''The Lone Defender'' is a 1930 American

Pre-Code Pre-Code Hollywood was an era in the Cinema of the United States, American film industry that occurred between the widespread adoption of sound in film in the late 1920s and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorship gui ...

Mascot A mascot is any human, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, sports team, university society, society, military unit, or brand, brand name. Mascots are als ...

serial film A serial film, film serial (or just serial), movie serial, or chapter play, is a motion picture form popular during the first half of the 20th century, consisting of a series of short subjects exhibited in consecutive order at one theater, gene ...

starring

Rin Tin Tin Rin Tin Tin or Rin-Tin-Tin (October 10, 1918 – August 10, 1932) was a male German Shepherd born in Flirey, France, who became an international star in motion pictures. He was rescued from a World War I battlefield by an American soldier, ...

. It was Mascot's first all-sound serial (the second to have any sound at all, after the partial sound in '' The King of the Kongo''). It was Rin Tin Tin's first serial at Mascot, after being dropped by

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

when they decided animal pictures would not work with "Talkies". He also starred in the later serial '' The Lightning Warrior'', which was his last appearance (he died in 1932). The plot revolves around Rin Tin Tin as "Rinty" and a secret gold mine fought over by the criminal "The Cactus Kid" and the legitimate owners. Material from this serial was edited into a feature film version and released under the same name in 1934.

Plot

Prospector ''Juan Valdez'' is murdered by ''The Cactus Kid'' and his gang in an attempt to discover the location of his gold mine. Valdez's dog ''Rinty'' witnesses the murder and can also lead the gang to the mine, making him the villains' target throughout the serial. In addition, while being blamed as the wolf that has been attacking local livestock, Rinty must help Valdez's daughter ''Dolores'' legitimately find and claim the mine. The mysterious figure of ''Ramon'' is constantly on hand, overhearing pieces of the villains' conversations. He appears to be another bandit but his actions seem to contradict that. It is revealed in the finale of the serial that Ramon is in fact "Marco Roberto", an agent of the Justice Department.

Cast

as "Rinty", Juan Valdez's dog * Josef Swickard as Juan Valdez, Prospector who owns a secret gold mine *

June Marlowe June Marlowe (born Gisela Valaria Goetten, November 6, 1903 – March 10, 1984) was an American film actress who began her career during the silent film era. She was best known for her role as "Miss Crabtree" in the ''Our Gang'' short subj ...

as Dolores Valdez, Juan Valdez's daughter * Walter Miller as Marco Roberto, Justice Department Agent posing as the "Mysterious Figure", Ramon * Buzz Barton as Buzz, Ramon's sidekick * Lee Shumway as Amos Harkey, the villainous cantina owner * Julia Bejarano as Maria, the Dueña * Lafe McKee as Sheriff Billings *Arthur Morrison as Limpy * Frank Lanning as Burke, Prospector and Juan Valdez's partner * Bob Kortman as Jenkins, one of the Cactus Kid's Henchmen * Victor Metzetti as Red, one of the Cactus Kid's Henchmen * Otto Metzetti as Red's Partner

Production

Stunts

* Joe Bonomo * Kermit Maynard * Arthur Metzetti * Victor Metzetti

Chapter titles

# Mystery of the Desert # The Fugitive # Jaws of Peril # Trapped # Circle of Death # Surrounded by the Law # The Ghost Speaks # The Brink of Destruction # The Avalanche # Fury of the Desert # Cornered # Vindicated _Source:

References

External links

*
The Lone Defender article on a June Marlowe fansite
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lone Defender, The 1930 films 1930 Western (genre) films American black-and-white films 1930s English-language films Mascot Pictures film serials Films directed by Richard Thorpe American Western (genre) films Films produced by Nat Levine Rin Tin Tin Films with screenplays by Harry L. Fraser 1930s American films English-language Western (genre) films