''Man with the Gun'' is a 1955 American

black and white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

film starring

Robert Mitchum Robert Charles Durman Mitchum (August 6, 1917 – July 1, 1997) was an American actor. He rose to prominence with an Academy Award nomination for the Best Supporting Actor for ''The Story of G.I. Joe'' (1945), followed by his starring in ...

. The film was released in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

as ''The Trouble Shooter'' and is also sometimes entitled ''Deadly Peacemaker''. The supporting cast includes

Jan Sterling Jan Sterling (born Jane Sterling Adriance; April 3, 1921 – March 26, 2004) was an American film, television and stage actress. At her most active in films during the 1950s (immediately prior to which she had joined the Actors Studio), Sterlin ...

and

Karen Sharpe Karen Kay Sharpe (born September 20, 1934) is an American film and television actress. She is known for playing Laura Thomas in the American western television series ''Johnny Ringo''. Life and career Sharpe was born in San Antonio, Texas, th ...

. The film was written by N. B. Stone Jr and Richard Wilson and directed by Wilson.

Plot

Clint Tollinger arrives in the town of Sheridan City to talk to Nelly Bain, but she refuses to see him. One of the residents recognizes him as a "town tamer", a gun for hire who cleans up lawless communities. After 14 killings and 31 robberies in past year, followed by the (non-fatal) shooting of Jeff Castle (who does not like Tollinger's methods) and the unwillingness of the town marshal to oppose powerful rancher Dade Holman and his gang, the town council reluctantly hires Tollinger for $500. Tollinger has the marshal deputize him, then insists on doing things his way without interference. Tollinger begins by warning the Harkness brothers, who are known Holman gunmen, to leave town. He goes on to disarm a leading citizen, "Frenchy" Lescaux, the manager of the saloon which is owned by the corrupt rancher, making it clear that nobody will be allowed weapons inside town limits. The Harkness brothers, still in town, are then both shot dead by Tollinger. Four men ride in looking for Tollinger. He gets the drop on them with a shotgun and orders them to drop the guns in their hands, which they do. When Tollinger puts down his shotgun, one outlaw reaches for a holstered pistol, only to discover that the town tamer is faster on the draw. Reedy (an uncredited

Claude Akins Claude Aubrey Akins (May 25, 1926 – January 27, 1994) was an American character actor with a long career on stage, screen, and television. He was best known as Sheriff Lobo on the 1979–1981 television series ''B.J. and the Bear'', and l ...

), their leader, takes off his hat - inside of which there is a gun. While trading small talk with Tollinger, Reedy reaches for the weapon, but Tollinger recognizes the ruse and shoots him dead. At a social event, one of the town women advises Tollinger that his job will not be finished until the dance hall girls also leave town. Unaware that he personally knows Nelly - the girls' madam - the woman is openly critical about the dancing and carrying on. When Tollinger warns Nelly about the new curfew he is instituting, she tells him she and the girls will be moving on further west and asks him for the name of any town where he will not be. Two men ride into town to tell Tollinger that they have detained Castle for trespassing on Holman's property; they suggest the young man can be picked up at the ranch. Instead, Tollinger arrests the two for carrying guns in town and, after some tense hours of waiting, an exchange for Castle is made. It is eventually revealed that Nelly is Tollinger's wife, but she left him because she could not bear being married to a gunfighter. He only wants to know how their daughter Beth is doing. Jealous of the growing attraction of Stella Atkins, Jeff's girlfriend, to Tollinger, Nelly finally tells him that Beth is dead. Tollinger takes it badly. His patience and steadfast demeanor suddenly gone, he burns down Holman's saloon, killing Lescaux when he tries to knife him in the back. Holman's lawyer, Zender, who has been in town a few days watching Tollinger, sets a trap. When, by chance, Nelly learns who Zender is, she tries to warn Tollinger. Holman rides into town - for the first time in years - in a surrey, to be in on the kill. Tollinger kills his would-be murderer, but is shot in the shoulder by Holman. Castle kills Holman. Tollinger tells Nelly he is getting out of the business, and the two kiss and reconcile.

Cast

as Clint Tollinger *

as Nelly Bain *

as Stella Atkins *

Henry Hull Henry Watterson Hull (October 3, 1890 – March 8, 1977) was an American character actor perhaps best known for playing the lead in Universal Pictures's ''Werewolf of London'' (1935). For most of his career, he was a lead actor on stage and a ch ...

as Marshal Lee Sims *

Emile Meyer Emile Meyer (August 18, 1910 – March 19, 1987) was an American actor, usually known for tough, aggressive, authoritative characters in Hollywood films from the 1950s era, mostly in westerns or thrillers. Career Meyer had an uncredited s ...

as Saul Atkins *

John Lupton John Rollin Lupton (August 23, 1928 – November 3, 1993) was an American film and television actor. Early years Lupton was the son of Adelma Lupton and Dorothy Marsh Lupton. He developed an interest in drama while he was a student at Sh ...

as Jeff Castle *

Barbara Lawrence Barbara Jo Lawrence (February 24, 1930 – November 13, 2013) was an American model, actress, and real estate agent. Early years Born to Morris and Bernice ( Eaton) Lawrence in Carnegie, Oklahoma, Barbara Jo moved with her mother to Kansas C ...

as Ann Wakefield * Ted de Corsia as "Frenchy" Lescaux *

Leo Gordon Leo Vincent Gordon (December 2, 1922 – December 26, 2000) was an American character actor and screenwriter. During more than 40 years in film and television he was most frequently cast as a supporting actor playing brutish bad guys but oc ...

as Ed Pinchot *

James Westerfield James A. Westerfield (March 22, 1913 – September 20, 1971) was an American character actor of stage, film, and television. Early years Westerfield was born in Nashville, Tennessee, to candy-maker Brasher Omier Westerfield and his wife D ...

as Mr. Zender *

Robert Osterloh Robert Osterloh (May 31, 1918 – April 16, 2001) was an American actor. His career spanned 20 years, appearing in films such as ''The Dark Past'' (1948), ''The Wild One'' (1953), '' I Bury the Living'' (1958) and ''Young Dillinger'' (1965). Bio ...

as Virg Trotter (uncredited) *

Angie Dickinson Angeline Dickinson (née Brown; born September 30, 1931) is an American actress. She began her career on television, appearing in many anthology series during the 1950s, before gaining her breakthrough role in ''Gun the Man Down'' (1956) wit ...

as Kitty (uncredited) * Pat Sheehan as Blonde (uncredited)

Reception

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' reviewer called the film "an engrossing adventure" and "several cuts above the norm for this genre."

References

External links

*
Man with the Gun
at

Turner Classic Movies Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie channel, movie-oriented pay television, pay-TV television network, network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasti ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Man With The Gun 1955 films 1955 Western (genre) films American black-and-white films American Western (genre) films Films scored by Alex North United Artists films Films directed by Richard Wilson (director) Revisionist Western (genre) films 1950s English-language films 1950s American films

Plot

Cast

Reception

See also

References

External links