Star in the Dust (1956)

The sheriff of Gunlock is planning to hang Sam Hall, who shot three farmers found on cattle land, at sundown. At the casino, betting is 8 to 3 he won't make it. The cattlemen are set to ... See full summary »

Director:

Charles F. Haas

Writers:

Oscar Brodney (screenplay), Lee Leighton (novel)

Stars:

John Agar, Mamie Van Doren, Richard Boone

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
John Agar	...	Sheriff Bill Jorden
Mamie Van Doren	...	Ellen Ballard
Richard Boone	...	Sam Hall
Coleen Gray	...	Nellie Mason
Leif Erickson	...	George Ballard
James Gleason	...	Orval Jones
Randy Stuart	...	Nan Hogan
Terry Gilkyson	...	The Music Man
Paul Fix	...	Mike MacNamara
Harry Morgan	...	Lew Hogan
Stuart Randall	...	Jess Ryman
Robert Osterloh	...	Rigdon
Stanley Andrews	...	Ben Smith
John Daheim	...	Jiggs Larribee (as John Day)
Stafford Repp	...	Leo Roos

Storyline

The sheriff of Gunlock is planning to hang Sam Hall, who shot three farmers found on cattle land, at sundown. At the casino, betting is 8 to 3 he won't make it. The cattlemen are set to rescue Sam; the farmers hope to lynch him before he can be rescued; and Hall schemes for escape with his girl Nellie. But Sheriff Jorden is most concerned with finding out who hired Hall: a leading suspect is the sheriff's future brother-in-law.

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Plot Keywords:

sheriff | catfight | song | murder | schoolteacher | 

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Taglines:

THE STORY OF THE MOST DESPERATE GAMBLE THE WEST HAS EVER KNOWN! (original print ad - all caps)

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Genres:

Western

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 June 1956 (USA)

Also Known As:

Law Man

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal International Pictures (UI)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

80 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.00 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Sam Hall: You annoy me, sheriff. When I leave your hotel I'm gonna squash you like I'd squash a bug.

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Soundtracks

"Sam Hall"
Written by Terry Gilkyson

User Reviews

The odds were against the sheriff going through with the hanging.

When this film was released in Brazil, a famous critic ranked it among the best films of the year (probably 1957). I would no go as far as that, but Star in the Dust is a B western with higher ambitions that partially achieves them. The story is about the sheriff who has to hang a killer Sam Hall (Richard Boone) before sundown. The cattlemen who probably hired the killer want to turn him loose, but the ranchers (the ones that were killed were ranchers), who have the local teacher as their leader want the hanging to go through. All the time there is a man singing a ballad about Sam Hall and it blends well with the film. Mamie Van Doren in an unusual role where she is not meant to be sexy is the sheriff's bride and also the sister of the banker and leader of the cattlemen. There is a constant betting going on where the odds that the hanging is not going to go through are much higher. The tension builds up very well, up to the crucial moment which is very convincing. A very similar story was used in another western "The Young Land"(1959), also with very good results.