Buckskin Frontier (1943)

Richard Dix is Stephen Bent, a railroad man bent on taking the tracks of the Mississippi Central westward.

But he faces opposition in the form of Jeptha Marr, who has built a profitable freight business he wants to leave to his daughter and sees the railroad as the potential ruin of that venture.

So Bent decides there must be another way to get at Marr, perhaps through his daughter Vinnie (Jane Wyatt), who is returning West from St. Louis.

His interest in her is at first merely a business ploy. Of course, it quickly becomes more than that.

That earns Bent a new enemy, at least at first. You see, Gideon Skene had planned to marry Vinnie and doesn’t appreciate another man turning her head.

But soon, Bent, Gideon and everyone else have a bigger worry — a wanna-be railroad tycoon named Champ Clanton (Victor Jory) who will do anything to stop the Mississippi Central’s progress and who finds a willing ally in Jeptha Marr … until he goes too far.

Richard Dix as Stephen Bent, trying to convince Kansans of the benefit of the railroad in Buckskin Frontier (1943)

Jane Wyatt as Vinnie Marr, growing jealous over Stephen Bent’s relationship with Rita Molyneaux in Buckskin Frontier (1943)

Review:

Richard Dix’s career stretched back to the silent era, but he gained fame in Cimarron (1931), an early talkie, and found himself in Westers quite frequently from that point on. This actually marked one of his last Westerns; “The Kansan” was also released in 1943, when Dix was in his mid-40s.

Unfortunately, this is pretty predictable from the word go. Of course, Vinnie and Bent fall for one another. One unusual complication is that Bent is getting much of his financing from a pretty businesswoman named Rita Molyneaux, arousing Vinnie’s jealousy.

Have no fear: That works itself out during a silly talk the two have during the climatic final gun battle.

The film also features several actors who would later become Western fixtures, including Albert Dekker and Victor Jory.

Albert Dekker as Gideon Skene, a man who sees Stephen Bent as a threat to the freight company he works for and his romantic plans in Buckskin Frontier (1943)

Lee J. Cobb as Jepthas Marr, opposed to the railroad because of its potential impact on his freight business in Buckskin Frontier (1943)

Directed by:
Lesley Selander

Cast:
Richard Dix … Stephen Bent
Jane Wyatt … Vinnie Marr
Albert Dekker … Gideon Skene
Lee J. Cobb … Jeptha Marr
Victor Jory … Champ Clanton
Lola Lane … Rita Molyneaux
Max Baer … Tiny
Joe Sawyer … Brannigan
Harry Allen … McWhinny
Francis McDonald … Duval
Bill Nestel … Whiskers

Runtime: 76 min.

Lola Lane as Rita Molyneaux, the rich woman who helps finance Bent’s railroad in Buckskin Frontier (1943)

Victor Jory as Champ Clanton, a man with aspirations of becoming a railroad tycoon in Buckskin Frontier (1943)

Memorable lines:

Jeptha Marr: “Just a minute, Bent. About seeing more of us. Don’t go out of your way. The town’s pretty crowded.”
Stephen Bent: “You don’t seem very hospitable, Mr. Marr.”
Marr: “I didn’t intend to.”

Marr, to the townsfolk: “Why the railroad’s an octopus. And men like Bent who build it are parasites who live off your blood and sweat.”

Stephen Bent: “How was the trip?”
Rita Molyneaux: “”Fine, except for the calluses on my back and the calluses on my hips and the calluses on my …
Stephen Bent: “I warned you in Topeka.”

Jane Wyatt as Vinnie Marr, reacting to a gift from Stephen Bent (Richard Dix) at her birthday party in Buckskin Frontier (1943)

Joe Sawyer as Brannigan, rallying workers against Stephen Bent because their pay is overdue in Buckskin Frontier (1943)

Harry Allen as McWhinny and Francis McDonald as Duval, complaining to Jeptha Marr about his freight prices in Buckskin Frontier (1943)

Max Baer as Tiny, Gideon Skene;s right-hand man, who isn’t tiny at all in Buckskin Frontier (1943)[/caption}

[caption id="attachment_51044" align="aligncenter" width="550"] Lee J. Cobb as Jeptha Marr and Albert Dekker as Gideon Skene, receiving a letter indicating Marr’s daughter Vinnie is returning from the East in Buckskin Frontier (1943)

Richard Dix as Stephen Bent and Lola Lane as Rita Molyneaux, discussing business and love in Buckskin Frontier (1943)