El Tigre

"Ride Beyond Vengeance" is more than a typical western. Although produced on a low budget by television producers Mark Goodson And Bill Toddman ("The Price is Right") and featuring several names mostly familiar to TV audiences, it has a dynamic, if pessimistic script more concerned with character development than standard action--not that the film lacks action or violence.

Cowboy Jonas Trapp (Chuck Connors of "Rifleman" fame) falls in love with the beautiful Jessie (Kathryn Hays), very appealing in her first film, a wealthy girl out of his humble class. Against the wishes of her snobbish aunt (Ruth Warrick), she marries him, later faking a pregnancy to win her aunt's consent. But Jonas tires of living off of his wife's family, and eventually deserts her to become a buffalo hunter. 11 years later, with his self-made fortune, he sets out to return home, only to be set upon by three sadistic marauders, Michael Rennie, Bill Bixby and Claude Akins, who steal his money and leave him for dead. Rescued by a farmer (Paul Fix, Connors' "Rifleman" co-star) who nurses him back to health, Jonas becomes consumed by the desire for revenge. As fate would have it, all three men live close to Jonas' former home. Matters quickly get worse when Jonas reunites with his wife, only to discover that she is now engaged to Rennie.

Made on a three week schedule on an obvious sound-stage, "Ride Beyond Vengeance" succeeds in transcending it's shortcomings by the powerful acting of a first-rate cast. Connors gives his best performance, and he is well (if briefly) supported by Joan Blondell (as a gossipy townswoman), Gloria Grahame (a cheating wife having an affair with Bixby), Gary Merrill as Jonas' foster father, Frank Gorshin as an arrogant ranch hand, and Buddy Baer as a Bouncer. Buried way down the cast list is young starlet Marrisa Mathes, who is sympathetic and real as the grieving girlfriend of Bixby who reaches out to Jonas. But, next to Connors, the film belongs to Bixby, as a sadomasochistic dandy. James MaCarthur and Arthur O'Connell appear in a present day prologue to set the scene and narrate the story. The screenplay is based on Al Dewlen's novel, "The Night of the Tiger" and spends considerable time fleshing out the characters. Of course, violence rears it's ugly head here and there, but not so much as to put off the viewer. (It did, however, put off critics when it was released back in 1966) but it went on to garner a massive audience when it had its television premiere. Today, it seems better than it was initially given credit for, and remains well worth seeing. A widescreen DVD release is due out in December. It's about time!

This may well be the best role Chuck Connors ever had outside of his regular TV series work. A griping tale of a man who leaves his wife to go off and make a fortune for her only to return 10 years later. A return that is met with rejection by the woman he left behind and a brutal beating and robbing that leaves the man branded as a thief. An action that sets him down a road of vengeance against the three men who robbed him and sets the entire town on edge. With excellent performances by Bill Bixby, Michael Rennie, Kathryn Hayes and Claude Adkins as a borderline psychotic who talks to his invisible friend "Whiskey Man." This one is definitely worth catching and of late has appeared many times on the Westerns Channel where it is shown uncut and without commercial interruption which helps to add even more to the movement of the story. A film filled with many great actors who are all sadly either gone or no longer practicing their craft today. All of whom give the viewer some of their best performances ever. As for during the 60s when this was made, it would have definitely had an audience in those drive-in theaters of yesterday. An excellent one all around.

Ride Beyond Vengeance casts Chuck Connors as a returning buffalo hunter returning to his wife after an eleven year absence. Sounds a whole lot like the plot premise for the Iliad and Connors does go through some trials just like Ulysses did.

Eleven years earlier Connors married Kathryn Hays who faked a pregnancy to get her aunt Ruth Warrick to consent to the wedding. Hays is a few steps up the social scale from Connors. Anyway he hauls out and says he'll make a fortune and return.

But like Ulysses he stays away and on his return is set upon and actually branded with a running iron. The three who do it are a pair of bottom feeding sadists Bill Bixby and Claude Akins and also Michael Rennie who's a rich man courting Hays because he and everyone else think her husband is dead.

Connors ain't dead and when he wakes up he's going to take care of business the way Ulysses took care of all of Penelope's prospective suitors.

This no frills B western has a fine supporting cast to Connors and Hays. In very telling bits are Joan Blondell as a bordello madam and Gloria Grahame as an unfaithful wife having an affair with younger Bill Bixby. It's a flashback to the Forties and Fifties when Grahame was the big screen's number one trollop.

As for Bixby and Akins the two of them are incredible studies in villainy. Akins who in his big screen career played some of the biggest low life villains ever really hits rock bottom here. He overacts outrageously, but all to good effect.

Bixby is the first one who Connors catches up with and his devolution as a human being may contain his finest big screen performance. Later on Frank Gorshin in a small bit himself gives a description of Bixby's final moments that will unnerve you for days.

Ride Beyond Vengeance is one brutal and savage western which no way would have made it in the days of those cowboy heroes for Republic. This is one western recommended highly for adults and forbidden for little kids.

I grew up in Bay Saint Louis Mississippi.My Mother was makeup artist for the Little Theatre there(mid fifties).Under her influence I did my first role there(in my mid teens).The best character actor with the group was a man by the name of Mark Solomen.He helped coach me in my first role.At the time, he had just read what he said was the best western novel he had ever read.He ended up giving me the book. It was an original hard bound version called "Night Of The Tiger". I agreed it was a great novel even though it was the author's first attempt. At the time, I had no way of knowing that through a most unique set of circumstances I would end up launching a career in films myself(on Yancy Derringer, in 1958).Because I am a good horseman as well as a western type(6'4"anglo),by the mid sixties I was a seasoned veteran of the westerns of the era in both TV and feature films. In the early sixties I became friends with Chuck connors,and ended up working for him as standin and horseback double on some of his western projects including Rifleman, Cowboy in africa,and Branded. It was when we were doing the Branded series,and the time came for us to shut down for hiaetus.I was told we would be doing a movie with a thirty day shooting schedule in the meantime, and that I would shortly be called in to do make up and costume tests for Chuck,on lot three at MGM,with a skeleton crew. When that day came,I reported to the Paramount Sunset lot where I got into a stretch limo with all the key personnel including director, producer(Andrew Fenady),makeup artist, costumer etc. On the way to MGM the producer and director were discussing how meaty some of the main character's dialogue was. As they quoted him it began to sound familiar to me so I turned to andy(the producer)and asked what's the name of this film. I could'nt believe it when he said "Night Of The Tiger". Needless to say I related the above story to him. It turns out he had found the paperback version in a west hollywood supermarket while his wife was buying groceries. And of course he responded to the book the same as Mark Solomen had all those years earlier back home,and he went right out and bought the movie rights. On the first day of production I brought the book with me and gifted Andy with it. Andrew Fenady was one of the youngest and most brilliant producers I have ever known. In fact he and Nick adams created Johnny Yuma "the rebel". Who else could have pulled together such a cast for a "quickie" western. There can be no question but that this cast was drawn to the project by the power of the story. Imagine,Bill Bixby,Jim Mc Arthur,Claude Akins,Paul fix,Michael Renny,etc. The only thing I disagreed with Andy on was the change of title. He felt that Night Of The Tiger sounded like a jungle movie. This film remains in my top ten favorite westerns (with some of clint eastwood's spagetti westerns). It is also one of the most unique coincidences of my life.

This is a great little movie, with everything from a double-flashback story line to the contemporary prologue and epilogue. Chuck Connors gives his best performance, as the hard-bitten buffalo hunter, whom abandoned his new bride (Kathryn Hays) to make a fortune for her. On his return, he is robbed by a band of thugs (Claude Akins, Bill Bixby and Paul Fix). They rob him, beat him, and brand him! Connors spends the rest of the film obtaining justice, both from the thugs and from the woman he left behind.

The real acting kudos in this movie belong to Kathryn Hays, Gloria Grahame, Claude Akins and, most of all, Bill Bixby. Kathryn Hays sweet face belies the rage she feels at having been abandoned by Connors. Gloria Grahame is the older, still beautiful woman who cannot accept that her mature beauty is not appreciated by ladies man, Bill Bixby. Claude Akins produces a truly original portrait, a SYMPATHETIC psychopathic, sadistic killer. But Bill Bixby is the real revelation, as the narcissistic, masochistic ladies man. Bixby's performance is dowright hypnotic. The ending would be more satisfying in a novel than a movie; but, this film is well worth seeing.