Willis Kent (June 8, 1878,

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

– March 11, 1966,

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

) was an independent American film producer, active from 1928 to 1958 under at least three different corporate names. Willis Kent Productions was active during the 1930s. Its films, about 40 in all, consisted mostly of low-budget B-westerns, many of which starred short-lived cowboy star and former football player Lafayette "Reb" Russell, along with a few melodramatic police and mystery films. During the 30s, and well into the 1940s, Kent also produced several cheap, sensationalist exploitation features under the banner of Real Life Dramas. That company's first release, '' The Pace That Kills'' (1928), was about innocent young teens being lured into the netherworld of cocaine addiction. Kent remade it, using the same title and same director, adapted with sound, in 1935. In some markets it was retitled as '' Cocaine Fiends'', which is the title used on most VHS and DVD copies of the film. In the 1950s, he also produced a number of filmed burlesque dance numbers released as short subjects, and often later edited into feature-length compilations, under the corporate name of Billiken Pictures. For at least two releases in the mid-'30s Kent joined forces with

Dorothy Davenport Fannie Dorothy Davenport (March 13, 1895 – October 12, 1977) was an American actress, screenwriter, film director, and producer. Born into a family of film performers, Davenport had her own independent career before her marriage to the film a ...

, who had forged her own career in early exploitation films following the death of her husband, the morphine-addicted star

Wallace Reid William Wallace Halleck Reid (April 15, 1891 – January 18, 1923) was an American actor in silent film, referred to as "the screen's most perfect lover". He also had a brief career as a racing driver. Early life Reid was born in St. Louis, M ...

. Most of these films are now in the public domain.

Partial filmography

* '' The Pace That Kills'' (1928) * '' The Road to Ruin'' (1928) * ''

Playthings of Hollywood ''Playthings of Hollywood'' is a 1930 American romantic drama film directed by William A. O'Connor and starring Phyllis Barrington, Rita La Roy, Sheila Bromley and Donald Reed.Pitts p.167 Made by the independent producer Willis Kent during the ...

'' (1930) * '' Ten Nights in a Barroom'' (1931) * '' The Hurricane Horseman'' (1931) * ''

The Law of the Tong ''The Law of the Tong'' is a 1931 American pre-Code crime film directed by Lewis D. Collins and starring Phyllis Barrington, John Harron and Jason Robards Sr.Pitts p.394 Synopsis A dance hall hostess becomes mixed up in a gang smuggling ill ...

'' (1931) * '' The Cheyenne Cyclone'' (1931) * '' Primrose Path'' (1931) * '' The Drifter'' (1932) * '' Guns for Hire'' (1932) * '' Lawless Valley'' (1932) * ''

The Reckless Rider ''The Reckless Rider'' is a 1932 American western film directed by Armand Schaefer and starring Lane Chandler, Phyllis Barrington and Neal Hart.Pits p.135 It was a loose remake of the 1928 FBO Pictures film ''When the Law Rides'' also written by O ...

'' (1932) * '' The Texas Tornado'' (1932) * '' The Racing Strain'' (1932) * ''

The Wyoming Whirlwind ''The Wyoming Whirlwind'' is a 1932 American western film directed by Armand Schaefer and starring Lane Chandler, Adele Lacy and Harry Todd.Pitts p.406 It was produced by the independent Willis Kent as a second feature Synopsis Outlaw Keene Wall ...

'' (1932) * '' Battling Buckaroo'' (1932) * '' Sucker Money'' (1933) * ''

The Murder in the Museum ''The Murder in the Museum'' is a 1934 American film directed by Melville Shyer. The film is also known as ''The Five Deadly Vices'' (American reissue title). Plot summary A city councilman is murdered while investigating allegations of drug ...

'' (1934) * '' The Road to Ruin'' (1934) * ''

The Woman Condemned ''The Woman Condemned'' is a 1934 American pre-Code film directed by Dorothy Davenport, best known as a silent actress and the wife of actor Wallace Reid. Plot A radio star takes a vacation and is later found murdered. Barbara Hammond is ac ...

'' (1934) * '' Fighting Through'' (1934) * '' The Man from Hell'' (1934) * '' Arizona Bad Man'' (1935) * '' Blazing Guns'' (1935) * ''

Outlaw Rule ''Outlaw Rule'' is a 1935 American Western film directed by S. Roy Luby and starring Reb Russell, Betty Mack and Al Bridge.Pitts p.213 Cast * Reb Russell as Reb Russell * Betty Mack as Kay Lathrop * Al Bridge as Deputy Bat Lindstrom * Yakima ...

'' (1935) * ''

The Cheyenne Tornado ''The Cheyenne Tornado'' is a 1935 American Western film directed by William A. O'Connor and starring Reb Russell, Victoria Vinton and Roger Williams.Pitts p.212 Cast * Reb Russell as Red - Cheyenne Kid * Victoria Vinton as Jane Darnell * Rog ...

'' (1935) *''

Lightning Triggers ''Lightning Triggers'' is a 1935 American Western film directed by S. Roy Luby and starring Reb Russell, Yvonne Pelletier and Fred Kohler.Pitts p. 212-13 Plot Cast * Reb Russell as Reb Russell * Yvonne Pelletier as Marion * Fred Kohl ...

'' (1935) * '' Cocaine Fiends'' (1935) * '' The Wages of Sin'' (1938) *''

Race Suicide Race suicide was an alarmist term used in eugenics, coined in 1900 by the sociologist Edward A. Ross. Racial suicide rhetoric suggested a differential birth rate between native-born Protestant and immigrant Catholic women, or more generally betw ...

'' (1938), * ''

Mad Youth ''Mad Youth'' is a 1940 American film directed by Melville Shyer. The film is also known as ''Girls of the Underworld'' (American reissue title). Plot summary Divorcée Marian Morgan (Compson) hires a male escort Count DeHoven (Willy Castello), ...

'' (1940) * '' Souls in Pawn'' (1940) * ''

Confessions of a Vice Baron ''Confessions of a Vice Baron'' is a 1943 American crime film directed by S. Roy Luby, William A. O'Connor, Melville Shyer, and Herman E. Webber. The film was created using edited footage for the flashback scenes from ''Mad Youth'' (1940), '' Th ...

'' (1943) (assembled from previously released films of the studio)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kent, Willis 1878 births 1966 deaths American film producers People from Michigan Place of birth missing