Black Hills
Brief Synopsis
Cast & Crew
Ray Taylor
Eddie Dean
White Cloud
Roscoe Ates
Shirley Patterson
Terry Frost
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
While inspecting a hidden, gold-encrusted cave on his seemingly bankrupt land, a rancher named Hadley is shot in cold blood by saloon owner Dan Kirby and his henchman, Al Quillen. Determined to claim the gold for themselves, Kirby and Quillen set off an explosion in the cave, which causes the entrance to collapse. Two weeks later, Hadley's grown children, Janet and Larry, presuming him dead, sell some of their cattle in order to make the beleagured ranch's payroll deadline. When Kirby, who had planned to take over the ranch as soon as the Allen Land Company foreclosed on it, hears that Larry will be paying his hands, he orders Quillen and his henchmen to rob him. The robbery goes awry, however, when Larry's old friend, sharpshooting cowboy Eddie Dean, and Eddie's sidekick, Soapy Jones, ride by, having been summoned by Larry. Eddie, Larry and Soapy take on the masked henchmen, and Quillen loses his hat while fleeing the gunfight. Deducing that the hat's unusual initials must belong to Quillen, Eddie and Soapy go to nearby Flagstone to confront him. After Eddie beats up Quillen in Kirby's saloon, Kirby becomes even more determined to obtain the Hadley ranch. To that end, Kirby threatens to expose Tuttle, a clerk at Henry Allen's land company who owes him a large gambling debt, as an embezzler unless Tuttle forges a document saying that the absent Allen has foreclosed on the Hadley mortgage. When Eddie and Larry learn that Kirby is about to take over the ranch, they go to Flagstone to telegraph Allen, who had promised Larry a payment extension, in Chicago. Hearing that his employer is returning to Flagstone on the next stagecoach, Tuttle rushes to warn Kirby. Soapy overhears the conversation, in which Kirby orders Allen's murder, and reports to Eddie, who rides to intercept Allen's stage. Eddie takes Allen's place on the stage and instructs him to meet him in the land office that night. After Eddie outguns Allen's would-be murderers, he makes his rendezvous with Allen, and the two confront Tuttle about the document. Eddie soon coerces the terrified Tuttle into confessing his part in the scheme, as well as Kirby's plan to steal Hadley's gold mine. Just then, Kirby and his men, who have been following Eddie, burst into Allen's office. Kirby knocks out Eddie and orders one of his men to kill Allen with Eddie's gun. Although the sheriff arrests Eddie, he later reveals that he talked to Allen on the street just before he was killed and knows that Kirby and his men are the real culprits. Eddie and Soapy then confront Kirby with Tuttle's confession, and when Kirby learns that the clerk revealed the existence of the gold mine, he angrily draws his gun. Eddie also draws his weapon, and a gunfight ensues. Although Kirby manages to escape the saloon, Eddie pursues him and beats him unconscious. Later, Eddie bids an admiring Janet and a grateful Larry goodbye and rides off with Soapy.
Director
Ray Taylor
Cast
Eddie Dean
White Cloud
Roscoe Ates
Shirley Patterson
Terry Frost
Steve Drake
Nina Bara
Bill Fawcett
Lane Bradford
Lee Morgan
George Chesebro
Andy Parker
Earl Murphy
Paul Smith
George Bamby
Charles Morgan
Crew
Max Asher
Hal Blair
Dick Carruth
Noble Craig
Archie Dalzell
Eddie Dean
James Doolittle
Pete Gates
Glen Glenn
Walter Greene
Ray Mercer
Doris Miller
Ernie Miller
Jack Mills
William L. Nolte
Joseph Poland
Jerry Thomas
Ira Webb
Hugh Winn
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
Andy Parker and the Plainsmen were regular performers on the Hollywood Barn Dance radio show, and according to Hollywood Reporter, Black Hills was to be their first film in a six-picture deal with Producers Releasing Corp. Modern sources add Bud Osborne, Stephen Crane, Carl Mathews and Eddie Parker to the cast. A modern source incorrectly lists Steve Clark in Steve Drake's role.
