TUMBLEWEEDS (United Artists, 1925), Directed by King Baggott, stars the legendary William S. Hart (1865-1946) in what proved to become his final screen appearance. Virtually unknown by today's standards, Hart was a popular leading cowboy actor dating back to 1914, whose success would be categorized as a sort of Gary Cooper or John Wayne of his day. Hart was versatile in other roles, but westerns were his specialty, with many, including Hart himself, ranking TUMBLEWEEDS as his finest of all his westerns.
Opening title: "Man and beast – both blissfully unaware that their reign is over." Set in 1889, Dan Carver (William S. Hart), a range boss of the Box K Ranch, known as "just another tumbleweed," is introduced as a sympathetic cowboy who fails to shoot a rattlesnake only because it has as much right to be around as anyone else. He also takes in a couple of orphan wolf dog puppies to find them a home after their parent dogs have been poisoned. The plot develops as the United States Government allowing ranchers to graze cattle on their payment to the Cherokee Land Strip, 12,000 square miles of undeveloped prairie land between Kansas and Oklahoma. Riding to Caldwell, Kansas (population 200), on the edge of the Cherokee Strip, Dan spreads the news to its local residents. Journeying to his destination with "Kentucky Rose" (Lucien Littlefield), they encounter Mrs. Riley (Lillian Leighton), a widow woman with three children, who takes a liking to Kentucky Rose. After intervening with Noll Lassiter (J. Gordon Russell) for abusing a boy, Bart (Jack Murphy), and his dog, he forces the brutal man to apologize to both. Dan immediately bonds with Bart who now looks up to him as a father figure. However, after accidentally roping a young girl (Barbara Bedford) in a saloon, Dan soon learns that the girl, named Molly, happens to be sister of Bart and half-sister to the villainous Noll Lassiter. Because of his interest in Molly, Dan decides to settle down and stake out a homestead claim for himself, with the possibility of having Molly become his future wife. Noll, however, unwilling to overlook Dan's defeat over him, schemes with Benton, alias Bill Freel (Richard R. Neill), to have Dan put out of the way. They arrange in having Dave accused and arrested as a "sooner," which finds him being held prisoner inside a bull pen while the bad guys so as much as commit murder so they can legally stake the claim for themselves.
Most circulating prints of TUMBLEWEEDS consist of a 1939 reissue from Astor Pictures introducing eight minutes of spoken prologue by William S. Hart himself where he talks about his "greatest picture" from his Horseshoe Ranch in Newhall, California. After listening to Hart's speaking voice, it is much regret that this once popular actor of the silent screen never starred in at least one talkie western, even possibly a sound remake to his greatest movie, TUMBLEWEEDS. Chances are had be proceeded in his career in talkies, he most definitely would have succeeded, even if later reduced to matinée cowboy star as Tim McCoy or Ken Maynard for example. However, this 1939 prologue is the one and only chance for viewers to get to hear him speak, through his wonderful tribute to both himself and the movie itself.
Home video to TUMBLEWEEDS dating back to the 1980s either from Blackhawk or a decade later from Republic Pictures also contain the Hart prologue. Rather than the orchestral score with off-screen singing to title card songs, both video/DVD editions are piano scored by William H. Perry for the Killiam collection. Clocked at 77 minutes (not counting the prologue), it seems a shame that this and THE TOLL GATE (1920) to date have become the only two Hart westerns to have limited broadcasts on public television some decades ago. Considering that TUMBLEWEEDS is hailed as Hart's best movie makes one wonder if his other silent westerns are equally as good or even better? The films of William S. Hart deserve better recognition in movie history. At least TUMBLEWEEDS is still available (on DVD) to remain one of the finer westerns to come out from the silent movie era, along with being both an introduction and rediscovery to the great quiet-type cowboy hero named William S. Hart. (***)
