The Lawless Nineties

Marred slightly by rear-screen projection and stock footage, "The Lawless Nineties" still rates very high for its superior cast, starring John Wayne, and script and directing by Joseph Kane.

There is only a little historical accuracy here, but that is irrelevant in this exciting production, made even more exciting by the usual excellent stunt work by the greats Yakima Canutt and Cliff Lyons.

Just one example of superlative acting is provided in a scene where Etta McDaniel is holding a broom, standing at the back of a meeting room. Right next to the spittoon.

One of the meeting attenders turns around to spit, and she watches carefully. And in turn she needs to be watched carefully, she and the spitter.

The expression on her face is priceless.She was a marvelous actress, and part of the famous acting family that included her more famous sister Hattie and her brother Sam.

All up and down the list of players is quality, including the prolific Tom London and the great villain Charles King.

Some other reviewers must not really know much about the history of B Westerns since they kept expressing surprise at the appearance of George W. Hayes as the editor, called usually "Major" Carter but at least once "Colonel" Carter.

His daughter is played by the adorable Ann Rutherford.

There is a good print at YouTube, apparently recorded from a presentation by AMC. I highly recommend "The Lawless Nineties."

John Wayne as a government man aims to bring free elections to Wyoming with the help of Lane Chandler. Who had star power of his own and a stalwart of television Westerns. Harry Woods did an admirable job as the Chairman of the Committee of Law and Order but behind the scenes is up to some dirty deeds. Hard to believe that the clean shaven newspaper man is actually Gabby Hayes. His daughter the beautiful Ann Rutherford was outstanding as the newspaper lady fighting for voting rights. In another irony, she was not actually allowed to vote until years later. Although they played lesser roles it was great to see 'Snowflake' Toones, a standard bearer for Republic and Etta McDaniel.The Lawless Nineties is another fine western from Republic Pictures.

Good golly, Miss Molly!1890 Wyoming is pictured as more violent than 'bleeding' Kansas. Looks like the outlaws may outnumber the law-abiding citizens, burning them out to make them leave, and turning prospective residents away at the borders. It's looking like Wyoming is well on the way to being populated by only terrorists and other miscreants! I hope you don't take this as a history lesson! The real Wyoming was nothing like this, but this image provides the setting for an exciting John Wayne western. Of course, there are shootings, horse chases, and fist fights, and the occasional stick of dynamite........The man behind much of the violence is one Charles Plummer(Harry Woods) who, ironically, masquerades as the Chairman of the Committee on Law and Order!! His 'field general', who actually supervises misdeeds, is Steele(Al Bridge). In contrast to Plummer, he actually looks like an archetypical outlaw.........Having heard of the situation, an official of the U.S. Justice Department sends John Wayne and his friend Bridger (Lane Chandler) to investigate and do what they can to minimize the influence of the criminal element in the coming referendum to determine if residents want Wyoming to become a state. This official claims that if it becomes a state, the criminal element will virtually vanish.(Maybe)........George 'Gabby' Hays, as Major Carter, back in Virginia, for some strange reason, got exciting about the situation in Wyoming, and decided to buy the Crocket City Blaze(newspaper), and become it's editor, espousing the advantages of statehood. His eligible daughter, Janet(Ann Rutherford), came along with him to assist him. Besides, the male/female ratio there was much more favorable. Of course, she eventually becomes Wayne's love interest, despite an abrasive introduction. Plummer warns Carter that the last editor was shot dead in his office. But, this doesn't dissuade Carter from printing inflammatory editorials.....To provide a bit of comic relief, 2 African Americans are included: 'Snowflake' Toones, as Moses, arrived as the driver of the buggy carrying the Carters from Virginia. He will continue to serve them. Etta McDaniel, sister of the Oscar winning Hattie McDaniel, plays Mandy Lou: a domestic, who occasionally has a conversation with Moses, as the only 2 African Americans in the community. Moses provides the comic looks and dialogue. Some of you may not appreciate the racial stereotypes...... As often happens in westerns, the damsel loses her significant other, often her father, thus symbolically, this opens wider the door for a new significant other(the hero).......Don't expect to find George Hays in his mode as a grizzled, charismatic, sidekick. As in some other of his early film roles, here he keeps his teeth, providing no hint of his speech manner as Gabby. Here, he's a refined gentleman of letters, with no time for foolishness... See it at YouTube.!

The year is 1890 and Wyoming would like to be a state, but certain lawless elements want to keep it a territory. There will be a plebiscite to decide the issue and the outlaws are going to win this thing by hook or crook. There's redundancy if I've ever written one.

The Lawless Nineties has John Wayne as a 'government man' one of several sent in to the territory to see the elections are run fair and square. With maybe more than a little leaning on the side of the homesteaders and small ranchers and merchants who want statehood.

There actually is some historical basis for this. In this year, the president of the United States is Republican Benjamin Harrison and he's got a Congress with his party controlling both houses. Because of that six states get admitted in his four years as president, Wyoming being one of them the others being Idaho, Montana, Washington, and North and South Dakota. The idea was very simple, the territories were Republican leaning for the most part and would furnish representation in Congress to keep his party in power.

I'm assuming that the Duke as a 'government man' was working for the Department of Justice and oddly enough the film anticipates by about thirty years the Justice Department performing just such an electoral function that they did in the South after the Voting Rights Act was passed.

It's a novel and interesting premise for a western and another thing I thought was unique was the outlaw's use of early electronic surveillance to find out what the federal government's plans were and take steps to foil them. Of course there is no radio and the use of the telephone was not common yet in the west. We're talking here about the telegraph and Wayne does figure it out.

But sad to say that The Lawless Nineties is spoiled by the use of Etta McDaniel and Fred Toone as some black stereotypes, really, really bad ones. Sadder still because there was no need to bring them in, the racial issue just wasn't germane to the plot.

It's been twenty five years since the end of the Civil War and Toone and McDaniel act like Gabby Hayes and Ann Rutherford as a father and daughter resettled from Virginia still own them. Gabby is far from the grizzled, hairy old cuss we love. He's got a handlebar mustache and a clipped goatee and speaks in cultured upper class Southern tones. Not what we normally get from Gabby.

The action is good in The Lawless Nineties and I only wish that Republic hadn't seen the need to include McDaniel and Toone in the film.

Federal agent John Tipton heads for Wyoming to supervise the vote on whether to join the Union. One group of locals is using dynamite to terrorize the populace and a local newspaper editor is killed.

Better production values, an interesting story and of course John Wayne lifts this above average. It's entertaining and has a seamless pace, though the two African-American characters didn't seem to add much to the story; they were there for comic relief I guess.