Backdrop

Riders of Death Valley

The Saturday matinee crowd got two cowboy stars for the price of one in this lavishly budgeted western serial starring former singing cowboy Dick Foran and Buck Jones. The latter contributed deadpan humor to the proceedings, making Jones perhaps the highest paid B-western comedy relief in history. The two heroes defend the Death Valley borax miners from an outlaw gang headed by Wolf Reade. An extraordinarily strong cast -- for a serial, at least -- supported the stars, headed by Charles Bickford as Reade, Leo Carillo, Lon Chaney, Jr., and silent screen star Monte Blue. Leading lady Jeanne Kelly later changed her name to Jean Brooks and starred in the atmospheric RKO thriller The Seventh Victim (1943). Universal claimed to have spent $1 million on this serial and made sure to get their money's worth by endlessly recycling the action footage in serials and B-westerns for years to come.

1941 |4h 43m |  Action, Western

Cast

cast

Dick Foran

Jim Benton

cast

Leo Carrillo

Pancho Lopez

cast

Buck Jones

Tombstone

cast

Charles Bickford

Wolf Reade

cast

Guinn "Big Boy" Williams

Borax Bill

cast

Lon Chaney Jr.

Henchman Butch

cast

Noah Beery Jr.

Smokey

cast

Jean Brooks

Mary Morgan (as Jeanne Kelly)

cast

James Blaine

Joseph Kirby

cast

Monte Blue

Rance Davis

cast

Glenn Strange

Tex, a Benton Rider

cast

Roy Barcroft

Henchman Dirk

cast

Jack Rockwell

Henchman Trigger

cast

Ethan Laidlaw

Henchman Rusty

cast

Richard Alexander

Henchman Pete Grump

cast

Frank Austin

Chuckawalla Charlie Morgan [Ch. 1]

cast

William Hall

Dan Gordon [Chs. 1, 8-10]

cast

Ernie Adams

Cactus Pete, Prospector [Ch.14]

cast

Ted Adams

Hank

cast

Frank Brownlee

Slim

cast

Bob Burns

Miner in Saloon

cast

Rod Cameron

Rider

cast

Jack Rube Clifford

Lafe Hogan

cast

Edmund Cobb

Salty

cast

Jim Farley

Graham

cast

Ivor McFadden

Bragg

cast

Bud Osborne

Stagecoach Driver

cast

Jack Perrin

Stage Guard

cast

Don Rowan

Blake

cast

Silver

Tombstone's Horse

cast

Richard Travis

Joe Miller

cast

Slim Whitaker

Stable Owner

More Details

Status

Released

Language

English

Budget

$1,000,000.00

Revenue

-