Wallace W. Fox Movies
While he occasionally toiled at such major studios as Universal and RKO, director Wallace Fox is best known (though not always fondly remembered) for his prolific "poverty row" output. A former minstrel-show performer, Fox became a movie property man in 1919. After apprenticing as assistant to director Edwin Carewe, Fox was entrusted with the directorial reins of the 1927 silent feature The Bandit's Son. In the talkie era, Fox was hired more for his willingness to adhere to schedules and budgets than for his artistic aspirations (if, indeed, he had any). Wallace Fox's most often-seen films include his Bela Lugosi and East Side Kids vehicles for parsimonious Monogram producer Sam Katzman. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi- 1953
In this African adventure, a fearless physician goes into the jungle to search for rare medicinal herbs. While there, he runs into a tribe ruled by white women claiming to be goddesses. Some viewers may find the racial stereotypes presented in this story offensive. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- 1951
Johnny Mack Brown closed out his 1951 manifest of "B"-westerns with Montana Desperado. The story concerns a fierce struggle over water rights. Complicating the plot is the presence of a masked desperado who is systematically killing off local ranchers. Brown arrives on the scene to find out who's behind the murders--and, of course, to stop him (Her? It?) Although Brown's character name is ostensibly Dave Borden, everyone in the film refers to him as "Johnny" or "Mr. Brown"; evidently the Monogram folks were getting a bit lazy with this long-running series. The cast of Montana Desperado is uniformly fine, including such horse-opera regulars as Myron Healey, Marshall Reed, and Edmund Cobb, whose western credits extended as far back as 1914! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Johnny Mack Brown, Virginia Herrick, (more)
- 1951
Tall (and a bit heavy) in the saddle, Johnny Mack Brown stars in Blazing Bullets. Too long in tooth to pass a romantic lead, Brown permits his sidekick House Peters Jr. to pitch woo to leading lady Lois Hall. The plot is the same as in Brown's ten previous Monogram westerns; coming into a corruption-ridden town, our hero ambles around innocently, sizing up the situation, then slaps leather. Up until the finale, the film's excitement level is virtually nonexistent. Johnny Mack Brown would close out his Monogram contract the following year with his 66th release for the company. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1950
Whip Wilson and Andy Clyde are back and Monogram's got 'em in Fence Riders. The Whipster comes to the aid of beautiful ranch owner Reno Browne, who is being victimized by rustlers Myron Healey and Riley Hill. To get Wilson out of the way, the villains frame him on a murder rap. With the aid of grizzled old Clyde, Wilson escapes to mete out justice. One question: how does one ride a fence? (Ouch!) ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Whip Wilson, Andy Clyde, (more)
- 1950
Johnny Mack Brown stars in the Monogram oater Outlaw Gold. The plot is motivated by revenge: sentenced to five years in prison, vicious gunman Sonny Lang (Myron Healey) vows to "get" Dave Willis (Brown) the moment he's released. Our Hero, however, can't be bothered by such trivialities. He's too busy trying to prevent the hijacking of a gold shipment on the Mexican border. Inevitably, Willis and Lang's paths cross, but not before Willis exposes the mastermind behind the robbery. The film's romantic element is handled by Marshall Reed (cast as a crusading newspaperman) and Jane Adams. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Johnny Mack Brown, Jane Adams, (more)
- 1950
The Johnny Mack Brown West of Wyoming concerns the efforts by cattle baron Simon (Stanley Andrews) to prevent the opening up of the rang to homesteaders. Government agent Brown comes calling when Simon begins resorting to cold-blooded murder. The leading lady is Gail Davis, a few years shy of her Annie Oakley TV stardom. Surprisingly, West of Wyoming contains none of the comedy relief that had characterized earlier Johnny Mack Brown oaters. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Johnny Mack Brown, Gail Davis, (more)
- 1950
Whip Wilson, Monogram Pictures' clone of PRC's bullwhip champ Jack LaRue, stars in Arizona Territory. Wilson plays the pal of US marshal Andy Clyde, who is kept busy tracking down a counterfeiting ring. Wilson goes undercover to get the goods on the bad guys. When all else fails, he flails-his whip, that is, a total of four times in this 56-minute western. Veteran sagebrush scenarist Adele Buffington pulls a few old chestnuts out of the fire to flesh out the plotline of Arizona Territory. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Whip Wilson, Andy Clyde, (more)
- 1950
Gunslingers is another of Monogram's Whip Wilson western series, built around the bullwhip-wielding skills of its star. This time, Wilson and his saddle pal Andy Clyde come to the rescue of a group of ranchers who are being victimized by villain Ace Larabee (Douglas Kennedy). Ace has inside information that the railroad is coming through the territory, and he intends to grab up all the land and sell it to the train execs for a tidy profit. Stealing every scene she's in is venerable character actress Sarah Padden as "Rawhide Rose." Whip Wilson still hadn't learned to act by the time he made Gunslingers, but he was still a sight to behold behind that bullwhip. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Whip Wilson, Andy Clyde, (more)
- 1950
Johnny Mack Brown stars in the rubber-stamp western Over the Border. Bringing Bart Calhoun (Marshall Reed) to justice for his complicity in a robbery/murder, Johnny assumes that his job is over. Not by a long shot! Calhoun's arrest leads to the uncovering of a wide-ranging conspiracy to smuggle silver from Mexico to the United States. With Calhoun's cooperation, Johnny exposes the "Mister Big" behind the whole operation. There isn't much action in Over the Border; the screenwriters seem more concerned with mystery and intrigue. Johnny Mack Brown is obviously getting too old for this sort of thing, but he carries his years -- and excess poundage -- quite well. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Johnny Mack Brown, Myron Healey, (more)
- 1950
Whip Wilson stars in the formula Monogram western Silver Raiders. Cast as Arizona ranger Larry, Wilson goes undercover to catch a gang of silver smugglers. He almost gets away with his subterfuge, but when the bad guys kidnap a Mexican girl (Patricia Rios), he is forced to tip his hand. Andy Clyde goes through his usual comical-sidekick paces, this time as a rustic sheriff who's a lot smarter than he seems. And of course, Whip Wilson is given ample opportunity to justify his professional nickname with some truly impressive bullwhip stunts. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Whip Wilson, Andy Clyde, (more)
- 1949
The Gay Amigo was the second "Cisco Kid" theatrical entry produced for United Artists release by Philip N. Krasne. Duncan Renaldo, who would go on to portray Cisco in the popular 1950s TV series, stars in this outing, together with Leo Carrillo as his comical sidekick Pancho. Cisco and Pancho are wrongfully identified as bandits by a U.S. Cavalry sergeant (Joe Sawyer). Realizing that no one believes their innocence, the boys decide to pose as criminals in order to get the goods on the real crooks. Pancho has some wonderful moments as he holds up a stagecoach and fends off the amorous advances of a spinsterish passenger (Helen Servis), while Cisco enjoys a brief liaison with barmaid Rosita (Armida), the girl friend of the flustered cavalry sergeant. One of the better Krasne-produced "Cisco Kid" efforts, Gay Amigo tells its story in a brisk 62 minutes. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Duncan Renaldo, Leo Carrillo, (more)
- 1949
Daring Cabellero was the third of producer Phil Krasne's Cisco Kid "B" westerns. Duncan Renaldo and Leo Carrillo return as Cisco and Pancho, roles they'd carry over into a popular 1950s TV series. Once more stumbling into a dangerous situation, Cisco and Pancho risk their own necks by saving an innocent man from hanging. Eventually, our heroes learn that a corrupt political machine is behind the killing. Leading lady Kippie Valez is cast as "herself," which must have meant more in 1949 than it does today. Unlike the subsequent TV series, Daring Caballero does not end with the leading actors reciting their standard mantra "Oh, Pancho! Oh, Cisco!" ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Duncan Renaldo, Leo Carrillo, (more)
- 1949
Johnny Mack Brown's first starring western for 1950 is cut from the same cloth as his 1949 releases. Brown's principal antagonist this time is the town boss (Hugh Prosser), an outlaw who has killed the community's leading citizen. The dead man's grown children (Jane Adams and Riley Hill) want to investigate the killing, but the outlaw puts a stop to this by hiring a dance-hall dame (Constance Worth) to pose as the kids' long-lost mother. Johnny isn't fooled by this subterfuge, nor is his comic sidekick (Max Terhune). Once the plot has been established, Western Renegades adheres strictly to formula -- right down to Johnny Mack Brown's relinquishing the film's romantic-lead responsibilities to the younger, thinner Steve Clark. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Johnny Mack Brown, Max "Alibi" Terhune, (more)
- 1948
The Cisco Kid and Pancho set off to find the missing owner of a devoted little dog in this western adventure. From the vanished man's sister, the heroes learn that her brother disappeared soon after striking a major gold vein in his mine. In the end Cisco accosts the villain, saves the kidnapped miner and reunites him with his dog. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Leo Carrillo, John Litel, (more)
- 1947
Based on an adventure feature in Action Comics, this 15 chapter serial starred the erstwhile Dick Tracy, Ralph Byrd, as the title character, a Western movie star going undercover to investigate the disappearance of a string of pearls known as the "100 Tears of Blood." As it turns out, the pearls have been concealed in the hooves of five horses belonging to the secret gang leader X-1 (Lyle Talbot), aka ranch owner George Pierce. With the help of lovely Betty Winslow (Ramsay Ames) and visiting potentate Prince Amil (Robert Barron), "The Vigilante" manages to defeat the evil X-1 in the serial's final chapter, "The Secret of the Skyroom." The Vigilante was produced with his eyes firmly on every dollar spent by legendary cheapskate Sam Katzman. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi
- 1947
When scientific mastermind Jack Armstrong is kidnapped by a devious fiend determined to discover the secrets of atom-powered motors, our hero must escape the island fortress of his nefarious captor in this thrilling cliffhanger starring John Hart and Rosemary La Planche. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
- 1946
In this western, a Native American boy and his horse Wild Beauty make friends with a gentle doctor who helps the boy save his beloved steed from the cruel industrialist who has been slaughtering horses and using their hides for making shoes. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- 1946
In this western, a tuneful saddletramp is appointed sheriff of Rawhide and begins rounding up three troublesome brothers. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- 1946
When a local banker is killed in the West, G-man Kirby Grant and partner Fuzzy Knight investigate and uncover an insurance scam. ~ Rovi
- 1946
In this western, the leader of an outlaw band tries to take over the reins of a stagecoach line. The outlaw's gal is a singer and saloon keeper who does all she can to assist her man. It looks as if they will succeed in stealing the stage company when a good-guy intervenes. Not only does he save the stage, he also steals the girl. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Kirby Grant, Fuzzy Knight, (more)
- 1946
Stagecoach thieves are stalked by Wells Fargo agent Grant who wants to bring them to justice. ~ Rovi
- 1945
Set on the Mexican border in 1850, Bad Men of the Border was the first of seven Universal Westerns starring handsome Kirby Grant, a former singer from Montana who had earlier acted under the name Robert Stanton. The series, Universal's last attempt at competing with Republic Pictures' many streamlined B-Westerns, also featured the bucolic Fuzzy Knight as Grant's sidekick. Grant and Knight are undercover U.S. marshals tracking down a gang of counterfeiters. To their surprise, they are soon assisted by a beautiful Mexican dancehall performer, Dolores Mendoza (Armida), who proves to be an undercover agent as well, in her case for the Mexican rurales headed by Captain Garcia (Francis McDonald). After much riding and shooting, the leaders of the ring -- ex-convict turned cantina owner Bart Breslow (John Eldredge) on the Mexican side and saloon owner Ace Morgan (Edward M. Howard) in Texas -- are captured in their underground hideout. In between the action, Armida found time to perform "And Then I Got Married," by Everett Carter and Milton Rosen, and "I Would Love You," by Jack Brooks and Rosen. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi
- 1945
In this western, the hero fights the bad guys by impersonating the son of a rancher. The outlaws have been making the good landowners pay fake taxes. Not only does the good guy succeed in catching the bad guys, he also catches himself the postmistress. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
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