Steven Helmer Publications

Synopsis: When convicted robber Charley Gray is released from prison, Texas rangers Dave Wyatt and Panhandle Perkins team up with lawyer Tex Haines to find out where he hid $250,000 in stolen government money by having Panhandle go undercover and befriend the newly released criminal. However, things prove to be more complicated when Charley's partner, Steve, and his new gang plan a double cross. Who's in it? The movie stars Dave O'Brien , Tex Ritter , Guy Wilkerson , Kay Hughes, Charles King and Jack Ingram . Review: I was running behind again this morning (must be the fact it is staying dark later) and, because of that, had to find a shorter alternative to the movie I intended to watch. Since I have enjoyed Tex Ritter/Dave O'Brien films in the past, I chose Enemy of the Law and wasn't disappointed. What really won me over with this movie were the villains. As I've said in the past, films like this are only as good as their bad guy and this one had a solid ...

Synopsis: After his gang stops another shipment of vital supplies to a remote wild west town, Malgrove believes he'll be able to buy the local ranches for pennies on the dollar and mine them for gold. However, his plan has one sudden and unexpected obstacle, a stranger, John Carruthers, who has ridden into town and is helping the local sheriff investigate. Who's in it? The movie stars John Wayne , George 'Gabby' Hayes , Eleanor Hunt, Edward Peil, Sr. and Yakima Canutt . Review: I had time to scroll through movies while waiting for my daughter to get done with work last night and ultimately decided on Blue Steel . I watched it this morning and thought it was a good choice. One of the first things I noticed about this movie is it had a bit of a silent film-feel to it. There's not a ton of dialog and a lot of the story is told through body language and a whole lot of horse riding. This works in the movie's favor, I think. The plot isn't anything overly compl...

Synopsis: After being left a vast inheritance by her father, Jane Withersteen has become a bit of an outcast in her Mormon community by refusing to marry Tull, a Morman elder seeking to make her his second wife and claim her property as his own, and by befriending and even becoming romantically involved with the Gentiles the rest of her community despises. When Elder Tull and other Mormons try to force her submission by stealing her cattle and forcing her riders to abandon her, Jane hires Lassiter, a notorious gunman who has arrived to get revenge for the now deceased Milly Erne. Review: My local library has a large selection of westerns, mostly in their large print section, and while I usually don't bother checking any of them out, I decided to finally give the genre a try with Zane Grey's Riders of the Purple Sage.  Ultimately, I concluded the genre probably isn't for me. However, the book did prove to be a decent read. I've said this in the past, but I do like book...

Synopsis: Cowboy Chris Morrell is caring for Nina, a young half Native American whose white father abandoned her now-deceased mother before she was born. When a piece of land leased in her mother's name strikes oil, Chris seeks to find Nina's father and gain guardianship of the girl to help her cash in on the newly discovered wealth and be taken care of. However, a gang of outlaws led by Sam Black are looking to steal the claim, putting Nina in danger. As a further complication, Chris is framed for an armed robbery. Who's in it? The movie stars John Wayne , Sheila Terry , Shirley Jean Rickert, Yakima Canutt and Jack Rockwell. Review: I must have forgotten what day it was because I overslept by nearly thirty minutes this morning. However, I have a built-in time buffer and modified morning routine for that very scenario and still had time to watch a short film before I needed to worry about heading into the office. This resulted in ' Neath the Arizona Skies being the...

Synopsis: When Ken Mitchell arrives to claim a cattle ranch left to him by his late uncle, he discovers he is unwanted by the local farmers who hated his uncle because of unscrupulous business practices that have them about to lose their land. Believing his uncle was being forced to work for someone else and knowing the locals won't accept his word or charity, Mitchell infiltrates a gang led by the real villain, Collins. He then pretends to help Mitchell carry out his land-grab plan while simultaneously secretly sabotaging that plan as a masked vigilante called the Phantom Rancher. Who's in it? The movie stars Ken Maynard, Dorothy Short , Harry Harvey, Ted Adams, Dave O'Brien and Tarzan. Review: In what is making me sound a bit like a broken record, I woke up this morning planning to watch another movie but found myself unable to located it in my library and quickly called an audible to another film. This film ended up being Phantom Rancher . While I did have a few doub...

Synopsis: While herding horses to Jean Loring's ranch and with plans to stay with his friend, Taffy Baker and her brother, Burt, Roy Rogers and the Sons of the Pioneers come across an orphaned fawn. Roy takes the animal to his friend, Captain "Cap" Foster and learns there is a group of professionally armed poachers in the area. When Cap is later murdered by the poachers, Roy begins to suspect Jean as being involved and thinks Burt knows something about it. However, when he attempts to investigate, he finds his own life in danger. Who's in it? The movie stars Roy Rogers , Trigger , Andy Devine , Jane Frazee, Stephanie Bachelor and Harold Landon. Review: I overslept this morning and was concerned I wouldn't have time to watch a movie. However, I managed to decide on Springtime in the Sierras with just enough time to spare. Overall, I have to say it was a Roy Rogers film that exceeded my expectations. The thing that surprised me most about this movie is it wasn...

Synopsis: Years after being Shanghaied and held prisoner on a ship, Don Ricardo returns to 1830s California and learns his cousin, Jose, arranged for him to be both kidnapped and murdered. Believing Ricardo is dead, Jose has laid claim to Ricardo's ranch and has his eyes set on Ricardo's love, Dorothea. With his skills with a sword deteriorated and needing proof of his cousin's deception, Ricardo disguises himself as a peasant and pairs up with another man, Lugo, who once saved him when he was a boy. Who's in it? The movie stars Fred Coby, Lita Baron, Paul Newlan, Anthony Warde, David Leonard and Martin Garralaga. Review: I added Don Ricardo Returns to my library a few weeks ago because I am a big Zorro fan and this movie was written by Zorro author Johnston McCulley. Unfortunately, while there were some similarities to The Mark of Zorro and other Zorro-related films, this did fall a bit short of my expectations. I am going to start out by saying there were things ...

Synopsis: Former United States Marshal Buck Roberts is looking forward to retirement on his cattle ranch but is called into action one more time when stagecoaches are robbed outside Mesa City, Arizona and threaten to put stagecoach owner Ruth Masters out of business. Roberts suspects local saloon owner Steve Taggart of being behind the robberies in an attempt to seize control of Ruth's business but before he can find proof, is framed and arrested. Fortunately, Roberts has reinforcements already in Mesa City. Who's in it? The movie stars Buck Jones, Tim McCoy, Raymond Hatton, Luana Walters and Tristram Coffin . Review: I didn't get an opportunity last night to pick out a movie for this morning, so I ended up just choosing the first one that could be watched in about an hour. That turned out to be Arizona Bound. While it wasn't my favorite classic western, it still turned out to be a decent choice. The plot itself was fairly simplistic. There was no attempt to create ...

Synopsis: Three Texas Rangers, Tex, Jim and Panhandle, are hunting a gang of outlaws known as the Devils Brand Gang because of a devil-related calling card they leave behind at their crimes. They are able to track down the gang and their leader, Jack Varno, thanks to a letter from Molly Dawson, whose uncle was killed by Varno's men and is now struggling to keep her ranch because of their rustling.  Needing evidence, Panhandle manages to infiltrate the gang. However, Varno isn't fooled long and their lives, along with Molly's life, are soon in danger. Who's in it? The movie stars Dave O'Brien , James Newill, Guy Wilkerson , Ellen Hall and I. Stanford Jolley . Review: I was undecided about what movie to watch this morning, so I just went through my library and picked the first movie that caught my eye. That ended up being Brand of the Devil. Overall, I would put this in the same category most classic westerns end up in - entertaining but nothing that is necessaril...

Synopsis: Two airplanes carrying shipments of gold are both forced to make emergency landings and are then robbed and their pilots killed by a gang of outlaws. Sheriff Roy Rogers investigates and soon suspects the outlaws are working for a local businessman seeking to drive the airport out of business with help from an inside man so he can purchase the land. Who's in it? The movie stars Roy Rogers , Betty Richards, Andy Devine, George Meeker and Trigger. Review: I overslept by about 15 minutes this morning, which both threw off my routine and meant I wasn't able to watch the movie I had planned on watching. As an alternative, I ended up selecting The Gay Ranchero because it was shorter in length. At first, I wasn't sure if I would like the film, but it turned out to be a halfway decent western. The main plot itself was about as predictable as you would expect from a movie like this. Even before Sheriff Roy (Rogers) had his theories, it was both reasonably clear who was ...

Synopsis: Shirley Martin and her father run a cattle ranch that, along with others in the valley, is in danger of drying up after a mining company owned by Robert Weylan dams and redirects the only source of water in an elaborate scheme to buy the land at a reduced cost. After her father is killed by Weylan's men, Shirley attempts to fight him in court and, when that fails, works to find another solution that won't result in people being hurt or killed. Who's in it? The movie stars Dorothy Page, Dave O'Brien , Stanley Price, Vince Barnett and Warner Richmond. Review: I was undecided about which movie to watch this morning and ended up picking Water Rustlers because it was one of the first that popped up on my list and a class western starring a "singing cowgirl" seemed somewhat unique. After seeing the movie, my opinion of it is mostly positive. I will admit, I wasn't expecting all that much from Shirley Martin (Page), based mostly on when the movie w...

Synopsis: After her brother is murdered by her ruthless neighbor, Buffer, Delores Carter seeks a professional gunfighter to get revenge and hires the mysterious Drake Robey. What Delores doesn't know is Robey is a vampire who is responsible for a series of mysterious deaths around the local old west town. Who's in it? The movie stars Michael Pate, Kathleen Crowley, John Hoyt , Bruce Gordon and Eric Fleming. Review: I had planned on watching another vampire movie this morning but came across Curse of the Undead first. The idea of a vampire movie mixed with the western genre was interesting and I did enjoy Billy the Kid Versus Dracula more than expected so I decided to give it a try.  Unfortunately, it failed to live up to expectations. As far as the western part of it goes, that truthfully wasn't terrible. It had the evil landowner (Gordon), a beautiful damsel in distress (Crowley), a small-town preacher (Fleming) who was obviously the movie's hero, and an unstoppab...

Synopsis: Silent film actors Lucky Day, Dusty Bottoms and Ned Nederlander are best known for playing gunfighters known as the Three Amigos on the big screen. When they demand more money, they are instead fired by the studio but think they are catching a big break when they receive a telegram asking them to travel to a small Mexican to put on a private performance. When they arrive, however, they discover the village believes the Three Amigos are real and they have been summoned to fight a real-life gang of outlaws led by the vicious El Guapo. Who's in it? The movie stars Steve Martin , Chevy Chase , Martin Short, Alfonso Arau, Kai Wulff and Jon Lovitz. Review: My day job (AKA, how I pay my bills) requires me to use all my vacation time each year and I was home this afternoon as a result of that. I had some things planned for my free time but forgot about most of them when I came across Three Amigos! What can I say, I love this movie and re-watching it for the umpteenth time did...

Synopsis: Wyatt, Morgan and Virgil Earp move to Tombstone, Arizona, seeking to retire from law enforcement and make money at a variety of business ventures. The town, however, is under the control of a gang of outlaws known as "the Cowboys," and when the local marshal is shot, Virgil decides to take his place, putting the brothers and their friend, "Doc" Holliday, at war with the gang. Who's in it? The movie stars Kurt Russell , Val Kilmer , Bill Paxton, Sam Elliott , Michael Rooker , Charlton Heston and Powers Boothe. Review: It was my wife's turn to go to my daughter's play tonight (it would be too expensive if we went to all the shows together) so, while she was there, I decided to re-watch Tombstone for the first time in years. This movie ended up being everything I remembered it being, and I mean that in a good way. This is the best kind of western, the kind that has a protagonist, in this case, Wyatt (Russell) who is more of an anti-hero than a...

Synopsis: Tex Haines, Dave Wyatt and Panhandle Perkins investigate the murder of a Native American and a fur trader who was likely killed by a local gang of outlaws for a stash of furs he had hidden away. Their investigation is hindered by a fake Indian agent who is part of the gang and tries to have Tex and Dave arrested for the murders. Who's in it? The movie stars Tex Ritter , Dave O'Brien , Guy Wilkerson , Lorraine Miller and Jack Ingram. Review: It had been a while since I last watched a singing cowboy movie so, while waiting for my daughter to get done with her theater rehearsal last night, I ended up selecting Frontier Fugitives for my morning movie. Overall, while nothing I would describe as particularly unique or special, it turned out to be a good choice. As far as the plot was concerned, it was fairly basic and cliché. You had clear good guys and bad guys, a motive (wanting to steal furs) that made sense for the setting, an attractive frontier woman (Miller) who ...

Synopsis: After discovering an uncanny resemblance to wanted outlaw Steve Carson, Texas Ranger Dave Wyatt poses as Carson in the hopes of catching a gang that has been breaking men out of jail only to kill them for the reward money. The ruse works as planned and Dave soon finds his life in danger with only fellow ranger Panhandle Perkins and attorney Tex Haines available to help him. Who's in it? The movie stars Tex Ritter , Dave O'Brien , Guy Wilkerson , Patricia Knox and Charles King. Review: I've had Flaming Bullets in my library for several weeks and finally decided to watch it this morning, mostly because it was only about an hour long and I was running a bit behind. The film was about what I expected it to be, nothing overly special but still entertaining. The premise was an intriguing one. On one hand, the gang of outlaws, led by Sid Tolliver (I. Stanford Jolley) were killing other outlaws rather than innocent people. However, since they were crossing a line by pr...

Synopsis: Looking to boost sales at his family's London gunsmith business, Jonathan Tibbs travels to America to sell weapons in the wild west and arrives in Fractured Jaw, a town that is caught in the middle of a violent land feud. When he tells residents he is in the "gun business," they assume he means he is a gunslinger and, after a night of drinking, Tibbs accidentally agrees to be sheriff. The only person who knows the truth about Tibbs is the local saloon owner, Kate, who falls in love with him while trying to teach him how to shoot a gun. Who's in it? The movie stars Kenneth More , Jayne Mansfield , Henry Hull , Bruce Cabot and William Campbell. Review: I came across The Sheriff of Fractured Jaw  a few days ago and since the description reminded me a bit of one of my favorite Don Knotts' movies, The Shakiest Gun in the West , I decided to add it to my library. I ended up watching it this morning and it turned out to be an entertaining film. I think the ...

Synopsis: Five years after being exiled from his hometown of Rock Valley for killing Carl Avery's sons, Case Britton returns to warn the sheriff about a gang of outlaws looking to steal $75,000 from a stagecoach. The sheriff believes Britton and arranges for the money to be kept in the town's bank instead. However, with many of the townspeople still unable to trust the gunman, Britton's offer to help is refused and he is instead locked up in the jail. Meanwhile, Britton's fiancée, Della, believes he should just walk away and not put his life in any more danger, despite Britton believing Avery both killed his brother and is the one who the outlaws are working for. Who's in it? The movie stars Jim Davis , Lyn Thomas , Ted de Corsia , Barton MacLane and Harry Carey, Jr. Review: It's been a while since I last watched a classic western and since Noose for a Gunman looked somewhat interesting, I decided to give it a try this morning. While nothing I would describ...

Synopsis: John Gant has a reputation as a heartless mercenary. Where he goes, death follows. When he rides into the small town of Lordsburg and rents a room at the hotel, the residents, not knowing who he has been sent there to kill, become paranoid. However, since all Gant's previous victims drew their guns first, the law is powerless to stop him. Meanwhile, the town doctor, Luke Canfield, is doing his best to keep the peace and stop the townspeople from going too far. Who's in it? The movie stars Audie Murphy , Charles Drake , Joan Evans , Virginia Grey and Warren Stevens. Review: I've had No Name on the Bullet in my library for a couple weeks now and decided to watch it this morning, mostly because I have enjoyed most Audey Murphy films I've seen. This movie turned out not to be an exception to that. I think the thing I liked most about this film is how Gant's (Murphy) appearance in town brought out multiple skeletons, whether it was the banker ( Whit Bissel...

Synopsis: When a local judge is killed and his son is accused of committing the murder, Sheriff Gene Autry is forced to make an arrest. However, the accused, Jack Beaumont, claims he is innocent and, believing him, Autry seeks out evidence proving Beaumont's innocence and pointing toward the real killer or killers. Who's in it?  The movie stars Gene Autry , Jo-Carroll Dennison , Pat Buttram , Hugh O'Brian and Champion . You can read my review here:  Movie Review: Beyond the Purple Hills (1950) (wizzley.com)