''California Straight Ahead!'' is a 1937 American

action film Action film is a film genre in which the protagonist is thrust into a series of events that typically involve violence and physical feats. The genre tends to feature a mostly resourceful hero struggling against incredible odds, which include life ...

about truck drivers starring

John Wayne Marion Robert Morrison (May 26, 1907 – June 11, 1979), known professionally as John Wayne and nicknamed The Duke or Duke Wayne, was an American actor who became a popular icon through his starring roles in films made during Hollywood's Gol ...

and directed by

Arthur Lubin Arthur Lubin (July 25, 1898 – May 11, 1995) was an American film director and producer who directed several ''Abbott & Costello'' films, ''Phantom of the Opera'' (1943), the ''Francis the Talking Mule'' series and created the talking-horse TV se ...

for Universal Pictures. The action movie features a memorable cross-country race between a caravan of trucks and a special train.

Plot

A trucker named Biff Smith (Wayne) wins a contest between his caravan of trucks and a special train, the two competing against each other in a race to see who can deliver a load of aviation parts to an ocean liner before a labor strike takes place.

Cast

as Biff Smith * Louise Latimer as Mary Porter *

Robert McWade Robert McWade (January 25, 1872 – January 19, 1938), was an American stage and film actor. McWade was born in Buffalo, New York. He was the third actor named Robert McWade, after his father and grandfather. In 1902, McWade debuted on stag ...

as "Corrigan" *

Theodore von Eltz Theodore von Eltz (November 5, 1893 – October 6, 1964) was an American film actor, appearing in more than 200 films between 1915 and 1957. He was the father of actress Lori March. Von Eltz was a Yale University professor's son. After 12 ...

as James Gifford *

Tully Marshall Tully Marshall (born William Phillips; April 10, 1864 – March 10, 1943) was an American character actor. He had nearly a quarter century of theatrical experience before his debut film appearance in 1914 which led to a film career spanning alm ...

as "Harrison" *

Emerson Treacy Emerson Treacy (September 17, 1900 – January 10, 1967) was a film, Broadway, and radio actor. Career Treacy was teamed with comedienne Gay Seabrook to form the double-act Treacy and Seabrook. The team was very successful on radio and in thea ...

as Charlie Porter * Harry Allen as "Fish" McCorkle *

LeRoy Mason LeRoy Franklin Mason (July 2, 1903 – October 13, 1947) was an American film actor who worked primarily in Westerns in both the silent and sound film eras. Mason was born in Larimore, North Dakota on July 2, 1903. Career 1920s Mason's fir ...

as "Padula" * Grace Goodall as Mrs. Porter *

Olaf Hytten Olaf Hytten (3 March 1888 – 11 March 1955) was a Scottish actor. He appeared in more than 280 films between 1921 and 1955. He was born in Glasgow, Scotland, and died in Los Angeles, California from a heart attack, while sitting in his car ...

as "Huggins" * Monte Vandergrift as "Clancy" * Lorin Raker as a Secretary

Production

The film was known as ''Short Haul''. John Wayne was meant to have made a film ''Maid of Orleans'' or ''Adventure's End'' but that was delayed due to the maritime strike. Universal then put him in ''Short Haul'' which was to have begun filming in November 1936. However filming on that was delayed due to a teamsters strike. It was to have been shot in San Francisco but that city had labor troubles so the script was rewritten so it could be shot in Los Angeles. Filming eventually took place in January 1937. The movie was the first in a series of films directed by Arthur Lubin starring John Wayne. Lubin recalled, "We had six days to shoot. There was no time schedule, as there is today, where if you go late at night or start early in the morning, you have to pay more. In those days, you could shoot twenty-four hours a day."

Reception

The ''Los Angeles Times'' called it a "fair supporting feature".

References

External links