Kenneth Gamet Movies

Rory Calhoun both starred in and put up the money for the Columbia oater The Domino Kid. As the title character, Calhoun's mission in life is to rid the earth of the five outlaws who destroyed his ranch and killed his father. Before the film is ten minutes old, the Domino Kid has killed four of the five miscreants. Before he can mete out retribution to the fifth man, however, Domino must contend with cattle baron Wade Harrington (Andrew Duggan)--not to mention a few romantic entanglements with winsome Barbara Ellison (Kristine Miller) and tempestuous Rosita (Yvette Dugay). Had not Rory Calhoun committed himself to the TV western The Texan, The Domino Kid would have presaged a series of economical western vehicles for Columbia. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Based on a Zane Grey novel published over a decade after the author's death, The Maverick Queen stars Barbara Stanwyck in the title role. As head of the outlaw gang called The Wild Bunch, Kit Banion (Stanwyck) wreaks havoc on the banks and railroads of the West. Pinkerton detective Jeff (Barry Sullivan) infiltrates the gang, falling in love with Kit along the way. Inevitably, one of the main characters expires in the other's arms, bringing this thrilling western to a poignant conclusion. Of interest to western buffs are the decidedly unsympathetic portrayals of gang members Butch Cassidy (Howard Petrie) and the Sundance Kid (Scott Brady). In the manner of High Noon, the film's continuity is tied together with a western ballad, written by Ned Washington and Victor Young and sung by Joni James. The Maverick Queen was Republic's first widescreen effort, lensed in a now-forgotten process called Naturama. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Randolph Scott is tall in the saddle once more in the Scott-Brown production Ten Wanted Men. The star is cast as John Stewart, who attempts to establish law and order on his vast Arizona spread without resorting to violence. Less peacefully inclined is Stewart's chief rival Wick Campbell (Richard Boone), who believes that might is right. To this end, Campbell recruits the services of hired gun Frank Scavo (Leo Gordon) and eight other pluguglies to drive all competition out of the territory. Jocelyn Brando costars as the woman in Stewart's life, while Donna Martell plays Campbell's much-abused mistress. Also registering well is Skip Homeier as Stewart's resentful nephew, who'd rather be anywhere else but Arizona. Ten Wanted Men might have been better had Budd Boetticher handled the direction instead of the competent but pedestrian H. Bruce Humberstone. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

After his Oscar win for All the King's Men, Broderick Crawford found himself working out his Columbia contract in a string of rapidly deteriorating films. The Last Posse was a middling western, the sort that the studio sent out as bottom-of-bill attractions for their prestige pictures. The posse of the title, headed by sheriff Crawford, is a group of ostensibly honest townsfolk. When they catch up with the desperadoes who robbed a wealthy cattle baron, some of the posse members are overcome by greed and plot to keep the stolen loot for themselves. Once Crawford is wounded in a shootout, avarice prevails. There are no real winners at the end, as the remaining posse members straggle back to town, their heads hung in shame. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Cavalry sergeant Broderick Crawford is among the handful of survivors of a Comanche attack. Crawford must lead the survivors across 100 miles of treacherous terrain, and there's only a limited supply of water. Thing of it is, the hidden Comanches are also short of water, and they dearly covet the contents of Crawford's canteens. Also in the thirsty little group is Barbara Hale, whose presence causes dissension in the male ranks. Last of the Comanches was helmed by director Andre DeToth--who, as any film fanatic will tell you, had only one eye. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Technicolor adventure epic Flying Leathernecks offers two things that film cultists can never get enough of: star John Wayne and director Nicholas Ray. Filmed at the behest of RKO chieftain Howard R. Hughes, Leathernecks is a paean to the Marine Flying Corps of World War II. Wayne plays Major Dan Kirby, a squadron commander, whose no-nonsense attitude is sharply at odds with the easygoing approach of executive officer Captain Carl Griffin (Robert Ryan). Griffin eventually learns the value of discipline at all costs, while Kirby becomes more humanized as he gets to know his pilots. Jay C. Flippen steals the show as a supply sergeant who "borrows" from other companies to keep his men happy. Though not entirely cliché-free, Flying Leathernecks is one of the more solid war films of the 1950s, and one that has remained readily available in theaters, on TV and in video stores to the present day. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Coast Guard is highlighted in this propaganda drama set during WW II. In addition to the usual blend of romance and military adventure, the film also features an interesting glimpse in to the training of the young Guards as they prepare for war. The story centers around a crew of shipyard workers who, upon learning of the attack on Pearl Harbor, immediately sign up for the Coast Guard's officer training program. The crew also dupes their shipyard boss into joining. After their training they are sent into the South Pacific to fight. The film contains actual battle footage. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

William Elliot is the multitextured hero of the deluxe Republic western Savage Horde. Elliot plays a gunslinger named Ringo, who, though no paragon of virtue, is not a murderer. After killing a man in self-defense, Ringo takes it on the lam from the law. Hiding out in a remote frontier town, Ringo becomes involved in a range war between land baron Proctor (Grant Withers) and a group of honest ranchers. At the risk of his own capture, Ringo decides to stick around and join the ranchers in their battle against Proctor. Leading lady Adrian Booth plays Livvy Weston, who'd like to fall in love with Ringo but can't reconcile herself with his bad reputation. Featured in the cast are such western "regulars" as Noah Beery, Bob Steele, Roy Barcroft, Earle Hodgins and Hal Taliaferro (aka Wally Wales). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Randolph Scott both co-produced and starred in this above average Western chronicling the career of one of the last of the legendary Western outlaws. When the Dalton gang is ambushed by U.S. Marshals, Bill Doolin (Scott), the last surviving member, forms his own group of bank robbers that includes Red Buck (Frank Fenton), Arkansas Tom Jones (Charles Kemper), and Bitter Creek (John Ireland). Although the gang is widely successful, things quickly heat up to a point where Doolin advises his men to lay low before reuniting after three months. Hiding out in a church in Claymore, Doolin is befriended by Deacon Burton (Griff Barnett), whose daughter, Elaine (Virginia Huston), he begins to court and eventually marries under the alias of Daley. But the past catches up with the former outlaw soon enough and he is forced to skip town. Resuming their illegal occupation, the Doolin gang is finally cornered in Ingalls, where Tulsa (Jock Mahoney) is killed and Arkansas captured. Doolin and surviving gang member Little Billy (Noah Beery Jr.) hide out at the former Daley homestead, where, to their surprise, Elaine has been patiently waiting for the return of her husband. Determined to leave his old life for good, Doolin plans to flee with Elaine to an unclaimed area between Kansas and Texas, but an old foe, Marshal Sam Hughes (George Macready), is waiting in the wings. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide

Filmed on location in the Canadian Rockies, this historical adventure spins a fanciful account of the building of the Canadian Pacific railroad. Randolph Scott heads the cast as Tom Andrews, a rough-and-ready surveyor who meets and conquers all obstacles in the railroad's path. The biggest fly in the ointment is trapper Dirk Rourke (Victor Jory), who perceives the Canadian Pacific as a threat to his livelihood. Rourke foments an Indian uprising which very nearly destroys the railroad. But Andrews and his hardy band persevere. Jane Wyatt plays the heroine among more intelligent and self-reliant lines than is usual in films of this nature. Highly suspect on a historical level, Canadian Pacific is nonetheless an exciting piece of filmmaking, evocatively photographed in Cinecolor by Fred Jackman Jr. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Randolph Scott is a single-minded gunman bent on tracking down and killing the white man responsible for an Indian raid on a stagecoach. Scott's fiancee was killed in the raid and a large army payroll was stolen. The villain is George Macready, a "solid citizen" with fingers in several dirty pies. The film's highlight is not the final confrontation with Macready but a brutal fistfight between Scott and minor heavy Forrest Tucker. Filmed in Cinecolor (a pleasing if limited two-color process), Coroner Creek was based on a novel by western specialist Luke Short. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Not to be confused with the 1971 film of the same name, this World War II espionage drama was the second to last film from German director Lothar Mendes and stars Edward G. Robinson as oil tanker captain Bart Manson. When Manson rescues the survivors of a torpedoed ship in the Gulf of Mexico, he meets the beautiful Kathy Hall (Lynn Bari) and the two fall in love. But when Manson's ship sinks under suspicious circumstances, Hall becomes the prime suspect due to her mysterious past and identity. Believing his beloved to be innocent of the crime, Manson sets out to uncover who the real culprit is. Tampico also stars Victor McLaglen and Robert Bailey. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide