The Painted Desert
| The Painted Desert | |
|---|---|
Theatrical release poster
|
|
| Directed by |
Howard Higgin Bert Gilroy |
| Produced by | E. B. Derr |
| Written by |
Tom Buckingham Howard Higgin |
| Starring |
William Boyd Helen Twelvetrees William Farnum |
| Music by | Francis Gromon |
| Cinematography | Edward Snyder |
| Edited by | Clarence Kolster |
|
Production
company |
|
| Distributed by | RKO Radio Pictures |
|
Release date
|
|
|
Running time
|
75-85 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
The Painted Desert is a 1931 American Pre-Code film released by RKO Radio Pictures. Produced by E. B. Derr, it was directed by Howard Higgin, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Tom Buckingham. It starred low-budget Western stars William Boyd (in his pre-Hopalong Cassidy days) and Helen Twelvetrees, and featured a young Clark Gable in his talking film debut. The picture was shot mostly on location in Arizona.
Two cowboy friends, Jeff (J. Farrell MacDonald) and Cash (William Farnum), are traveling through the desert in the southwest U.S., when they come upon a baby who has been abandoned in the back of a covered wagon. They can't leave the defenseless child, so decide to take the baby with them, however, they argue over which of them would be better suited to raising the child. When Cash ends up prevailing in the debate, this creates a lifelong rift between the two friends.
Years later the baby has now grown into a young man, Bill Holbrook (William Boyd), who works with his adoptive father on their cattle ranch. Cash's erstwhile friend, Jeff, has remained in the area where the infant was found and has established his own ranch, centered on the water hole where the entire feud originally began, a feud which is still in full force. Jeff lives with his grown daughter, Mary Ellen (Helen Twelvetrees). The feud escalates when Cash wants to use the water hole on Jeff's property to water his cattle. Jeff is ready to confront Cash in a stand-off, preventing him from watering his cattle on the property Jeff has claimed, assisted by an itinerant cowboy, Rance Brett (Clark Gable), who has been smitten with Mary Ellen's beauty. The confrontation is temporarily avoided when Cash's herd unexpectedly stampedes.
...
Wikipedia