Rex the Wonder Horse Movies

Columbia's King of the Wild Horses is a remake of the silent Hal Roach western feature of the same name -- and with the same "star," Rex the Wonder Horse, in the lead. Most of the story involves the romantic triangle between rogue stallion Rex, the gorgeous mare Lady, and villainous black steed Marquis. Red Wolf (William Janney), the film's human hero, manages to tame Rex and earn the horse's undying devotion, but not before bad guy Clint Bolling (Wallace MacDonald) does his best to "break" Rex, in every sense of the word. Future Columbia 2-reel comedy stalwarts Dorothy Appleby and Harry Semels play major roles in this offbeat western. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Universal's infamously obstreperous equine star, Rex the Wonder Horse, earned top-billing over leading man Jack Perrin in this, one of the studio's final silent Westerns. Rex plays the "World's Greatest Trained Horse" and is the star attraction of the Carney Carnival and Road Show. The show's new proprietor, crooked sportsman Martin Trask (Tom London), mistakenly assumes that he has full ownership of not only the horse but also his rider, lovely equestrienne Mademoiselle Estrella (Helen Foster). Rex and Estrella -- who is really an American girl named Margie -- seek shelter with young cowboy Jack Merritt (Perrin). In retaliation, Trask cancels Merritt's mortgage and blackmails Margie to leave with him. The evil showman then attempts to force himself on the girl, but she is rescued in the nick of time by Jack, Rex and Jack's horse Starlight. The Harvest of Hate was helmed by Universal's longtime head of serial and Western production, Henry MacRae. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi

This "Universal Jewel" western was a vehicle for Rex, King of Wild Horses. While sexy Rexy is as impressive as ever, he is obliged to share screen space with a "human" plotline involving hero Hugh Allen and heroine June Marlowe. Rescuing Marlowe from a horse stampede, Allen manages to capture Rex, the king of the equestrian pack. With a little love and a lot of patience, Allen channels Rex's energies to win an important cross-country horse race. Fans of The Little Rascals will recognize June Marlowe as the kids' charming schoolteacher Miss Crabtree. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

A wild stallion becomes the protector of a prospector and his foster daughter in this fine Western adventure produced by comedy specialist Hal Roach. Several members of the Roach "all-star" comics played straight roles this time around, including Oliver Hardy, here appearing scruffy, unshaven, and sporting an eye-patch. Mere months away from being officially teamed with fellow Roach comic Stan Laurel, Hardy plays Sharkey Nye, who -- with his equally unsavory buddy Spider O'Day (Theodore Von Eltz) -- stumbles upon a lonely mining camp lorded over by Rex, King of the Wild Horses. O'Day, "a man too bad to be a good man, but not bad enough to be a bad man," falls for the miner's pretty foster-daughter Toby (Barbara Kent) and quickly abandons all plans to take over the place. Consumed with jealousy, Sharkey challenges his former partner to a chess match for the rights to Toby. O'Day emerges the winner but is shot by Sharkey, who proceeds to ravish Toby. The girl is saved in the nick of time by Rex and the villain finally bites the dust. Recovering from his wounds, O'Day discovers that his love is reciprocated by Toby. Co-directed by Fred Jackman and writer . Richard Jones, No Man's Law endured a torturous location shoot in the blistering Moapa Valley 45 miles northwest of Las Vegas. The original location was to have been the more temperate Lone Pine, California, with Raymond McKee as the good-bad man Spider McKee. At the last moment, the company settled for Moapa and McKee was replaced by Theodore Von Eltz. A mustachioed actor usually associated with playing suave society wolves, Von Eltz filled his unaccustomed role rather well, but the film's real surprise was Oliver Hardy, who made an utterly convincing and downright despicable villain. Much has been made of the intemperate nature of the film's equine star, Rex. Played by a horse named Casey Jones, Rex, according to director Jackman, proved the perfect co-worker, to the point, in fact, where Jackman could wire the home office that "He acts like he was at home and was never so docile and obedient." No Man's Law is equally famous for leading lady Barbara Kent's "nude" swim (she wore a body stocking), often compared to Hedy Lamarr's famous dip in Ecstasy (1933). The script had actually called for nude scenes by both Miss Kent and veteran comic James Finlayson, the latter cast as the old prospector. Happily, Roach was persuaded to excise most of this footage prior to release, but the film still suffered heavy censorship problems in less sophisticated locations. Finlayson and a couple of tired burros supplied rare comedic touches to the otherwise rather grim proceedings; in fact, some reviewers found the film too morbid for comfort and certainly not geared to children, Roach's usual audience. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi

Silent screen cowboy Guinn "Big Boy" Williams and lovely Kathleen Collins (Mrs. Williams in real life) take a back seat to an unusual equine love triangle in this off-beat action thriller. Rex the Wonder Horse is really the film's leading "man," with the mare Lady as the "damsel in distress" and a black horse named "Killer" "acting" the "other man." Comedy producer Hal Roach dabbled in the western genre during the final years of silents, and Black Cyclone was perhaps his finest. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, Rovi

Producer Hal Roach was known for his comic shorts; however, his first foray into the world of features wasn't a comedy, but a Western. Naturally, it wasn't your typical Western -- the star was Rex, the Wonder Horse. Rex is Black, a wild stallion who is the leader of a herd near the Mexican border. Cowboy Billy Blair (Leon Bary) is determined to capture Black, but the horse is too fast and crafty for him. Cowboy and horse ultimately form a common bond during a forest fire as Black is trapped and Blair shows him a way out. Black becomes devoted to Blair. Ranch foreman Wade Galvin (Pat Hartigan) is secretly a horse thief, and he tries to put the blame for his crimes on Blair. With the help of Black, Galvin is rounded up and proven to be the guilty party. Blair wins the love of pretty Mary Fielding (Edna Murphy), and Black is allowed to return to the wild. Hal Roach himself wrote the story to this film. ~ Janiss Garza, Rovi