sons of the Pioneers (Tim Spencer, Ken Carson, Shug Fisher, Hugh Farr, Karl Farr), Edmund Cobb, Johnny Calkins, Sarah Edwards, Tommy Ivo, Michael Chapin, Dick Curtis, Tom Quinn, Noble “Kid” Chissel, Don Kay Reynolds, The Robert Mitchell Boychoir. Before dying, a bank robber leaves stolen loot with his son at a homeless boys’ ranch and when the gang members come to retrieve it they are opposed by Roy Rogers and the Sons of the Pioneers. Lively Roy Rogers affair with Gabby Hayes dominating the proceedings.

4014  The Song of Hiawatha  Hallmark Home Entertainment, 1997. 114 min. Color. D: Jeffrey Shore. SC: Earl W. Wallace. With Graham Greene, Litefoot, Irene Bedard, Russell Means, Sheila Tousey, Adam Beach, Michael Rooker, David Strathaim, Gordon Tootosis, Tina Louise Bomberry, Peter Kelly Gaudreault, Mike Kanentakeron, Adrian Jamieson, Flint Eagle, Vern Harper, Sid Bobb, Shirley Cheechoo, Madeleine Bergeron. The story of Indian brave Hiawatha and his true love, the beautiful maiden Minnehaha. Well photographed and acted tale of the early American frontier based on the poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

4015  Song of Idaho  Columbia, 1948. 70 min. D: Ray Nazarro. SC: Barry Shipman. With Kirby Grant, The Hoosier Hot Shots (Charles “Gabe” Ward, Ken Trietsch, Paul “Hezzie” Trietsch, Gil Taylor), June Vincent, The Sunshine Boys (Freddie Daniel, M.H. Richman, J.D. Sumner, Eddie Wallace), Tommy Ivo, Emory Parnell, The Starlighters, Mary Newton, Eddie Acuff, Dorothy Vaughn, Maudie Prickett, Fred F. Sears, George Lloyd. A radio singer has to please his sponsor’s brat son in order to get his contract renewed. Average Columbia country music Western program feature.

4016  Song of Nevada  Republic, 1944. 75 min. D: Joseph Kane. SC: Gordon Kahn and Olive Cooper. With Roy Rogers, Dale Evans, Mary Lee, Bob Nolan and The Sons of the Pioneers (Tim Spencer, Ken Carson, Shug Fisher, Hugh Farr, Karl Farr), Thurston Hall, Lloyd Corrigan, John Eldredge, Forrest Taylor, LeRoy Mason, George Meeker, Emmett Vogan, William B. Davidson, Kenne Duncan, Si Jenks, Frank McCarroll, Henry Wills, Jack O’Shea, Helen Talbot, Jack Perrin, Tom Steele. A millionaire tries to stop his daughter from marrying a man he dislikes by pretending to be dead and having a cowboy romance her. Music outweighs action in this mediocre Roy Rogers affair that is somewhat saved by Thurston Hall as the rich man; TV version is badly butchered at 54 minutes.

4017  Song of Old Wyoming  Producers Releasing Corporation, 1945. 65 min. Color. D: Robert Emmett (Tansey). SC: Frances Kavanaugh. With Eddie Dean, Jennifer Holt, Sarah Padden, Al (Lash) LaRue, Emmett Lynn, Ray Elder, John Carpenter, Ian Keith, Robert Barron, Horace Murphy, Rocky Camron, Richard Cramer, Steve Clark, Lee Bennett. A crooning cowboy helps his woman rancher-newspaper owner boss when rustlers take her cattle and try to bankrupt her. Lash LaRue steals the show as the woman’s outlaw nephew but attractive Cinecolor and Eddie Dean’s singing also help make this good viewing.

4018  Song of Texas  Republic, 1943. 69 min. D: Joseph Kane. SC: Winston Miller. With Roy Rogers, Sheila Ryan, Bob Nolan and The Sons of the Pioneers (Tim Spencer, Lloyd Perryman, Pat Brady, Hugh Farr, Karl Farr), Barton MacLane, Harry Shannon, Arline Judge, William Haade, Hal Taliaferro, Yakima Canutt, Tom London, Forrest Taylor, Maxine Doyle, Jack O’Shea, Eve March. Roy Rogers tries to help a drunken once famous rodeo star, who is being used by crooks, in fooling his visiting daughter into thinking he is still a success. Reworking of Lady for a Day (Warner Bros., 1932), this Roy Rogers vehicle is very good with Harry Shannon quite effective as the down on this luck rodeo performer.

4019  Song of the Buckaroo  Monogram, 1938. 58 min. D: Al Herman. SC: John Rathmell. With Tex Ritter, Jinx Falkenberg, Mary Ruth, Tom London, Frank LaRue, Charles King, Bob Terry, Horace Murphy, Snub Pollard, Dave O’Brien, Dorothy Fay, George Chesebro, Ernie Adams, Rudy Sooter, Bud Osborne, George Morrell. A desperado finds a dead man and assumes his identity, raises his little girl and becomes a respected citizen but his old gang recognizes him and plots blackmail. Pretty fair Tex Ritter opus that includes the Carson Robison tune “Texas Dan.”

4020  Song of the Caballero  Universal, 1930. 72 min. D: Harry Joe Brown. SC: Bennett Cohen and Lesley Mason. With Ken Maynard, Doris Hill, Francis Ford, Gino Corrado, Evelyn Sherman, Josef Swickard, Frank Rice, William Irving, Jozelle Joyner. Because of abuse to his mother, a cowboy becomes a bandit who only preys on a rich family until he saves the life of their pretty daughter. Okay Ken Maynard early talkie set in Mexico.

4021  Song of the Drifter  Monogram, 1948 55 min. D: Lambert Hillyer. SC: Frank Young. With Jimmy Wakely, Dub Taylor, Mildred Coles, Patsy Moran, William Ruhl, Marshall Reed, Frank LaRue, Carl Mathews, Jimmie Martin, Steve Clark, Wheaton Chambers, Bud Osborne, Bob Woodward, Dick Reinhart, Cliffie Stone. A singing cowboy combats crooks trying to pollute water so they can get range land for themselves. Lambert Hillyer’s direction tries hard but cannot help this Jimmy Wakely opus.

4022  Song of the Gringo  Grand National, 1936. 57 min. D: John McCarthy. SC: Robert Emmett (Tansey) and Al Jennings. With Tex Ritter, Joan Woodbury, Monte Blue, Fuzzy Knight, Richard (Ted) Adams, Warner Richmond, Al Jennings, Martin Garralaga, William Desmond, Glenn Strange, Budd Buster, Murdock MacQuarrie, Ethan Laidlaw, Slim Whitaker, Ed Cassidy, Earl Dwire, Jack Kirk, Bob Burns, Forrest Taylor, Robert Fiske, Rosa Rey, Jose Pacheco and His Continental Orchestra. Cowpoke Tex infiltrates an outlaw gang posing as cowboys and ends up being accused of murdering a ranch owner. More drama and music than action in Tex Ritter’s film debut but it contains an exciting finale with a courtroom shootout.

Advertisement for Song of the Gringo (Grand National, 1936).

4023  Song of the Prairie  Columbia, 1945. 62 min. D: Ray Nazarro. SC: J. Benton Cheney. With Ken Curtis, June Storey, Guinn Williams, Jeff Donnell, Andy Clyde, Grady Sutton, Thurston Hall, Robert Williams, John Tyrrell, Deuce Spriggins, Carolina Cotton, The Hoosier Hot Shots (Charles “Gabe” Ward, Ken Trietsch, Paul “Hezzie” Trietsch, Gil Taylor), The Town Criers, Rudy Sooter, Dick Curtis, Reed Howes, Heinie Conklin, Vernon Dent, William Gould, Curt Barrett, Warren Jackson, Robert Walker, Charles Coleman, Sam Flint, Donald Kerr, Paul Bradley, Matt Roubert, Tex Cooper. When a rancher wants to become a bandleader and start a show club, he is helped by the Hoosier Hot Shots and other entertainers. Average Western musical with the usual modicum of songs.

4024  Song of the Range  Monogram, 1944. 55 min. D: Wallace Fox. SC: Betty Burbridge. With Jimmy Wakely, Dennis Moore, Lee “Lasses” White, Kay Forrester, Sam Flint, Hugh Prosser, George Eldredge, Steve Clark, Johnny Bond and The Red River Valley Boys, Edmund Cobb, Pierre Watkin, Bud Osborne, Kenneth Terrell, Carl Mathews, Carl Sepulveda, The Sunshine Girls, Frankie Marvin, Carl Mathews, Sam Flint, Roy Brent, Wesley Tuttle, Jimmie Dean, Paul Sells, Colleen Summers (Mary Ford) Cedric Stevens. Falsely accused of murder, a cowboy escapes from jail and assumes the guise of a federal agent to capture a gang of gold smugglers. Jimmy Wakely’s first starring Western gives him little to do since Dennis Moore dominates throughout as the wrongly accused cowpoke; okay production that moves fairly quickly but contains too much music. Remake of Pals of the Saddle (q.v.).

4025  Song of the Saddle  Warner Bros., 1936. 58 min. D: Louis King. SC: William Jacobs. With Dick Foran, Alma Lloyd, Charles Middleton, Addison Richards, Eddie Schubert, Monte Montague, Victor Potel, Kenneth Harlan, Myrtle Stedman, George Ernest, Pat West, James Farley, Julian Rivero, William Desmond, Bud Osborne, Robert Kortman, Bonita Granville, The Sons of the Pioneers (Bob Nolan, Len Slye [Roy Rogers], Tim Spencer, Hugh Farr, Karl Farr). Fifteen years after the murder of his father, a cowboy crooner returns to find the killers. Typically good Dick Foran vehicle.

4026  Song of the Sierras  Monogram, 1946. 55 min. D: Oliver Drake. SC: Elmer Clifton. With Jimmy Wakely, Lee “Lasses” White, Jean Carlin, Jack Baxley, Iris Clive, Zon Murray, Budd Buster, Bob Duncan, Brad Slaven, Ben Corbett, Ray Jones, Carl Sepulveda, Wesley Tuttle and His Texas Stars, Artie Ortego, George Morrell, Arthur Smith, Forrest Matthews, Bob Gilbert, Jesse Ashlock. In order to win a big race, a cowboy trains wild horses but his activities are opposed by crooks. Another anemic Jimmy Wakely film.

4027  Song of the Trail  Ambassador, 1936. 60 min. D: Russell Hopton. SC: George Sayre and Barry Barrington. With Kermit Maynard, Evelyn Brent, Fuzzy Knight, George Hayes, Antoinette Lees (Andrea Leeds), Wheeler Oakman, Lee Shumway, Roger Williams, Ray Gallagher, Charles McMurphy, Horace Murphy, Lynette London, Bob McKenzie, Frank McCarroll, Artie Ortego. A rodeo star falls in love with woman whose father is being harassed by crooks after his valuable mine. One of the best Kermit Maynard features for producer Maurice Conn; full of action and well made.

4028  Song of the Wasteland  Monogram, 1947. 58 min. D: Thomas Carr. SC: J. Benton Cheney. With Jimmy Wakely, Lee “Lasses” White, Dottye Brown, Holly Bane, John James, Henry Hall, Marshall Reed, Gary Garrett, Ted Adams, Pierce Lyden, George Chesebro, Chester Conklin, John Carpenter, Ray Jones, The Saddle Pals (Johnny Bond, Dick Reinhart, River Lewis). Vigilantes are formed to combat outlaws but a singing cowpoke learns they are the real cause of the area’s lawlessness. A fine supporting cast can do little to retrieve this Jimmy Wakley songfest from boredom.

4029  Song of the West  Warner Bros., 1930. 82 min. Color. D: Ray Enright. SC: Harry Thew. With John Boles, Vivienne Segal, Joe E. Brown, Marie Wells, Sam Hardy, Marion Byron, Eddie Gribbon, Edward Martindel, Rudolph Cameron, Jack Kirk, Harriett Lake (Ann Sothern). A lieutenant, falsely accused of murder, heads West with a wagon train housing a colonel’s daughter, the girl he loves. Stilted early sound musical based on Oscar Hammerstein II and Laurence Stallings’ operetta Rainbow, buoyed by John Boles’ singing.

4030  Songs and Bullets  Spectrum, 1938. 58 min. D: Sam Newfield. SC: Joseph O’Donnell and George H. Plympton. With Fred Scott, Al St. John, Alice Ardell, Karl Hackett, Charles King, Frank LaRue, Richard Cramer, Carl Mathews, Jimmy Aubrey, Budd Buster, Lew Porter, Sherry Tansey, Wally West, Tom Smith. A corrupt, murdering businessman leads a gang, including the local sheriff, which pulls off a robbery but he is trailed by a singing lawman and his partner. Better than average Fred Scott outing with the lovely theme song “Prairie Moon” deftly sung by the star who also belts out “My Old Ten Gallon Hat” and “Back in Arkansas.” When villain Karl Hackett meets pretty French schoolmarm Alice Ardell one of his cohorts exclaims, “That’s the first time Shelton’s smiled since he dispossessed the Higgins family.”

4031  Songs and Saddles  Colony, 1938. 65 min. D: Harry Fraser. SC: Wayne Carter. With Gene Austin, Joan Brooks, Lynne Barkeley, Henry Roquemore, Walter Wills, Charles King, Karl Hackett, Ted Claire, John Merton, Ben Corbett, Bob Terry, John Elliott, Lloyd Ingraham, Russell “Candy” Hall, Otto “Coco” Heimel, Darryl Harper. An entertainer and his troupe find themselves captured by a gang of outlaws. Gene Austin’s solo starring Western is a low budget affair but his fans will like him as a singing cowboy and it is loaded with good songs.

Sonny and Jed see Bandera Bandits

4032  Sonora Stagecoach  Monogram, 1944. 61 min. D: Robert Emmett Tansey. SC: Frances Kavanaugh. With Hoot Gibson, Bob Steele, Chief Thundercloud, Rocky Camron, Betty Miles, Glenn Strange, George Eldredge, Karl Hackett, Henry Hall, Charles King, Bud Osborne, Charles Murray, Jr., John Bridges, Al Ferguson, Forrest Taylor, Frank Ellis, Hal Price, Rodd Redwing, John Cason, Horace B. Carpenter, Fred Hoose, Augie Gomez. The Trail Blazers are assigned to take an accused killer to stand trial with the men who really committed the crime trying to ambush them. Fast paced and well done, the last in “The Trail Blazers” series.

4033  Sons of Adventure  Republic, 1948. 68 min. D: Yakima Canutt. SC: Franklin Adreon and Sol Shor. With Lynne Roberts, Russell Hayden, Gordon Jones, Grant Withers, George Chandler, Roy Barcroft, John Newland, Stephanie Bachelor, John Holland, Gilbert Frye, Richard Irving, Joan Blair, John Crawford, Keith Richards, James Dale. After a Western star is murdered on the set of his new film a stuntman is blamed and his pals try to find the real killer. Out-of-the-ordinary feature that is well directed by Yakima Canutt with an added bonus of a look at the Republic film factory.

4034  The Sons of Great Bear  VEB Progress Film-Vertrief, 1966. 92 min. Color. D: Josef Mach. SC: Lisolette Welskopf-Henrich. With Gojko Mitic, Jiri Vrstala, Rolf Romer, Hans Hardt-Hardtloff, Gerhard Rachold, Horst Jonischkan, Jozef Majercik, Jozef Adamovic, Milan Jablonsky, Hannjo Haasse, Helmut Schreiber, Jose Lepetic, Rolf Ripperger, Brigitte Krause, Karin Beewen, Ruth Kommerell, Kati Szekel, Zofia Slaboszowska, Slabodanka Markovic, Hans Finohr, A.P. Hoffmann, Martin Tapak, Horst Kube, Walter E. Fuss, Sepp Klose. When gold is discovered in the Black Hills, Indian tribes not only face invasion and resettlement by whites but also friction among themselves. Ground breaking Eastern Bloc Western that is a bit stilted but still worth seeing; filmed in East Germany as Die Sohne der Grossen Barin (The Son of the Great Bear).

4035  The Sons of Katie Elder  Paramount, 1965. 122 min. Color. D: Henry Hathaway. SC: William H.Wright, Allen Weiss and Harry Essex. With John Wayne, Dean Martin, Martha Hyer, Michael Anderson, Jr., Earl Holliman, Jeremy Slate, James Gregory, Paul Fix, George Kennedy, Dennis Hopper, Sheldon Allman, John Litel, John Doucette, James Westerfield, Rhys Williams, John Qualen, Rodolfo Acosta, Strother Martin, Percy Helton, Karl Swenson, Chuck Roberson, Henry Wills, Chuck Hayward. Four brothers return home after their mother’s death only to be falsely blamed for a killing by the crooks who cheated their father. Very entertaining John Wayne outing.

4036  Sons of New Mexico  Columbia, 1950. 71 min. D: John English. SC: Paul Gangelin. With Gene Autry, Gail Davis, Robert Armstrong, Dick Jones, Clayton Moore, Frankie Darro, Irving Bacon, Russell Arms, Marie Blake, Sandy Sanders, Roy Gordon, Frankie Marvin, Pierce Lyden, Paul Raymond, Kenne Duncan, Harry Mackin, Bobby Clark, Gaylord (Steve) Pendleton, Billy Lechner. After being appointed the executor of an estate, Gene Autry tries to get the young heir from under the influence of a dishonest rancher by sending him to military school. Pleasant Gene Autry opus, mainly geared to juveniles.

4037  Sons of the Pioneers  Republic, 1942. 61 min. D: Joseph Kane. SC: M. Coates Webster, Mauri Grashin and Robert T. Shannon. With Roy Rogers, George “Gabby” Hayes, Maris Wrixon, Bob Nolan and The Sons of the Pioneers (Tim Spencer, Lloyd Perryman, Pat Brady, Hugh Farr, Karl Farr), Bradley Page, Hal Taliaferro, Tom London, Minerva Ureval, Jack O’Shea, Frank Ellis, Bob Woodward, Fern Emmett, Chester Conklin, Karl Hackett, Fred Burns, Art Mix, Sarah Edwards, Horace B. Carpenter, Neal Hart, Frank Brownlee, Bud Osborne, Pascale Perry. Roy Rogers returns home to help Gabby and the townspeople in stopping ruthless land grabbers who know that valuable minerals are beneath the soil. Fairly good Roy Rogers vehicle although the title singing group has little to do in the proceedings.

4038  Sons of the Saddle  Universal, 1930. 76 min. D: Harry Joe Brown. SC: Bennett Cohen and Lesley Mason. With Ken Maynard, Doris Hill, Joseph Girard, Carroll Nye, Francis Ford, Harry Todd, Frank Rice, William Gillis. A ranch foreman loves the boss’ daughter, but so does his pal, and when she rejects the latter he joins an outlaw gang planning to rustle the spread’s cattle herd. Entertaining Ken Maynard early talkie.

Sons of Vengeance see Gunfight at High Noon

4039  Sota, Caballo y Rey (Jack, Horse and King)  Produccione Raul de Anda, 1944. 90 min. D: Roberto O’Quigley. SC: Roberto O’Quigley and Raul de Anda. With Luis Aguilar, Susana Cora, Domingo Soler, Jose Torvay, Conchita Gentil Arcos, Gilberto Gonzalez, Lupe Inclan, Agustin Isunza, Manuel Donde, Meche Barba, Julio Ahuet, Jorge Arriaga, Carlos Lopez Moctezuma, Jose Eduardo Perez, Armando Soto la Marina, Alfonso Jiminez. After receiving payment of a debt a wealthy rancher is murdered and the man he was supposed to meet finds the body and is suspected of the crime. Pretty fair Mexican Western mystery from producer-writer Raul de Anda.

4040  The Soul of Nigger Charley  Paramount, 1973. 104 min. Color. D: Larry G. Spangler. SC: Harold Stone. With Fred Williamson, D’Urville Martin, Denise Nicholas, Pedro Armendariz, Jr., Kirk Calloway, George Allen, Kevin Hagen, Michael Cameron, Johnny Greenwood, James Garbo, Nai Bonet, Robert Minor, Fred Lerner, Joe Hendeson, Richard Farnsworth, Tony Brubaker, Boyd “Red” Morgan, Al Hassan, Ed Hice, Henry Wills, Phil Aventetti. A former slave goes to Mexico to free a group of his people held there by an ex–Confederate officer. Overlong and none-too-entertaining sequel to The Legend of Nigger Charley (q.v.).

4041  Soul Soldier  Fanfare/Metromedia, 1971. 78 min. Color. D: John “Bud” Cardos. SC: Marlene Weed. With Rafer Johnson, Barbara Hale, Cesar Romero, Robert Doqui, Isaac Fields, Lincoln Kilpatrick, Isabel Sanford, Otis Taylor, Steve Drexel, Robert Dix, James Michelle, Bobby Clark, Byrd Holland, Bill Collins, John Fox, Russ Nannarello, Jr., Bernard Brown, Clarence Comas, Donald Diggs, Jeff Everett, Cal Fields, Perry Fluker, Noah Hobson, Earl Humphrey, DeVaughn LaBon, Rod Law, John Nettles, Jim Pace, Eric Richmond, John Ramsey, Charles Wells, Paul Wheaton, Dave White. Following the Civil War, a regiment of black soldiers is assigned to border duty in Texas but find themselves hated by both whites and Indians. Bombed out effort originally issued in 1970 by Hirschman Northern as The Red, Black and White, running 97 minutes. Video title: Buffalo Soldier.

4042  South of Arizona  Columbia, 1938. 55 min. D: Sam Nelson. SC: Bennett Cohen. With Charles Starrett, Iris Meredith, The Sons of the Pioneers (Bob Nolan, Hugh Farr, Karl Farr, Lloyd Perryman, Pat Brady), Dick Curtis, Robert Fiske, Edmund Cobb, Art Mix, Richard Botiller, Lafe McKee, Ed Coxen, Hank Bell, Hal Taliaferro, John Tyrrell, Merrill McCormick, Steve Clark, George Morrell. Crooks wanting land for themselves rustle ranchers’ cattle and murder a government ranger sent to stop them. Another streamlined Columbia Charles Starrett effort.

4043  South of Caliente  Republic, 1951. 67 min. D: William Witney. SC: Eric Taylor. With Roy Rogers, Dale Evans, Pinky Lee, Douglas Fowley, Pat Brady, Charlita, Ric Roman, Leonard Penn, Willie Best, Frank Richards, George J. Lewis, Roy Rogers Riders, Lillian Molieri, Marguerite McGill. A racehorse needed by a woman rancher to sell in order to save her place is stolen and Roy Rogers tries to recover it. Pretty good Roy Rogers vehicle if you can overlook the “comedy” of Pinky Lee and Pat Brady.

4044  South of Death Valley  Columbia, 1949. 55 min. D: Ray Nazarro. SC: Earle Snell. With Charles Starrett, Smiley Burnette, Gail Davis, Clayton Moore, Fred F. Sears, Lee Roberts, Tommy Duncan and His All Stars, Richard Emory, Jason Robards, Chuck Hamilton, Kermit Maynard, Jack Evans, Blackie Whiteford, George Morrell, George Sowards. Trying to learn who murdered his mine owner brother-in-law, a cowboy rides into an area and finds himself in the middle of a range war. Another assembly line “Durango Kid” job, this one on the slow side. British title: River of Poison.

4045  South of Heaven, West of Hell  Blue Steel Releasing, 2000. 127 min. Color. D-SC: Dwight Yoakam. With Dwight Yoakam, Vince Vaughn, Billy Bob Thornton, Bridget Fonda, Peter Fonda, Paul Reubens, Bud Cort, Michael Jeter, Bo Hopkins, Luke Askew, Joe Unger, Matt Clark, Nobel Willingham, Scott Wilson, Ritchie Montgomery, Matt Malloy, Natalie Canerday, Otto Felix, Joe Ely, Terry McIlvain, Amber Taylor, Charles Burba, Audrey Lowe, Maria Daleo, Marta Santamaria, Warren Zevon, Corky Wimberly, Flecia Beard, Rudy Ugland, Jim Clark, Warner McKay, Glen Gold, Forrie Smith, Claude Aichele, Rose Duarte, George Salazar, Maurice Orozco, Gina Carizoza, Richard Smith, George Dobbs, Thadd Turner, Joseph Romanov. Not only does a lawman have to face his past when his family shows up on Christmas Eve, but he and a pal must take on the outlaw gang who abducted the sidekick’s girl friend. Mixed up attempt at a Western, but it made money thanks to the popularity of country music star Dwight Yoakam, who wrote, directed and starred in it, along with composing the score; released on video at 104 minutes.

4046  South of Hell Mountain  Cannon Films, 1971. 92 min. Color. D-SC: William Sachs and Louis Lehman. With Anna Stewart, Sam Hall, Nicol Britton, Elsa Raven, David Willis, Paul Haller, John Martin Kelly, Mark Hellett. A young woman and her stepmother are held hostage in their cabin by three outlaws but the leader of the band and the girl fall in love. Somewhat obscure, violent drama.

4047  South of Monterey  Monogram, 1946. 63 min. D: William Nigh. SC: Charles Belden. With Gilbert Roland, Martin Garralaga, Frank Yaconelli, Marjorie Riordan, George J. Lewis, Terry Frost, Harry Woods, Iris Flores, Wheaton Chambers, Rosa Turich, Nick Thompson, Felipe Turich, Drew Allen (Gil Frye), Joe Dominguez, Lane Bradford, Wally West, Blackie Whiteford, Ray Jones, Roy Bucko, George DeNormand. The Cisco Kid tries to stop two crooked officials from carrying out a land swindle. Pleasant “Cisco Kid” series offering.

4048  South of Rio  Republic, 1949. 60 min. D: Philip Ford. SC: Norman S. Hall. With Monte Hale, Kay Christopher, Paul Hurst, Roy Barcroft, Douglas Kennedy, Don Haggerty, Rory Mallinson, Lane Bradford, Emmett Vogan, Myron Healey, Tom London, Edmund Cobb, George Lloyd, Tommy Coats. Outlaws terrorize a frontier area with a newly appointed ranger trying to stop them. Okay Monte Hale feature.

4049  South of St. Louis  Warner Bros., 1949. 88 min. Color. D: Ray Enright. SC: Zachary Gold and James R. Webb. With Joel McCrea, Alexis Smith, Zachary Scott, Dorothy Malone, Douglas Kennedy, Alan Hale, Victor Jory, Bob Steele, Art Baker, Monte Blue, Nacho Galindo, Warren Jackson, Russell Hicks, Harry Woods, Art Smith, Alan Bridge, Holmes Herbert, Forrest Taylor, Paul Maxey, John Goldsworthy, Jack Mower, William Ruhl, Ray Spiker, Ray Montgomery, Mikel Conrad, Julian Rivero, Lew Harvey, Sailor Vincent, Dan White, Frank Wilcox, Tex Parker, Tony Romano. During the Civil War three ranchers run blockades for the South but they break up when one gets greedy and kills several soldiers for a gun shipment. Well made action drama.

4050  South of Santa Fe  World Wide, 1932. 60 min. D: Bert Glennon. SC: G.A. Durlam. With Bob Steele, Janis Elliott, Jack Clifford, Eddie Dunn, Bob Burns, Hank Bell, Allan Garcia, Slim Whitaker, John Elliott, Ed Brady, Buddy Wood (Gordon DeMain), Chris-Pin Martin, Perry Murdock, Archie Ricks, Al Haskell, Jack Evans, F.R. Smith. A cowboy tries to combat an outlaw gang operating along the U.S.-Mexican border. Bob Steele’s first World Wide release is a good one, thanks to fine direction and a good script.

4051  South of Santa Fe  Republic, 1942. 56 min. D: Joseph Kane. SC: James R. Webb. With Roy Rogers, George “Gabby” Hayes, Linda Hayes, Bob Nolan and The Sons of the Pioneers (Tim Spencer, Lloyd Perryman, Pat Brady, Hugh Farr, Karl Farr), Paul Fix, Judy Clark, Bobby Beers, Arthur Loft, Charles Miller, Sam Flint, Jack Kirk, Jack Ingram, Hank Bell, Carleton Young, Lynton Brent, Robert Strange, Henry Wills, Jack O’Shea, Merrill McCormick, Spade Cooley. Roy Rogers invites three industrialists to appear in a town celebration, hoping they will back the opening of a gold mine that will keep the town from ruin, but the trio is kidnapped by gangsters and the blame is placed on Rogers. There is plenty of action in this fast paced Roy Rogers vehicle.

4052  South of the Border  Republic, 1939. 71 min. D: George Sherman. SC: Dorrell McGowan and Stuart McGowan. With Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, June Storey, Lupita Tovar, Mary Lee, Duncan Renaldo, Frank Reicher, Alan Edwards, Claire DuBrey, Richard Botiller, William Farnum, Selmer Jackson, Sheila Darcy, Rex Lease, Charles King, Reed Howes, Jack O’Shea, Slim Whitaker, Hal Price, Julian Rivero, Curley Dresden, The Checkerboard Band, Art Wenzel. Gene Autry is sent to Mexico to squelch a revolution and when he arrives he learns foreign agents are at work. Although one of Gene Autry’s best known features, this outing is nothing to brag about except for the title song.

4053  South of the Chisholm Trail  Columbia, 1947. 58 min. D: Derwin Abrahams. SC: Michael Simmons. With Charles Starrett, Smiley Burnette, Nancy Saunders, Frank Sully, Hank Newman and The Georgia Crackers, Jim Diehl, Jack Ingram, George Chesebro, Frank LaRue, Jacques O’Mahoney (Jock Mahoney), Eddie Parker, Kit Guard, Ray Elder, Victor Holbrook, Fred F. Sears, Thomas Kingston, Peter Perkins, Pierce Lyden, Lane Bradford, Chuck Hamilton, Joseph Palma, Victor Travers, Cy Malis, Ethan Laidlaw, Merrill McCormick, Kermit Maynard, Sam Lufkin, Kernan Cripps, John Tyrrell, John Cason, Robert Barron, Milton Kibbee, Steve Clark, Herman Hack, Rube Dalroy, Jack Evans, Blackie Whiteford. When members of a musical troupe find money stolen by an outlaw gang they are mistaken for the thieves and nearly hung until rescued by the Durango Kid. Complicated and hard to follow “Durango Kid” entry, a reworking of Texas (q.v.).

4054  South of the Rio Grande  Columbia, 1932. 60 min. D: Lambert Hillyer. SC: Harold Shumate. With Buck Jones, Mona Maris, George J. Lewis, Doris Hill, Philo McCullough, Paul Fix, Charles Reque, James Durkin, Harry Semels, Charles Stevens, Merrill McCormick. A lawman helps a pal who is in love with the woman who caused the death of the peacekeeper’s brother. Well produced and directed Buck Jones feature but the star is not as good in a Mexican getup as Tim McCoy.

4055  South of the Rio Grande  Monogram, 1945. 62 min. D: Lambert Hillyer. SC: Victor Hammond and Ralph Bettinson. With Duncan Renaldo, Martin Garralaga, George J. Lewis, Armida, Francis McDonald, Lillian Molieri, Charles Stevens, Pedro Regas, Soledad Jiminez, The Guadalajara Trio, Tito Renaldo, Joe Dominguez. The Cisco Kid is opposed to a corrupt military leader trying to control the countryside. Passable “Cisco Kid” dual bill item from a story by Johnston McCulley; TV prints dub the Cisco Kid and his sidekick Pancho as Chico and Pablo. Also called The Cisco Kid in South of the Rio Grande.

4056  South Pacific Trail  Republic, 1952. 60 min. D: William Witney. SC: Arthur Orloff. With Rex Allen, Estelita Rodriguez, Slim Pickens, Roy Barcroft, Nestor Paiva, Douglas Evans, Forrest Taylor, Joe McGuinn, The Republic Rhythm Riders, Chick Hannon. A cowboy deduces his ranch foreman is planning a gold hijack scheme. Fair Rex Allen film.

4057  A Southern Yankee  Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1948. 90 min. D: Edward Sedgwick. SC: Melvin Frank and Harry Tugend. With Red Skelton, Brian Donlevy, Arlene Dahl, George Coulouris, Lloyd Gough, John Ireland, Minor Watson, Charles Dingle, Art Baker, Reed Hadley, Arthur Space, Joyce Compton, Susan Simon, Henry Hall, Lane Chandler, Stanley Andrews, Cliff Clark, Richard Alexander, Louise Beavers, Harry Cording, Gene Roth, Jeff Corey, Buddy Roosevelt, Wade Crosby, George DeNormand, William “Bill” Phillips, Garry Owen, Sam Flint, Frank McGrath, Frank Hagney, Paul Newlan, David Newell, Christian J. Frank, Paul Harvey, Forbes Murray, Weldon Heyburn, John Merton, Kermit Maynard, Paul Kruger, Ian MacDonald, George Magrill, Harry Woods, Ann Staunton, Richard Simmons, Duke York, Ralph Sanford, William Tannen, Carl Saxe, Dick Wessel, Glenn Strange, Ralph Volkie, Robert Wilkie, Jack Worth, Harry Woods, David Sharpe, Jack Stoney, Harry Wilson, Jack Lee. A nitwit becomes a Union spy during the Civil War so he can see a Southern belle with whom he has fallen in love. Very funny Red Skelton costume comedy.

4058  The Southerner  United Artists, 1945. 92 min. D: Jean Renoir. SC: Jean Renoir and Hugo Butler. With Zachary Scott, Betty Field, J. Carrol Naish, Beulah Bondi, Percy Kilbride, Charles Kemper, Blanche Yurka, Norman Lloyd, Estelle Taylor, Paul Harvey, Noreen Nash, Jack Norworth, Nestor Paiva, Paul E. Burns, Jay Gilpin, Jean Vanderwill, Earle Hodgins, Wheaton Chambers, Almira Sessions, Glen Walters, Dorothy Granger, Anne Cornwall, Ann Kunde, Grace Christy, Bunny Sunshine. A south Texas cotton farmer struggles to bring about a better life for himself and his family. Fine contemporary social drama.

4059  Southward Ho!  Republic, 1939. 57 min. D: Joseph Kane. SC: Jack Natteford and John Rathmell. With Roy Rogers, Mary Hart, George “Gabby” Hayes, Wade Boteler, Arthur Loft, Lane Chandler, Tom London, Charles Moore, Edwin Brady, Hal Taliaferro, George Chesebro, Fred Burns, Frank Ellis, Jack Ingram, Frank McCarroll, Curley Dresden, Jim Corey, Earl Dwire, Harry Strang, Nicodemus Stewart, Bob Woodward, Art Dillard. In post Civil War Texas Roy and Gabby are at odds with renegade Yankee soldiers ransacking the area while supposedly working for the military governor. Nicely done early Roy Rogers starring effort.

4060  Southwest Passage  United Artists, 1954. 75 min. Color. D: Ray Nazarro. SC: Harry Essex. With Rod Cameron, Joanne Dru, John Ireland, Guinn Williams, John Dehner, Darryl Hickman, Stuart Randall, Morris Ankrum, Douglas Fowley, Kenneth MacDonald, Stanley Andrews, Mark Hanna, Hank Patterson. A caravan testing the use of camels in the West is joined by a banker, along with an outlaw and his girl, with the group facing an Indian attack. A different kind of oater providing good entertainment; made in 3-D.

Spaghetti Western see Cipolla Colt

4061  Spawn of the North  Paramount, 1938. 110 min. D: Henry Hathaway. SC: Jules Furthman and Talbot Jennings. With George Raft, Dorothy Lamour, Henry Fonda, Akim Tamiroff, Lynne Overman, John Barrymore, Louise Platt, Fuzzy Knight, Vladimir Sokoloff, Duncan Renaldo, John Wray, Michio Ito, Stanley Andrews, Richard Ung, Alex Woloshin, Archie Twitchell, Lee Shumway, Wade Boteler, Galan Galt, Arthur Aylesworth, Rollo Lloyd, Guy Usher, Henry Brandon, Egon Brecher, Harvey Clark, Monte Blue, Irving Bacon, Robert Middlemass, Eddie Marr, Frank Puglia, Leonid Snegoff, Edmund Elton, Aids Kutzenoff, Slicker (seal). Two Alaskan fisher pals have a falling out when one of them joins forces with Russian pirates. Sturdy melodrama in which George Raft out-acts Henry Fonda, but it is sad to see John Barrymore wasted in a supporting role.

4062  Special Agent  Paramount, 1949. 70 min. D: William C. Thomas. SC: Milton Raison. With William Eythe, George Reeves, Laura Elliot, Paul Valentine, Carole Mathews, Tom Powers, Raymond Bond, Frank Puglia, Walter Baldwin, Jeff York, Virginia Christine, Robert Williams, Morgan Farley, Joseph Granby, John Hilton, Peter Miles, Jimmy Hunt, Arthur Stone, Truman Bradley (narrator). An unhappy investigator in a cattle town suddenly finds himself in the middle of a crime wave. Fair program feature from the Pine-Thomas unit.

4063  Speeding Hoofs  Rayart, 1927. 50 min. D: Louis Chaudet. With Dick Hutton, Elsa Benham, Roy Watson, William Ryno, Bud Osborne, Raymond Turner. Crooks hide treasure on a ranch and then start rumors that the spread is haunted while the rightful owner and her boyfriend search for the riches. Standard low grade silent affair from producer Ben Wilson; also called Lure of the Range.

4064  Spencer’s Mountain  Warner Bros., 1963. 118 min. Color. D-SC: Delmer Daves. With Henry Fonda, Maureen O’Hara, James MacArthur, Donald Crisp, Wally Cox, Mimsy Farmer, Virginia Gregg, Lillian Bronson, Whit Bissell, Hayden Rorke, Kathy Bennett, Dub Taylor, Hope Summers, Ken Mayer, Bronwyn Fitzsimmons, Barbara McNair, Larry Mann, Buzz Henry, Jim O’Hara, Victor French, Michael Greene, Med Flory, Ray Savage, Mike Henry, Gary Young, Michael Young, Veronica Cartwright, Ricky Young, Susan Young, Rocky Young, Kym Karath, Michelle Daves, William Breen. A Wyoming mountain couple, with a large family, decide to use the money intended to build their dream home for their eldest son’s college education. Folksy, pleasant drama from Earl Hamner, Jr.’s novel, later the basis for the fine TV series “The Waltons” (CBS-TV, 1972–81).

4065  The Spikes Gang  United Artists, 1974. 96 min. Color. D: Richard Fleischer. SC: Irving Ravetch and Harriet Frank, Jr., With Lee Marvin, Gary Grimes, Ron Howard, Charlie Martin Smith, Arthur Hunnicutt, Noah Beery, Marc Smith, Don Fellows, Elliott Sullivan, Robert Beatty, Ralph Brown, Bill Curran, Bert Conway, Frances O’Flynn. Three farm boys nurse a wounded bank robber back to health and he takes them along with him on his robbery exploits. Okay pass time viewing but nothing special.

4066  Spirit of the Eagle  Amsell Entertainment, 1991. 93 min. Color. D-SC: Boon Collins. With Dan Haggerty, William Smith, Trever Yarrish, Jeri Arredondo, Taylor Lacher, Ken Carpenter, Don Shanks, Jack Gamby, Paul Booth, Priscilla Bettles, Reed David, Bill Reid, Bruce Sanders, Ivan Sherk, Suzette L. Canonizado. After is small son is kidnapped by a river pirate and sold to Indians, a mountain man, aided by a bear and a golden eagle, sets out to rescue him. Less than average scenic family fare filmed in Oregon.

4067  The Spirit of the West  Allied, 1932. 59 min. D: Otto Brower. SC: Jack Natteford. With Hoot Gibson, Doris Hill, Hooper Atchley, Alan Bridge, George Mendoza, Lafe McKee, Walter Perry, Charles Brinley, Tiny Sanford, Gordon DeMain, Lucio Villegas, Hank Bell, Tex Palmer. A rodeo champion helps his brother, the foreman of a ranch whose owner is murdered by a corrupt banker and his sheriff pal for his range. Typical sound era Hoot Gibson vehicle with the star masquerading as a simpleton in order to capture the bad guys.

4068  Spirit of the Wind  Raven Pictures, 1980. 103 min. Color. D: Ralph Liddle. SC: Ralph Liddle and John Logue. With Pius Savage, Chief Dan George, Slim Pickens, George Clutesi, Rosa Attla Ambrose, William Ambrose, Rudy Wiehl, Eileen Newman, Louise Ambrose, Phyllis Atta, Curtis Erhart, Ace Robbins, Charlie Peters, Lee Salisburg, Melinda Matsen, John Adams, Leonard Kriska, John Allen. A handicapped young boy tries to fulfill his goals without letting physical problems stop him. Fair outdoor drama.

4069  Split Second  RKO Radio, 1953. 81 min. D: Dick Powell. SC: William Bowers and Irving Wallace. With Stephen McNally, Alexis Smith, Jan Sterling, Keith Andes, Arthur Hunnicutt, Paul Kelly, Robert Paige, Richard Egan, Frank DeKova, William Forrest, Nestor Paiva, Dick Crockett, Fred Graham, Nelson Leigh, Clark Howat, Karen Hale, Frank Marlowe, John Diggs, John Cliff, Benny Burt, David McMahon, Fred Alrich, Alex Sharp, Bill Wallace. An escaped killer holds hostages in a Nevada ghost town knowing the area is about to be hit by an A-bomb test. Well acted suspense drama.

4070  The Spoilers  Selig-Poliscope, 1914. 90 min. D-SC: Colin Campbell. With William Farnum, Kathlyn Williams, Bessie Eyton, Tom Santschi, Frank Clark, Jack McDonald, Wheeler Oakman, Norvel MacGregor, William Ryno. Two gold prospectors in the Klondike are cheated out of their valuable claim by a crooked politician. The first, and still best, of the five versions of the Rex Beach novel, famous for its reel long fight between William Farnum and Tom Santschi; a true cinema classic. A second version was done in 1923 by Goldwyn with Lambert Hillyer directing Milton Sills, Anna Q. Nilsson, Noah Beery and Barbara Bedford in the lead roles.

4071  The Spoilers  Paramount, 1930. 81 min. D: Edwin Carewe. SC: Agnes Brand Leahy and Bartlett Cormack. With Gary Cooper, Kay Johnson, Betty Compson, William “Stage” Boyd, Harry Green, James Kirkwood, Slim Summerville, Lloyd Ingraham, Oscar Apfel, Edward Coxen, Jack Trent, Edward Hearn, Hal David, Knute Erickson, John Beck, Jack N. Holmes. In the Klondike gold rush days a man romances two women while he and his partners fight claim jumpers. Initial sound version of Rex Beach’s novel is a fairly good screen adaptation. Gary Cooper replaced George Bancroft in the lead and the stars of the 1914 version, William Farnum and Tom Santschi, were technical advisors for the restaging of the big fight scene. Ironically Farnum and Santschi did a better job redoing the brawl the next year in the non-Western Ten Nights in a Bar Room (Road Show Productions, 1931).

4072  The Spoilers  Universal, 1942. 87 min. D: Ray Enright. SC: Lawrence Hazard and Tom Reed. With Marlene Dietrich, Randolph Scott, John Wayne, Margaret Lindsay, Harry Carey, Richard Barthelmess, George Cleveland, Samuel S. Hinds, Russell Simpson, William Farnum, Marietta Canty, Jack Norton, Ray Bennett, Forrest Taylor, Charles Halton, Bud Osborne, Drew Demarest, Robert W. Service, Glenn Strange, Richard Cramer, Earle Hodgins, Lloyd Ingraham, Harry Woods, William Gould, Harry Cording, Charles McMurphy, Art Miles, William Haade, Robert Homans, Irving Bacon, Bob McKenzie, Emmett Lynn, Frank Austin, Chester Clute, Willie Fung, Mickey Simpson, Paul Newlan, Duke York, Robert Barron, Ben Taggart, Dick Rush, Kitty O’Neill. Two prospectors are at odds with a corrupt gold commissioner in the Klondike in the 1890s and they are helped by an exotic saloon entertainer. The slickest of the five screen versions of the Rex Beach book with Harry Carey and Richard Barthelmess stealing the acting honors; famous poet Robert W. Service is seen reciting some of his work.

4073  The Spoilers  Universal-International, 1955. 84 min. Color. D: Jesse Hibbs. SC: Oscar Brodney and Charles Hoffman. With Anne Baxter, Jeff Chandler, Rory Calhoun, Ray Danton, Barbara Britton, John McIntire, Wallace Ford, Carl Benton Reid, Raymond Walburn, Ruth Donnelly, Willis Bouchey, Forrest Lewis, Roy Barcroft, Robert Foulk, Dayton Lummis, John Harmon, Paul McGuire, Frank Sully, Bob Steele, Byron Foulger, Arthur Space, Lane Bradford, Terry Frost, Harry Seymour, Eddie Parker, Lee Roberts, John Close, Joe Haworth, John McKee, Billy Wayne, Henry Rowland, Charles Morton, John Phillips, Henry Wills, Harry Tenbrook, Richard Alexander, Heinie Conklin, Holly Bane, Emil Sitka, William Fawcett, Donald Kerr, Frank Chase, John Epper, Chuck Hamilton, Jack Kenny, Mike Lally, Joseph Mell, Sailor Vincent, Harry Wilson, William Yip, Tim Graham, Frank Mills, Robert Strong, Patsi Donahue, Peggy Gordon, Lucille Lamarr, Ila McAvoy, Patti McKay. A woman saloon owner vies for the attentions of a Klondike prospector with a respectable woman who works for the crook trying to cheat the man and his partner out of their gold claim. Color is the only asset to this final screen version of the Rex Beach work; mediocre.

Randolph Scott, John Wayne and Marlene Dietrich in The Spoilers (Universal, 1942).

4074  Spoilers of the Forest  Republic, 1957. 70 min. Color. D: Joe (Joseph) Kane. SC: Bruce Manning. With Rod Cameron, Vera Ralston, Ray Collins, Hillary Brooke, Edgar Buchanan, Carl Benton Reid, Sheila Bromley, Hank Worden, John Compton, Angela Greene, Paul Stader, Mary Alan Hokanson, Raymond Greenleaf, Eleanor Audley, Don Haggerty, William Haade, Jo Ann Lilliquist, Bucko Stafford, Robert Karns, Ken Dibbs, Rory Mallinson, Virginia Carroll, John Patrick, Bob Swan, Mack Williams, Theresa Harris, Helen Wallace, Pauline Moore, Judd Holdren. A lumber company owner uses his handsome foreman to woo a woman so he can obtain timber from her Montana ranch. Cheaply made but entertaining.

4075  Spoilers of the North  Republic, 1947. 66 min. D: Richard Sale. SC: Milton Raison. With Paul Kelly, Adrian Booth, Evelyn Ankers, James Millican, Roy Barcroft, Louis Jean Heydt, Ted Hecht, Francis McDonald, Neyle Morrow, Maurice Cass, Harlan Briggs. A crooked salmon tycoon and his Indian girl friend enlist the help of an unsuspecting city woman in their schemes to defraud fishermen. Standard, entertaining Republic program picture.

4076  Spoilers of the Plains  Republic, 1951. 68 min. D: William Witney. SC: Sloan Nibley. With Roy Rogers, Penny Edwards, Gordon Jones, Foy Willing and The Riders of the Purple Sage, Grant Withers, Fred Kohler, Jr., William Forrest, Don Haggerty, House Peters, Jr., George Meeker, Keith Richards, Rex Lease, James Craven, Lee Shumway, John Daheim, Phyllis Kennedy. The foreman of an oil supply company suspects a rival firm has planted spies in his operation. There is lots of action in this fast moving Roy Rogers film.

4077  Spoilers of the Range  Columbia, 1939. 58 min. D: C.C. Coleman, Jr. SC: Paul Franklin. With Charles Starrett, Iris Meredith, The Sons of the Pioneers (Bob Nolan, Tim Spencer, Lloyd Perryman, Pat Brady, Hugh Farr, Karl Farr), Dick Curtis, Kenneth MacDonald, Hank Bell, Ed Le Saint, Forbes Murray, Art Mix, Edmund Cobb, Ed Peil, Sr., Horace B. Carpenter, Charles Brinley, Carl Sepulveda, Ethan Laidlaw, Joe Weaver. Crooks try to keep ranchers’ cattle from going to market so they cannot repay a loan that will save their spreads. Average Charles Starrett vehicle.

4078  Spook Town  Producers Releasing Corporation, 1944. 59 min. D-SC: Elmer Clifton. With Dave O’Brien, Jim Newill, Guy Wilkerson, Mady Lawrence, Dick Curtis, Harry Harvey, Ed Cassidy, Charles King, Robert Barron, Richard Alexander, John Cason, Bert Dillard, Kermit Maynard, Chick Hannon, John Elliott, Jack Tornek. A ranger captain is forced to resign when money entrusted to him by ranchers is stolen but a trio of his comrades search for the real thief. The mystery element adds some flavor to this otherwise mundane “Texas Rangers” series film.

4079  Springfield Incident  CBS-TV/20th Century–Fox, 1957. 45 min. With Ann Harding, Tom Tryon, Marshall Thompson, Alan Hale, Craig Hill, Walter Coy, Helen Wescott, Carl Benton Reid, Lloyd Corrigan, Kathleen Case, Frank Sully, Ray Teal, Alex Gerry, John Conte (host). In frontier Illinois, lawyer Abraham Lincoln defends a widow’s two sons accused of murder. Adequate television adaptation of Young Mr. Lincoln (q.v.), originally telecast February 6, 1957, as “Young Man from Kentucky” on “The 20th Century–Fox Hour” (CBS-TV, 1955–57).

4080  Springfield Rifle  Warner Bros., 1952. 93 min. Color. D: Andre De Toth. SC: Charles Marquis Warren and Frank Davis. With Gary Cooper, Phyllis Thaxter, David Brian, Paul Kelly, Philip Carey, Lon Chaney, James Millican, Martin Milner, Guinn Williams, James Brown, Jack Woody, Alan Hale, Vince Barnett, Fess Parker, Richard Lightner, Ewing Mitchell, Poodles Hanneford, George Ross, Eric Hoeg, Wilton Graff, Ned Young, William Fawcett, Richard Hale, Ben Corbett, Guy E. (Edward) Hearn, George Eldredge, Ralph Sanford, Rory Mallinson, Ric Roman, Jack Mower, Mike Ragan (Holly Bane), Michael Chapin, Ray Bennett, Paula Souel, Richard Benjamin. Renegades rustle horses intended for the Union cause and an Army officer is sent to solve the problem. Slightly better than average Civil War Western yarn.

4081  Springtime in Texas  Monogram, 1945. 55 min. D: Oliver Drake. SC: Frances Kavanaugh. With Jimmy Wakely, Dennis Moore, Lee “Lasses” White, Marie Harmon, Rex Lease, The Callahan Brothers and Their Blue Ridge Mountain Folks, Pearl Early, Horace Murphy, I. Stanford Jolley, Hal Taliaferro, Budd Buster, Roy Butler, Ted French, Johnny Bond, Frankie Marvin, Lloyd Ingraham, Pat Patterson, Rusty McDonald, Spud Goodall, Robert Barron, Bob Duncan, Chick Hannon. Three pals are suspected of murdering one of the candidates for mayor of a small town. Jimmy Wakely’s second starring film is not much but it does provide a chance to see country music veterans The Callahan Brothers.

4082  Springtime in the Rockies  Republic, 1937. 60 min. D: Joseph Kane. SC: Betty Burbridge and Gilbert Wright. With Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, Polly Rowles, Ula Love, Ruth Bacon, Jane Hunt, George Chesebro, Lew Meehan, Edmund Cobb, Jack Rockwell, Alan Bridge, Tom London, Edward Hearn, Frankie Marvin, William Hole, Fred Burns, Art Davis, Jack Kirk, Frank Ellis, George (Montgomery) Letz, Oscar Gahan, Jim Corey, Robert Dudley, Victor Cox, Jimmy LeFeur and His Saddle Pals. Singer Gene Autry gets involved in a range feud between cattle ranchers and sheepherders by telling a female rancher that her place is rundown. Entertaining Gene Autry outing enhanced by the title song and “You’re the Only Star in My Blue Heaven.”

4083  Springtime in the Sierras  Republic, 1947. 75 min. D: William Witney. SC: Sloan Nibley. With Roy Rogers, Andy Devine, Jane Frazee, Bob Nolan and The Sons of the Pioneers (Pat Brady, Shug Fisher, Hugh Farr, Karl Farr), Roy Barcroft, Stephanie Bachelor, Hal Landon, Harry V. Cheshire, Chester Conklin, Hank Patterson, Bob Woodward, Whitey Christy, Pascale Perry, Buck Moulton, Milton Kibbee, Frank Dae. Roy Rogers gets on the trail of professional hunters who are killing outlawed game after they murder his long time friend, a game warden. Only so-so Roy Rogers entry highlighted by Stephanie Bachelor as the villain and her fight with Jane Frazee at the finale.

4084  Spurs  Universal, 1930. 59 min. D-SC: B. Reeves Eason. With Hoot Gibson, Helen Wright, Buddy Hunter, Pee Wee Holmes, Robert Homans, Frank Clark, William Bertram, Philo McCullough, Pete Morrison, Art Ardigan, Cap Anderson. A cowboy teams with a young boy to track an outlaw gang while the cowpoke vies for a large purse and silver spurs in a rodeo and romances a pretty girl. Exciting and well done early Hoot Gibson sound feature, one sure to appeal to his fans.

4085  Square Dance Jubilee  Lippert, 1949. 80 min. D: Paul Landres. SC: Ron Ormond and Dan Ullman. With Don Barry, Wally Vernon, Mary Beth Hughes, Max Terhune, Thurston Hall, Britt Wood, Spade Cooley and His Band, John Eldredge, Marshall Reed, Tom Tyler, Tom Kennedy, Chester Clute, Clarke Stevens, Lee Roberts, Slim Gault, Cliff Taylor, Ralph Moody, Hazel Nilsen, Alex Montoya, Hal King, Lloyd “Cowboy” Copas, Johnny Downs, The Broome Brothers, Smiley and Kitty, Herman the Hermit, Ray Vaughn, The Tumbleweed Tumblers, The Elder Lovelies, Claude Casey, Buddy McDowell, Dana Gibson, Dot Remly. A TV promoter sends two scouts West to find authentic talent for his program and they run across a gang trying to cheat a woman out of her ranch. Interesting curio full of old time country music acts with Don Barry even singing a song; worth a look.

4086  Square Dance Katy  Monogram, 1950. 76 min. D: Jean Yarborough. SC: Warren Wilson. With Vera Vague (Barbara Jo Allen), Jimmie Davis and His Sunshine Band, Phil Brito, Virginia Welles, Warren Douglas, Sheila Ryan, Dorothy Vaughan, Harry V. Cheshire, Fenton Jones, Russell Hicks, Ray Walker, William Forrest, Tristram Coffin, Jon Riffel, Warren Jackson, Donald Kerr, Paul Bryar, Earle Hodgins, Frank Sully, Stanley Blystone, Lee Phelps, Edward Gargan, Joseph Crehan. A woman promoting her singer boyfriend ends up a TV star but is eventually able to bring her man to stardom. Standard bucolic musical comedy with Western tinges.

4087  The Square Deal Man  Triangle, 1917. 45 min. D: William S. Hart. SC: J.G. Hawks. With William S. Hart, Mary McIvor, Joseph J. Dowling, Mary Jane Irving, J. Frank Burke, Darrell Foss, Thomas Kirihara, Milton Ross, Charles O. Rush. An honest gambler wins a ranch from a man who is murdered and the victim’s daughter is made to think the gambling man killed her father when the culprit is his rival for her affections. Entertaining William S. Hart silent feature.

4088  Square Deal Sanderson  Paramount-Artcraft, 1919. 60 min. D: William S. Hart and Lambert Hillyer. SC: Lambert Hillyer. With William S. Hart, Ann Little, Lloyd Bacon, Frank Whitson, Andrew Robson, Edwin Wallach. A man finds the bodies of two murder victims and learns from a letter that one of them is the long lost brother of a girl who is being persecuted by a rejected suitor, so he sets out to defend her and she mistakes him for her sibling. Melodramatic William S. Hart silent effort; his fans will enjoy it.

4089  Square Shooter  Columbia, 1935. 57 min. D: David Selman. SC: Harold Shumate. With Tim McCoy, Jacqueline Wells (Julie Bishop), Wheeler Oakman, J. Farrell MacDonald, Charles Middleton, John Darrow, Erville Alderson, Steve Clark, William V. Mong, Eddy Chandler, Ernie Adams, Bud Osborne, Art Mix, Jack Evans, Roy Bucko, Buck Bucko. Returning home after five years of being falsely imprisoned for his uncle’s murder, a cowboy intends to find the real killers. Another finely written, directed and acted Tim McCoy vehicle.

The Square Shooter (1951) see Skipalong Rosenbloom

4090  Squares  CBS-TV, 1972. 92 min. Color. D: Patrick J. Murphy. SC: Mary Ann Saxon. With Andrew Prine, Gilmer McCormick, Robert Easton, Harriet Medin, Jack Mather, Dean Smith, Tom Hennessy, Tom Basham, William Wintersole, Patty Sauers, San Christopher. A down on his luck rodeo rider becomes involved with a college coed dropout. Tepid modern-day TV drama.

4091  The Squaw Man  Jesse L. Lasky Feature Play Co., 1914. 74 min. D-SC: Cecil B. DeMille and Oscar Apfel. With Dustin Farnum, Winifred Kingston, Monroe Salisbury, Red Wing (Lillian St. Cyr), Billy Elmer, Dick La Strange, Foster Knox, Joe E. Singleton, Dick La Reno, Fred Montague, Baby de Rue, Mrs. A.W. Filson, Haidee Fuller, Art Acord. Falsely accused of embezzlement, an English officer becomes a rancher and marries the Indian maiden who saves his life when a bad man tries to kill him. Cecil B. DeMille filmed the Edwin Milton Royle play again in 1918 and 1931 (qq.v.) but this well staged initial version is worth a look.

4092  The Squaw Man  Famous Players-Lasky/Paramount, 1918. 60 min. D: Cecil B. DeMille. SC: Edwin Milton Royle. With Elliott Dexter, Ann Little, Katherine MacDonald, Theodore Roberts, Jack Holt, Thurston Hall, Tully Marshall, Herbert Standing, Edwin Stevens, Helen Dunbar, Winter Hall, Julia Faye, Noah Beery, Pat Moore, Jim Mason, Monte Blue, William Brunton, Charles Ogle, Guy Oliver, Jack Herbert, M. Hallward, Clarence Geldert. After becoming a rancher, an Englishman marries an Indian girl who saves his life when he is threatened by a rival. Director Cecil B. DeMille’s successful remake of his 1914 (q.v.) feature; only the last reel has survived.

4093  The Squaw Man  Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1931. 106 min. D: Cecil B. DeMille. SC: Lucien Hubbard, Lenore Coffee and Elsie Janis. With Warner Baxter, Eleanor Boardman, Paul Cavanagh, Lawrence Grant, Roland Young, Charles Bickford, Desmond Roberts, Mitchell Lewis, Luke Cosgrove, J. Farrell MacDonald, DeWitt Jennings, Frank Rice, Raymond Hatton, Frank Hagney, Victor Potel, Dickie Moore, Harry Northrup, Julia Faye, Eva Dennison, Ed Brady, Lillian Bond. After being disinherited, an Englishman moves to Wyoming where he establishes a cattle empire and marries an Indian maiden who has his child. Early sound version of Edwin Milton Royle’s famous play is a bit creaky but genre fans will still want to watch it, especially for Warner Baxter’s fine work in the title role. This is the third screen version of the story by director Cecil B. DeMille, who also made it in 1914 and 1918 (qq.v.).

4094  Stacked Cards  Circle Productions/Fred J. Balshofer, 1926. 55 min. D: Robert Eddy. SC: Guy C. Cleveland and William De Geiger. With Fred Church, Kathryn McGuire, Robert Thurston, John Watson, Artie Ortego. A dishonest ranch foreman tries to cheat a young woman out of her rightful inheritance but a cowboy comes to the rescue. Low grade, but action filled, silent quickie.

4095  Stage to Blue River  Monogram, 1951. 55 min. D: Lewis D. Collins. SC: Joseph Poland. With Whip Wilson, Fuzzy Knight, Phyllis Coates, Lee Roberts, Lane Bradford, Pierce Lyden, John Hart, Terry Frost, I. Stanford Jolley, William Fawcett, Steve Clark, Stanley Price, Bud Osborne, Boyd Stockman. U.S. marshals try to help a woman whose stage line is coveted by a crook and his lawman henchman. Average Whip Wilson affair.

4096  Stage to Chino  RKO Radio, 1940. 59 min. D: Edward Killy. SC: Morton Grant and Arthur V. Jones. With George O’Brien, Virginia Vale, Hobart Cavanaugh, Roy Barcroft, William Haade, Carl Stockdale, Glenn Strange, Harry Cording, Martin Garralaga, Ethan Laidlaw, Tom London, Billy Benedict, John Dilson, Bob Burns, Frank Ellis, Hank Bell, Jack O’Shea, The Pals of the Golden West. A postal inspector stops a stagecoach holdup and takes the job as driver for the woman owner of the line in order to investigate a series of robberies. Very good George O’Brien feature.

4097  Stage to Mesa City  Eagle Lion, 1947. 52 min. D: Ray Taylor. SC: Joseph Poland. With Lash LaRue, Al St. John, Jennifer Holt, George Chesebro, Brad Slaven, Marshall Reed, Terry Frost, Carl Mathews, Bob Woodward, Steve Clark, Frank Ellis, Lee Morgan, Wally West, Russell Arms, Dee Cooper. U.S. marshals Cheyenne Davis and Fuzzy Q. Jones are sent to Mesa City to investigate a stage line being harassed by bandits. Very good Lash LaRue film, fast moving with realistic fight sequences.

4098  Stage to Thunder Rock  Paramount, 1964. 82 min. Color. D: William F. Claxton. SC: Charles Wallace. With Barry Sullivan, Marilyn Maxwell, Scott Brady, Lon Chaney, Anne Seymour, John Agar, Keenan Wynn, Wanda Hendrix, Ralph Taeger, Allan Jones, Laurel Goodwin, Robert Strauss, Robert Lowery, Rex Bell, Jr., Argentina Brunetti, Suzanne Cupito, Paul E. Burns, Wayne Peters, Roy Jenson. A lawman arrives at a stagecoach station with a prisoner and learns the man’s father is planning to rescue his son and kill the sheriff. The best of producer A.C. Lyles’ Westerns for Paramount in the 1960s, well made with a good cast and an especially fine performance by Lon Chaney as the drunken way station owner.

4099  Stage to Tucson  Columbia, 1951. 82 min. Color. D: Ralph Moody. SC: Bob Williams, Frank Burt and Robert Libott. With Rod Cameron, Wayne Morris, Kay Buckley, Sally Eilers, Carl Benton Reid, Roy Roberts, Harry Bellaver, Douglas Fowley, John Pickard, Olin Howlin, Boyd Stockman, John Sheehan, Reed Howes, James Kirkwood, Stanley Andrews, John Cason, Francis McDonald, Guy Wilkerson, Frank Moran, Charles Evans, Joe Dominguez, Fred Essler, Paul E. Burns, Hank Mann, Rusty Wescoatt, Bob Woodward, Frank O’Connor, Frank Hagney, George Magrill, Edward Clark, Cactus Mack, Roy Bucko. The government sends two agents to the Southwest to find out about numerous stagecoach hijackings and they learn secessionists are causing the problem. Action filled drama highlighted by the work of its two likable stars.