James Brown is Wayne Santley, a cavalryman who survived the Battle of the Little Big Horn — he was with Benteen — and is now heading to Laramie for a reunion with his brother Brad (Gregg Palmer).
Once on the wrong side of the law, that brother has gone straight and invited Wayne to join him in running a 2,000 head cattle ranch.
Only problem is, no one in Laramie knows of a cattle ranch run by a Brad Santley.
And it soon becomes clear that Brad hasn’t gone straight at all. In fact, he’s leader of a band of outlaws known as the Nighthawks — the same band that robbed the stagecoach Wayne road into town on.
Joan Staley plays Nora Blaine, the saloon singer Wayne meets on the stage and immediately falls for.
Her broach, stolen by the Nighthawks, winds up being a key piece of evidence against his brother.
But Wayne can’t stand the thought of turning Brad in. So he heads off to Jackson Hole to trap furs, Nora in tow.
Trouble will follow.
James Brown as Wayne Santley, trying to convince Norah Blaine to accompany him to Jackson Hole in Gun Fight (1961)
Joan Staley as Norah Blaine, finding herself on a stage with a self-proclaimed protector and an ex-cavalryman who hasn’t been around a woman for eight months in Gun Fight (1961)
Review:
Check out the background in the stage window in the opening scene, and you know we’re in for a low-budget affair. The hills don’t move, and there are no trees like the ones the stage is traveling between in the exterior shots.
In fact, the names have been changed, but the story is the same as the 1956 film, “Gun Brothers,” starring Buster Crabbe, Neville Brand and Ann Robinson in the lead roles. This film has been shorn of 12 minutes and some silly dialogue, but the result is still forgettable.
At least Joan Staley is around to light up the screen as the love interest. Playboy’s Miss November 1958, her last film was also a Western, 1966’s “Gunpoint,” starring Audie Murphy.
Gregg Palmer as Brad Santley, refusing to believe he’s been double-crossed by his own brother in Gun Fight (1961)
Ron Soble as Pawnee, trying to convince Brad Santley that his brother has turned on him to collect a reward in Gun Fight (1961)
Directed by:
Edward L. Cahn
Cast:
James Brown … Wayne Santley
Joan Staley … Nora Blaine
Gregg Palmer … Brad Santley
Ron Soble … Pawnee
Ken Mayer … Joe Emery
Walter Coy … Sheriff
Charles Cooper … Cole Fender
James Parnell … Moose McLain
Kate Murtah … Molly
Andy Albin … Jonathan Cooley
Connie Buck … Coheela
Runtime: 67 min.
Ken Mayer as Joe Emery, the businessman who lures Wayne Santley to Jackson Hole to trap furs and escape his brother’s outlaw shadow in Gun Fight (1961)
James Parnell as Moose McLain and Andy Albin as Jonathan Cooley, two of Wayne Santley’s new friends in Jackson Hole in Gun Fight (1961)
Memorable lines:
Wayne Santley: “You know, you’re the first girl I’ve been this close to in over eight months.”
Nora Blaine: “Eight months in the wild, and I pick you for a traveling companion?”
Wayne Santley to gambler Moose McLain: “How did you get so good at beating up on women? Did you practice on kids and puppy dogs?”
Wayne Santley to Nora: “What a gal. You’ll have me trying to shake hands with the first grizzly bear we meet.”
Nora to Wayne Santley: “When a man’s hands are stained with blood, he forfeits all kindship rights.”
Nora to Wayne Santley: “Brad, I want a home. I want children. I want to put down roots somewhere. As soon as you cherish this blind devotion to (outlaw brother) Brad, I’m afraid he’d come along and tear out the roots.”
Joan Staley as Nora Blaine, reacting to a gift from Wayne Santley after her broach is stolen in Gun Fight (1961)
Charles Cooper as gambler Cole Fender, urging the sheriff (Walter Coy) into action because he smells a big reward in Gun Fight (1961)
Ron Soble as Pawnee, James Brown as Wayne Santley and Connie Buck as Coheela, reacting when a stolen broach gives away the true identity of Brad Santley and his gang in Gun Fight (1961)
Joan Staley as Norah Blaine and James Brown as Wayne Santley, confronted by Brad’s angry brother in Gun Fight (1961)
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