Red Ryder Western Double Feature Vol 7 [DVD]

From the 30s to the early 50s, a number of Hollywood studios turned out hour-long "B" westerns for kids going to Saturday matinee shows at the local theatre. No studio was more active than Republic Pictures, and adapting comic strip hero, Red Ryder, and his young Native American sidekick, Little Beaver, for the silver screen was inevitable.During the 40s, four actors played Red Ryder, at different times--Donald "Red" Barry ( only in the serial ), Allan Lane, William "Wild Bill" Elliott and Jim Bannon.For this fan at least, Elliott was the best. In fairness, Allan Lane soon made another series for Republic as "Rocky" Lane which was terrific. While he did not resemble the comic-book character, Wild Bill seemed a natural as Red Ryder--he was an excellent horseman, fine in action scenes, tough when necessary, humourous on occasion and had a good rapport with Little Beaver, played by Bobby Blake. Yes indeed--Bobby did grow up to be actor Robert Blake !By the way, "I'm a peaceable man" was Elliott's catch-phrase--usually just before some bad guy got pounded all over a saloon !These movies were tightly-plotted, well-acted by Republic's stable of contract players, and provided audiences with plenty of high-speed, hard-hitting, cliff-hanging action. The two Red Ryder features on this disc ( Volume 7 ) were made in 1945, and are :--Great Stagecoach Robbery. An old outlaw ( Francis MacDonald ) is released from jail after serving five years for robbery. Wanting to "go straight", he wishes to return the stolen money to the rightful owners, but his old gang-mates have much less honourable ideas. To increase the pressure on the old man, they have recruited his hot-headed son ( John James ) to help them. The irony here is that the one man who can help him is the man who sent him to jail in the first place--Red Ryder.Phantom of the Plains. Red and Beaver arrive in town to find that Red's aunt--the Duchess ( series regular Alice Fleming )--has been swept off her feet by an "English lord", and is planning to marry him and run off to his castle in England. Of course, she is selling her possessions so that she can take all her money to enjoy life "at court" in London. Red soon realises that this "lord" ( Ian Keith, in a wonderful, hammy, evil performance )is a phony, as is his "French maid" ( Virginia Christine ). Two local thugs ( William Haade and Bud Geary ) soon recognize his "lordship" as "Fancy Charlie",an American confidence trickster, who likes to "carve up widows for their dough"--they want a "slice of the pie". The Duchess will not listen to Red's suspicions, and, of course, he and Little Beaver have to come to the rescue. The second half of "Phantom" is one of the most exciting in the history of "B" westerns.Considering the price, I found the quality of the full-screen, black and white image, to be lacking--there are a lot of "speckles", a few scene jumps and general wear and tear. The films are still very watchable though.Notwithstanding the picture quality, the Red Ryder movies with Bill Elliott were among the most entertaining "B" westerns ever produced. He made 16 in all. If you are nostalgic for a time when children's films were innocent fun, but still created a lot of excitement, saddle up with Red and Little Beaver--I think you'll enjoy the ride !

Arrived as promised. Good quality film.

Great movies for people who are old enough to remember and enjoy these great films, they don't make them any more!

when I ordered it I thought it was in color...

There is no doubt in anyone's mind that Gordon Elliott (6/15/1903-11/26/1965) from Pattonsburg, Mo, later known at William "Wild Bill" Elliott (the Peaceable Man) was the best Red Ryder on the big screen...Elliott got the name of "Wild Bill" after starring in a Columbia serial "The Great Adventurers of Wild Bill Hickok" back in 1938, went on to make a multitude of westerns during the '40s and '50s...it was then Republic Studios was looking for a star to be featured in Fred Harman's Red Ryder comic strip series coming alive and on the big screen...it's no small wonder that William Elliott's name was at the top of the list...working with the top directors of the day Howard P. Bretherton, Spencer Gordon Bennett, Joseph Kane, Wallace A. Grissell, Leslie Selander and R.G. Springsteen all under Republic Pictures banner.First up is "GREAT STAGECOACH ROBBERY" (1945-B&W-56 mins), featuring William Elliott as Red Ryder, Bobby Blake as Little Beaver, Alice Fleming as the Duchess (Reds Aunt), Don Costello (Jed Quinlan-the villain...boo & hiss), Francis McDonald (Con Hollister), John James (Billy Hollister), Sylvia Arslan (Boots Hollister)...Hollister decides to return the $150,000 stolen in a stagecoach holdup previously...Jed Quinlan is the gang leader and enlists Con's hot headed young son, Billy (John James), to rob the incoming stage...Ryder comes upon the holdup and Con Hollister recognizes his son as one of the outlaws...'Boots' Hollister, Con's little girl is shot and killed by Quinlan...Con suspects Red of the dastardly deed...time for Red and his horse Thunder to go into action.Second on this double bill is "PHANTOM OF THE PLAINS" (1945-B&W-56 mins), as Red Ryder (William "Wild Bill" Elliott) and Little Beaver (Bobby Blake) return to Blue Springs as the Duchess (Alice Fleming), is going to sell her stagecoach line and marry Fancy Charlie who is posing as an English gentleman Talbot Champneys (Ian Keith), a plot of marrying rich women and doing away with them for their fortune... Red becomes suspicious and it's up to him and Little Beaver to save the day...director Leslie Selander takes several turns in this delightful story, all of which involve the stuntwork of Republic's best in the business.Special Features are a photo gallery, B-Western Promo, Adventures of Red Ryder Serial Chapters #3 & 4, Actor Bios on Wild Bill Elliott and Bobby Blake, Rocky Allan Lane Promo on his Red Ryder Double Features...the bonus features are a plus for any Western collection that is worth it's salt.RED RYDER SERIES:1. Marshal of Reno (1944)2. The San Antonio Kid (1944)3. Vigilantes of Dodge City (1944)4. Sheriff of Las Vegas (1944)5. Great Stagecoach Robbery (1945)6. The Lone Texas Ranger (1945)7. Marshal of Laredo (1945)8. Sheriff of Redwood Valley (1946)9. Sun Valley Cyclone (1946)10.Stagecoach to Denver (1946)11.Vigilantes of Boomtown (1947)12.Homesteaders of Paradise Valley (1947)13.Rustlers of Devil's Canyon (1947)14.Marshal of Cripple Creek (1947)15.Ride, Ryder, Ride! (1949)16.Roll, Thunder, Roll! (1949)17.The Fighting Redhead (1949)18.Cowboy and the Prizefighter (1949)If you enjoyed this volume the next volumes will have you roped and hog-tied...the Red Ryder Double Feature Series is a must have for all of us who grew up riding the trails with Fred Harman's newspaper comic strip character which was popular during 1936 to 1964...at that time I discovered Dell Comics and the stories and artwork of Harman's hero Red Ryder...now on DVD we can relive those early days when Red Ryder, Little Beaver and the Duchess made the west a safe place live...B-Westerns reigned for all the little cowboys and girls who made a trip to the local theater to watch their favorite hero Red Ryder!Total Time: 116 mins ~ VCI/Entertainment 8408 ~ (12/28/2004)

The double feature is great, like getting something extra for the same price. I'm happy that most of the viewers are on the same page.

I Iiked this very much.