Riders of the Whistling Pines (1949)

Badguys Henry, Bill and Pete head a gang of outlaws who are destroying the timberland. When Gene butts in they frame him on a cattle-poisoning charge and set him up for murder.

Director:

John English

Writer:

Jack Townley

Stars:

Gene Autry, Champion, Patricia Barry

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Gene Autry	...	Gene Autry
Champion	...	Champion, Gene's Horse
Patricia Barry	...	Helen Carter (as Patricia White)
Jimmy Lloyd	...	Forester Joe
Douglass Dumbrille	...	Henry Mitchell
Damian O'Flynn	...	Henchman Bill Wright
Clayton Moore	...	Henchman Pete
Harry Cheshire	...	Dr. Daniel Chadwick
Leon Weaver	...	Abner
Jerry Scoggins	...	Forester Jerry, Guitar Player (as The Cass County Boys)
Fred S. Martin	...	Forester Freddie, Accordion player (as The Cass County Boys)
Bert Dodson	...	Forester Bert, Bass player (as The Cass County Boys)
The Pinafores	...	Singing Trio
Beulah Kettle	...	Singing Sister (as The Pinafores)
Ione Kettle	...	Singing Sister (as The Pinafores)

Storyline

While trailing Forest Ranger Charles Carter (Jason Robards Sr.), who is suspected of permitting lumber man Henry Mitchell (Douglass Dumbrille) to cut restricted timber, Gene fires at a dangerous mountain lion and apparently kills Carter. Actually, Bill Wright (Damian O'Flynn), Mitchell's associate, killed Carter because the ranger had discovered tussock moth infestation in the forest, and if the infestation was not reported, the trees would die and have to be cut, thereby profiting Mitchell and Wright. In order to compensate the best he can, Gene sells his sportsman's camp and gives the money to Carter's daughter Helen (Patricia Barryas Patricia White) . En route to Texas, Gene discovers the infestation and is assigned by the Forest Department to supervise the program of spraying the area with DDT from the air. After the first day of spraying, the DDT is blamed by furious stock men for the many animals found dead of poisoning. Gene suspects a strange plane heard flying in the night ...

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Plot Keywords:

b movie | infestation | ddt | trap | cabin | 

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Taglines:

Gene Fights And Sings With The Forest Rangers!

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Music | Western

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

10 March 1953 (West Germany)

Also Known As:

Ridin' the Old Pine Trail

Filming Locations:

Big Bear Lake, Big Bear Valley, San Bernardino National Forest, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Gene Autry Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

70 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White (Sepiatone)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The photograph of Joe Lucas's late wife is one of Marilyn Monroe, who was then under contract with Columbia.

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Soundtracks

Hair of Gold
Written by Sunny Skylar
Performed by Gene Autry and the The Cass County Boys and The Pinafores

User Reviews

Would you believe The Lone Ranger as a villain?

One of my earliest childhood memories was getting home from school and sitting down in the family kitchen to hear "The Lone Ranger" on our big console radio. Of all my first TV heroes, none were bigger or braver than Davy Crockett, Superman and The Lone Ranger (not to forget his "faithful Indian companion and a fiery horse called Silver.") Until now, I'm sure I'd never seen Fess Parker, George Reeves or Clayton Moore as a bad guy. A few hours before this movie aired on cable, I saw the text of the preview box which read "Pete:Clayton Moore" so I was curious to see what color hat he was wearing. Actually, I later found out from IMDb filmographies that Parker, Reeves and Moore had each played villains more than once. Still, I had to wait until the third reel before I could be sure I was seeing Moore. In the first few scenes, what little dialogue he spoke didn't really identify him. But in the last scene he played with Autry, he spoke long enough that his clear deep voice revealed the familiar one we would grow to recognize from the long-running series which began not many months after the release of this film. There's little else about this oater I'd recommend. There are some good but forgettable songs, by Gene and others, just fair action and cinematography, no real romance, and not even a comical sidekick. It's not a great western by any stretch or even one of Autry's best films. For all that, it's still a passable way to spend an hour and ten minutes, which is about the length of one of my church's Sunday morning worship services. Forgive me, Pastor Mark, but Gene Autry's films haven't yet put me to sleep. Now, Rev, if you're hankerin' to liven up the congregation, I'd reckon you might try to wear a Stetson and fire a six-shooter (blanks-loaded, naturally) now and then. Dale Roloff