Roy Rogers in TruColor and Uncut (3 Viewers)

[Bob Gu]

Some visuals for Bert's musings.

Marion Marsh.

I recently saw Margaret Tallichet for the first time, a few weeks ago in "Stranger on the Third Floor", on the MOVIES! channel.

Lois Collier, I remember mostly from the "Boston Blackie" TV series with Kent Taylor.

Yesterday, I watched both "Youth on Parole" and "Prison Nurse" on YouTube in the edited versions 53- minute for "Youth on Parole" and a 51-minute version for "Prison Nurse".

Bernadene Hayes, Henry Wilcoxon, Marion Marsh.

Lately GritTV has been showing more Republics. Two 53-minute Roy Rogers movies. Six of the eight John Wayne, Three Mesquiteers movies. Maybe I missed two. Plus, a Bob Steele western. All eight Wayne Mesquiteers are on Blu-Ray and DVD from Olive.

GritTV also ran a Hoot Gibson movie.

 

[Bert Greene]

Hmm. One of Hoot Gibson's 'Allied' films showing up on Grit-TV? That's an interesting surprise. I'd be very curious as to the print quality. I have a memory of seeing "Clearing the Range" (1931) appear on some oddball, short-lived cable channel about 25 years ago, and being rather startled at how sharp the print looked. It gave me hopes that some old syndicator still had 35mm quality prints of that Allied bunch. "Clearing" was the first of the dozen or so Allieds, and featured Gibson's then-wife, Sally Eilers, right before she really hit it big at Fox with "Bad Girl" (1931), the latter happily released on blu by Kino. Gibson and Eilers had already appeared together in two or three of his last Universals, preceding the Allieds.

I really tend to like that group of comedy-tinged Allied westerns that Gibson made, c. 1931-33. "Clearing the Range" was a somewhat mid-level, average example. My favorite is probably "The Local Bad Man" (1932), which I always found a particularly pleasant outing, and goes way back with me. Hoot's leading-lady in that one is another well-known Sally, but this time, Sally Blane, upping the talent ante for the film. Quite a nice little western. These Allieds might not rank as all-time classics, but for a batch of indies, they rank rather well and are of fairly consistent quality. I think "Wild Horse" (1931) is also really sharp in capturing that range/rodeo milieu of the era, although the presence of Stepin Fetchit doing his comedy schtick would probably give modern audiences the vapors. One of the bigger laughs I recall getting from one of these Gibson westerns is at the very tail-end of "The Fighting Parson" (1933). Hoot and leading-lady Marceline Day are at church service, seated towards the back, listening to the rightly-restored pastor talk, alluding to a long-delayed wedding of two townsfolk (part of one of the storyline's threads). The smitten Marceline leans over to Hoot and quietly asks him if he's ever been married. Hoot, with a kind of naively clueless expression, plaintively responds "Uh-uh. Nobody ever asked me." Lots of good, genial humor in those Hoot Gibson westerns, both silents and talkies.

 

[Bob Gu]

"Clearing the Range" looked good on GritTV, to me. I thought it was a newer movie than it was.

That Republic Bob Steele that was on Grit, "The Colorado Kid"-1937, is on again early Thursday 2AM to 3:30AM, Eastern Time.

Saturday March 26. 12AM to 2:30AM. The Rod Cameron Republic. "San Antone"-1953.

There is a fight between Forrest Tucker and Rod Cameron later in the picture. The stuntman doubling Rod Cameron looks, to me, like Clayton Moore. Moore was between his Lone Ranger seasons at this time. But maybe I'm wrong.

"San Antone" is followed by a Bob Steele, from Supreme Pictures, "Border Phantom"-1937. 2:30AM to 4AM, ET. Was Supreme folded into Republic?

Another Supreme/Republic is being shown early Sunday March 27, 2AM to 3:30AM, ET, "Bar Z Badmen"-1937, with Johnny Mack Brown.

Later on, Sunday March 27, a seven movie Republic marathon on GritTV, from 7AM to 5:30PM, ET.
"Days of Jesse James"-1939, with Roy Rogers and Don 'Red' Barry. Followed by six of the John Wayne Three Mesquiteers movies, including "Wyoming Outlaw"-1939, which was one of the two 3Ms I missed last time around. "Wyoming Outlaw" was a showcase for Don 'Red' Barry.

 

[ponset]

Red Ryder and Little Beaver.

 

[Bert Greene]

I have a soft spot for the Supreme Pictures b-westerns of Johnny Mack Brown and Bob Steele. Probably because they were the first b-westerns I ever saw on television. Producer A.W. Hackel's Supreme titles started out being released through the states rights market (the 1934-35 westerns), but got merged into Republic and its release schedule after it started up. I've never really known if they (or their prints) technically remain part of the Republic library. Since Supreme was apparently a part of the merger, it's a little different than the independent producers who released through larger studios (like Sol Lesser's George O'Brien and Smith Ballew films for Fox; Larry Darmour doing the first four Bill Elliott's at Columbia; Harry Sherman and the various Zane Grey items at Paramount, etc.). In these latter cases, the bigger studios did not seem to retain rights, and probably don't even have prints. Most of these type of things fell into the public domain, as have the Supreme titles. The big question I've always had is to whether good, archival 35mm material survives on a lot of this stuff.

 

[Bob Gu]

Lions Gate released five Zane Grey RKO titles, two with Robert Mitchum and three with Richad Warren. LG released three more Zane Grey's that were part of the Tim Holt/Richard Martin RKO series. Those three Holt Zane Grey titles never appeared on any of the Tim Holt Warner Archive collections.

Red Ryder, the comic strip character and Republic movie star:

Don Barry became, Don 'Red' Barry, after starring in Republic's "Adventures of Red Ryder" serial.

Barry, as 'Red Ryder'. with Vivian Austin.

Republic released 23 'Red Ryder ' features. VCI released all 23, in 12 volumes, plus the Barry serial on DVD. Some volumes are out of print. I am not sure if they all have the complete runtimes.

16 with Wild Bill Elliott.

7 with Allan 'Rocky' Lane.

VCI released the two of the Jim Bannon Red Ryders from Eagle-Lion as part of the 12 volume Red Ryder Collection.

Later VCI released all four of the Jim Bannon Cinecolor Red Ryders in a separate release.

VCI also released the Buck Jones "Red Rider"-1931, serial., in Blu-Ray and DVD. This is a different character, that predated the Fred Harman 'Red Ryder' by about seven years.

 

[Beckford]

I quite enjoyed the four Jim Bannon Red Ryders especially "Ride, Ryder, Ride" and "The Fighting Redhead".
Bannon's good. And I really like the comfortable chemistry he enjoys with his three continuing co-stars - Don Reynolds, Emmett Lynn and Marin Sais. Also Cinecolor - even if it's faded - always adds allure for me. VCI's prints are neither as poor as I'd feared nor as good as I'd hoped. But I'm just glad to have the films in watchable form.

 

[Bert Greene]

On a cross-country drive about 15 years ago, I found myself spending the night in Pagosa Springs, CO, and noticed they had a Red Ryder / Fred Harman museum. Tried to check it out the next morning, but it didn't open until fairly late, and I needed to make time on the road, so I missed out. Disappointed me because I never really knew all that much about the history of cartoonist Harman and his creation. Anyway, the museum has apparently since closed, and is no more.

Don (Little Brown Jug) Reynolds, of the Bannon 'Ryders' made some appearances at the shows. He worked as a top wrangler, tending horses, on many films up until fairly recent times, before his passing. Had a lot of interesting stories about these experiences. Last time I saw him, he just showed up, out of the blue, at a show to see and visit with his friend and fellow Little Beaver, Tommy Cook. VCI recently re-pressed some dvds of a few of their earlier serial releases, including Republic's "Adventures of Red Ryder" (1940). It had been out-of-print for a while. Or perhaps, only available in dvd-r. Not sure. But their new batch is definitely pressed. Same serviceable print from 25 years ago.

 

[Bob Gu]

Fred Harman's Red Ryder comic strip was never carried in my area. I don't know much about it or his artwork. I'll study it, on the internet.

Comic Book:

Daily Comic Strip:

Color Sunday Strip-Worldwide syndication.

Sunday Strip in B&W.

I never bought the "Adventures of Red Ryder" serial DVD, since I had the twelve Republic Red Ryder VCI feature volumes. Chapters 1 thru 11 were extras on those DVDs. They didn't include Chapter 12. I wonder how the serial ended.

Here's another still from, what I believe is, a missing scene from, WALL STREET COWBOY-1939.

I talked about WALL STREET COWBOY in Post #556, page 28.

 

[ponset]

More Red Ryder.

 

[Bob Gu]

SHINE ON HARVEST MOON-1938, B&W, 57 minutes.

Another I have as a 53-minute Alpha. No Republic logos. The THE END appears over the image of the sky between the mountain pass. It may be original I'm not sure.

The story: Roy is partners in a failing ranch with William Farnum.

Lynn Roberts, as Mary Hart, is Farnum's Daughter.

Another, Republic, Rogers and Hart "Sweethearts of the West" picture.

Roy and Farnum's ranch is next to a mountain pass that, badman, Stanley Andrews wants to use for his rustling operation.

Stanley Andrews was, 'The Old Ranger', the kindly host of the TV series, "Death Valley Days".

Earlier, Farnum was partners with Andrews in an honest run ranch, before Andrews turned outlaw.

Andrews wants Farnum to provide cover for the rustling. Farnum refuses.

Roy helps Andrews on his way.

When Andrews starts rustling cattle and other mayhem, Frank Jacquet accuses Farnum of being in cahoots with Andrews.

Chester Gunnels, (in the piebald chaps), Mary Hart, Roy Rogers, Joe Whitehead, and Frank Jacquet.

It's up to Roy to stop Andrews and clear William Farnum.

There are comic songs performed by, the husband and wife duo, Lulubelle and Scotty, (Myrtle and Scott Wiseman).

Above, right bottom, as a western star William Farnum liked all black outfits.

The famous tittle song, "Shine On Harvest Moon", is performed twice and is in the underscore at other times. There are five other songs in this movie.

What's missing? Maybe more stock cattle rustling shots. Or maybe comedy relief with Chester Gunnels, who wears the comedy piebald chaps., shown above. Gunnels also appeared in COME ON, RANGERS!-1938 and only two other movies.

One song listed for this movie at IMDB is missing. It may have been written by Roy, "I Sold My Saddle For An Old Guitar".

YouTube: Roy Rogers- "I Sold My Saddle For An Old Guitar".

YouTube: SHINE ON HARVEST MOON- TheFilmDetective version is centered better and has more picture area than the Alpha. But the Alpha is brighter.

 

[borisfw]

I have the Sinister Cinema version of SOHM. It runs 53m 10s.

 

[Beckford]

It was my fondness for the Roy Rogers films that initially drew me to this forum. But I really enjoy looking through the wealth of images from other related movies supplied by Bob Gu and others.

I have a special affection for several B western leading ladies, all of whom added immeasurably to the pictures they were in.

My Favorites:
IRIS MEREDITH
Graced 20 Charles Starrett westerns at Columbia between 1936 and 1940. And graced is just the word to use for her. Traffic-stopping beauty combined with sensitivity, poise and a kind of delicately restrained gravity that never failed to draw you in.

NELL O'DAY
Johnny Mack Brown's regular femme sidekick at Universal in the early 40's. Distinctively pretty, incredibly likeable; a marvelous rider too. And a certain smart, playful tone in her voice always made me think of her as a kind of outdoorsy Myrna Loy.

ELEANOR STEWART
Breathtaking beauty who worked with a number of cowboy heroes (Bob Steele, Tex Ritter, William Boyd and others) from 1936 to 1944. I like her best in Ritter's "Arizona Days", also a nice showcase for kid actor Tommy Bupp. She was married to a top MGM publicist. But somehow her looks, talent and connections never led to the stardom she merited.

LOUISE STANLEY
Another dazzler who worked with various movie cowboys. She even married one of them (Jack Randall). And was also Mrs. Dennis O'Keefe for a while. I get nicely charged Jane Russell vibes from her in Bob Steele's "Durango Valley Raiders". And she partnered to fine effect with affable James Newill in a couple of Mountie pictures at Monogram.

and - of course
DALE EVANS
Roy Rogers was great before she arrived. But once Dale joined the party everything simply got better.
I love her singing. There's a YouTube clip of her performing "Under a Blanket of Blue" from "Bells of Rosarita". And even sourced from a blurry copy, it'll make you melt. She was still in great voice in the 60's and 70's. Did a lot of gospel recordings in those years, all of which I prize, especially the album "It's Real", which - for me - never gets old.
Onscreen in the 40's I found her to be a unique, no nonsense embodiment of the sublime.

 

[RBailey]

It was my fondness for the Roy Rogers films that initially drew me to this forum. But I really enjoy looking through the wealth of images from other related movies supplied by Bob Gu and others.

I have a special affection for several B western leading ladies, all of whom added immeasurably to the pictures they were in.

My Favorites:
IRIS MEREDITH
Graced 20 Charles Starrett westerns at Columbia between 1936 and 1940. And graced is just the word to use for her. Traffic-stopping beauty combined with sensitivity, poise and a kind of delicately restrained gravity that never failed to draw you in.

NELL O'DAY
Johnny Mack Brown's regular femme sidekick at Universal in the early 40's. Distinctively pretty, incredibly likeable; a marvelous rider too. And a certain smart, playful tone in her voice always made me think of her as a kind of outdoorsy Myrna Loy.

ELEANOR STEWART
Breathtaking beauty who worked with a number of cowboy heroes (Bob Steele, Tex Ritter, William Boyd and others) from 1936 to 1944. I like her best in Ritter's "Arizona Days", also a nice showcase for kid actor Tommy Bupp. She was married to a top MGM publicist. But somehow her looks, talent and connections never led to the stardom she merited.

LOUISE STANLEY
Another dazzler who worked with various movie cowboys. She even married one of them (Jack Randall). And was also Mrs. Dennis O'Keefe for a while. I get nicely charged Jane Russell vibes from her in Bob Steele's "Durango Valley Raiders". And she partnered to fine effect with affable James Newill in a couple of Mountie pictures at Monogram.

and - of course
DALE EVANS
Roy Rogers was great before she arrived. But once Dale joined the party everything simply got better.
I love her singing. There's a YouTube clip of her performing "Under a Blanket of Blue" from "Bells of Rosarita". And even sourced from a blurry copy, it'll make you melt. She was still in great voice in the 60's and 70's. Did a lot of gospel recordings in those years, all of which I prize, especially the album "It's Real", which - for me - never gets old.
Onscreen in the 40's I found her to be a unique, no nonsense embodiment of the sublime.

A great post, Beckford! And I am in total agreement on all of the 5 wonderful ladies here.

I always thought that Universal left money on the table with Nell O'Day. A western series with Nell as the lead would have been a game changer at the time.
Betty Miles was another actress who only did a few films at Columbia, Monogram and PRC. She, like Nell, could handle the action scenes and was beautiful as well. She's terrific in the 1944 Texas Rangers film "Sonora Stagecoach" with Bob Steele, Hoot Gibson and Chief Thundercloud

 

[Bert Greene]

Good run-down (by Beckford) of B-western heroines which would pretty much parallel my own faves. Although I'd somehow have to include Luana Walters. She can really shine, as she did in "Where the West Begins" (1938-Mon) with Jack Randall, with her bright, comedy-tinged portrayal of a ranch owner who wants to chuck it all, and head east for a career as an actress. Always good to see Eleanor Stewart get some attention, too. One of the more pleasing western leading-ladies but who usually isn't cited too often. Other than perhaps her big serial role, in Republic's "Fighting Devil Dogs" (1938). She made a handful of convention appearances, as I recall. Another I might like to include personally is George O'Brien's leading lady at RKO, Virginia Vale, but I'm probably biased by sentimentality, as I met her and found her absolutely spiffy. Wish she could have gravitated over to Republic after RKO, but she landed at PRC, starring in two or three cheapies like "The Blonde Comet" (1941). You often see Vale in small bit parts in late-1930s Paramount films, when she was still acting under the name of Dorothy Howe.

Not necessarily a top favorite, but one of the more quirky/offbeat B-western leading ladies is Jean Carmen. She's primarily recalled for the Republic chapterplay "The Painted Stallion" (1937), portraying the white, blonde, bareback-riding Indian girl who shoots arrows and constantly appears and disappears, when helping out wagon-train travelers out in the desert. Billed under the name Julia Thayer for this serial, Carmen had been one of the winners of the last groupings (1934) of Wampus Baby Stars, alongside Lucille Lund and Jacqueline Wells, and others less known. The first time I saw it, I didn't think too much of "The Painted Stallion," but by the second and third time, I really grew to like it, and Carmen's eccentric role is one of the reasons. She's in a handful of B-westerns, but what most comes to my mind is an ultra-ultra-cheap patchwork of a film, "Wolves of the Sea" (1936 or 1937), made by Jay Dee Kay Productions, an outfit that specialized mostly in cheap exploitation fare. Carmen plays a castaway on a jungle island, who gets picked up by a freighter of salty cutthroats. Tons of ratty stock-footage, bad quality back-projection, and entire sequences cribbed from "Hell Harbor" (1930), it's one of the junkiest of 1930s zero-budget B's. Yet the determined professionalism of the cast, including especially Carmen, still manages to sell the crazy mess, and I can't help but like the darned thing! No matter how terrible it is, aesthetically.

 

[ponset]

 

[Bob Gu]

Here's a tinted lobby card of Roy and Mary Hart/Lynn Roberts, that was also used, missing Chester Gunnels, as part of the poster above for, SHINE ON HARVEST MOON. Roy and Mary/Lynn are wearing the same outfits as they do in the opening and closing scenes on the hay wagon ride, which were probably filmed at the same time.

Since Roy has a guitar, this may be the missing musical scene of "I Sold My Saddle for An Old Guitar". Originally, possibly, part of one of the hay wagon ride scenes.

The actresses mentioned:

Iris Meredith with Bob Nolan, Charles Starrett, and Wild Bill Elliott.

Nell O'Day with Johnny Mack Brown and Reno/Rebel.

Betty Miles with Hoot Gibson and Ken Maynard.

Eleanor Stewart.

Louise Stanley with Dave O'Brien, James Newill, Horace Murphy and Jack Randall.

Luana Walters.

Iris Meredith and Wild Bill Elliott with Luana Walters.

Jean Carmen with 'Crash' Corrigan.

Virginia Vale and George O'Brien.

I talked about BELLS OF ROSARITA in Post #334 on page 17. The VCI DVD is excellent if you want to see a clear and sharp presentation of Dale's song, "Under A Blanket of Blue". Plus, all the guest star Republic cowboy stars and Bob Nolan jitterbugging with Adele Mara.

 

[ponset]

 

[Bob Gu]

Like Roy, Hoppy, and Gene, Guy Madison's "Wild Bill Hickok" was a big cross-promotional enterprise.

I remember seeing commercials for this frogman toy. I think you inserted baking soda in the figure, so it would bubble like the frogman's air tank, when it was under water.

A radio version of the show was running in the same time frame as the TV show. The radio show produced around 228 shows or more and played two or three times a week sometimes. It ran from 1951-54or56 producing original shows, with reruns into the late fifties.

Record album with the radio shows. Wonder when this was.

The "Wild Bill Hickok" TV series aired 113 episodes, between 1951 and 1958. It was syndicated, but also, later, ran on both CBS and ABC. I remember the ABC afternoon run. I believe the last 52 episodes were filmed in color. Most likely aired in black and white.

In 1952, some online numbers say, there were 16 million TV sets in U.S. households. That was about 10% of the population. So, to feed the other 90% their western fix, the Hickok producers released 16 features, to theaters through Monogram, made from two episodes of the TV show, in 1952-55.

Comic books too.

 

[Bob Gu]

Another Old-Time Radio article states that the "Wild Bill Hickok" radio show had 274 episodes and 268 still exist out there. YouTube and Archive.org have a bunch, but I didn't count them.

Roy Rogers and The Sons of the Pioneers appeared in two of the Dick Foran Warner Brothers western movie series. Dick Foran was billed as, "The Singing Cowboy", with his palomino horse billed as "Smoke", "The Wonder Horse".

Left to right: Unidentified, Dick Foran, "The Singing Cowboy" and "Smoke", "The Wonder Horse".

Pre-Roy, Roy and the Pioneers didn't get any billing in the credits.

Note the guitar string design for the poster.

Both "Song of the Saddle" and "California Mail" were released in 1936.

Dick Foran and Smoke with Linda Perry.

In both movies Roy called a square dance and then he and the Pioneers backed up Dick Foran for another number.

Linda Perry, an actress with only 14 IMDB listings, (1936-39), costarred with Foran in two of his Warner western features and a Technicolor 19-minute short called, "The Sunday Round-Up"-1936. Trivia found on IMDB: When "The Sunday Round-Up" was re-released in 1948 they moved 'retired' Linda Perry from second place, under Dick Foran to third, in the new opening credits, after placing Jane Wyman after Foran.

Linda Perry with Smoke and Dick Foran.

"The Sunday Round-Up" 1948 re-release is on the Warner Archive DICK FORAN WESTERN COLLECTION, on Disc Four, as an extra, as it is not part of the Foran, "Singing Cowboy", series. Oddly "The Sunday Round-Up" is not mentioned as being included on the set in the microscopic fine print on the WAC packaging or on the face of the discs. It's listed on the onscreen menu of Disc Four.

"California Mail" is the movie where we get the correct version of that famous Dick Foran "can't mount his horse blooper", that appears on those Warner blooper compilations.

Horse blooper at the 4:30 min mark.




Dick Foran with the Pioneers. Something normal.



Dick Foran and the Pioneers. Something naughty.



Let's pretend that didn't happen.

Dick Foran and the Pioneers, again.