Guy Wilkerson Movies

The Texas Rangers ride again in the PRC oater Gunsmoke Mesa. As in earlier series entries, the rangers are played by Jim Newill (the handsome one), Dave O'Brien (the athletic one) and Guy "Panhandle" Wilkerson (the funny one). The villain is the appropriately named Henry Black (Jack Ingram), guardian of the young heir to a gold mine. Since Black was responsible for orphaning said heir, he has no reservations about knocking off the kid as well-but the Texas Rangers aren't about to let that happen. Better photographed than most PRC westerns, Gunsmoke Mesa was lensed by the prolific and efficient Ira H. Morgan. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Replacing James Newell, country and western crooner Tex Ritter joins Dave "Tex" O'Brien and Guy Wilkerson in the last eight of PRC's "Texas Rangers" western series. In his initial effort, Ritter, as Sheriff Tex Haines, is again confronted with Bart Kern (I. Stanford Jolley) and his gang of cutthroats who once before terrorized the community of Red Rock and are now back for a second helping. Despite joining forces with Texas Rangers Dave Wyatt (O'Brien) and Panhandle Perkins (Wilkerson), Tex comes up short against Kern's trigger-happy gangsters. But when a henchman (Charles King) kills the town's mayor, Frank Merritt (Harry Harvey), in cold blood, Mrs. Merritt (Betty Miles) and telegraph owner Jane Deering (Patti McCarty) demand to be sworn in as Texas' first female rangers. To boost the morale of this inexperienced but ultimately victorious group of frontier lawmen and women, Tex sings his own and Robert McGimsey's "Please Remember Me" as well as Tim Spencer's "He's Gone Up the Trail" and "Ride, Ranger, Ride". ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide

In this western, the residents of a town are terrorized by the presence of a mysterious ghost. The Texas Rangers investigate and discover the true culprits behind the hauntings. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Trail of Terror is a PRC Studios western starring Dave O'Brien (here billed as Dave "Tex" O'Brien) and Jim Newell. Texas ranger O'Brien has an outlaw twin brother. When his sibling is killed, O'Brien assumes his identity in order to infiltrate a gang of stagecoach robbers. The ruse falls apart at a crucial moment, and it looks bad for O'Brien--but Newell helps him squeeze out of his predicament. The PRC westerns were always cheap, but Trail of Terror hit a new budget low; at one point, the sound equipment goes on the blink, and the pops, clunks and hisses are audible throughout the next few scenes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Another low-budget entry in PRC's interminable Texas Ranger series, Border Buckaroos is perhaps the only B-Western to misprint its own name in the titles, which read "Border Buckaroo." (Supporting actor Ethan Laidlaw's name became "Laidlow," and so on.) The rangers -- Tex (Dave "Tex" O'Brien), Jim (James Newill), and Panhandle (Guy Wilkerson) -- are this time en route to Boulder City to investigate the murder of rancher Dan Clark when they happen upon Trigger Farley (Reed Howes), a gunslinger hired by Cole Melford (Jack Ingram), the chief suspects in Clark's murder. Tex assumes Trigger's identity and Jim impersonates Tom Bancroft (Kenne Duncan), the heir to Clark's estate. After a bit of confusion concerning Ellen Clark (Christine McIntyre), the other Clark heir, the rangers get their murderer and the two heirs discover that the ranch contains a secret mine. The blond McIntyre, fondly remembered for her work opposite the Three Stooges, always refused to discuss the Stooges but would happily answer questions about her participation in Westerns like Border Buckaroos. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide

In the second of PRC's ramshackle Texas Rangers Westerns, Tex Wyatt (Dave "Tex" O'Brien) is blamed for a murder actually committed by Ransom (Jack Ingram) and Holman (Charles King), a couple of thieves. Tex manages to escape and is reunited with his two ranger pals, Jim Steele (James Newill) and Panhandle Perkins (Guy Wilkerson), both of whom are working undercover as performers in a medicine show, a plot contrivance that allows baritone Newill to join Carl Shrum and His Rhythm Rangers in Shrum's "Ride, Ride Ride" and Tex Coe's "West Winds." All three rangers obtain jobs with Ransom's freight company, the owner luckily failing to recognize Tex. Everything comes out in the open, however, when lovely Martha Hobbs (Janet Shaw) inadvertently reveals that the newcomers are rangers, but the three heroes are saved in the nick of time by the sheriff's posse. As it turns out, Martha's uncle (Michael Vallon) is the real power behind the crimes. As always, Texas Rangers was defeated by the budget constrictions of PRC, a company known to insiders as "pretty rotten crud." ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide

In the first entry in PRC's Texas Ranger series, Tex Wyatt (Dave "Tex" O'Brien) and Panhandle Perkins (Guy Wilkerson) are recruits assigned by Tex's stern father, Captain Wyatt (Forrest Taylor), to look into a series of cattle rustlings. Despite strict orders not to arrest anyone, Tex goes after nasty Pete Dawson (Bud Osborne) and is kicked off the force for disobedience. He joins the rustlers instead, working as a spy for Panhandle and ranger sergeant Jim Steele (James Newill). The three of them manage to catch the leader of the rustlers (I. Stanford Jolley), and Tex is reinstated as a ranger. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide

Jack Greenhalgh's murky photography did not enhance this low-budget "Billy the Kid" series entry, in which a falsely accused Billy (Larry "Buster" Crabbe and his sidekick Fuzzy Q. Jones (Al St. John) flee to the ghost town of Laramy. Said town is lorded over by one Dalton Sykes (John Merton), a former lawman who killed rancher Frank Kinkaid for his gold claim. Going by the name of Bill Andrews, the Kid rescues Kinkaid's grown children, Martha (Caroline Burke) and Johnny (Dave O'Brien), from Sykes' henchmen. Fuzzy, meanwhile, plays the murdered man's violin, scaring the living daylights out of the henchmen, who believe that Kinkaid's ghost has returned to haunt them. Broken in the ensuing fracas, the violin reveals a hidden map to the Kinkaid gold mine. Sykes, who has gained Martha's confidence, attempts to get to the mine ahead of the competition but is stopped by Billy and the local marshal (Ted Adams). Martha and Johnny take over their father's ranch and mine, and with Sykes' reign of terror having come to a close, the citizenry returns to a peaceful Laramy. Busy PRC director Sam Newfield helmed this minor Western opus under his pseudonym, Sherman Scott.The film was reissued in 1948 under the title Panhandle Trail. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide

Director Curtis Bernhardt hadn't wanted to make Juke Girl, but he was under contract to Warner Bros. and had to tow the line lest he find himself drawing Unemployment. One of Bernhardt's gripes against the film is that it starred Ronald Reagan, whom he considered an "unimportant" screen personality. In all fairness, Reagan is pretty good in his role as itinerant fruit-picker Steve Talbot, who gets involved in the middle of a labor dispute between the farmers and the packers. Talbot casts his lot with the farmers, while his longtime pal Danny Frazier (Richard Whorf) goes with the packers. Juke-joint hostess Lola Meers (Anne Sheridan) falls for Steve and supports his cause, only to be fired for her troubles at the behest of powerful packing-plant operator Henry Madden (Gene Lockhart). She and Steve try to escape Madden's influence, but when their farmer friend Nick Garcos (George Tobias) is murdered, the couple is framed for the crime. There follows "orgies of fights" (director Bernhardt's description) and a lynching attempt before Steve's old buddy Danny comes to the rescue. Anne Sheridan is at her most gorgeous in Juke Girl, making it difficult for the viewer to remain concentrated on the story. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

When World War I hero Alvin York agreed to sell the movie rights to his life story to Warner Bros., it was on three conditions: (1) That the film contains no phony heroics, (2) that Mrs.York not be played by a Hollywood "glamour girl" and (3) That Gary Cooper portray York on screen. All three conditions were met, and the result is one of the finest and most inspirational biographies ever committed to celluloid. When the audience first meets young farmer Alvin York (Cooper), he's the cussin'est, hell-raisin'est critter in the entire Tennessee Valley. All of this changes when York is struck by lighting during a late-night rainstorm. Chalking up the bolt from the blue as a message from God, York does a complete about-face and finds Religion, much to the delight of local preacher Rosier Pile (Walter Brennan). Despite plenty of provocation, York vows never to get angry at anyone ever again, determining to be a good husband and provider for his sweetheart Gracie Williams (Joan Leslie). When America goes to war in 1917, York elects not to answer the call when drafted, declaring himself a conscientious objector. Forced to go to boot camp, he proves himself a born leader, yet still he balks at the thought of killing anyone. York's understanding commanding officer Major Buxton (Stanley Ridges) slowly convinces the young pacifist that violence is sometimes the only way to defend Democracy. Later on, while serving with the AEF in the Argonne Forest, Sergeant York sees several of his buddies, including his Bronxite best pal Pusher Ross (George Tobias), killed in an enemy ambush. His anger aroused, York personally kills 25 German soldiers, then single-handedly captures 132 prisoners. As a result, York becomes the most decorated hero of WW1, celebrated by no less than General John J. Pershing as "the greatest civilian soldier" of the war. The film won Gary Cooper his first Academy Award, and also picked up an Oscar for Best Film Editing. Not surprisingly, it ended up as the highest-grossing film of 1941. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Even those film buffs who derive pleasure from the output of poverty-row PRC Pictures are hard put to say anything nice about Swamp Woman. Famed striptease artist Ann Corio, a much better actress than many have claimed, stars as Annabelle, a cabaret dancer who returns to the Florida bayous whence she came. Here she finds that her ex-sweetheart Pete (Jack LaRue) is engaged to marry her niece Lizbet (Mary Hull). When escaped convict Jeff (Richard Deane) stumbles onto the scene, Annabelle teams up with Pete to prove Jeff's innocence. Figuring prominently in the proceedings is Annabelle's sleazy agent Brand (Jay Novello) who all but wears a sign on his forehead proclaiming I'M THE VILLAIN! Poorly written, photographer and directed, Swamp Woman is emblematic of all that was wrong with the worst of PRC; the only person to emerge from this fiasco without embarrassment is Ann Corio, who on the strength of her performance herein was signed up for future film appearances. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Carter Family finds itself in serious financial difficulty when its patriarch, druggist Doc Carter (Frank Craven), is all but forced out of business by a neighboring chain store. Doc isn't worried so much for himself and his wife Emma (Fay Bainter) as he is for his five children, played by Scotty Beckett, Bennie Bartlett, Donald Brenon, Mary Thomas and Gloria Carter (who real name is the same as her "reel" name). But there may be a way out: wealthy Bill and Gloria Hastings (Edmund Lowe, Genevieve Tobin), longtime friends of the Carters, have offered to adopt the couple's polio-stricken son Dickie (Beckett) for a substantial fee. Doc and Emma refuse this offer, but their somewhat more practical children offer themselves up for adoption rather than separate little Dickie from his parents. The ultimately happy denoument suggests that Paramount Pictures hoped to develop a "Carter Family" series, though no such project developed. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Michael Curtiz directs this Technicolor Western based on the familiar story by Clements Ripley about the rivalry between farmers and miners in the Sacramento valley during the years following the California Gold Rush. Handsome engineer Jared Whitney (George Brent) from the Golden Moon mining company arrives in a small town to supervise their operations. He oversees boorish mining foreman Slag Minton (Burton MacLane), then goes to bar where he befriends Lance (Tim Holt), the son of prominent wheat farmer Colonel Chris Ferris (Claude Rains). He ends up falling in love with Lance's sister, Serena (Olivia deHavilland), despite their alliances with opposing forces. They are forbidden to see each other when her father finds out, so Jared goes back to San Francisco to work with his boss, Harrison McCooey (Sidney Toler), on a dam construction project. Meanwhile, Lance chooses the side of the miners over the farmers when he leaves the town to stay with his Uncle Ralph (John Litel). When local farmer John McKenzie (Russell Simpson) loses his family and his farm due to the destruction caused by the miners, Chris supports him in a law suit against the mining company. This all escalates into a violent armed confrontation between the farmers and the miners, leading up to an explosive conclusion and a romantic reunion. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide