Winners of the West (1940)

One of the writers of this serial, George H. Plympton, dusted the story off and re-sold it to Sam Katzman for a Columbia 1951 serial called "Roar of the Iron Horse". "Winners of the West" ... See full summary »

Directors:

Ford Beebe, Ray Taylor

Writers:

George H. Plympton (original screenplay), Basil Dickey (original screenplay),

Stars:

Dick Foran, Anne Nagel, Tom Fadden

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dick Foran	...	Jeff Ramsay
Anne Nagel	...	Claire Hartford
Tom Fadden	...	Tex Houston
James Craig	...	Jim Jackson
Harry Woods	...	King Carter
Charles Stevens	...	Snakeye
Edward Keane	...	John Hartford
Trevor Bardette	...	Raven
Edgar Edwards	...	Henchman Tim [Chs. 7-9, 11-13]
Edmund Cobb	...	Maddox [Chs. 2-9]
William Desmond	...	Bill Brine (foreman)
Roy Barcroft	...	Henchman Logan
Slim Whitaker	...	Lacey (stage driver) [Chs. 4-5, 11] (as Charles Whitaker)
Veola Vonn	...	Rita (saloon singer) [Chs. 2-3, 5] (as Vyola Vonn)
Evelyn Selbie	...	Jennie [Chs. 7, 13] (as Evelyn Selby)

Storyline

One of the writers of this serial, George H. Plympton, dusted the story off and re-sold it to Sam Katzman for a Columbia 1951 serial called "Roar of the Iron Horse". "Winners of the West" was Universal's 47th sound-era serial, falling between "Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe" and "Junior G-Men", and while it utilizes plenty of stock footage featuring Cliff Lyons doubling Buck Jones and Johnny Mack Brown from earlier Universal serials, the use of such is less than in most Universal serials of the time. Jeff Ramsay (Dick Foran), assistant to John Hartford (Edward Keane), President of the Hartford Transcontinental Railroad, is fighting to advance the line through Hell's Gate Pass. King Carter (Harry Woods), self-styled ruler of the land beyond the pass, plans to block the contruction of the railroad. Carter hires Snakeye (Charles Stevens), a renegade half-breed, to lead the Indians on raids against the construction camps. Hartford's daughter, Claire (Anne Nagel), is captured and held ...

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Plot Keywords:

serial | half breed | surveyor | peace treaty | horse | 

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Taglines:

HEROES OF THE IRON HORSE!...Daring redskins and renegades to blaze the rail trail to the West!

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Genres:

Western

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 July 1940 (USA)

Also Known As:

Conquistadores do Oeste

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

247 min 247 min (13 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Chapter Titles:

• 1. Redskins Ride Again
• 2. The Wreck at Red River Gorge
• 3. The Bridge of Disaster
• 4. Trapped by Redskins
• 5. Death Strikes the Trail
• 6. A Leap For Life
• 7. Thundering Terror
• 8.The Flaming Arsenal
• 9.Sacrificed by Savages
• 10.Under Crashing Timbers
• 11.Bullets in the Dark
• 12.The Battle of Blackhawk
• 13.Barricades Blasted

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Quotes

Claire Hartford: Well, I don't understand how you can take these things so lightly.
Jeff Ramsay: Well, as long as you got to take 'em, that's the only way to do it.

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Connections

Remake of The Steel Trail (1923)

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Soundtracks

"The Drinks Are on the House"
Written by Milton Rosen and Everett Carter
Sung by Veola Vonn (as Vyola Vonn)

User Reviews

The Railroad Must Go Through!

"Winners of the West" is a winning 13 chapter serial from Universal Pictures directed by veterans Ford Beebe and Ray Taylor. Universal was probably the largest of the studios producing chapter-plays at this time. As such the production values usually exceeded those of their competitors and they had ready access to a vast storehouse of stock footage from their previous productions, some dating back to the silent days.

In the 1930s, Universal starred Johnny Mack Brown in four serials as an "all in black" hero. The wardrobe was obviously used so that the hero would match whatever stock footage that was used.

In this one Dick Foran takes over as the "all in black" hero Jeff Ramsay. The story involves Ramsay's efforts to get the Great Hartford Transcontinental Railroad through Hellgate Pass. Along with pals Jim Jackson (James Craig) and Tex Houston (Tom Fadden), Jeff strives to overcome all obstacles placed in his path by the notorious King Carter (Harry Woods) and his gang. Carter is determined to drive the railroaders away.

Carter along with his cohort Snakeye (Charles Stevens) incite the local Indian tribe under Chief War Eagle (Chief Yowlachie) to raid the railroad camp. The head of the railroad John Hartford (Edward Keane) just happens to have a beautiful young daughter Claire (Anne Nagel) who keeps getting in the way and winds up getting kidnapped at one point.

Over the course of 13 thrilling chapters Ramsay and his pals manage to get into the usual array of chapter ending cliff hangers only to escape just in the nick of time. Here the directors cheated a little. For example, at the end of one chapter Ramsay is shot at point blank range by two bad guys and falls to the floor. In the next chapter he rises from the floor without a scratch. Later in that same chapter he also escapes without a scratch from a cave-in when a mine passage collapses right on top of him. Oh well, what Saturday matinée 10 year old kid would have noticed or even cared as long as the hero lived to fight another day.

Of course needless to say Jeff and the side of righteousness wins out in the final chapter and all live happily ever after.

This serial boasts one of the finest array of bad guys ever to grace a "B" western. Besides Woods (one of the best of the "B" heavies) and Charlie Stevens (who was a grandson of the famous Apache Chief, Geronimo), the gang includes such notables as Trevor Bardette as the creepy Raven and Edmond Cobb, Roy Barcroft, Edgar Edwards, Bud Osborne and Tom London as various henchmen. Also making brief appearances are the likes of Bob Kortman, Ed Cassidy, Kermit Maynard, Bud Osborne and Iron Eyes Cody.

Dick Foran would make only one more serial for Universal, the all-star million dollar serial "Riders of Death Valley" in 1941.