MOVIE REVIEWS – SILENT WESTERNS FROM GRAPEVINE VIDEO
THE BETTER MAN WINS
Brothers Jack and Jason Hardy run Grapevine Video, and their mission is to track down rarely seen silent films of all genres, and make them available to the public. Their prices are unusually reasonable: I haven’t noticed anything higher than $16.95, fifteen is more common, and quite a number are under ten dollars.
Among their Westerns is THE BETTER MAN WINS (1922), starring the largely forgotten but once very popular rodeo-star-turned-actor Pete Morrison, who played the lead in numerous Westerns for Universal and Triangle, but whose career died with the coming of sound. From 1929 on, he played unnamed barflies and cowhands, and retired from the screen in 1935, at the age of 45. Not traditionally handsome, he had a strong, unusual character face, and was expressive without being flamboyant.
Just as we have ‘modern-day Westerns’ today, they had them in the past as well, which makes THE BETTER MAN WINS unusual as sort of a double-period film, reflecting both the old west and the start of the Roaring Twenties, seen from a rural, and disapproving, perspective. Pete is the cowhand in love with Dorothy Wood, the little blonde girl who is trying desperately to save her ailing father, and his ailing farm. When bad men rustle their cattle, and Dorothy, trying to stop them, falls within their grasp, Pete must save her, and if the story sounds melodramatic, the performances are not: Dorothy’s attempt to reload her gun while backing away seems fresh and unfamiliar, and the bad men seem all the more dangerous for not being caricatures. The action is rough and exciting and convincing.
Then unexpectedly, from the big city, a wayward town-car loses control and tumbles down a hill and onto Dorothy’s farm. The chauffeur, and the male passenger Dick Murray, are thrown clear, but Grace Parker is wedged under the car and must be rescued. In a predicament reminiscent of the much later Kaufmann and Hart comedy, THE MAN WHO CAME DINNER, a doctor announces that Grace cannot be moved for six weeks, until her broken leg mends.
There’s no doubt that this is a sophisticated, but dissipated couple – a title informs us that they made their money before the 18th Amendment! Pete wants them out of there, but the kind Dorothy won’t hear of it. And in a story that reflects a much less morally predictable time than the 1930s, the invading pair, each for their own interests, attempt to corrupt Pete and Dorothy, neither of whom are above being seduced!
I won’t give away more of the story, except to say that much of it takes place in the speakeasies of the big bad city, and it’s always engaging and frequently exciting – and not overly neat. I found this film very enjoyable, and while it may be typical of films of the period, it is decidedly not typical of the silent films that have survived.
The quality of the print is stunning – while silent movies were originally very crisp looking, we’ve gotten so used to seeing worn and scratched copies of copies of copies that the unexpected clarity of image is a delight. The music score by Lou McMahoncaptures the moods effectively. And at the end there’s a very funny Koko The Clown cartoon, JUMPING BEANS which, being from 1922 also, you might very well have seen at the original release. It sells for $14.95.
TOM MIX IN ‘SKY HIGH’
Another Western from 1922, and another ‘Modern Day Western’, SKY HIGH features box office champ Tom Mix at his exuberant best as a Border Patrol officer, keeping our borders safe from Chinese laborers being smuggled in from Mexico. Not even slightly politically correct, this film was made in the middle of the Chinese Exclusion Act, signed by President Chester A. Arthur in 1882 to halt Chinese immigration for ten years, but kept in effect until 1943.
Mix goes undercover, infiltrating the gang that plans to smuggle a hundred ‘pigtails’ into the States through The Grand Canyon, and the often breathtaking location shooting in the Canyon and along the Colorado River is among the most appealing aspects of the film, along with Mix’s charm, riding skills, and a wild airplane stunt in the Canyon.
The romantic interest is lovely Eva Novak who, starting out as a Mack Sennett bathing beauty, costarred ten times with Mix, who taught her to do her own stunts along the way. Unfortunately for her career, she married stuntman William Reed, who insisted she stop risking her life. Her career never recovered, but she continued doing bits for many years. John Ford must have liked her; he used her in FOUR GODFATHERS (1948), SERGEANT RUTLEDGE (1960) and THE MAN WHO SHOT LIBERTY VALANCE (1962). She made her last appearance in a 1966 episode of LAREDO
Not nearly as serious as THE BETTER MAN WINS, SKY HIGH is exciting, good-natured and sometimes silly fun. The only downside is the quality of the print it is taken from, presumably the best that survives. All too often, with stars of Mix’s level of popularity, the films were copied endlessly, and this print is so many steps from the original negative that for much of the film the four corners of the frame are in black, making the image a very high-contrast oval. At times the Grand Canyon is washed out, although much of the time it looks spectacular. The score is by Jack Hardy.
Also included is AN ARIZONA WOOING, another Mix film set in Arizona BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN
SUNSET CARSON
I am indebted for this information to Chuck Anderson, whose The Old Corral website is the ultimate source and authority on all B-western matters. Sunset Carson
He was also paired with the already very popular Smiley Burnette – it’s the only time I know of where the sidekick was billed above the star! But he learned, and was a very likeable, down-to-Earth guy. He began putting his movies out on video in the 1980s, and they were a great success. He began to prepare to do a syndicated TV series with Jerry Whittington. Then, at the age of 70, a visit to Reno
In preparation for the series that would never happen, Sunset began interviewing Western costars and friends, and Jerry has now put these interviews, most circa 1982 and shot at Movieland Frontier Town in Colton , California
SPERDVAC LUNCHEON NOVEMBER 5TH AT THE BEVERLY GARLAND
SPERDVAC, the Society to Preserve and Encourage Radio Drama, Variety and Comedy, will hold their 2nd Annual Honorary Member Appreciation Luncheon from noon until 4:00 pm, at Beverly Garland’s Holiday Inn, 4222 Vineland Avenue , North Hollywood , CA
Four half-hour radio shows will be performed. Norman Corwin’s My Client Curly, starring Tommy Cook (who guest starred in the original broadcast), directed by Michael James Kacey. [Norman Corwin is expected to attend.] Tommy Cook was the very first Little Beaver in the RED RYDER Republic
‘NATIONAL DAY OF THE COWBOY’ FUNDRAISER:
On Saturday, October 22nd, the National Day of the Cowboy organization will hold a ‘Hats Off To Cowboys’ benefit to continue the work of making the Day of the Cowboy a reality nationally. The event will take place in Black Canyon City , Arizona
THE AUTRY NATIONAL CENTER
Built by cowboy actor, singer, baseball and TV entrepeneur Gene Autry, and designed by the Disney Imagineering team, the Autry is a world-class museum housing a fascinating collection of items related to the fact, fiction, film, history and art of the American West. In addition to their permenant galleries (to which new items are frequently added), they have temporary shows. The Autry has many special programs every week -- sometimes several in a day. To check their daily calendar, CLICK HERE. And they always have gold panning for kids every weekend. For directions, hours, admission prices, and all other information, CLICK HERE.
HOLLYWOOD HERITAGE MUSEUM
Across the street from the Hollywood Bowl, this building, once the headquarters of Lasky-Famous Players (later Paramount Pictures) was the original DeMille Barn, where Cecil B. DeMille made the first Hollywood western, The Squaw Man. They have a permanent display of movie props, documents and other items related to early, especially silent, film production. They also have occasional special programs. 2100 Highland Ave., L.A. CA 323-874-2276. Thursday – Sunday 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. $5 for adults, $3 for senior, $1 for children.
WELLS FARGO HISTORY MUSEUM
This small but entertaining museum gives a detailed history of Wells Fargo when the name suggested stage-coaches rather than ATMS. There’s a historically accurate reproduction of an agent’s office, an original Concord Coach, and other historical displays. Open Monday through Friday, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. Admission is free. 213-253-7166. 333 S. Grand Street, L.A. CA.
FREE WESTERNS ON YOUR COMPUTER AT HULU
A staggering number of western TV episodes and movies are available, entirely free, for viewing on your computer at HULU. You do have to sit through the commercials, but that seems like a small price to pay. The series available -- often several entire seasons to choose from -- include THE RIFLEMAN, THE CISCO KID, THE LONE RANGER, BAT MASTERSON, THE BIG VALLEY, ALIAS SMITH AND JONES, and one I missed from 2003 called PEACEMAKERS starring Tom Berenger. Because they are linked up with the TV LAND website, you can also see BONANZA and GUNSMOKE episodes, but only the ones that are running on the network that week.
The features include a dozen Zane Grey adaptations, and many or most of the others are public domain features. To visit HULU on their western page, CLICK HERE.
BONANZA, GUNSMOKE and BIG VALLEY
Every weekday, TV LAND airs a three-hour block of BONANZA episodes from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. They run a GUNSMOKE Monday through Thursday at 10:00 a.m., and on Friday they show two, from 6:00 to 8:00 a.m.. They're not currently running either series on weekends, but that could change at any time. INSP is showing THE BIG VALLEY every weekday at noon, one p.m. and nine p.m., and Saturdays at 6 p.m.. They'll soon be adding DR. QUINN, MEDICINE WOMAN to the mix.
NEED YOUR BLACK & WHITE TV FIX?
Check out your cable system for WHT, which stands for World Harvest Television. It's a religious network that runs a lot of good western programming. Your times may vary, depending on where you live, but weekdays in Los Angeles they run DANIEL BOONE at 1:00 p.m., and two episodes of THE RIFLEMAN from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m.. On Saturdays at 2:00 p.m. it's THE RIFLEMAN again, followed at 2:30 by BAT MASTERSON. And unlike many stations in the re-run business, they run the shows in the original airing order. There's an afternoon movie on weekdays at noon, often a western, and they show western films on the weekend, but the schedule is sporadic.
AMC has been airing a block of THE RIFLEMAN episodes early Saturday mornings, usually followed by Western features.
And RFD-TV is currently showing THE ROY ROGERS SHOW at 9:30 Sunday morning, repeated several times a week, and a Roy feature as well -- check your local listings.
That’s all for now! Next week I’ll have coverage of the 14th Annual Silver Spur Awards!
Happy Trails,
Henry
All original content copyright October 2011 by Henry C. Parke – All Rights Reserved