Bernard B. Ray Movies

This is a routine, low-budget drama by Bernard Ray, his last film in a career that started in 1933. At the center of attention is a husband with an obvious desire to get away from his nagging wife. His other obvious desires -- for sexual action -- are not exactly fulfilled by his marriage either. And so he lapses into an affair with a prostitute in order to make up for the deficiencies in his marriage. As this story evolves in its complexity, it is simultaneously heading for a surprise ending that is certain to give the protagonist food for thought. The storyline notwithstanding, Bernard Ray dedicated this film to his late wife and half of the proceeds to a cancer charity. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

Temporarily taking leave of the TV series The Lone Ranger because of a salary dispute, Clayton Moore found time to star in Buffalo Bill in Tomahawk Territory. The film is as old-fashioned as its title, though that's not an altogether bad thing. Rewriting history somewhat, the story depicts Buffalo Bill (Moore) as an unstinting friend of the Indians. His mission this time around is to protect his Native American friends from evil, land-grabbing gold speculators. Several veteran Indian actors are spotlighted in Buffalo Bill in Tomahawk Territory, including Rod Redwing, Chief Yowlachie and Chief Thundercloud. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Produced by Jack Schwartz for low-budget company Screen Guild, this mild Western starring the veteran Richard Arlen was apparently the first entry in a proposed series. Arlen played the title role, here assigned by the army to quell an Indian attack on the powerless settlers. The Indians are accusing Tom Russell (John Dexter) of murdering a member of the tribe, an act, as Buffalo Bill discovers, actually committed by a gang of outlaws hired by investment company owner J.B. Jordon (Frank O'Connor). Buffalo Bill Rides Again was soundly defeated by a low budget and slipshod direction by the veteran Bernard B. Ray. Popular B-Western villain Ted Adams disappeared mysteriously halfway through the film, only to be replaced by Edmund Cobb. Jennifer Holt, the daughter of Arlen contemporary Jack Holt and by far the busiest B-Western heroine of the 1940s, had little to do other than letting herself be kidnapped by evil Gil Patric. Arlen, whose career dated back to the silent era, was perhaps a mite too old and stout by 1946 when this film was produced to become an acceptable B-Western hero. No further Buffalo Bill Westerns were produced by Schwartz. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi

When a common man pretends to be wealthy, hordes of desperate gold-diggers flock to win his affections. Before long, the deceiver is engaged to three women and must struggle to keep his fiancée from finding out about the ruse. Of course it doesn't take long for the truth to get out, and the scheming lothario to get his due. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Fools of Desire is a tacky but entertaining "exploitationer", originally filmed in 1938 or thereabouts as It's All in Your Mind. In his only starring film role, Byron Foulger plays milquetoast Wilbur Crane, driven from his home and hearth by his battleaxe wife Martha (Betty Roadman). Desperate to prove his manhood, Wilbur has a one-night affair with brassy blonde Dorothy (Constance Bergen). Alas, our hero has fallen victim to a shakedown scheme, cooked up by Dorothy and her sleazy blackmailer boyfriend Danny (Lynton Brent). Considered pretty racy stuff back in 1941, Fools of Desire is about as sexy as a pair of gym shoes when seen today; its sole redeeming factor is the virtuoso performance of Byron Foulger, one of Hollywood's most reliable character actors. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Dangerous Lady is yet another variation on the "Thin Man" formula, courtesy this time from bargain-basement PRC Pictures. Neil Hamilton and June Storey star as private detective Duke Martindel and his lawyer wife Phyllis. Putting their heads together (which they seem to enjoy doing), Duke and Phyllis try to save Hester Engel (Evelyn Brent), the "dangerous lady" of the title who has been falsely accused of murder. Police detective Brent (Douglas Fowley) would prefer that the Martindels mind their own business, but even he has to admit that they're quicker on the clue-gathering and suspect-fingering than he is. Far better written than most PRC productions, Dangerous Lady is enhanced by Clarence Wheeler's sprightly musical score. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In all aspects a mediocre B-Western, Smoky Trails once again trotted out the old story of a young man pretending to join a gang of outlaws in order to find the villain that killed his father. Bob Steele had played the role many times before but usually under better conditions. Smoky Trails was the second of eight Steele Westerns produced by Gower Gulch company Metropolitan Pictures Corp., which was actually Harry S. Webb and Bernard B. Ray's old Reliable Pictures under a new moniker. Jean Carmen, a 1934 WAMPAS Baby Star who had starred as Julia Thayer in the serial The Painted Stallion, played Steele's leading lady, veteran comic Jimmy Aubrey supplied a bit of low-brow humor and Carleton Young essayed the killer. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi

As directed by Bernard B. Ray, this 1938 programmer concerns Queenie, a German shepherd who routinely kills foxes and steals them from fur ranches. Her unsavory owners, Brad and Pete, have trained her for the task and hope to make an enormous profit from the fox pelts. This doesn't sit so well, however, with Agent Dan Howard and his canine partner, Rin Tin Tin. The two begin to investigate, but run headfirst into trouble when Rin gets mistaken for Queenie and marked for death. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi

Filmed in rapid succession over an 18-month period, the 19 Tom Tyler westerns for Reliable Productions tend to look alike at times. Riding On is typical Tyler, with our hero returning home to find his father embroiled in a deadly frontier feud over water rights. A "Romeo and Juliet" angle is established when Tom Roarke (Tyler) falls in love with Gloria O'Neill (Geraine Greer), the daughter of his father's bitter enemy. Not surprisingly, the range war is being fomented by a third party who hopes to move in and pick up the pieces when the Roarkes and the O'Neills kill each other off. The haste with which Riding On was slapped together is indicated in the gunfight scenes, with poorly aimed bullets picking off their targets with astonishing accuracy. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Released to stony silence in February of 1937, this film was an atrocious musical western starring former silent screen cowboy Bob Custer. Custer played Santa Fe Evans, who -- with the cowboys of the Lazy D. Ranch -- auditions for a country radio show. Santa Fe's herd of cattle had been wiped out in a drought and the rancher plans to refurbish his stock from his prospected radio earnings. When Santa Fe's fiancée, Carol (Eleanor Stewart), learns that her younger brother (David Sharpe) is arrested for cattle theft, she blames Santa Fe. Excited over the rancher's vocal talents, the radio station follows Santa Fe as he sets out to clear Buddy's name. Along with "The Singing Cowboys" (Lloyd Perryman, Curley Hoag, and Rudy Sooter), Santa Fe warbles "Radio Gang Song" and "Travellin' Along", but takes time out to clear Buddy's name and catch the real rustler, Carver (Roger Williams). Hardly in a league with Gene Autry, Roy Rogers et al., Custer never made it as a singing cowboy; in fact, Santa Fe Rides was his final film. Ballyhooed as containing "bronzed sons of the West in a series of pulse-quickening adventures," this little horse opera was released by poverty row company Reliable Pictures Corp. The film was so bad that director Harry S. Webb felt forced to hide behind the pseudonym "Raymond Samuels." ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi

Caryl is played by Lois Wilde, but despite her title-character status Ms. Wilde is third-billed behind a pair of "juniors." Doggy star Rin Tin Tin Jr. and human hero Francis X. Bushman Jr. handle all the rough stuff, while Caryl alternates between waiting patiently and requiring rescue. Rinty Jr. is the sidekick of Mountie Bushman Jr.; together they get their man (Robert Walker) after five reels of rugged adventure. The original story is credited to Northwoods specialist James Oliver Curwood, though chances are that he merely collected the royalties and ran. Caryl of the Mountains was released by a production firm called Reliable, which usually wasn't. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Now-forgotten actress Betty Compson largely made her mark in silent pictures, but like many performers of the era, found it extremely difficult to "cross over" into talkies. She shot a screen test for Gone with the Wind (1939), for example (auditioning for the role of Belle Watling) but Selznick turned her down; this was only one of many such examples. Consequently, Compton spent her final years in a period of decline, turning up in many B and C-grade outings. This 1936 picture was one such effort. It concerns a wealthy young man named Tommy Neville (Bradley Metcalfe) who turns to a hard and desperate life of crime following his parents' divorce, in an effort to stay out of a marital quarrel and avoid hurting either his dad or his mom. Compson co-stars as Gloria Neville. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi

Bottom-of-the-barrel Western filmmaking on all fronts -- save perhaps hero Tom Tyler's usual competent performance and a restrained sidekick turn by Al St. John -- Pinto Rustlers was directed by Reliable producer Harry S. Webb under the pseudonym of Henri Samuels. Tyler plays Tom Evans, a young cowboy seeking to avenge the murder of his father by a notorious gang of rustlers. Badgering police inspector William Gould into deputizing him, Evans goes undercover as Tom Dawson, a wanted outlaw, and is quickly invited to join the rustlers. The gang is headed by Nick Furnicky (George Walsh), a bandit sporting an indeterminate accent, but the film's real villain is Bud Walton (Earl Dwire), the crooked head of the local cattlemen's association, who has his brother (Murdock MacQuarrie) kidnapped in an attempt to prevent the disclosure of his own dirty deeds. Badly directed, atrociously acted by a cast of veterans that should have known better, and featuring some of the weakest fight scenes in B-Western history, Pinto Rustlers only comes to life at the very end when the gang leader quite literally has the rug pulled from under him. Sadly, this meandering Western marked a rather less than glorious ending to the career of George Walsh, the brother of director Raoul Walsh and a major Fox star in the 1920s. Walsh, who had always traded on physique rather than acting capabilities, had become quite heavy by 1936 and could only find employment in Gower Gulch. Following Pinto Rustlers and Rio Grande Romance (which, despite the title, was a crook melodrama), even those offers dried up. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi