Saddle Tramp
Brief Synopsis
Cast & Crew
Hugo Fregonese
Joel Mccrea
Wanda Hendrix
John Russell
John Mcintire
Jeanette Nolan
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
Cowboy Chuck Conner rides through Nevada on his way to California, reflecting on his peaceful, solitary life, when suddenly he is shot at. His horse bolts at the sound and almost throws him. An old man named Pop confesses to firing the shots, but refuses to say why. Later, several horsemen ride through Chuck's riverside camp followed by another group of cowboys, including Pop, but again Chuck is unable to get an explanation from him. The next day, Chuck nears the California border, but decides to pay a visit to his old friend Slim Stevens before leaving Nevada. At Slim's ranch, Chuck meets his four sons, Tommie, Robbie, Johnnie and Butch, and learns that Slim's wife has died. Later that evening, while Chuck snoozes with the boys, Slim saddles Chuck's horse and investigates a noise. On awakening, Chuck searches for Slim and discovers that he has broken his neck in a fall from the horse. Castigating himself for not warning Slim about the horse's nerves, Chuck makes himself responsible for Slim's orphaned sons. While looking for work in a nearby town, Chuck hears that rancher Jess Higgins needs cowhands but hates children because his own son left home. Chuck hides the boys in a canyon camp and, promising to return with food, goes to work at the Higgins ranch. He learns that Jess is feuding with neighboring rancher Martinez, accusing him of stealing his cattle. To Chuck's surprise, Pop works for Higgins, and he surmises that the quarrel between the ranchers was responsible for the shooting he encountered earlier.. When Chuck returns to camp, he finds that a nineteen-year-old runaway named Della, who is hiding from her lecherous uncle, has joined their group. With the boys' help, Chuck cleans out a water hole in record time, but when he returns to the ranch, Jess cannot believe he has already finished the job and accuses him of shirking. Chuck starts to explain about the boys, but the Irish Ma Higgins misunderstands and assumes he is talking about leprechauns. That night, when he is riding fence, Chuck meets Pancho, one of Martinez's men, who accuses Jess of stealing Martinez's cattle. He then invites Chuck to a fiesta, during which Chuck is introduced to Martinez's foreman Stringer. The next day, Jess's foreman Rocky demands to know what Chuck was doing at the rival ranch, and Chuck, who was using a pseudonym, asks him how he found out he was there. When Ma discovers that food is missing from the kitchen, she attributes it to the "little people," but Jess, who does not believe in leprechauns, sets a trap. Later, Hartnagle, Della's uncle, arrives, searching for her. That night, Chuck sneaks into the kitchen for food and narrowly misses getting caught in Jess's trap, but Hartnagle, trying for a late night snack, is not as fortunate. During dinner the following day, Della sneaks onto the ranch and summons Chuck, telling him that Butch is sick. Together, they ride for a doctor, but Butch's illness turns out to be only a stomach ache. The doctor, who knows and dislikes Hartnagle, promises to keep their secret. The next day, Jess, encouraged by Rocky, accuses Chuck of rustling, and when Chuck cannot explain where he was the night before, fires him. Jess then gathers his remaining hands together for an attack on the Martinez ranch. After Tommie shows Chuck that the cattle are hidden near their camp, Chuck realizes that Rocky and Stringer have been stealing the cattle to create a feud between the two ranchers. During a fight, Stringer knocks Chuck unconscious and takes him to a hideout. Tommie hurries back to the camp, and Della and the boys set off in a wagon for the Higgins ranch, where they find only Ma and Hartnagle. After preventing Hartnagle from harming Della, Ma drives the wagon to the Martinez ranch. At her urging, the two ranchers talk to each other and realize that they were victims of Rocky and Stringer. They then ride to the hideout and release Chuck. Later, Chuck and Della are married and have settled down on the Stevens ranch with the boys.
Director
Hugo Fregonese
Cast
Joel Mccrea
Wanda Hendrix
John Russell
John Mcintire
Jeanette Nolan
Russell Simpson
Ed Begley
Jimmy Hunt
Orley Lindgren
Gordon Gebert
Gregory Moffett
Antonio Moreno
John Ridgley
Joaquin Garay
Peter Leeds
Michael Steele
Walter Coy
Paul Picerni
Thomas Browne Henry
Howard Negley
Raymond Bond
Jim Hayward
Crew
Glenn Adams
Charles P. Boyle
Adele Cannon
Leslie I. Carey
William Coopersmith
Edward Dodds
Oliver Emert
William Fritzsche
Russell A. Gausman
Joseph Gershenson
Terry Gilkyson
Leonard Goldstein
Frank Gross
Bernard Herzbrun
Emile Lavigne
Warren Munroe
Richard H. Riedel
John Sherwood
Harold Shumate
Roland Smith
Joan St. Oegger
Joe Tapis
Bill Thomas
Bud Westmore
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
Some scenes were filmed on location at the Juarequi ranch near Newhall, CA.
