Jack Montgomery Movies

In his first western since 1939's The Oklahoma Kid, James Cagney is a pillar of integrity in the Pine-Thomas production Run for Cover. Cagney plays Matt Dow, who at the beginning of the film has been released from prison after serving six years for a crime he didn't commit. Heading westward, Matt befriends young Davey Bishop (John Derek), whom he begins to regard as the son (or brother) he never had. When Davey is injured during a train holdup, Matt brings him to the farm of Mr. Swenson (Jean Hersholt) to convalesce. Here Matt falls in love with Swenson's daughter Helga (Viveca Lindfors). When word of Matt's prowess with a gun reaches the local townsfolk, he is offered the job of sheriff. Matt accepts, but on one condition: that the crippled Davey be appointed deputy. Matt's faith in Davey proves to be misplaced when the embittered boy throws in with the dreaded Gentry gang, but an 11th hour regeneration caps this "psychological western." The curiously Freudian relationship between Matt and Davey was par for the course for Nicholas Ray, who directed Run for Cover betwixt and between his more famous endeavors Johnny Guitar and Rebel without a Cause. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Chased by a posse to a remote cabin, Jeb (Robert Mitchum) is joined by his fearful wife Thorley (Teresa Wright), awaiting the arrival of the men tracking them, as they try to reason out what has gone wrong in their lives. Jeb can't remember anything about his early childhood except for a horrible incident in which the people around him were killed by a mysterious stranger, whose flashing spurs were all the boy saw. He was raised by Ma Callum (Judith Anderson), alongside her two children, Thorley and Adam, as one of her own. But every time Jeb seemed poised to find peace, or even simple stability in his life, lurking nearby was Grant (Dean Jagger), a one-armed stranger who seemed bent on tormenting Jeb -- Jeb doesn't know who he really is, much less who Grant is, but Grant knows enough about him and is good enough at manipulating human nature to make Jeb a target for jealousy and murder. Making Jeb's life even more complicated is the fact that he and his adopted sister Thorley fell in love with each other, while Adam (John Rodney), his adopted brother, has come to hate him. The machinations around Jeb and Thorley come home to roost in multiple shootings and murder, a deadly chase and a long-planned lynching. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide

In this western, a pair of ranchers tire of being oppressed by the excessive taxation an avaricious crook in possession of a bogus Spanish land grant and so set off to help their neighbors by emulating the rakish Robin Hood. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

The all-purpose title Westward Ho was applied in 1942 to this "Three Mesquiteers" western. This time, the Mesquiteers are Tucson Smith, Stony Brooke and Lullaby Joslin, here played respectively by Bob Steele, Tom Tyler and Rufe Davis. Our heroes converge on a small town to solve a series of mysterious bank robberies. The "mystery" is solved the moment Evelyn Brent shows up on screen as the seemingly respectable bank president. In virtually every one of her western appearances of the 1940s, the talented Ms. Brent was cast as the "secret" criminal mastermind, and this film is no exception. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Gene Autry battles a crooked mine owner in this his signature western from Republic Pictures. Years earlier, Gene promised to take watch over his employer's son Tom (Edward Norris), a young hothead who enjoys the so-called finer things in life. Tom has to be corralled out of the wicked city after finally inheriting the old homestead but life in the supposedly pastoral Arizona hamlet of Solitude proves less than idyllic when greedy copper miner E.G. Blaine (Arthur Loft) begins poisoning the water supply. Not patient enough to let law abiding Gene handle things, Tom takes matters into his own hands and is promptly slapped with a murder charge. Since the local authorities are controlled by Blaine, Gene has Judge Bent (Edmund Elson secure a change of venue for the upcoming trial but the enemy may have an ace up his sleeve. When not shooting it out with Blaine and his henchmen, Gene, Smiley Burnette, leading lady Jacqueline Wells and girl singer Mary Lee perform "Good Old-Fashioned Hoedown", "Swingin' Sam, the Cowboy Man", "When the Cactus is in Bloom", "I'm an Old Cowhand", "Where the River Meets the Range", "I'm in the Jailhouse Now", "You Are My Sunshine", "Ninety-Nine Bullfrogs" and Ray Whitley's title tune. Back in the Saddle has been restored to its original length by the Westerns Channel and Gene Autry Entertainment. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide

In this exciting western, Roaring Dan is the meanest old cuss around. He and his "son" are constantly bickering. But things are not as they seem as the young man is only pretending to be Dan's son so they can find the killers of the young man's real father. Among the guilty are two women. In the end, the young hero and the killer engage in a thrilling fist fight. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

The Last Stand is among the better Bob Baker westerns, with the star getting to show off his athletic prowess as well as his singing skills. The story borrows a page from the repertoire of Bob Steele, with hero Tip (Baker) trying to find out who murdered his father. To expedite this, Tip and his saddle pal Pepper (Fuzzy Knight) offer their services to a Cattleman's Protection Association. When all else fails, Tip disguises himself as an outlaw and joins the suspected murderer's gang. The usual western cliches are adroitly avoided by director Joseph H. Lewis, who clearly hoped that his Bob Baker films would lead to bigger and better things (which they did). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

After directing the first few Bob Baker westerns for Universal, Joseph H. Lewis passed the cudgel to George Waggner, who did his usual efficient job on Western Trails. Singing cowboy Baker stars a Bob Mason, who comes to the aid of heroine Alice (Marjorie Reynolds) when the latter's ranch is plagued by a mysterious band of desperadoes. The head of the gang is actually Alice's boyfriend Rudd (Carlyle Moore), who is in cahoots with the girl's weakling brother Ben (John Ridgely). By the time the smoke clears in the final reel, practically no one is left standing but Bob and Alice, who seems oblivious to the fact that two of the people she cared most about in the world are now pushing up daisies. In addition to the film's "human" cast, Western Trails features a talented horse named Apache and an equally engaging mutt named Wimpy. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Gambling Terror was one of the more worthwhile entries in Johnny Mack Brown's so-so western series for producer A.W. Hackel. The no-frills plotline finds hero Jeff (Brown), ostensibly a dude gambler, taking on a band of cowboy racketeers. The "big boss" turns out to be the outwardly respectable Bradley (Earl Dwire), a frontier Capone who runs a profitable protection racket aimed at the local cattlemen. The direction and camerawork are sloppy, but the action content can't be faulted. Appearing in support of Johnny Mack Brown are Iris Meredith and Dick Curtis, soon to become fixtures of Columbia's Charles Starrett westerns. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Based on "The King of Cactusville", a 1923 short story by Johnston McCulley, the creator of Zorro, The Outlaw Deputy was the first of ten Tim McCoy Westerns from Poverty Row company Puritan Pictures. When McCoy's friend, Charlie Adams (Si Jenks), is killed by Bill Sanderson, the former cowboy and his gang turn to robbing stage coaches and rustling cattle, but take only what belongs to Sanderson. In the town of Godland, Adams' son, Chuck (George Offerman Jr.), is framed in a payroll robbery by Cash (Bud Osborne), one of Tim's former associates. Tim relieves Cash of the ill-gotten gains and is elected deputy sheriff by a grateful Rutledge (Joseph W. Girard), the payroll boss. Chuck, however, was killed during the robbery by Howger (Hooper Atchley), whose gang has been terrorizing the town. Despite the advice of lovely Joice Rutledge (Nora Lane), Tim is determined to bring Howger to justice. At a church social, Howger, who has learned about Tim's past from Cash, turns the citizenry against the new deputy, who lands in jail. With the help of Joice, Tim makes a daring escape and manages to collect enough evidence to convict Howger for the murder of Chuck. Having outdrawn the villain in a climactic gun duel and now elected permanent sheriff, Tim playfully arrests Joice, sentencing her to a lifetime as his wife. McCoy was paid 4,000 dollars for each of his ten Westerns for Puritan, which were budgeted at between 10,000 and 12,000 dollars each. Above-average for an independent production, The Outlaw Deputy brought in a domestic gross of 80,000 dollars. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide