Muriel Evans Movies
A child actress in her hometown of Minneapolis, Muriel Evans began her screen career in 1927 as a leading lady to comedian Lupino Lane. Her parents, however, demanded that she finish her education and she was offscreen until 1932. Blonde and, according to at least one reviewer, "unspoiled," Evans enjoyed a busy career in mainly B-films, including no less than 13 series Westerns with the likes of John Wayne, Buck Jones, and Tex Ritter. In the late 1930s, her career came full circle when she starred in two-reel comedies opposite James Finlayson. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide- 1940
Filmed back-to-back with Roll, Wagons, Roll (1939), this minor Tex Ritter Western once again teamed Ritter with the rangy, unfunny Nelson McDowell. Also repeating was a story of a wagon train guided by an army scout (Ritter). This time, however, the train is attacked, not by wild Indians, but by the notorious Greer gang, who murders Tex's brother Jim (Kenne Duncan). Determined to avenge his brother's death, Tex spreads words that he will escort a large shipment of gold on the next stage. Naturally, Greer (Reed Howes) and his gang attack. Outnumbered, Tex releases a band of accused army deserters lead by Lane (Nolan Willis) and together they capture Greer. The deserters are reinstated for heroism and Tex can warble It's All Over Now by Johnny Lange and Lew Porter. Along with most of the supporting cast, leading lady Muriel Evans appeared in both Westbound Stage and the previous Roll, Wagons, Roll, two of Monogram Pictures' worst Westerns. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tex Ritter, Nelson McDowell, (more)
- 1939
Tex Ritter, Monogram' low-budget answer to Republic's Gene Autry, got himself a new sidekick in rangy Nelson McDowell in the otherwise dull Roll, Wagons, Roll. Executive producer Edward F. Finney only allowed two songs -- Roll Wagon Wheels, by Dorcas Cochran and Charles Rosoff, and Oh, Suzannah, by Stephen Foster -- and the Western included enough stock footage -- some dating back to the silent era -- that it barely qualified as a new feature film. Ritter and McDowell played army scouts attempting to lead a wagon train safely through hostile territory. The Indians, as it turns out, are under the influence of an evil white fur trader, Coleman (Reed Howes). The wagon master, Grimes (Tom London), who is in cahoots with Coleman, has Ritter and McDowell fired on a trumped-up charge of conspiring with the Indians but the two friends manage to alert the cavalry and the wagon train is saved in the nick of time. Muriel Evans. Ritter's blond leading lady, also appeared in his next film, Westbound Stage (1940). ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tex Ritter, Nelson McDowell, (more)
- 1939
Filmed on a budget of $77,000, Rookie Cop was another attempt by RKO Radio to transform canine star Ace the Wonder Dog into the new Rin-Tin-Tin. The title character is young Clem (Tim Holt), who tries to convince his superiors to utilize police dogs as a crime-solving device. Thrown off the force because of dereliction of duty (he had a good reason, of course) Clem redeems himself by rounding up a gang of hijackers-with the help of wonder dog Ace, of course. In the microscopic role of the police chief's daughter, Janet Shaw has practically nothing to do but get kidnapped in the last reel-in fact, she has less screen time than juvenile actress Virginia Weidler, who steals the film as Clem's precocious kid sister. In one of the film's more amusing moments, a fistfight takes place outside a movie theater decorated with a poster for Pacific Liner (1938)-likewise an RKO film. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tim Holt, Virginia Weidler, (more)
- 1937
Buck Jones both produced and directed (with action expert B. Reeves Eason) this somewhat inconsistent Western about a ranger sent to the lawless town of Tombstone to bodyguard the local judge. The town is run by a mystery man known as "Twin Gun," whose henchmen, Clanton (Alexander Cross) and Smith (Chuck Morrison), actually manage to abduct the weak Judge Hart (Carl Stockdale), lest their compatriot Peters (Tom Forman) should go down for yet another stagecoach holdup. Working with Doc (Harvey Clark), an undercover agent pretending to be the town drunk, Alamo Bowie (Jones) is able to reveal the identity of "Twin Gun," who, not too surprisingly, turns out to be a pillar of society. Caving in, apparently, to the burgeoning popularity of singing westerns, Jones actually hums a few bars of a campfire song, while a bleach-blonde saloon floozy, Mary Carney, performs the ever-popular "La Cucaracha". ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Buck Jones, Muriel Evans, (more)
- 1937
After several overlong "Hopalong Cassidy" westerns, Rustler's Valley brings things back under control with a short-and-sweet running time of 58 minutes. William Boyd, George "Gabby" Hayes and Russell Hayden are back respectively as Hoppy, Windy and Lucky. This time, a powerful railroad tycoon frames an innocent young man on a robbery charge. The villain is in cahoots with an equally unscrupulous lawyer, played by Stephen Morris (better known as Morris Ankrum). With Hopalong Cassidy on the job, however, the baddies are foiled in near-record time. Of interest is the fact that the rail baron is played by 26-year-old Group Theatre veteran Lee J. Cobb, a full decade before his stage triumph in Death of a Salesman. Rustler's Valley comes to a thrilling climax as a rock-slide wipes out the remaining villains, a sequence later excerpted in toto in the 1942 Hopalong Cassidy oater Lost Canyon. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William "Hopalong" Boyd, George "Gabby" Hayes, (more)
- 1937
The popular B-flick team of Frankie Darro and Kane Richmond star in the slick quickie Headline Crasher. Little Frankie and Big Kane play a pair of roving journalists who investigate a politician (Richard Tucker) up for re-election. When it seems as though the politico is being set up for a fall by yellow journalists, Darro and Richmond try to get to the truth of the matter. The original story for Headline Crasher is credited to Peter B. Kyne, creator of the "Broncho Billy" western stories. The film has all the pace of a cowboy opus, which is helpful in patching up the plot holes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Frankie Darro, Kane Richmond, (more)
- 1937
Buck Jones was his own producer on this average Universal western filmed on attractive locations in California's Kern River Valley. After receiving a threatening note, Lonely Valley rancher Retta Lowry (Muriel Evans) and her kid brother Sunny (Dick Holland) rush to the local church to warn Parson Reeves, only to find him already dead. The next day Retta is visited by town boss Jake Wagner (Walter Miller), who produces a bill of sale for her ranch, apparently signed by her late father. Steve Hanson (Jones) and his friend Jim Lynch (Harvey Clark), a government agent masquerading as a tramp, begin an investigation into the strange and unsettling developments. After Steve discovers a secret tunnel leading from the church straight to Wagner's office, the villain orders him killed. Pretending to have drowned in the river, an incognito Steve discovers that Wagner and an accomplice, Sam Leavitt (Matty Fain), have been forging the signatures of dead ranchers in order to swindle the rightful heirs out of their properties. But with the able assistance of Jim Lynch, the very much alive Steve is able to catch the criminals in the act, and restore peace and tranquility to the valley. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Buck Jones, Muriel Evans, (more)
- 1937
Smoke Tree Range represented another winning collaboration between cowboy hero Buck Jones and his favorite director Lesley Selander. A gang of cattle rustlers is at large, and Lee Cary (Buck Jones) aims to round 'em up and bring 'em in. He also champions the cause of heroine Nan Page (Muriel Evans) by searching for the men responsible for her father's murder. The villain of the piece is a two-bit dictator known as El Capitan (Donald Kirke), actually an American fugitive from justice named Wirt Stoner. If the plot is patchy at times, the action content more than makes up for any continuity gaps. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Buck Jones, Muriel Evans, (more)
A young man is in danger of losing his inheritance in this muddled thriller from the waning Chesterfield Motion Picture Corp., a remake of the company's first talkie. After rescuing a pretty girl from a brute while crossing the English channel, Barry Wilding (Leslie Fenton) learns that he has inherited the large Hawk's Nest estate on the condition that he never sell the place. He also discovers that the girl, Julie Kenmore (Muriel Evans), lives on the estate along with her father (Morgan Wallace), a noted scientist. After agreeing that Julie and her father may remain on the estate for at least six months, Barry is dumbfounded when the girl prohibits him from visiting her. He does so anyway and is promptly confronted by nasty American gangster Dan Wharton (Noel Madison). What exactly is the gang lord doing at Hawk's Nest and why are the British authorities so reluctant to help the troubled heir? The answer, as Barry discovers soon enough, has something to do with a treasure hidden on the estate. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Leslie Fenton, Muriel Evans, (more)
When a car crash ends the life of a fabulously wealthy patron of the arts, the decedent's $20,000,000 fortune is inherited by one Longfellow Deeds (Gary Cooper) of Mandrake Falls, Vermont. Already a reasonably successful local businessman, Deeds doesn't really feel the need for anything extra in his life: he just wants enough time to practice his tuba and compose greeting-card doggerel. When Deeds is convinced to move to New York, hard-boiled newspaper reporter Babe Bennett (Jean Arthur) is dispatched to get the inside scoop on "The Cinderella Man." Babe's stories of Deeds' eccentricities and no-nonsense dealings with phonies and poseurs provide excellent headline fodder; but she begins to regret her actions, having fallen in love with the big lug. Deeds ultimately sets up a foundation to dispense his fortune to the country's neediest souls, on the proviso that the recipients do their best to get back on their feet, a turn of events that leads his lawyer John Cedar (Douglas Dumbrille) to try to have him declared insane. By the end of the sanity hearing, the judge (H. B. Walker) declares: "Not only are you sane, but you're the sanest man who ever walked in this courtroom!" A joyously unadulterated hunk of Frank Capra-corn, Mr. Deeds Goes to Town was adapted by Robert Riskin from Clarence Buddington Kelland's short story "Opera Hat." In addition to the pleasure of watching the country bumpkin outwit city slickers, the movie is a film buff's dream, boasting one of the best character-actor casts ever assembled for a single film. Nominated for four Academy Awards, the film won Frank Capra his second Oscar (out of three) as Best Director. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gary Cooper, Jean Arthur, (more)
- 1936
Otto Preminger was able to make his directorial debut on Under Your Spell solely because Darryl Zanuck couldn't care less about the film's quality; it was a contractual obligation film for Lawrence Tibbett, who was proving a washout as a film star. In Spell, Tibbett plays Anthony Allen, a world famous singer who has grown tired of the trials that come with celebrity. Seeking to avoid the spotlight, ceaseless publicity and determined fans, Allen enlists the aid of his butler in secretly escaping to a ranch in Mexico. Allen's manager (Gregory Ratoff) is understandably upset with his client's behavior and so sets in motion a scheme of his own. He contacts celebrity-hunting heiress Cynthia Drexel (Wendy Barrie) and lets her know where to find the reluctant star. Drexel quickly hunts down her prey and sticks to him like glue. Although Allen initially is exasperated with her, he soon finds himself attracted to her. In addition to arias from The Marriage of Figaro and Faust, Tibbert performs Arthur Schwartz and Howard Dietz's "Amigo," "My Little Mule Wagon" and the title song. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lawrence Tibbett, Wendy Barrie, (more)
- 1936
Western star Buck Jones essays a dual role in Boss Rider of Gun Creek. In time-honored sagebrush tradition, one of the Bucks is a good guy, the other a villain. The bad Buck commits a murder, but it's the good Buck who ends up facing a hangman's noose. Thus, good Buck impersonates bad Buck in order to bring the actual killer to justice. Leslie Selander's clever direction smooths out all the lumpy plot points. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Buck Jones, Harvey Clark, (more)
- 1936
The 1936 Buck Jones western Silver Spurs was helmed by Jones' favorite director Ray Taylor, whose association with the star dated back to the silent years at Fox Studios. Jones plays Jim Fentriss, a wealthy rancher whose spread is besieged by cattle rustlers. The chief heavy is Art Holden (Robert W. Fraser), but Jim has trouble proving it. After playing a waiting game for five reels, Jim swings into action (at long last!) in reel six. Buck Jones' leading lady, here as elsewhere, is Muriel Evans, who first gained popularity as comedian Charley Chase's vis-a-vis at Hal Roach. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Muriel Evans
John Wayne stars in this Western as a law student seeking revenge on the ruthless land baron who killed his parents; after he is thwarted in the courts, he chooses to explore frontier justice instead. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- 1936
Hopalong Cassidy's young sidekick, Johnny Nelson, is falsely accused of robbing the Bar 20 in this the fourth installment of the long-running Western series. Nelson (James Ellison) had left the ranch in high dudgeon over a perceived slight and fallen in with a gang headed by Shanghai (George Hayes) and Sam Porter (Al Bridge). Since the gang's aim is to rob the Bar 20, Johnny's sudden appearance is seen as a golden opportunity. The youngster is drugged and his easily identifiable neckerchief prominently displayed as the gang unsuccessfully attempts to rob the ranch safe, wounding owner Buck Peters (Howard H.Lang) in the process. When Hoppy (William Boyd) learns of Johnny's assumed culpability, he vows to bring the youngster to justice. Johnny, meanwhile, has managed to escape the gang and is holed up on a spread belonging to innocent Linda McHenry (Muriel Evans), who, unbeknownst to him, is Shanghai's daughter. He is found there by Porter who concocts a devilish plan to kill the boy and establish an alibi for himself at the same time. Luckily, Cassidy arrives to save his young friend in the nick of time and the gang is finally hunted down. Shanghai, who has decided to go straight, is shot in a struggle with Porter, but survives to clear Johnny of any wrongdoing in the attempted robbery. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William "Hopalong" Boyd, James Ellison, (more)
- 1936
Hopalong Cassidy (William Boyd) rescues a stranded schoolmarm (Muriel Evans) from a lecherous saloon owner (Onslow Stevens) in this the fifth entry in the long-running series which also served to re-introduce George "Gabby" Hayes as cantankerous sidekick Windy Haliday. While Hoppy is busy putting the prim Mary Stevens up at the Bar 20, Johnny Nelson (James Ellison) is wounded in an unsuccessful attempt at preventing saloon owner Pecos Kane's men from holding up the stage. The irate Pecos then frames Johnny for both the robbery and the shooting of the stage driver. About to be arrested by the corrupt sheriff (John St. Polis), the youngster is saved by a tough-talking Hoppy, but the two friends are soon at loggerheads over the pretty schoolmarm, who seems to prefer the more mature Hoppy. The latter, however, manages to turn one of Pecos' men (John Rutherford) and there is the inevitable climactic shootout at the Paradise Saloon. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William "Hopalong" Boyd, James Ellison, (more)
- 1936
A couple of naïve girls get themselves unwittingly involved in the gambling racket in this Poverty Row production directed by the redoubtable Phil Rosen. Runaway Ann Jason (Ann Doran) finds shelter in big, bad New York City with the Traveler's Aid Society, one of those organizations run by bored socialites. The socialite in question is Dorothy Benson (Muriel Evans), the daughter of a state senator (Wallis Clark) who is advocating a bill that would legalize gambling and make the profits taxable. But the senator is murdered by gangster Ben Davis (Noel Madison), who is confident that the blame will fall on racketeer Dan Collins (Sidney Blackmer), the senator's foe. Investigating newspaper reporter Jimmie Dugan (Roger Pryor), meanwhile, would rather go to prison than divulge his sources but changes his mind when Davis kidnaps Ann and Dorothy. Disguised as a hobo, Jimmie locates both the girls and the gangsters and after the inevitable showdown reveals that he is an undercover G-Man. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Roger Pryor, Muriel Evans, (more)
- 1935
This better-than-average Buck Jones western stars Jones as Buck Saunders, shunned by his community because it is believed that his father was a rustler. After a long absence, Buck returns home, only to discover that he's still regarded as a pariah. By now, however, our hero has the intestinal fortitude to dig up the facts and prove his father's innocence -- and to round up the guilty parties and toss them all in the jug. In the process, he wins back the love of his childhood sweetheart, Muriel Fergus (Muriel Evans). The Throwback was the vanguard of a string of top-rank Buck Jones westerns for Universal, a string broken only when he left the studio in 1937. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Buck Jones, Muriel Evans, (more)
- 1935
John Wayne goes up against a nasty vice lord in this, his second Western under the new Republic Pictures banner. Hired against his father's wishes to lead a wagon train, John Dawson (Wayne) at first battles then befriends the outlaw Kit (Al Bridge) and his gang, whom he supplies with food. The friendship comes in handy back in Frontier, OK, where Ace Holmes (Warner P. Richmond) has been terrorizing the citizenry in general and John's father, Milt (Sam Flint), in particular. When the latter is killed, John takes on the responsibility of sheriff, deputizes Kit and his men, and together they clean up the town. Filmed at Lone Pine, CA, and using plenty of stock footage from Ken Maynard's silent era The Red Raiders (1927), The New Frontier was directed by editor Carl Pierson. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Wayne, Muriel Evans, (more)
- 1934
An interesting precursor to such films as The Petrified Forest and Bus Stop, Heat Lightning takes place in a remote California-desert gas station-café. Several strange characters pass through the establishment's portals during one fateful 24-hour period, including cad-and-bounder George (Preston S. Foster). Resourceful proprietress Olga (Aline MacMahon) tries to remain detached throughout but is forced to take drastic action when George threatens to seduce and abandon her own sister Myra (Ann Dvorak). Glenda Farrell, one of Warners' most reliable players, is surprisingly wasted in a glorified bit role; even further down the cast list as "Husband and Wife" are 2-reel comedy star Edgar Kennedy and future Oscar winner Jane Darwell (talk about an odd couple!) Heat Lightning was based on a stage play co-scripted by George Abbott. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Aline MacMahon, Ann Dvorak, (more)
- 1934
Wounded criminal Lucky Wilson (Robert Montgomery) takes refuge in a small Connecticut farm. He falls in love with Maureen O'Sullivan, who at first is unaware of his criminal record. Lucky is fully prepared to shoot his way out when the cops come calling, but he is softened by O'Sullivan's affections and finally agrees to turn himself in. Screenwriters Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett leaven several potentially melodramatic sequences with some first-rate comic dialogue; many of the funniest scenes belong to nightclub owners Henry Armetta and Hermann Bing. Hide-Out was remade in 1941 as I'll Wait for You, a title which rather gave away the ending. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Montgomery, Maureen O'Sullivan, (more)
- 1934
In this crime drama, a famous criminal attorney is abandoned by his wife who has tired of his neglect and heavy drinking. She runs to the arms of a prominent gangster. Later, the lawyer must take a murder case--his ex-wife is the victim. It is quite a shock, but somehow he manages to keep it together and keep an innocent man from going to jail. The lawyer then brings the woman's criminal lover, the real culprit, to justice. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Otto Kruger, Una Merkel, (more)
