Colt Comrades

I noticed with this Hopalong Cassidy film that IMDB lists two running times...both for the original and television edit. This is because in the 1950s, many of the famous cowboy stars had TV shows...and they edited down the films of Roy Rogers, Gene Autry and Hopalong Cassidy to fit the TV time slots. Fortunately in the case of the Cassidy films, William Boyd (Cassidy) kept the original versions. Recently, these originals have been cleaned up, restored and posted to YouTube...and the films look terrific.

When the story begins, Dirk Mason (Robert Mitchum) robs and murders a railroad agent. Soon, Hoppy and the gang are chasing after this killer. At first, he goes to the local baddie, Jeb Hardin (Victor Jory), for help...but Hardin takes a shot at him. Soon Hoppy and California capture him...and the ineffectual Johnny runs for the sheriff. Then, a vigilante mob arrives--demanding they give them Mason so they can hang him. Then, Hardin shoots Mason...most likely to shut him up! That's a lot of stuff...just in the first seven minutes of the movie!!

What follows is strange. There is a reward for the dead man...and by all rights, it should be Hoppy's. But Hardin insists he get it...or that IF Hoppy got the money, he must invest it in this town. Hardin's plan is to sell them a ranch...and then deny him water rights...thereby making the property worthless. What's next? See the film.

In addition to Jory and Mitchum (who always seemed to play baddies in these westerns), the film features George Reeves of "Superman" fame. While Reeves played bad guys occasionally, here he's a decent sort...and a rancher who has plenty of reason to hate Hardin!

So is it any good? Well, Hopalong Cassidy films are almost always among the better B-westerns...and with this cast, it's a very good movie. However, repeatedly throughout the film Hoppy says they are going to retire to this ranch...but there were still a few more films in the series, so I guess his retirement is gonna be a bit short!

It starts with Robert Mitchum on the run from Hopalong and his sidekicks Andy Clyde and Jay Kirby. He tells cattle baron Victor Jory he's at the end of his rope. Jory shows no mercy and retorts, "that's where you belong." Next comes the other future star George Reeves with his sister writer/actress Teddi Sherman. I only wish Gabby Hayes was in this one but the fantastic cast held their own without him. It's always great to see Earle Hodgins. This time as Wildcat Willie tricking Clyde into buying the mineral rights.

Colt Comrades was one of the Hopalong Cassidy films where Robert Mitchum got his start. But Mitchum's part here is brief as he's killed while in the custody of US Marshal Cassidy. That was to silence him from telling what he knew about the Ben Cartwright of the area Victor Jory.

Jory's got the biggest ranch but he wants it all and he's got the water rights for the whole valley with how he's dammed up the only stream. He's squeezing all the other ranches including the one where Hoppy, Johnny Travers and California are now partners.

Earle Hodgins plays one of his rustic conman types when swindles California out of money for oil rights. He always adds something to any film he's in. Ironically the work that California and Hodgins do in drilling for oil starts the tables turning on Jory.

A good film for both Robert Mitchum completists and the legion of old little partners that followed Hopalong Cassidy.

Hoppy, California and Johnny cross paths with town bad guy Jeb Hardin and his hired thug Joe Brass (Victor Jory, Douglas Fowley) after they beat Hardin and Brass out of a $5000.00 reward for the capture of wanted outlaw Dirk Mason (Robert Mitchum). In order to collect Hoppy and the boys are forced to 're-invest' the reward money back into the community. With a limited numbers of choices they become partners with Lin And Lucy Whitlock (Teddi Sherman, George Reeves) in their ranch which is nearing foreclosure. Like the rest of the ranchers in the area they have been unable to sell their beef because Hardin who owns the upstream property has been extorting payments by withholding water. Things change abruptly when California is suckered into a hair-brained oil drilling scam by local con man Wildcat Willie (Earle Hodgins).

This entry into the Hoppy series is the last in a handful of appearances by Jay Kirby as the Johnny Travers character. With the departure of Russell Hayden as Lucky Jenkins from the series, the studio never quite found the same chemistry with the third member of the trio. The Jay Kirby episodes, though largely forgotten, are by in large a pretty solid lot.

If not memorable, Colt Comrades makes for acceptable viewing. An average chapter in the Hoppy string.

Bruce Dern, to this day, has people who hate him because in one of his early roles "he killed John Wayne."

Shot him in the back, in fact. Well, his character shot the John Wayne character.

Robert Mitchum, in this early role as Dirk Mason in "Colt Comrades," also plays a murderous bad guy, but managed to overcome any aspersions cast upon him.

Mitchum is just one of a splendid collection of superlative actors in this entry in Pop Sherman's Hopalong Cassidy series.

William Boyd, who reached immense fame as Hoppy, was one fine actor, beginning in the silent days, where he was a favorite of Cecil B. DeMille.

In fact, his short part in DeMille's "King of Kings" has always stood out in my memory as one of the highest high points in the film. Boyd accomplished a lot without words, just expression.

After the disaster of another William Boyd's arrest, and our Boyd's photo being displayed in the story, his career took a nosedive. The story is he was so traumatized, his hair turned white.

When the Hopalong Cassidy series was being readied, the story goes, he pleaded for the chance to play the lead, and, well, the rest is genuinely history.

Hopalong Cassidy is one of the classic heroes of Hollywood, even though the cinema version is quite different -- surprise, surprise - from the book version.

Boyd was, as I said, an excellent actor, and he became an excellent cowboy, and a good business man: He was smart enough to acquire the TV rights to his movies and apparently to the character, and became rich thereby. Deservedly, in my opinion.

One reason I love to watch him: He had probably the greatest laugh ever recorded on film.

In "Colt Comrades," a generic and pointless title, he gets a frequent chance to laugh with his partners and it helps make this already great B western even better.

Here he is cast with another terribly under-rated actor in George Reeves, the excellent Victor Jory, a wonderful under-player of villains, and the great Douglas Fowley, of that distinctive voice.

Also along is Earl Hodgins, a veteran of rascal roles, and Dewey Robinson, who is perfect as the bartender, and both are always fun to watch.

The female lead, Teddi Sherman, then 19, had a really cute, little-girl voice, but with big-girl looks. She apparently did more writing ("Four Faces West," for example) than acting, but was very watchable in "Colt Comrades."

There are a couple director errors in the big gun battle, but generally Lesley Selander was more than adequate, and the script also is of high quality, allowing superlative actors good dialogue with the good story.

At YouTube it seems all the available versions of "Colt Comrades" are fuzzy and hard on the eyes, and some are also hard on the ears, so pick carefully. But do pick, somewhere if not YouTube, and enjoy. I highly recommend "Colt Comrades," with a good story, directing, scenery, and an outstanding and excellent cast.