Oklahoma Terror

"Oklahoma Terror" stars a B-western star who is pretty much forgotten today. Part of the reason is that Jack Randall unexpectedly died when he had a heart attack and fell off a horse while shooting a movie....and he was only 39! He also happened to be Robert Livingston's brother...and both worked for Monogram Pictures.

When the story begins, Jack and Fuzzy (Al St. John) come upon some homesteaders who were just forced off the land they just purchased. It seems bandits made life unbearable and only later do Jack and Fuzzy learn that it's all part of a sick scheme. It seems someone is selling property and then having bandits rough them up and force them off the land...and they then re-sell the property to some other sucker. And, if the owner complains, they promise to give them back their money....but just end up killing them! Nice folks, huh?! But who is behind this scheme? Who is Mr. Big?!

The strangest thing about this film is that one of the supporting players is Glenn Strange...and he does NOT play a villain!! I must have seen him play baddies in at least 100 B-westerns...but not here! Additionally, this is an odd film because the hero isn't very action-oriented and whenever a problem arises, he wants to sit down and talk! Most B-western stars spoke with their fists....a few with their guns.

Overall, I think this is a pretty ordinary western....not bad but also not one with a lot of energy. Worth seeing if you love the genre...otherwise, easy to skip.

In this the second Jack Randall movie I've ever seen, I was glad to see it is an improvement over the first, "Across the Plains."

"Oklahoma Terror" was pretty much a generic title, but the plot of land embezzlers fits into the history of Oklahoma.

Spencer Gordon Bennett was one excellent director, though apparently fallen on hard times in working at Monogram. Low budgets and second-rate stunt work hamper the film, and editors have to work hard to make do with what they have.

An excellent cast, though, with Tris Coffin, a good-looking and talented actor, as the action heavy, Fuzzy St. John as the hero's best friend, and one of the best cowboys in motion picture history, and Glenn Strange as a leader of the good guys, make "Oklahoma Terror" a movie to see.

There were moments when Jack Randall sounded much like Bob Livingston, and a few scenes when he even looked like him, reminding us they were brothers, although Bob's career far surpassed Jack's.

Jack, or Addinson, Randall died awfully young, while making another western, and that is a sad story. He was talented and not used as he should have been.

Virginia Carroll had very little to do, but she did that little very well. She showed spunk and her expressions demonstrated some ability, and her ability was on display until at least 1966 since she continued acting.

"Oklahoma Terror" is not a great western, but it is a western and I recommend it. It's available at Westerns on the Web and I hope you get to see it.