Robin Hood of the Range
Brief Synopsis
Cast & Crew
William Berke
Charles Starrett
Arthur Hunnicutt
Kay Harris
Kenneth Macdonald
Douglass Drake
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
Railroad executive Henry Marlowe has gained control of the Sierra Valley through a government land grant that cedes all the territory in the valley to the railroad. Under the terms of the grant, all homesteaders must buy or rent their land from the railroad, and Marlowe and his partner, Ned Harding, have seized the opportunity to charge exorbitant rents, thus driving the settlers from their lands. Unaware of his father's treachery, Henry's adopted son, Steve, returns home from fighting in the Spanish American War and is mystified at the settlers' animosity toward his family. Steve learns that a masked bandit named Santana has been terrorizing the district, directing his wrath at the railroad. When Steve is confronted by Santana, he mortally wounds the bandit, who before dying, tells Steve about Marlowe's treachery and the plight of the settlers. Finally grasping the truth, Steve decides to champion the rights of the homesteaders and dons the mask of Santana. After Steve continues Santana's mission of robbing the railroad and distributing the proceeds to the settlers so that they can pay their debts, his sister Julie, who was also adopted by Marlowe, discovers her brother's alter ego and embraces his cause. As Santana, Steve rallies the settlers together and urges them to send a representative to Washington, D.C. to present their case to the Land Commission. Grady, a man unafraid of the railroad, is selected as their representative. While Grady is in Washington, Harding, who suspects that Steve is the masked rider, conspires with Marlowe to have Steve arrested on false charges and bring him to trial. After the homesteaders discover Steve's identity, they decide to take the law into their own hands and form a committee to lynch Marlowe and Harding. When Julie sees the mob take Marlowe and Harding prisoner, she rides to town to warn the sheriff and arrives at the jailhouse just as Grady returns from Washington. After Julie warns them about the planned lynching, Steve, the sheriff and Grady ride to the scene and stop the hanging. After Grady informs the settlers that the government intends return their land to them and the railroad trust has been dissolved, they release Marlowe and Harding. All ends happily as Steve is exonerated and can retire his mask.
Director
William Berke
Cast
Charles Starrett
Arthur Hunnicutt
Kay Harris
Kenneth Macdonald
Douglass Drake
Hal Price
Ed Peil Sr.
Frank Larue
Bud Osborne
Stanley Brown
The Jimmy Wakely Trio
John Tyrrell
Ernie Adams
Steve Clark
Merrill Mccormick
Bobby Larson
Cara Raport
Frank O'connor
Jessie Arnold
Marcia Raport
Bessie Wade
Herman Hack
Ray Jones
Frank Mccarroll
Johnny Bond
Scotty Harrol
Crew
Gene Autry
Lionel Banks
Johnny Bond
Irving Briskin
Betty Burbridge
James M. Crowe
Jack Fier
Jack Goodrich
Benjamin Kline
William O'connor
Dick Reinhart
Perry Smith
Jerome Thoms
Jimmy Wakely
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
Although reviews note that this film featured several songs, their titles have not been identified. One title May be "I'll Never Let You Go, Little Darlin'" by Jimmy Wakely. The Hollywood Reporter review adds that the opening footage showing Indians attacking a wagon train was excerpted from Columbia's 1940 film Arizona (see AFI Catalog of Feature Films, 1931-40; F3.0148).
