The Desperado
Brief Synopsis
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In Texas, during the 1870-1873 carpetbag administration of Governor E. J. Davis, the law is enforced by a brutal, despotic organization called the Texas State Police, known as the "Bluebellies." As part of a campaign to vote Davis out of office, the citizens of John's City hold meetings which are frequently broken up by the Bluebellies. Young Tom Cameron and his friend Ray Novack, son of the former sheriff, are suspected of having blown up the Bluebellies' station house and are arrested and interrogated by the brutal Capt. Thornton. To save Ray from additional physical punishment, Tom confesses to throwing the dynamite. They both manage to escape and plan to hide out in Big Bend country, but on their way there they befriend outlaw gunman Sam Garrett. Ray, who is extremely jealous of Tom's courtship of Laurie Bannerman, wants to capture Garrett and attempts to shoot him while he is sleeping, but Tom prevents him. After Tom and Sam send Ray away, Sam presents Tom with two guns and coaches him in fast draws. As they move on, they encounter Paul Creyton, another outlaw, who has had to shoot his injured horse. When Creyton later attempts to steal Tom's horse, Tom shoots and kills him. Tom then decides to return home and finds that his father has been accidentally killed by Thornton. Laurie tries to persuade Tom to marry her and leave, but he feels that he must avenge his father. Some time later, Tom finds Thornton in a saloon and orders him to draw. A bartender attempts to shoot Tom but is shot by Sam, who enters the saloon at that moment. When Thornton refuses to draw his gun, Tom cannot shoot him and rides off with Sam. After they leave, Ray, who has been present in the saloon, kills Thornton and a trooper. Later, Ray tells Laurie and his father that Tom killed them and alienates Laurie from Tom. Meanwhile, Tom and Sam arrive in Red River to join a cattle drive to Abilene and Tom writes a letter to Laurie asking her to meet him in Abilene. As the drive begins, Tom encounters Paul Creyton's twin brother Buck, and kills him. Back in John's City, Ray is in the general store when the mail bag arrives and takes Tom's letter to Laurie. Subsequently, Abilene's marshal Jim Langley is advised that Tom and Sam will be arriving with the herd, but Langley proves to be an old friend of Sam's. Tom learns that Governor Davis has been deposed and the Bluebellies are finished. Believing that he is now free, Tom goes to meet Laurie but is arrested by Langley for Thornton's murder and suspects that Laurie has set him up. At the trial, Ray testifies that he saw Tom kill Thornton and the trooper. Although Tom has elected to defend himself, Sam shows up and testifies that he saw Ray in the saloon as they left and that Thornton and the trooper were still alive. Langley states that although Sam is an outlaw, he is an honest man and asks Ray's father who informed him that Tom would be in Abilene. Knowing he is trapped, Ray tries to escape but is stopped by Langley. Later, Tom and Laurie reunite as Sam rides away.
Cast & Crew
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Thomas Carr
Director
Wayne Morris
Sam Garrett
James Lydon
Tom Cameron
Beverly Garland
Laurie Bannerman
Rayford Barnes
Ray Novack
Dabbs Greer
Jim Langley
Film Details
Genre
Action
Western
Release Date
Jun
20,
1954
Premiere Information
not available
Production Company
Allied Artists Pictures Corp.; Silvermine Productions Co.
Distribution Company
Allied Artists Pictures Corp.
Country
United States
Screenplay Information
Based upon a novel by Clifton Adams (New York, 1950).
Technical Specs
Duration
1h 20m
Sound
Mono
Color
Black and White
Synopsis
In post-Civil War Texas, a young gunslinger teams up with a fugitive gunfighter to seek revenge on his former partner.
Director
Thomas Carr
Director
Cast
Wayne Morris
Sam Garrett
James Lydon
Tom Cameron
Beverly Garland
Laurie Bannerman
Rayford Barnes
Ray Novack
Dabbs Greer
Jim Langley
Lee Van Cleef
Paul Creyton/Buck Creyton
Nestor Paiva
Capt. Thornton
Roy Barcroft
Martin Novack
John Dierkes
Sgt. Rafferty
Richard Shackleton
Pat Garner
Stanford Jolley
Mr. Garner
Charles Garland
Trooper
Florence Lake
Mrs. Cameron
John Eldredge
Tom's father
Robert Shayne
Prosecutor
Lyle Talbot
Judge
George Eldredge
Laurie's father
Crew
Mary Chaffee
Set Construction
Vincent M. Fennelly
Producer
Sam Fields
Film Editor
Geoffrey Homes
Screenwriter
John K. Kean
Recording Engineer
Raoul Kraushaar
Music
Ray Mercer
Special Effects
Joseph M. Novak
Director of Photography
Stanley Price
Dial Supervisor
Melville Shyer
Assistant Director
Vincent A. Taylor
Set Decoration
James West
Art Director
Film Details
Genre
Action
Western
Release Date
Jun
20,
1954
Premiere Information
not available
Production Company
Allied Artists Pictures Corp.; Silvermine Productions Co.
Distribution Company
Allied Artists Pictures Corp.
Country
United States
Screenplay Information
Based upon a novel by Clifton Adams (New York, 1950).
Technical Specs
Duration
1h 20m
Sound
Mono
Color
Black and White
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
Edmund Jackson Davis (1827-1883), was a former Union Army officer who won the governorship of Texas in the closely disputed election of 1869. Among the controversial programs backed by his administration was the use of State Police to institute law and order and the restoration of a state militia. The measure encountered strong attacks from both Republican and Democratic opponents and added to the controversy that surrounded Reconstruction in Texas. Davis was defeated in December 1973 by Richard Coke, by a two-to-one margin. A modern source adds Reed Howes, Stanley Price and William Fawcett to the cast.
