Gunslinger (1956)

When her husband is brutally gunned down before her eyes, Rose Hood (Beverly Garland) pins on the marshal’s badge and decides to clean up the town of Oracle and seek out his killers at the same time.

Her main adversary is another woman, Erica Page (Allison Hayes), who owns the local saloon and is buying up land around Oracle in hopes the railroad will come through.

She doesn’t hesitate to bend a few laws in the process. And in young gunman Jake Hayes (Jonathan Haze), she has an admirer more than willing to do her bidding.

But when it looks like Rose will be a thorn in her side, she sends away for a hired killer, Cane Miro (John Ireland).

She never suspected that the marshal and the gunman would fall for one another.

Beverly Garland as Marshal Rose Hood, the wife who insists on hunting down her husband’s killers in Gunslinger (1956)

Allison Hayes as Erica Page, the saloon owner gambling on the railroad coming to town in Gunslinger (1956)

Review:

Weird, weird Western, worth watching for its camp value and a few memorable lines (see below). Hey, it was the work of Roger Corman.

Among the weirder scenes — Rose guns down one of her father’s killers by his graveside, just as his funeral service is ending. In another scene, three of Erica’s dancers try to hang Rose; Cane comes to the rescue.

And then there’s the final gundown between Cane and Rose, who all the while profess their love for one another. Wow.

John Ireland as Cane Miro, the hired gun Erica brings in to rid the town of Rose Hood in Gunslinger (1956)

Jonathan Haze as Jake ‘Little Man’ Hayes, the young gun willing to do Erica’s bidding in Gunslinger (1956)

Directed by:
Roger Corman

Cast:
Beverly Garland … Rose Hood
John Ireland … Cane Miro
Allison Hayes … Erica Page
Jonathan Haze … Jake Hayes
Martin Kingsley … Mayor Polk
Chris Alcaide .. Deputy Joshua Tate
Dick Miller … Jimmy Tonto
Bruno VeSota … Zebelon Tabb
Margaret Campbell … Felicity Polk
William Schallert … Marshal Scott Hood

Runtime: 71 min.

Martin Kingsley as Mayor Polk, the man who likes to brag about his Civil War heroism in Gunslinger (1956)

Margaret Campbell as Felicity Polk, concerned about her husband’s safety in Gunslinger (1956)

Memorable lines:

Cane to Rose: “I’ll make you a deal. I won’t try to make you a bad woman, and you quit trying to make me a good man.”

Rose, at her father’s funeral: “Pin it (the sheriff’s badge) on me.”
Mayor: “I can’t do that.”
Mayor’s wife: “Pin it on and get it over with. I’ve got a beef roast in the oven.”

Deputy: “I don’t know. I reckon some people won’t think it’s proper for a new widow to go around in pants, even if they are black.”
Rose: “Did you ever see a police officer in a corset?”

Mayor, talking about Erica’s plan to cash in one the coming of the railroad: “Of course, you know how the town will feel …”
Erica: “Some nights, I lie awake two or three seconds worrying about it.”

Cane Miro, referring to Jake Hayes: “What kind of germ does he got?”
Erica: “He loves me, but he’s useful.”

William Schallert as Marshal Scott Hood with wife Rose (Beverly Garland) just before outlaws attack in Gunslinger (1956)

John Ireland as Cane Miro with Allison Hayes as Erica Page, the women who brought him to Oracle in Gunslinger (1956)

Beverly Garland as Rose Hood with John Ireland as Cane Miro in Gunslinger (1956)

Beverly Garland as Marshal Rose Hood surrounded by (from left) Jonathan Haze as Jake Hayes, Chris Alcaide as Deputy Joshua Tate and Martin Kingsley as Mayor Polk in Gunslinger (1956)