Ride Clear of Diablo

Last updated

Ride Clear of Diablo
Poster of the movie Ride Clear of Diablo.jpg
Directed by Jesse Hibbs
Screenplay by George Zuckerman
Story by Ellis Marcus
D. D. Beauchamp (additional dialogue)
Produced byJohn W. Rogers
Starring Audie Murphy
Dan Duryea
Susan Cabot
Abbe Lane
Cinematography Irving Glassberg
Edited by Edward Curtiss
Music byMilton Rosen
Herman Stein
Production
company
Distributed byUniversal Pictures
Release dates
  • February 10, 1954 (1954-02-10)(Los Angeles, California)
Running time
81 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Ride Clear of Diablo is a 1954 American Technicolor Western film directed by Jesse Hibbs starring Audie Murphy, Dan Duryea, Susan Cabot and Abbe Lane. made for Universal Pictures. Cabot and Murphy had appeared in two films together previously. [1]

Contents

Plot

Sheriff Fred Kenyon (Paul Birch) and lawyer Tom Meredith (William Pullen) conspire to have dance hall girl Kate (Abbe Lane) entertain the hired hands of the O'Mara ranch while the Sheriff and the lawyer rustle the O'Mara's stock. Tom shoots both the father and his teenage son to leave no witnesses.

Surviving son Clay (Audie Murphy), a railroad surveyor in Denver, is informed of their deaths and comes back to his home where the identity of the murderers is unknown. Clay is talked out of revenge by the town Reverend (Denver Pyle) but Clay makes his own inquiries to the sheriff and Tom. When Clay asks the sheriff if he can become his deputy in order to make an investigation, the sheriff at first refuses. Tom advises the sheriff that it would be a good idea with Clay sent on a false trail to arrest notorious gunslinger Whitey Kinkaid (Dan Duryea) in the town of Diablo. Kinkaid has no connection with the murders, but the corrupt pair plan that Kinkaid will kill the pesky Clay.

To everyone's surprise Clay out-draws Kinkaid, arrests him, thwarts Kinkaid's escape attempts, and successfully fights off an ambush from three men. Kinkaid, who spends his life by idling about, is bemused by the unstoppable Clay and watches him go after the real killers. At first, he does this for amusement, but gradually he realizes that the moral attitude of the much younger Clay is like a valuable lesson in living a worthwhile life. It is amusing to see how he accepts him finally as an exemplar. Kinkaid's identification goes so far as to sacrifice himself to save the younger hero's life in several gunfights, all in accordance with the fact, that he said that if ever he feels he's become "like a human being", he will shoot (meaning here, sacrifice) himself.

Cast

Related Research Articles

<i>Tales of the Texas Rangers</i> Western old-time radio and television police procedural drama

Tales of the Texas Rangers is a 20th century Western old-time radio and television police procedural drama which originally aired on NBC Radio from 1950 to 1952 and later on CBS Television from 1955 to 1958. Film star Joel McCrea voiced the radio version as the fictitious Texas Ranger Jace Pearson, who uses the latest scientific techniques to identify criminals. His faithful horse, Charcoal, helps Pearson to track down the culprits. The radio shows, some of which are available on the Internet, are reenactments of actual Texas Ranger cases.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Audie Murphy</span> U.S. Army officer and actor (1925–1971)

Audie Leon Murphy was an American soldier, actor, and songwriter. He was one of the most decorated American combat soldiers of World War II. He received every military combat award for valor available from the United States Army, as well as French and Belgian awards for heroism. Murphy received the Medal of Honor for valor that he demonstrated at the age of 19 for single-handedly holding off a company of German soldiers for an hour at the Colmar Pocket in France in January 1945, before leading a successful counterattack while wounded and out of ammunition.

<i>Laramie</i> (TV series) American Western television series

Laramie is an American Western television series that aired on NBC from 1959 to 1963. A Revue Studios production, the program originally starred John Smith as Slim Sherman, owner of the Sherman Ranch, along with his younger brother Andy, played by Robert L. Crawford, Jr.; Robert Fuller as Jess Harper, an immature, hot-headed drifter who shows up at the Sherman Ranch in the premiere episode; and Hoagy Carmichael as Jonesy, who keeps the homestead/stage stop running while Slim and Jess usually alternate starring roles during the show. Actress Spring Byington was later added to the cast.

<i>Annie Oakley</i> (TV series) Western Show

Annie Oakley is an American Western television series that fictionalizes the life of the famous Annie Oakley. Featuring actress Gail Davis in the title role, the weekly program ran from January 1954 to February 1957 in syndication. A total of 81 black-and-white episodes were produced, with each installment running 25 minutes in length. ABC aired daytime reruns of the series on Saturdays and Sundays from 1959 to 1960 and then again from 1964 to 1965.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom Moore (actor)</span> Irish-American actor and film director

Thomas J. Moore was an Irish-American actor and director. He appeared in at least 186 motion pictures from 1908 to 1954. Frequently cast as the romantic lead, he starred in silent movies as well as in some of the first talkies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Denver Pyle</span> American actor (1920–1997)

Denver Dell Pyle was an American film and television actor and director. He was well known for a number of TV roles from the 1960s through the 1980s, including his portrayal of Briscoe Darling in several episodes of The Andy Griffith Show, as Jesse Duke in The Dukes of Hazzard from 1979 to 1985, as Mad Jack in the NBC television series The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams, and as the titular character's father, Buck Webb, in CBS's The Doris Day Show. In many of his roles, he portrayed either authority figures, or gruff, demanding father figures, often as comic relief. Perhaps his most memorable film role was that of Texas Ranger Frank Hamer in the movie Bonnie and Clyde (1967), as the lawman who relentlessly chased down and finally killed the notorious duo in an ambush.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Claude Akins</span> American actor (1926–1994)

Claude Aubrey Akins was a Cherokee-American character actor with a long career on stage, screen, and television. He was best known as Sheriff Lobo on the 1979–1981 television series B. J. and the Bear, and later The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo, a spin-off series.

<i>Chisum</i> 1970 film

Chisum is a 1970 American Western film directed by Andrew McLaglen, starring John Wayne in the titular role, and adapted for the screen by Andrew J. Fenady from his short story "Chisum and the Lincoln County War." The supporting cast features Forrest Tucker, Christopher George, Ben Johnson, Glenn Corbett, Andrew Prine, Bruce Cabot, Patric Knowles, Richard Jaeckel, Lynda Day George, Pedro Armendariz Jr., John Agar, John Mitchum, Ray Teal, Christopher Mitchum and Hank Worden with Geoffrey Deuel and Pamela McMyler receiving "introducing" credits. The picture was filmed in Panavision and Technicolor.

<i>Night Passage</i> (film) 1957 film by James Neilson

Night Passage is a 1957 American Western film directed by James Neilson and starring James Stewart and Audie Murphy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paul Birch (actor)</span> American actor (1912–1969)

Paul Birch was an American actor. He was a film star of 39 movies, 50 stage dramas, and numerous television series, including the Hallmark Hall of Fame (1951).

<i>Riverboat</i> (TV series) American television series

Riverboat is an American Western television series starring Darren McGavin and Burt Reynolds, produced by Revue Studios, and broadcast on the NBC television network from 1959 to 1961. Reynolds was replaced by Noah Beery Jr. halfway through the series in the wake of conflicts with McGavin.

<i>Destry</i> (film) 1954 film by George Marshall

Destry is a 1954 American western film directed by George Marshall and starring Audie Murphy, Mari Blanchard, Lyle Bettger and Thomas Mitchell.

<i>Suspicion</i> (American TV series) American TV series or program

Suspicion is the title of an American television mystery drama series which aired on the NBC from 1957 through 1958. The executive producer of half of the filmed episodes (10) of Suspicion was film director Alfred Hitchcock.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2010 Grand National</span>

The 2010 Grand National was the 163rd renewal of the Grand National horse race that took place at Aintree near Liverpool, England, on 10 April 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James Bell (actor)</span> American actor (1891–1973)

James Harlee Bell was an American film and stage actor who appeared in about 150 films and television shows through 1964.

<i>The Quick Gun</i> 1964 film by Sidney Salkow

The Quick Gun is a 1964 American Techniscope Western film directed by Sidney Salkow and starring Audie Murphy. It was the second of four films produced by Grant Whytock and Edward Small's Admiral Pictures in the 1960s.

Gunpoint is a 1966 American Western film directed by Earl Bellamy and starring Audie Murphy. It was Murphy's final film for Universal Pictures.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Film career of Audie Murphy</span> Filmography

Audie Murphy was a highly decorated American soldier and Medal of Honor recipient who turned actor. He portrayed himself in the film To Hell and Back, the account of his World War II experiences. During the 1950s and 1960s he was cast primarily in westerns. While often the hero, he proved his ability to portray a cold-blooded hired gun in No Name on the Bullet. A notable exception to the westerns was The Quiet American in which he co-starred with Michael Redgrave. Murphy made over 40 feature films and often worked with directors more than once. Jesse Hibbs who directed To Hell and Back worked with the star on six films, only half of which were westerns. When promoting his 1949 book To Hell and Back he appeared on the radio version of This Is Your Life. To promote the 1955 film of the same name, he appeared on Ed Sullivan's Toast of the Town. He was a celebrity guest on television shows such as What's My Line? and appeared in a handful of television dramas. Murphy's only television series Whispering Smith had a brief run in 1961. For his cooperation in appearing in the United States Army's Broken Bridge episode of The Big Picture television series he was awarded the Outstanding Civilian Service Medal.

<i>Incident at Phantom Hill</i> 1966 film by Earl Bellamy

Incident at Phantom Hill is a 1966 American Techniscope Western film directed by Earl Bellamy and starring Robert Fuller, Jocelyn Lane, Dan Duryea and Tom Simcox.

Ten Wanted Men is a 1955 American Western film directed by Bruce Humberstone and starring Randolph Scott.

References

  1. Ride Clear of Diablo Archived 2011-10-19 at the Wayback Machine at Audie Murphy Memorial Site