''Winners of the West'' is a 1940 American

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 serial 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 ...

from

Universal Pictures Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...

directed by

Ford Beebe Ford Beebe (November 26, 1888 – November 26, 1978) was a screenwriter and director. He entered the film business as a writer around 1916 and over the next 60 years wrote and/or directed almost 200 films. He specialized in B-movies – mostly ...

and Ray Taylor. It stars

Dick Foran John Nicholas "Dick" Foran (June 18, 1910 – August 10, 1979) was an American actor, known for his performances in Western musicals and for playing supporting roles in dramatic pictures. Early years Foran was born in Flemington, New Jer ...

and

Anne Nagel Anne Nagel (born Anna Marie Dolan; September 29, 1915 – July 6, 1966) was an American actress. She played in adventures, mysteries, and comedies for 25 years. She also appeared in television series in the 1950s. One book described her as "one ...

in a plot about the construction of a railroad and a local ganglord who opposes it. It was Universal's 115th serial release (the 47th with sound). The studio had used the name for an earlier silent serial but there are no plot similarities between the two versions. Columbia's ''

Roar of the Iron Horse ''Roar of the Iron Horse'' is a 1951 American Western Serial film directed by Spencer Gordon Bennet and Thomas Carr and starring Jock Mahoney and Virginia Herrick. Plot A railroad agent named Jim Grant opposes hard-nosed German, Karl Ulrich, ...

'' is very similar to this serial, however, and the writer George H. Plympton worked on both.

Plot

The Southwest Central Railroad Company is attempting to build a

railroad Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

through "Hell's Gate Pass". However, King Carter, the self-appointed ruler of the land beyond the pass, does not want this to happen. He sends henchmen, including local Indians, to disrupt the construction anyway they can, from sabotage to kidnapping Claire Hartford, the daughter of the company President. The President's assistant, Jeff Ramsay, and his sidekicks, stop King Carter's schemes at every point and eventually defeat him entirely. This opens the area up to new settlers, the first of which is Jeff himself and his new wife Claire.

Cast

as Jeff Ramsay, employee of the Hartford Transcontinental Railroad *

as Claire Hartford, daughter of John Hartford *

Tom Fadden Tom Fadden (January 6, 1895 – April 14, 1980) was an American actor. He performed on the legitimate stage, vaudeville, in films and on television during his long career. Early life Fadden was born in Bayard, Iowa, on January 6, 1895; his fath ...

as Tex Houston, scout and one of Jeff Ramsay's

sidekick A sidekick is a slang expression for a close companion or colleague (not necessarily in fiction) who is, or is generally regarded as, subordinate to the one they accompany. Some well-known fictional sidekicks are Don Quixote's Sancho Panza, ...

s * James Craig as Jim Jackson, another of Jeff Ramsay's sidekicks * Harry Woods as King Carter,

villain A villain (also known as a " black hat" or "bad guy"; the feminine form is villainess) is a stock character, whether based on a historical narrative or one of literary fiction. ''Random House Unabridged Dictionary'' defines such a character ...

* Charles Stevens as Snakeye, King Carter's lead

henchman A henchman (''vernacular:'' "hencher"), is a loyal Employment, employee, supporter, or aide to some powerful figure engaged in nefarious or criminal enterprises. Henchmen are typically relatively unimportant in the organization: minions whose val ...

* Edward Keane as John Hartford, President of the Hartford Transcontinental Railroad *

Trevor Bardette Trevor Bardette (born Terva Gaston Hubbard; November 19, 1902 – November 28, 1977) was an American film and television actor. Among many other roles in his long and prolific career, Bardette appeared in several episodes of '' Adventures of S ...

as Raven, one of King Carter's henchmen *Edgar Edwards as Tim, one of King Carter's henchmen * Edmund Cobb as Maddox, one of King Carter's henchmen * William Desmond as Bill Brine, Railroad

foreman __NOTOC__ A foreman, forewoman or foreperson is a supervisor, often in a manual trade or industry. Foreman may specifically refer to: *Construction foreman, the worker or tradesman who is in charge of a construction crew * Jury foreman, a head j ...

Roy Barcroft Roy Barcroft (born Howard Harold Ravenscroft; September 7, 1902 – November 28, 1969) was an American character actor famous for playing villains in B-Westerns and other genres. From 1937 to 1957, he appeared in more than 300 films for Re ...

as Logan, one of King Carter's henchmen

Production

Stunts

Cliff Lyons Cliff Lyons (born 19 October 1961) is an indigenous Australian former international rugby league footballer who played in the 1980s and 1990s. A Clive Churchill Medalllist and two-time Dally M Medallist, he made 309 first-grade appearances wit ...

, riding double for Dick Foran (Jeff Ramsay) and Tom Fadden (Tex Houston) * Eddie Parker, fight double for Dick Foran (Jeff Ramsay) * Fred Graham, doubling Harry Woods (King Carter) *

Kermit Maynard Kermit Maynard (September 20, 1897 – January 16, 1971) was an American actor and stuntman. Early years Born in Vevay, Indiana, he was the son of Mr. and Mrs. William Maynard and a lookalike younger brother of actor Ken Maynard; they were f ...

Ken Terrell Kenneth Jones Terrell (April 29, 1904 – March 8, 1966) was an American western and action film actor and stuntman best known for playing Joe Marcelli in the 1956 film ''Indestructible Man ''Indestructible Man'' is a 1956 American cri ...

*Henry Wills

Chapter titles

* * 2: The Wreck at Red River Gorge * 3: The Bridge of Disaster * * * * * * * * * * 1. Redskins Ride Again 2. Wreck At Red River Gorge 3. Bridge Of Disaster 4. Trapped By Redskins 5. Death Strikes The Trail 6. A Leap For Life 7. Thundering Terror 8. Flaming Arsenal 9.Sacrificed By Savages 10.Under Crashing Timbers 11.Bullets In The Dark 12.Battle Of Blackhawk 13.Barricades Blasted _{Source for chapter names:}

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Winners Of The West (1940 Serial) 1940 films American black-and-white films 1940s English-language films Films directed by Ford Beebe Films directed by Ray Taylor Universal Pictures film serials 1940 Western (genre) films American Western (genre) films Films scored by Hans J. Salter Films with screenplays by George H. Plympton 1940s American films