50s Westerns Blu-ray News #178: The Wonderful Country (1959).

Directed by Robert Parrish
Starring Robert Mitchhum, Julie London, Gary Merrill, Albert Dekker, Charles McGraw, Jack Oakie, Leroy ‘Satchel’ Paige, Anthony Caruso

It’s great to see Robert Mitchum’s independent, self-produced pictures — some of his best work, in my opinion — making their way to Blu-ray. First, Thunder Road (1958) just came out from Shout Factory. And now, Kino Lorber has announced The Wonderful Country (1959) for Blu-ray release in September. Based on Tom Lea’s novel, this is an unusual Western, to say the least (just look at that cast), and a really terrific movie.

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50s Westerns DVD News #177A: A Big Week For Warner Archive.

A while back I listed a batch of 50s Westerns on the way from Warner Archive. At that time, the actual release dates weren’t known — it was just April. Well, now we know it’s this coming Tuesday, April 21. Gonna be a busy week.

The Hired Gun (1957)
Directed by Ray Nazarro
Starring Rory Calhoun, Anne Francis, Vince Edwards, Chuck Connors

Black Patch (1957)
Directed by Allen H. Miner
Starring George Montgomery, Diane Brewster, Tom Pittman, Leo Gordon

Arrow In The Dust (1954)
Directed by Lesley Selander
Starring Sterling Hayden, Coleen Gray (above with the titular arrow and dust), Jimmy Wakely, Lee Van Cleef

The Marauders (1955)
Directed by Gerald Mayer
Starring Dan Duryea, Jeff Richards, Keenan Wynn

Son Of Belle Starr (1953)
Directed by Frank McDonald
Starring Keith Larsen, Dona Drake, Peggie Castle, Regis Toomey

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Pony Express (1953).

Google is commemorating the 155th anniversary of the Pony Express with a nifty little snatch-the-mail-sacks-without-running-into-a-rock-or-a-cactus-or-an-outlaw video game and some links about the short-lived mail service. (Judging from this game, my daughter’d make a lot better Pony Express rider than I would.)

Nat Holt and Paramount beat Google to the punch by 62 years with Pony Express (1953), a cool Western with history re-written by Charles Marquis Warren. It stars Charlton Heston (as Buffalo Bill, who really rode for the Pony Express), Rhonda Fleming, Jan Sterling and Forrest Tucker (as Wild Bill Hickock). To get the mail through, Heston and Tucker have to contend with weather, Indians, outlaws and both Rhonda Fleming and Jan Sterling taking baths. The action scenes are really well done. Olive Films brought it out on DVD back in 2011.

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Joe Kane.

John Knight mentioned the great Republic director Joe Kane in a comment this morning, and this photo came to mind. Here, Joe’s visiting Roy Rogers on the set of his TV show.

From the mid-30s till the studio’s demise, Kane was a house director at Republic Pictures. He made a slew of Gene Autry and Roy Rogers movies, and produced and directed Republic’s larger-scale films such as Jubilee Trail (1954) and The Maverick Queen (1956). Sadly, his later films are almost impossible to see today, especially if you’re a stickler for things like 1.85 or Naturama.

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RIP, James Best.

James Best (Jewel Franklin Guy)
(July 26, 1926 – April 6, 2015)

James Best, whose early career was filled with 50s Westerns, has passed away. His career in features and television was a long one. He’s seen here with Randolph Scott in Budd Boetticher’s Ride Lonesome (1959) — just one of the many 50s Westerns Best appeared in. His autobiography Best in Hollywood: The Good, The Bad and the Beautiful has lots of great stories about making those films and is worth seeking out.

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Play Ball!

This is one of my favorite photos to ever appear on this blog. And I look forward to the beginning of baseball season — not just because baseball’s back, but because I get another chance to post this image of John Ford, his Dodgers cap and Monument Valley.

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TCM Alert: Spend Next Thursday With Lesley Selander.

Next Thursday, April 9, Turner Classic Movies (TCM) will highlight director Lesley Selander by running nine of his films, three of them part of RKO’s excellent series of B Westerns starring Tim Holt (Gunplay is a very good one).

Arrow In The Dust (1954) stars Sterling Hayden and Coleen Gray. Tall Man Riding (1955) is a solid Randolph Scott picture. And The Lone Ranger And The Lost City Of Gold (1958) is the second TV spinoff feature to star Clayton Moore and Jay Silverheels.

I’m a big fan of Lesley Selander. When it comes to action, he’s one of the best. It’s good to see him get this kind of attention. His films are short, smart, fast — and highly recommended.

The times listed are Eastern Standard Time. This is a “restoration” of a shorter post. Thanks to Blake for pointing out all I’d missed.

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