William Welch Movies

Noted character actor L.Q. Jones (who would later direct the cult classic A Boy and His Dog) produced this low-budget horror item about a small Southwestern town torn asunder by the mysterious disappearances of several of its children. Jones plays the town sheriff, who joins forces with some of the locals to find the perpetrators and uncovers a diabolical plot concocted by a coven of elderly devil-worshippers who plan to use the children's bodies as receptacles for their own souls, enabling them to live again in younger bodies. To this end, they use their supernatural abilities to slay any meddling adults by turning the kids' toys into deadly war machines. Creepy opening and closing sequences and a bravado performance from Strother Martin (as the king-daddy Warlock) are the film's strongest assets. ~ Cavett Binion, All Movie Guide

The Seaview surfaces while on a mission in the Antarctic and finds the sky a raging inferno. Nelson (Richard Basehart) devises a plan to extinguish the blaze, which is roasting the southern hemisphere of the world and threatens to engulf the northern hemisphere as well, but he is opposed by a rival scientist, Dr. Weber (David J. Stewart), who believes that nothing should be done and that the blaze with extinguish itself. As the Seaview races to the coordinates from which Nelson's plan can be carried out, the admiral must convince the other scientists empanelled by the UN and now aboard the submarine that his plan will work -- but someone is killing those scientists and also spreading mutinous dissent among the crew, threatening the survival of the ship before it can even get to the launch point. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide

Admiral Nelson's only living relative, his sister Edith (Susan Flannery), is kidnapped and held for ransom by enemy agents. The price for her freedom is top secret information that only Nelson (Richard Basehart) can obtain. The admiral's loyalty has always been beyond reproach, but might even he betray his country to save his sister's life? ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide

A nervous Dr. Smith (Jonathan Harris is left behind with the women when the rest of the men embark on a search of supplies. During their own scouting trip, Smith and the ladies come across a space ship that has been in a state of suspended animation for decades--and which is occupied by a cute little beagle. Upon returning to the camp, they discover that their own ship has been looted. Despite the protests of Judy (Marta Kristen), everyone accuses the dog of being the "burglar"--little realizing that the ladies are being stalked by a sinister space alien (played by familiar broken-nosed character actor Charles Dierkop)). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Jayne Mansfield bares almost all (and became the first Hollywood actress to do so) in this nearly universally panned sex comedy from the early 1960s. In the story, poor Sandy is desperate to get pregnant. Unfortunately, her husband, a television script writer, is too wound up over his high stress job to make love to her at night even though he too, wants a child. To help him loosen up, they go on a relaxing cruise and meet another couple. The foursome hit it off and begin drinking heavily. They soon exchange partners and retire to their rooms. Later both wives show up pregnant, but now the question remains: which baby belongs to which father? ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

One of Tom Mix's most successful films, this silent Western grossed an impressive $227,200.00 in domestic rentals alone, a sizable amount in 1928. Mix portrayed a daredevil ranger on the trail of a gang of outlaws. To get close to the gang, Tom utilizes various cunning disguises, including donning the garb of a medicine man. Along the way, complications arise when Tom falls for the niece (Natalie Joyce) of the gang leader (William Welch).The action packed Western climaxes when Mix saves Joyce from a runaway car. The cousin of silent screen star Olive Borden and a 1925 WAMPAS Baby Star, dark-haired Natalie Joyce also appeared opposite Mix in The Circus Ace (1927). ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide

The pretty former showgirl Dorothy Sebastian improbably plays a South Pacific native girl in this silent clinker. She encounters a bank cashier (Conway Tearle) who is escaping an unjust accusal of embezzlement. He has fled the country in favor of the tropics. He finds the native girl, in her various states of undress, quite tempting but nevertheless stays true to his sweetheart back home. When the bank cashier encounters a raging drunk, the native girl saves his life but herself is killed -- rather conveniently, because shortly thereafter, the sweetheart arrives to fetch him back home. This silly film didn't do much for either Sebastian or Tearle's careers. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide

Buck Jones stars as Buck Laramie, an itinerant cowpoke who wanders into a wide-open frontier town. Heroine Ellen Wade (Georgia Hale) has been unsuccessful in driving liquor and gambling out of the community, but with Buck's help she finally manages to make some headway. This does not rest well with the town mayor, who's secretly in cahoots with a bootlegging gang. When the sheriff is "mysteriously" killed, Buck takes the lawman's place, trailing the villains to their hideaway (which turns out to be a mine shaft owned by the unsuspecting Ellen) and beating them to a pulp. Hills of Peril represents one of the few appearances of Georgia Hale after she was discovered by Charlie Chaplin for The Gold Rush (1925). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

aka Over the Hill Ma Benton (Mary Carr) has six children, but she favors John, the troublemaker (Jerry Devine). John grows up (to be played by John Walker) and his older brother, the self-righteous Issac (Noel Tearle), predicts he will come to no good end. Through no fault of John's, he seems about to fulfill his brother's prediction -- when he finds his father (William Welch) stealing horses, he takes the blame and is sent to prison for three years. When he gets out his father is dead, and he decides to go West. He sends money to Issac to take care of Ma, but Issac pockets the money and she is stuck trying to see if any of her four other ungrateful children wil take her in. None of them want her and she winds up in the poor house. When John returns and finds out where his mother is, he beats up Issac and retrieves his mother. He then sets her up in a home of her own. Ma brings the children together and forgives them all, even Issac. Character actress Mary Carr was known best for her role of Ma Benton, but she also did comedy. She can be seen in a couple of Laurel and Hardy talkies (One Good Turn and Pack Up your Troubles). In addition, she was in the silent 1925 version of The Wizard of Oz along with Oliver Hardy. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide