| Trail Street | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Ray Enright |
| Screenplay by |
|
| Based on | Golden Horizons 1937 novel by William Corcoran |
| Produced by | Nat Holt |
| Starring | |
| Narrated by | Ray Collins |
| Cinematography | J. Roy Hunt |
| Edited by | Lyle Boyer |
| Music by | Paul Sawtell |
| Color process | Black and white |
Production company | RKO Radio Pictures |
| Distributed by | RKO Radio Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 84 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Trail Street is a 1947 AmericanWestern film directed byRay Enright and starringRandolph Scott,Robert Ryan,Anne Jeffreys andGeorge "Gabby" Hayes.[2] Based on the novelGolden Horizons by William Corcoran, and a screenplay by Norman Houston and Gene Lewis, the film is about the legendaryBat Masterson who brings law and order to the town ofLiberal,Kansas, and defends the local farmers against a murderous cattle baron.[2] Filmed on location inAgoura,California, at the Andy Jauregui Ranch inNewhall, California, and at the Encino Ranch ofRKO Pictures. The film made a profit of $365,000.[3]
The town of Liberal in southwestern Kansas needs the help of a lawman; so does the law-abiding land agent Allen Harper. Eager to help, stable keeper Billy Burns sends for his longtime friend, the legendary Bat Masterson.
Allen's sweetheart, Susan Pritchard, is pursued by Logan Maury, a corrupt cattle baron. Hired gun Lance Larkin, who works for Maury, beats up a farmer and has a fist fight with Harper until Bat arrives and throws Larkin in jail. Bat is appointed the town's marshal and appoints Billy as his deputy.
Ruby Stone, a saloon singer in love with Maury, tries to keep him away from good girl Susan. When a farmer is murdered, Allen is framed and faces alynch mob. Ruby ends up betraying Maury who shoots her in the back. Maury's own men are offended by the death of Ruby and block his escape. Bat fires, killing Maury. Allen can now marry Susan, while the town makes Billy the new marshal as Bat rides away to become a journalist back East.
The screenplay forTrail Street was written by Norman Houston and Gene Lewis, based on a novel by William Corcoran that was published as a serial inCosmopolitan under the titleTrail Street. According to a news item in theHollywood Reporter, Barbara Hale and Lawrence Tierney were originally cast in the leading roles.[4]
According to the August 1946 edition ofHollywood Reporter, five hundred extras were hired for the fight scene between the farmers and the trail riders.[4]
In his 1947 review forThe New York Times, Bosley Crowther wrote thatTrail Street was "no better nor worse than most of the rest” of Westerns about Bat Masterson.[5] Crowther continued:
It is just another pistol drama in which the good marshal, played by Randolph Scott, cleans out a nest of cowboy villains who are making life miserable on the Kansas farms. Everything takes place on schedule, including a pious romance between a farm agent, Robert Ryan, and a local girl, Madge Meredith. Even the routine introduction of "Gabby" Hayes for comedy relief is as cut and dried as a cowhide.[5]
In his review, Mike Grost wrote that although the film was no masterpiece,Trail Street contains "fresh visual thinking" and shows "graceful mise-en-scène".[6] Grost continued:
One shot shows hero Randolph Scott and friend walking down the side of a bustling Western street. Another follows a dance hall woman singer through a crowd, up the saloon staircase, and across the balcony, where she leans over to address the crowd below. Even when Enright is not moving his camera, many of the visuals have a kinetic quality. People are always moving into or out of the frame. Their motions are graceful and vivid. There is a long sequence of various couples in the plot dancing at a fete. Even Robert Ryan, who I do not think of as the ballroom dancing type, has a rhythmic outing with his girlfriend here. ... Another notable sequence: when Scott rescues the old farmers that had been tied up by bad guys. This sequence ends with an architecturally striking shot. It looks much different from anything I've seen in a Western before. Some fresh visual thinking is at work here.[6]