Small House of Everything

Small House of Everything

Tuesday, February 3, 2015

OVERLOOKED FILM: THE RANGE FEUD (1931)

The Range Feud was John Wayne's first big western success but he had to play second lead to cowboy star Buck Jones.  The year before, after three years of uncredited roles, Wayne had starred in Raoul Walsh's The Big Trail, which was a success.  (Walsh, BTW, was the one who changed the star's name from Marion Morrison to John Wayne for that flick.)

Clint Turner (Wayne) and John Walton (Ed Le Saint, The Lemon Drop Kid, Destry Rides Again) are feuding ranchers, each accusing the other of cattle rustling.  After Walton is found dead, Turner is arrested.  Turner's best friend, Sheriff Buck Gordon (Jones) has to find the real murderer before Turner's scheduled hanging.  Susan Fleming (Million Dollar Legs, He Learned About Women, and soon to become Mrs. Harpo Marx) plays the love interest as Judy Walton, the dead rancher's daughter.  Our old friend Glen Strange has an uncredited role as Cowhand Slim.

Directed by D, Ross Lederman (Texas Cyclone, Tarzan's Revenge), The Range Feud had the story and dialogue credited to Milton Krims (Anthony AdverseConfession of a Nazi Spy, Prince of Foxes) with continuity by George Plympton (who has over 300 writing credits from 1912 to 1966 at IMDb).  Not credited was the popular western writer W. C. Tuttle, from whose story "The Red Head from Sun Dog" this film was based; when the movie was remade in 1934 as The Red Rider (also starring Buck Jones, but with John Wayne's renamed character played by Grant Withers) Tuttle received story credit.

Enjoy.

https://archive.org/details/TheRangeFeud1931-BuckJonesAndJohnWayne

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