Thomas G. Lingham Movies
- 1930
This inexpensively produced early sound Western was diminutive cowboy star Bob Steele's second to last for poverty row company Syndicate Film Exchange. Steele appeared as a young cowboy in love with the sheriff's daughter (Jean Reno). There is a rival, of course, a crooked deputy (Perry Murdock) who is the mastermind behind a daring robbery. Steele foils a scheme to murder the sheriff, unmasks the crooked deputy, returns the stolen money and wins the pretty girl, all in the final reel. Steele left Syndicate following Breezy Bill (1930), but went on to appear in scores of budget Westerns, many directed by his father, Robert North Bradbury. To non-Western fans, he is perhaps best remembered for playing the bully, Curley, in Of Mice and Men (1939) and as the killer, Canino, in The Big Sleep (1946). ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jean Reno, Perry Murdock, (more)
- 1930
Veteran action specialist J.P. McGowan both produced and directed this very late silent western released by his own ill--named Big Productions Film Corp. The former husband and co-star of serial queen Helen Holmes, McGowan peddled his little oaters to rural movie theaters not yet equipped with sound systems. One of the last cowboy stars to emerge during the silent era, Bob Steele starred as a cowboy who saves pretty Jean Reno's ranch from nasty Lew Meehan. Like most independent producers of the era, McGowan brought his little ensemble to a dusty California hamlet and commenced filming. Outdoor sets were free, of course, and the local townspeople milled about as extras for a few dollars and a box lunch. In other words, everyone had a pleasant couple of days. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi
- 1929
In this western, a wagon train is massacred by Indians and the only survivors are two children, a brother and a sister. They take the girl, adopt her into the tribe and name her "Black Fawn." Meanwhile, the cavalry saves the boy. He grows up to join them. Eventually the siblings are reunited after the boy thwarts an attack. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Bob Steele, Edna Aslin, (more)
- 1927
- Add With Sitting Bull at the Spirit Lake Massacre to Queue Add With Sitting Bull at the Spirit Lake Massacre to top of Queue
As helmed by Robert North Bradbury, the silent feature With Sitting Bull at the Spirit Lake Massacre was produced in 1925 but went unreleased until 1927, and was then considered lost for another 80 years. It stars a Native American thespian, Chief Yowlachie, as the famous 19th Century Sioux Indian Sitting Bull. The tale unfolds in the 1860s or 1870s, just outside of Spirit Lake, Iowa, where the burgeoning Caucasian populace continues to claim one Native American settlement after another, indiscriminately. They err (and in a big way) by laying hands on a settlement long promised to the Sioux, located at Spirit Lake proper; this, in turn, rouses the ire of Sitting Bull and prompts him to forcibly reclaim the territory. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi
- Starring:
- Bryant Washburn, Chief Yowlachie, (more)
- 1927
This cheapjack historical film also carried the grandiose title With Sitting Bull at the Spirit Lake Massacre. It was produced by the redoubtable Anthony J. Xydias, whose western "epics" always promised much but delivered little. Spirit Lake Massacre, in fact, may well represent the Xydias product at its most misleading: the titular massacre is never shown on-screen but merely referred to in passing with a brief subtitle! The cast is the usual ragtag bunch of "at liberty" actors, led by Bryant Washburn, who was far too long-in-tooth to be convincing as a "young" Indian scout. The film's most authentic touch is the casting of Chief Yowlachie, a fine Native American actor, as Sitting Bull. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Bryant Washburn, Anne Schaefer, (more)
- 1925
A minor Hatfield and McCoy melodrama set in the wild and woolly West, Across the Deadline features Leo Maloney as an unlikely prairie Romeo and Josephine Hill as his sweet Juliet. Their families are engaged in a long-standing feud about water rights, but when Maloney saves Hill's weakling brother (Rulon Slaughter) from a lynch mob, the star-crossed youngsters are pronounced free to marry. Maloney directed as usual, and the screenplay was concocted by future serial specialist Ford Beebe. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi
- Starring:
- Florence Lee
- 1916
The popular star-director team of Helen Holmes and J. P. Gowan (they were also husband and wife) once more delivered the entertainment goods in Judith of the Cumberlands. Holmes plays the title character, the daughter of a feuding mountain family. The decades-long battle comes to an end after one of the families nearly bumps off its own offspring. Along the way, Helen indulges in the cliff-hanging thrills, and hairbreadth escapes that were her specialties. Judith of the Cumberlands was based on the novel by Alice McGowan. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
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