Stampede
Brief Synopsis
Cast & Crew
Lesley Selander
Rod Cameron
Gale Storm
Johnny Mack Brown
Don Castle
Donald Curtis
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
Spurred by the government land grants of 1887, homesteaders stream onto lands that had previously been the exclusive domain of cattlemen. As a wagon train of settlers nears the town of Blackwell, Arizona, land developer Leroy Stanton visits bank president T. J. Furman to inquire if Furman has made any progress in convincing Mike McCall, the cattleman who controls Spirit Lake, the only source of water in the valley, to share his water with the oncoming settlers. Upon discovering that their land is bone dry, the settlers, led by their spokesman, Dawson, confront Stanley Cox, Stanton's representative and the person who sold them the property. Cox promises that water will soon be forthcoming. Later, Mike, who has contempt for the settlers, gallops his horse through the Dawson camp, knocking over pots and pans, sending Dawson's hot-tempered daughter Connie riding into town to complain. When Connie bursts into attorney Steve Varick's office to secure his services, she finds Mike there, slaps him and then storms out. Steve, Mike's old friend, then reminds him that the law is on the settlers' side. Afterward, Mike visits Furman, who offers to tear up the $30,000 mortgage the bank holds on the McCall ranch if Mike agrees to share his water with the settlers. Just then, a gang of masked men enters and robs the bank. Mike fires at the bandits, accidentally killing Link Spain, an unarmed, innocent bystander. Although Stanton accuses Mike of cold-blooded murder, Sheriff Aaron Ball allows him to ride out of town. Along the trail, Mike meets his younger brother Tim and as the two amble along, Connie fires at them from the hills. When Connie accuses them of trespassing, Mike pulls the gun from her hand and Tim spanks her. Meanwhile, at Spirit Lake, Cox and Stanton draw a map in the dirt, plotting to dynamite the dam and thus unleash the water. That night, as deputy Ed Sanderson rides the hills in search of the bank robbers, he is shot and killed by an unseen assailant. After scouring the area all night for Sanderson's killer, Mike rides into town and tells Varick about some strange markings he found in the sand around Spirit Lake. That evening, as the settlers prepare for a big dance, Furman informs Mike that because of the losses the bank sustained in the robbery, he may be forced to call in his note. While passing the stables on his way to visit the sheriff, Mike is assaulted by two of Stanton's henchmen. After shooting one of the men, Lou Shives, Mike captures the other, Daniels, by lassoing him around the neck. At the party, meanwhile, Tim, who is smitten by Connie, asks her to dance as the glowering settlers watch. Sensing trouble, Connie escorts Tim to his horse and after he rides off, word comes of a shooting at the stables and the settlers demand an inquest into Shives' killing. As Tim nears the dam, Stanton and his henchmen ready the explosives. When Tim spots them, they shoot him, and the next day, as Mike is acquitted at the inquest, Tim's lifeless body is brought into town and Mike declares war. Attracted to Mike, Connie rides to the McCall ranch to offer her condolences and listens as Mike rhapsodizes about his grazing cattle. As a storm approaches, Stanton gives orders to blow up the dam and stampede Mike's cattle. Overhearing Stanton's plans, Furman goes to the saloon to get drunk. There, he meets Varick and speaks cryptically of the impending loss of a good friend, a herd of cattle and water. As Furman finishes his drink, he stumbles into the street and is gunned down by one of Stanton's thugs. When Varick repeats Furman's message to Sheriff Ball, the sheriff hurries to warn Mike. As Stanton's henchmen spook Mike's cattle into plunging over a cliff to their death, the sheriff arrives to help Mike and is shot in the mêlée. Wounded, Ball relates Furman's warning about the dam, sending Mike galloping off to Spirit Lake. When Mike's men convey the injured sheriff to the Dawson camp, Connie rides off the join Mike. At the lake, meanwhile, Cox, who is opposed to violence, tries to stop Stanton, who then shoots Cox in the back. Jumping off his horse, Mike wrestles Stanton into the lake, and in the ensuing fight, Stanton drowns. As Mike climbs onto the shore, Connie appears. Embittered by the loss of his cattle, Mike steps on the detonator and blows up the dam. When Connie reassures him that he can rebuild his empire, Mike picks her up and kisses her.
Director
Lesley Selander
Cast
Rod Cameron
Gale Storm
Johnny Mack Brown
Don Castle
Donald Curtis
John Miljan
Jonathan Hale
John Eldredge
Adrian Wood
Wes C. Christensen
James Harrison
Duke York
Steve Clark
I. Stanford Jolley
Marshall Reed
Philo Mccollough
Crew
Eugene Anderson
Gene Anderson
Rex Bailey
Grace Baughman
Loretta Francel Bickel
George Booker
John C. Champion
John C. Champion
W. Scott Darling
Scott R. Dunlap
Blake Edwards
Blake Edwards
J. G. Edwards
James Fullerton
Courtney Haslam
Richard Heermance
Ernest Hickson
Harry Jones
Edward Kay
George Koontz
Otho Lovering
L. John Myers
Harry Neuman
Samuel Newman
Fred Phillips
Len Powers
Vin Taylor
Joseph Wharton
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
The working title of this film was Rainbow Ridge. The film opens with an offscreen narrator describing the animosity between the settlers and cattlemen. Hollywood Reporter production charts note that shooting took place at Placeritas Ranch in Placerita Canyon, Newhall, CA. Modern sources add Bob Woodward, Carol Henry, Boyd Stockman, Ted Elliott, Jack Parker, Chuck Roberson, Tim Ryan, Kenne Duncan, Artie Ortego, Neal Hart, Charles King, Bud Osborne and Henry Hall to the cast.
Miscellaneous Notes
Released in United States Spring May 1, 1949
Released in United States Spring May 1, 1949
