"The King of B-Westerns & Serials...VCI Entertainment ~ Legendary Outlaws Vol. 3"
Added 6/18/2006
VCI Entertainment presents "Legendary Outlaws, Vol. 3" (Dalton Gang (1949) / I Shot Billy the Kid) (1950) --- (Dolby digitally remastered)....relive those thrilling days from the early '30s, '40s and '50s when western action took us down the dusty trails and the plains to exciting adventures....some of the best B-Westerns ever to grace the Saturday Matinee Screen...just remember double thrills, chills, mystery and suspense...hitting the bull's eye with excitement...don't miss any of the features loaded with top notch directors and actors that will leave you wanting more of their B-Western adventures, so pop some popcorn, sit back and enjoy the movie.
First up we have "The Dalton Gang" (1949) (58 min - B/W)...under director and screenwriter Ford I. Beebe, producer Ron Ormond, music score by Walter Greene...the cast includes Don 'Red' Barry (Larry West, alias Rusty Stevens), Robert Lowery (Blackie Mullet), James Millican (Sheriff Jeb Marvin), Greg McClure (Missouri Ganz), Julie Adams (Polly Medford ), Byron Foulger (Editor Amos Boling), J. Farrell MacDonald (Judge Price), George J. Lewis (Chief Irahu), Ray Bennett (J. J. Gorman), Marshall Reed (Substitite Marshal Joe), Cliff Taylor (Doctor), Cactus Mack (Stage Driver Ed) ----- our story brings two actors Don "Red" Barry and Robert Lowery who would work together on varous oaters during the '50s with Barry's production team...appearance by Betty Adams who would later change her name to Julie Adams and have a long career with Universal Pictures...what would a B-Western be without George J. Lewis, who this time plays a Chief of a friendly Indian tribe...plot is good with plenty of action from our hero Barry ----- special footnote actor Don "Red" Barry was a college football star, went into acting on the stage then to Hollywood, played various henchmen and villains then got a big break as Red Ryder in the Republic Pictures serial "Adventures of Red Ryder" (1940). Although he had appeared in westerns for two years or so, this was the one that would keep him there. He would acquire the nickname "Red" from his association with the Red Ryder character. After the success of "Red Ryder" Barry starred in a string of westerns for Republic, "The Tulsa Kid" (1940), "Frontier Vengeance" (1940), "Texas Terrors" (1940), "The Phantom Cowboy" (1941), "The Apache Kid" (1941), "Arizona Terrors" (1942), "The Sombrero Kid" (1942), "Carson City Cyclone" (1943), Studio chief Herbert J. Yates got the idea that Barry could be Republic's version of James Cagney, as he was short and had the same scrappy, feisty nature that Cagney had, Barry could in fact be a good actor when he wanted to be--as he showed in the WW II drama "The Purple Heart" (1944), then came "I Shot Billy the Kid" (1950), "Jesse James' Women" (1954), "I'll Cry Tomorrow" (1955)...appeared in over 225 films and various television series right up until his death in 1980 ----- another great B-Western under the Lippert Pictures banner.
BIOS:
1. Don Barry (aka: Donald Barry De Acosta)
Birth Date: 1/11/1912 - Houston Texas
Died: 7/17/1980 - Hollywood, California
2. Robert Lowery (aka: Robert Larkin Hanks)
Birth Date: 10/17/1913 - Kansas City, Missouri
Died: 12/26/1971 - Hollywood, California
3. Ford I. Beebe (Director)
Birth Date: 11/26/1888 - Grand Rapids, Michigan
Died: 11/26/1978 - Lake Elsinore, California
BONUS FEATURES:
1. Photo Gallery
2. Trailers for "Stranger on Horseback" (1955), featuring Joel McCrea, Miroslava Stern, Kevin McCarthy, John McIntire, Nancy Gates and John Carradine.
Second on the double bill is a "I Shot Billy the Kid" (1950) (57 min. B/W)....under director/producer William A. Berke, screenplay by Orville H. Hampton, musical score by Albert Glasser ....the cast includes Don 'Red' Barry (Billy the Kid), Robert Lowery (Sheriff Pat Garrett), Wally Vernon (Vicenti), Tom Neal (Charley Bowdry), Judith Allen (Mrs. McSween), Wendy Lee (Francesca), Claude Stroud (General Lew Wallace), John Merton (Deputy Ollinger), Henry Marco (Juan), Bill Kennedy (Deputy Poe), Archie Twitchell (President U.S. Grant), Jack Perrin (Deputy), Richard Farmer (McSween), Felice Richmond (Mexican Girl), Jack Geddes (Sheriff), Tom Monroe (Maxwell) ----- our story has another gathering of the Lippert Studio family with Lowery as Pat Garrett and Barry as Billy, who have this friendship that is prevalent throughout the film...a favorite actor of B-Westerns is John Merton who is ready to blow Barry away for killing his brother, great scene from two veteran actors of that era and genre ----- special footnote actor Robert Lowery was signed to Fox in 1938, and rapidly appeared in such first-class films as "Drums Along the Mohawk" (1939), appeared in such films as "Charlie Chan on Broadway" (1937), "Mr. Moto in Danger Island" (1939), "Charlie Chan in Reno" (1939), "Charlie Chan's Murder Cruise" (1940), "The Mark of Zorro" (1940), "Tarzan's Desert Mystery" (1943), "The Mummy's Ghost" (1944), "Big Town" (1947), "Batman and Robin" (1949) in the Columbia Serial as Batman/Bruce Wayne was a big break for Lowery, "McLintock!" (1963), "The Ballad of Josie" (1967) was his last film, also appeared in several major theater productions, such as "Caine Mutiny" and in "Born Yesterday", Mr. Lowery enjoyed a long film and stage career until well into the 1960s, at which time he started a second career with Jackie Coogan in a celebrity travel cruise business. Notable was his appearance with Ray Danton in "The Rise and Fall of Legs Diamond" (1961) ----- there's a great deal of entertainment here for all the film noir fans out there...all courtesy of VCI Entertainment, who in my humble opinion is the best there is in restoring early serials and features like this one.
BIOS:
1. Wally Vernon
Birth Date: 5/27/1905 - New York, New York
Died: 3/07/1970 - Van Nuys, California
2. William A. Berke (Director)
Birth Date: 10/03/1903 - Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Died: 2/15/1958 - Los Angeles, California
Own this and others now on DVD....if you crave action, drama and plenty of adventure then this is the place for all of the above...if you enjoyed this collection check out two other releases from VCI Entertainment presents "Legendary Outlaws, Vol. 1", "The Great Jesse James Raid" (1953), featuring Willard Parker, Barbara Payton, Tom Neal, Wallace Ford, Jim Bannon, Barbara Woodell and Richard Cutting and on the second bill "Renegade Girl " (1946) featuring Ann Savage, Alan Curtis, Edward Brophy, Russell Wade, Jack Holt, Claudia Drake, Ray Corrigan, Chief Thunder Cloud...the story lines are excellent with outstanding action scenes and production with over an hours worth of entertainment
Great job by VCI Entertainment for releasing "Legendary Outlaws, Vol. 3" (Dalton Gang (1949) / I Shot Billy the Kid) (1950), digital transfere with a clean, clear and crisp print...looking forward to more of the same from the '40s and '50s vintage...order your copy now from Amazon or VCI Entertainment, stay tuned once again with riding the range with B-Westerns that only VCI Entertainment (King of the Serials) can deliver...just the way we like 'em!
Total Time: 115 mins on DVD ~ VCIV546DVD ~ (5/30/2006)
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