Battle of Greed

Although producer E. B. Derr used many of the same actors and much of the same crew for his series of eight Crescent historical fiction dramas starring Tom Keene, a variety of directors took the reins as the series progressed. BATTLE OF GREED is well directed by Howard Higgin, who succeeds in getting from Tom Keene one of his best performances, as an Indiana attorney who leads a group to Virginia City, Nevada, after the Comstock Lode has sparked a silver boom in 1859. John Thomas Neville's story ties in a number of events and characters from the pages of American history, and the screenplay brings in James Bush as a young Mark Twain, local newspaperman who becomes a friend of Keene's.

Gwynne Shipman is the romantic interest, Robert Fiske is again a splendid villain, and Raphael Bennett has one of his best screen roles as a despicable adversary of the protagonist. Juvenile actor Jimmy Butler, usually seen in major studio productions, delivers a fine performance as Keene's young brother. Henry Rocquemore does a nice job as an unscrupulous judge. Series regular Budd Buster portrays one of the old miners responsible for the discovery of silver.

The melodramatic events which unfold during the six reels take precedence over the historical narrative, sustaining interest until the evil-doers are finally vanquished and the virtuous figures are safe and contented.

Excellent acting, in every part, carries a cleverly created story -- with a tee-niny bit of history as its basis.

Tom Keene was one of the most likable movie heroes, and it puzzles me constantly why he is not a household name today, except among hard-core western fans.

Here his character, John Storm, is supported by his younger brother, beautifully played by Jimmy Butler, and by Virginia City's newspaper editor Mark Twain, very interestingly played by James Bush.

This is an early portrayal of Twain, and the earliest I know of. The Twain persona became part and parcel of Americana in several versions of a one-man show, "Mark Twain Tonight," with Hal Holbrook probably the most famous portrayer.

Opposing Storm is the brains heavy, Hammond, whose first name is apparently never given, and the brawn heavy, Bates, fascinatingly played by Ray, or Rafael, Bennett.

Helping mark this film as a great one in its class is continual interplay among the minor characters, especially when they tease Bates about his upcoming battle with Storm.

There is some absolutely marvelous back-and-forth among the hangers-on and Bates and his fellow henchmen.

Apparently this is a little-known movie, since for now there are no other reviews, but it is available in a mediocre print at YouTube, which is where I watched it late 15 July 2015.

I want to see every Tom Keene movie available, and hope you will seek out those opportunities, too. He is watchable, likable, talented, and his movies are well done, with generally high production values.

So far, every Keene movie I've seen has had a good script and talented cast and crew. I highly recommend them all, including "Battle of Greed."

Tom Keene whose career started with the lead in Cecil B. DeMille's last silent film The Godless Girl was now toiling in poverty row studios having found his Hollywood niche there as a B western star. Battle Of Greed has some pretensions to history, but in fact it's a poorly crafted B western.

The subject here is the founding of Virginia City and Keene's conflict with Ray Butler the chief heavy who has a nicely honed craft of claim jumping. Butler tries everything legal and illegal and Keene's younger brother Jimmy Butler is shot and now paralyzed below the waist.

Keene is a lawyer and just as handy with a six gun as with a courtroom brief. Battle Of Greed is seen through the real life character Samuel Langhorne Clemens who while in Virginia City started writing humorous fiction and took up the pen name of Mark Twain. He's played here by James Bush.

Jimmy Butler gets the acting honors here with a fine performance as the crippled young man not wanting to be a burden on his big brother. Sad that it's wasted in a poverty row western.