By Richard Harland Smith
Shooting Straight
Brief Synopsis
A gambler accidentally commits murder and hides under the guise of a clergyman.
Cast & Crew
Read More
George Archainbaud
Director
Richard Dix
Larry Sheldon
Mary Lawlor
Doris Powell
James Neill
Reverend Powell
Mathew Betz
Martin
George Cooper
Chick
Film Details
Genre
Crime
Drama
Release Date
Jul
20,
1930
Premiere Information
not available
Production Company
RKO Productions
Country
United States
Technical Specs
Duration
1h 11m
Film Length
5,800ft
(8 reels)
Synopsis
City gambler Larry Sheldon, upon hearing that a pal has been taken for a ride, goes to the hideout of Spot Willis and, to all appearances, wreaks revenge. Sheldon leaves the city with his henchman, Chick, occupying a Pullman section with Mr. Walters, an evangelist; before Sheldon can return Walters' wallet (which Chick has lifted), the train is wrecked. Later, Larry awakes to find himself the guest of the Reverend Powell, who has mistaken him for Walters; he keeps his identity secret, and attracted to Doris, the minister's daughter, he begins to take an interest in the community church and social life. When Doris' brother becomes involved with Martin, a local gambler, Larry covers Martin in a crap game, but Martin, recognizing him, turns him over to the police. After a battle with the police, Larry is subdued, but Martin confesses and reveals that another man is responsible for the murder of Willis. Larry finds happiness with Doris and decides to go straight.
Director
George Archainbaud
Director
Cast
Richard Dix
Larry Sheldon
Mary Lawlor
Doris Powell
James Neill
Reverend Powell
Mathew Betz
Martin
George Cooper
Chick
William Janney
Tommy Powell
Robert E. O'connor
Hagen
Clarence Wurtz
Stevens
Eddie Sturgis
Spike
Richard Curtis
Butch
Crew
Film Details
Genre
Crime
Drama
Release Date
Jul
20,
1930
Premiere Information
not available
Production Company
RKO Productions
Country
United States
Technical Specs
Duration
1h 11m
Film Length
5,800ft
(8 reels)
Articles
Shooting Straight -
Richard Dix plays a big city gambler wanted for murder who attempts to redeem himself for the love of a minister's daughter in Shooting Straight (1930). This tale of retribution and redemption was Dix's third film for RKO Radio Pictures and only his fifth talkie; previously employed by Famous Players-Lasky/Paramount, the strapping Minnesotan (born Ernest Carleton Brimmer - he took his stage name from that of a dead friend) had been an estimable silent screen presence in such films as The Ten Commandments (1923) and The Vanishing American (1925) but his speaking voice was deemed poor by critics at the time of his sound debut in Nothing But the Truth (1929). Despite a hefty raise from the studio brass, Dix felt his prospects at Paramount were limited and signed instead with RKO, where his old friend William LeBaron had been appointed as head of production. The actor's comeback was secured with the talking whodunit Seven Keys to Baldpate (1929) and the comedy Lovin' the Ladies (1930) but Shooting Straight allowed Dix the opportunity to again play a character as adept with his fists as with his mind - RKO advertised the film as "A Real Two-Fisted Picture with a He-Man Star." Having weathered the transition from silent to talking films, Dix no doubt felt a measure of vindication when his next role, as frontiersman Yancey Cravat in RKO's Academy Award-winning adaptation of the Edna Ferber novel Cimarron (1930), earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Actor.
By Richard Harland Smith
By Richard Harland Smith
Shooting Straight -
Richard Dix plays a big city gambler wanted for murder who attempts to redeem himself for the love of a minister's daughter in Shooting Straight (1930). This tale of retribution and redemption was Dix's third film for RKO Radio Pictures and only his fifth talkie; previously employed by Famous Players-Lasky/Paramount, the strapping Minnesotan (born Ernest Carleton Brimmer - he took his stage name from that of a dead friend) had been an estimable silent screen presence in such films as The Ten Commandments (1923) and The Vanishing American (1925) but his speaking voice was deemed poor by critics at the time of his sound debut in Nothing But the Truth (1929). Despite a hefty raise from the studio brass, Dix felt his prospects at Paramount were limited and signed instead with RKO, where his old friend William LeBaron had been appointed as head of production. The actor's comeback was secured with the talking whodunit Seven Keys to Baldpate (1929) and the comedy Lovin' the Ladies (1930) but Shooting Straight allowed Dix the opportunity to again play a character as adept with his fists as with his mind - RKO advertised the film as "A Real Two-Fisted Picture with a He-Man Star." Having weathered the transition from silent to talking films, Dix no doubt felt a measure of vindication when his next role, as frontiersman Yancey Cravat in RKO's Academy Award-winning adaptation of the Edna Ferber novel Cimarron (1930), earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Actor.
By Richard Harland Smith
