Helen Deverell Movies
- 1943
The Blocked Trail was one of six "Three Mesquiteers" westerns starring Bob Steele, Tom Tyler and Jimmy Dodd. Steele played Tucson Smith, Tyler was Stony Brooke, and Dodd (later famous as the head mousketeer on TV's Mickey Mouse Club) essayed the comedy-relief role of Lullaby Joslyn. The plot of this 6-reel sagebrusher was nothing out of the ordinary, save for a clever gimmick: a "seeing-eye" horse. When a miner is murdered, the dead man's horse is the only individual who can lead both heroes and villains to a hidden mine. Two more "Three Mesquiteers" oaters would be churned out by Republic Pictures before the studio retired the long-running (51 episode) series. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1942
A college student's passion for swinging music leads him to found his own band. When he starts spending more time playing music than studying, his father, a prominent hotelier, steps in and sends the lad to a dude ranch in Arizona. Undeterred, the boy brings the band with him. Once there, he encounters a pretty girl. Unfortunately, her father owns a rival hotel chain. Fortunately, after much singing, dancing and misunderstanding, the two young people finally manage to fall in love. Though only an hour long, the film is packed with 16 popular songs. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mary Healy, Richard Davies, (more)
It is now an accepted fact that the best of Johnny Mack Brown's Universal westerns were directed by the talented Joseph H. Lewis. Boss of Hangtown Mesa may not be in the same league as the Brown-Lewis classic Arizona Cyclone, but it comes awfully close. This time around, hero Steve Collins (Brown) comes to the aid of Betty Wilkins (Helen Deverell), who has taken over the telegraph-line business established by her uncle John (Henry Hall). The latter was murdered by outlaws who don't cotton to having the territory linked up electronically with the rest of the world. Collins manages to expose the "Mister Big" behind the outlaws and to make the frontier safe for Western Union. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Johnny Mack Brown, Fuzzy Knight, (more)
