The Yellow Tomahawk (1954)

When the army insists on building a fort on Indian land, in defiance of a treaty, the warnings of a scout go unheeded.

Director:

Lesley Selander

Writers:

Richard Alan Simmons (screenplay), Harold Jack Bloom (story)

Stars:

Rory Calhoun, Peggie Castle, Noah Beery Jr.

Cast

Cast overview:
Rory Calhoun	...	Adam Reed
Peggie Castle	...	Katherine Bohlen
Noah Beery Jr.	...	Tonio Perez (as Noah Beery)
Warner Anderson	...	Maj. Ives
Peter Graves	...	Walt Sawyer
Lee Van Cleef	...	Fire Knife
Rita Moreno	...	Honey Bear
Dan Riss	...	Sgt. Bandini
Walter Reed	...	Keats
Patrick Sexton	...	Lt. Bascomb (as Patrick Joseph Sexton)
Robert Bray	...	Lt. Banion
Adam Williams	...	Cpl. Maddock
James Best	...	Pvt. Bliss
Ned Glass	...	Willy

Storyline

In Wyoming Territory, army Major Ives and his men are building a temporary camp. The civilian surveyor, Mr. Keats is making preparations for the construction of a large permanent fort. However, the future fort is being erected on Cheyenne lands, in defiance of the treaty. Adam Reed is a self employed scout with friendly ties to the Cheyenne. Upset about the construction of the new fort on their lands, the Cheyenne ask scout Reed to contact Major Ives and deliver their message of grievance to him. The symbolic message consists of a yellow tomahawk as a warning against the building of a new fort in the area. Reed delivers the warning message to Major Ives but he is not taken serious. Major Ives lectures Reed about the need of bringing civilization to the lands that otherwise would go to waste under the savages. Reed retorts that Major Ives' only duty is to escort wagon trains of settlers passing through Cheyenne territory rather than build new forts in violation of the treaty. Reed also...

---

Plot Keywords:

deception | american indian | fort | treaty | gold prospector | 

---

Taglines:

An Indian Scout and a Blonde Wildcat . . . They Faced the Most Savage of All Indian Raids!

---

Genres:

Western

---

Certificate:

Approved

Did You Know?

Connections

Featured in Frances Farmer Presents: The Yellow Tomahawk (1958)

User Reviews

Some things to like

A lot of the B Westerns were "fluff", but usually the director or writer would want to add some "sidebar" on for their personal motif.

It is the "sidebar" that is usually the message the director and writer want to display. Sometimes, it is "advertising" for products, such as tobacco companies, soda companies, or what have you.

Here, either Director Selander, or writers Simmons and Boone, looked to want to add their own flavor to a fairly routine cavalry Western.

Like most Westerns of the day, the Indians are depicted as semi good guys with evil white men upsetting the apple cart.

The overkill of the evil white men has always been very politically correct, and especially was in the decades that followed this movie.

However, the real sidebar here is what happens with the evil corrupt cavalry officer who causes at least two massacres, quite knowingly, quite viciously.

Also, a few red herrings come into play here. The fates of a few of the characters you won't guess, as they go against the usual Hollywood propaganda formula. Thus, this particular Western has some surprises by the end.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

May 1954 (USA)

Also Known As:

Fire Knife

Filming Locations:

Colorado City, Arizona, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bel-Air Productions, Schenck-Koch Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

82 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1