Storyline

The Pony Express days are coming to an end, with riders John Blair (John Wayne) and his friend Larry Adams (Lane Chandler), both about 75 pounds too heavy for the original job description, out of a job. They pay Cal Drake (Douglas Cosgrove) of Buchanan City a big price for the Crescent City line and equipment, and arrive there to find it is a ghost mining town and has only two residents: eccentric, self-proclaimed Mayor "Rocky" O'Brien (Lew Kelly) and Dr. William Forsythe (Sam Flint). With the arrival from back east of Barbara Forsythe (Phyllis Fraser), the doctor's daughter and Ginger Rogers lookalike, O'Brien happily changes the blackboard population sign from two to five. John determines to get even and operate the line anyway, after vacating a resident skunk from the stagecoach. On his first run into Buchanan City John learns of a coach race to be staged (fastest team to win a $25,000 government mail contract) and he signs up. A telegraph crew, drinking unknowingly of a poisoned well, are saved by John's timely arrival on the scene,and agree to run their line through Crescent City if John can get laborers.He takes them from Buchanan City, leaving it nearly deserted and O'Brien wearing out his chalk changing the population sign upwardly in Crescent City.Drake decides to get rid of John by hiring him, for $1,000, to drive a gold shipment to Sacramento, and ambushing him. John evades the ambush by taking another route and returns to collect his thousand dollars at gunpoint. As the race for the mail contract starts, Drake and his henchmen throw many obstacles in John's way.—Les Adams

Plot Keywords

reprisal, violence, vindication, grindhouse film, father daughter relationship, cowboys and indians, cowboys and outlaws, quick draw, western town, betrayal, ghost town, attempted murder, sabotage, sacramento california, retribution, actor billed above the title, skunk, indian attack, b movie, b western

Short Review

A John Wayne B western from 1936. Newly installed telegraph lines between west Cities make old pony express ways of communication redundant. That means John Wayne's character has to find a new job. He purchases the franchise to a stagecoach line from the prosperous 'city' of Buchanan to a city with a supposed population of 3500 Crescent City. He is conned though as only 2 live there. No it isn't Parson Cross, Sheffield post demolition. He now enters a race to win $25000 and a new post office for the city.I enjoyed the simplicity of the film but was amazed it is classed as comedy western.In one early scene the future of an unseen character called Tony Blair is enquired about!

Trailer

Streaming Service

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