Stranger on Horseback (1955)

A circuit judge in the old west attempts to bring a suspected killer to justice. The judge runs afoul of the killer's rich cattle baron father in the process.

Director:

Jacques Tourneur

Writers:

Herb Meadow (screenplay), Don Martin (screenplay)

Stars:

Joel McCrea, Miroslava, Kevin McCarthy

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Joel McCrea	...	Judge Richard 'Rick' Thorne
Miroslava	...	Amy Lee Bannerman
Kevin McCarthy	...	Tom Bannerman
John McIntire	...	Josiah Bannerman
John Carradine	...	Col. Buck Streeter
Nancy Gates	...	Caroline Webb
Emile Meyer	...	Sheriff Nat Bell
Robert Cornthwaite	...	Arnold Hammer
Jaclynne Greene	...	Paula Morrison (as Jacklyn Green)
Walter Baldwin	...	Vince Webb
Emmett Lynn	...	Barfly
Roy Roberts	...	Sam Kettering
George Keymas	...	Bannerman's Henchman

Storyline

A circuit judge in the old west attempts to bring a suspected killer to justice. The judge runs afoul of the killer's rich cattle baron father in the process.

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Plot Keywords:

suspicion | killer | judge | cattle baron | justice | 

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Taglines:

Thunder in the saddle ... greased lightning with his guns ... there never rode a man to match him !

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Genres:

Romance | Western

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Certificate:

Approved

Did You Know?

Quotes

[After water's thrown in his face.]
Thorne: Thanks, it's a hot day.
Baddie: I don't like what you said.
Thorne: I said it was a hot day.
Baddie: Well, I don't like the way you said it.

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Connections

Referenced in Hilde Knef - Ein Weltstar aus Berlin (2012)

User Reviews

Joel McCrea and John Carradine

1954's "Stranger on Horseback" was shot in Sedona AZ in the rarely used Ansco color process, rather than the far more popular Cinecolor. Joel McCrea is the star, playing circuit judge Richard Thorne, arriving in a town ruled by the Bannerman clan, investigating a shooting death where no arrests have been made. Trouble begins when Thorne learns that Tom Bannerman (Kevin McCarthy) was the shooter, his father Josiah (John McIntire) unwilling to allow any lawman to bring his offspring to trial. The beautiful Miroslava commands the screen as Amy Lee Bannerman, whose allegiance wavers under the judge's influence. Although a star in Mexico, she was actually Czech-born, a sad suicide only two weeks prior to this film's release. A year away from "Invasion of the Body Snatchers," the amiable Kevin McCarthy just isn't the right actor to play a slimy villain (all the bad guys are rather colorless). Legendary scene stealer John Carradine is in typical form, playing the tailor-made role of Colonel Buck Streeter, indeed a trial run for his Cassius Starbuckle in 1962's "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance," seedy Southern prosecutor aiding the judge while staying close to the Bannermans (he disappears from the film once the cross country journey begins).

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

June 1955 (UK)

Also Known As:

Einer gegen alle

Filming Locations:

Oak Creek, Sedona, Arizona, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Leonard Goldstein Productions, Robert Goldstein Productions

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Color (Anscocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1