The Dying Western – The Depression Era (1930s)
The 1930s is known as one of the worst decades for the Western genre. Between The Big Trail (1930) and Stagecoach (1939) there was barely any A-western made. Only between 10-15 westerns could be considered a big budget production. The big studios basically didn't want to touch them apart from a minor upswing in 1936, but the small studios without any money made a ton of them. Hardly any of them any good. Around 1000 westerns was created during the decade, and I've seen half of them. This is a list for those wondering what to track down from this semi-obscure wild west era.
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- DirectorJohn FordStarsJohn WayneClaire TrevorAndy DevineA group of people traveling on a stagecoach find their journey complicated by the threat of Geronimo and learn something about each other in the process.
- DirectorMichael CurtizStarsErrol FlynnOlivia de HavillandAnn SheridanA Texas cattle agent witnesses first hand, the brutal lawlessness of Dodge City and takes the job of sheriff to clean the town up.
- DirectorGeorge MarshallStarsMarlene DietrichJames StewartMischa AuerDeputy sheriff Destry tames the town of Bottle Neck, including saloon singer Frenchy.
- DirectorsRaoul WalshLouis R. LoefflerStarsJohn WayneMarguerite ChurchillEl BrendelBreck Coleman leads hundreds of settlers in covered wagons from the Mississippi River to their destiny out West.
- DirectorRichard BoleslawskiStarsChester MorrisLewis StoneWalter BrennanThree fugitives risk their lives to bring a newborn baby out of the desert to safety.
- DirectorLloyd BaconStarsJames CagneyHumphrey BogartRosemary LaneDuring the Oklahoma Land Rush, the lawlessness is exacerbated by the McCord gang's feud with the Kincaids, who are trying to bring law and justice to the region.
- DirectorsHenry KingIrving CummingsStarsTyrone PowerHenry FondaNancy KellyAfter railroad agents forcibly evict the James family from their family farm, Jesse and Frank turn to banditry for revenge.
- DirectorLuis TrenkerStarsLuis TrenkerViktoria von BallaskoWerner KunigA German-born Swiss citizen emigrates to the United States in search of a better life and making fortune.
- DirectorAllan DwanStarsRandolph ScottNancy KellyCesar RomeroWyatt Earp agrees to become marshal and establish order in Tombstone in this very romanticized version of the gunfight at the O.K. Corral.
- DirectorKing VidorStarsFred MacMurrayJack OakieJean ParkerTwo down-on-their-luck former outlaws volunteer to be Texas Rangers and find themselves assigned to bring in an old friend, now a notorious outlaw.
- DirectorCecil B. DeMilleStarsBarbara StanwyckJoel McCreaAkim TamiroffIn 1862, Central Pacific and Union Pacific Railroads compete westward across the wilderness toward California.
- DirectorCecil B. DeMilleStarsGary CooperJean ArthurJames EllisonWild Bill Hickok and Buffalo Bill Cody attempt to stop an Indian uprising that was started by white gun-runners.
- DirectorsOtto BrowerB. Reeves EasonStarsGene AutryFrankie DarroBetsy King RossWhen the ancient continent of Mu sank beneath the ocean, some of its inhabitant survived in caverns beneath the sea. Cowboy singer Gene Autry stumbles upon the civilization, now buried beneath his own Radio Ranch. The Muranians have developed technology and weaponry such as television and ray guns. Their rich supply of radium draws unscrupulous speculators from the surface. The peaceful civilization of the Muranians is corrupted by the greed from above, and it becomes Autry's task to prevent all-out war, ideally without disrupting his regular radio show.
- DirectorJames P. HoganStarsJoan BennettRandolph ScottMay RobsonAfter the Civil War, an ex-Confederate soldier faces new battles, including the elements and a carpetbagger intent on destroying him.
- DirectorsJohn EnglishWilliam WitneyStarsReed HadleySheila DarcyWilliam CorsonThe masked hero leads a fighting force to fight a villian who plots the conquest of The Republic of Mexico.
- DirectorHerbert I. LeedsStarsCesar RomeroMarjorie WeaverChris-Pin MartinAn orphan whose father has been killed by bandits inherits a mine. Cisco saves the mine and the child and also finds the child's real mother.
- DirectorLesley SelanderStarsWilliam BoydRussell HaydenGeorge 'Gabby' HayesHoppy goes undercover as an Eastern gambler to rein in the fraternal perpetrators of a cattle-rustling scheme.
- DirectorsSam NelsonMack V. WrightStarsBill ElliottMonte BlueCarole WayneA short plot summary finds Wild Bill Hickok (Bill Elliott), the U.S. Marshal in Abilene, Kansas, opposing the Phantom Raiders, a gang of renegades raiding the cattle drives over the Chisholm Trail from Texas to Abilene. Hickok organizes the boys of the town into the "Flaming Arrows" to assist him. Finally, in the 15th chapter, "Trail's End", Hickok, the "Flaming Arrows" and army scout Kit Lawson (Kermit Maynard) combine to put an end to the Phantom Raiders.
- DirectorsRalph InceWilliam BoydStarsWilliam BoydCharles 'Chic' SaleDorothy WilsonGangsters come out West to hide out and the locals, led by a newcomer (William Boyd), fight them in self-defense before the local authorities arrive.
- DirectorGlenn TryonStarsHarry CareyTim HoltEvelyn BrentNotoriuos liar Bill Barker, having been banished westward by the law, talks the townspeople of Martinez into making him Mayor and Judge. Here he must deal with the outlaw the Tonto Kid and the troublesome McQuinn Brothers, and also look after his daughter Nita Mosby--who thinks that her father is dead.
- DirectorFrank LloydStarsJoel McCreaBob BurnsFrances DeeThe life and career of a Wells Fargo official frames this fictionalized account of the express company's formation.
- DirectorEdward L. CahnStarsWalter HustonHarry CareyRaymond HattonA lawman sets out to tame Tombstone, Arizona.
- DirectorWilliam A. SeiterStarsClaire TrevorJohn WayneGeorge SandersIn 1759, in Pennsylvania's Allegheny Valley, local settlers and Indian fighters try to persuade the British authorities to ban the trading of alcohol and arms with the marauding Indians.
- DirectorLesley SelanderStarsWilliam BoydRussell HaydenHarvey ClarkLorna Drake has inherited a ranch. Hoppy teaches her a bit about ranching and handles Scar Lewis, the bad guy, in the process.
- DirectorWilliam A. WellmanStarsWarner BaxterAnn LoringBruce CabotIn the 1840s, Mexico has ceded California to the United States, making life nearly impossible for the Mexican population due to the influx of land and gold-crazy Americans. Farmer Joaquin Murrieta avenges his wife's death against the four Americans who killed her and is branded an outlaw. The reward for his capture is increased as he subsequently kills the men who brutally murder his brother. Joining with bandit Three-Fingered Jack, Murrieta raises an army of disaffected Mexicans and goes on a rampage against the Americans, finally forcing his erstwhile friend Bill Warren to lead a posse against him.