Tension at Table Rock (1956)

Richard Egan plays Wes Tancred, a former outlaw haunted by a legend that he shot his partner in the back. He takes the name John Bailey and gets a job at a stage station. When three bandits show up, the stage station owner is killed and Bailey finds himself caring for the man’s son (Billy Chapin as Jody).

They head for Table Rock, where Jody’s uncle, Sheriff Fred Miller (Cameron Mitchell), lives. At Table Rock, they find a town bracing itself for a cattle drive; a sheriff who’s lost his nerve after being beaten within an inch of his life by cowhands a couple years earlier.

The cowhands arrive in town, promising to behave themselves, but that only lasts until the whiskey bottles are empty. Then a farmer is gunned down and a newspaper man bludgeoned for writing about the incident.

Sheriff Miller is forced to decide between letting the crimes go unpunished, or facing down the demons from his past. Tancred is faced with a choice of staying on the sidelines, or pitching in to help, risking that his real identity will be revealed.

Review:

The film starts off strong, with an outlaw leader killing one of his own wounded men with a rifle butt during a getaway, then being gunned down by another of his men when he tries to shoot him in the back.

And it isn’t just a tease. This is a well-done and original film, with a strong, quiet man in Tancred trying to live down his reputation as a coward and with a once-strong man in Sheriff Miller trying to hang onto a job he’s lost the nerve to do because it provides he and his wife with a better living than any of the other options.

Caught in the middle is Miller’s wife, Lorna. She finds herself attracted to Tancred, who seems so self-assured, but tries her best to support and be faithful to her husband, urging him to give up his badge so they can salvage a life together.

Two future stars have bit parts — Angie Dickinson as an outlaw’s girlfriend who pins the “Ballad of Wes Tancred” on Egan’s character; and DeForest Kelley as a hired gunman brought to Table Rock by a saloon owner who figures to benefit if it remains a wide-open town.

Directed by:
Charles Marquis Warren

Cast:
Richard Egan … Wes Tancred
Cameron Mitchell … Sheriff Miller
Dorothy Malone … Lorna Miller
Billy Chapin … Jody
Royal Dano … Jameson
John Dehner … Hampton
DeForest Kelley … Jim Breck
Joe De Santis … Ed Burrows
Angie Dickinson … Cathy
Paul Richards … Sam Older

Title tune: Not worth keeping

Memorable lines:

Wes Tancred, inquiring about a fellow gang member who had a broken leg and arm, but didn’t make it back to the hideout alive: “What happened to Ard out there?”
Sam Older: “They’d have strung him up anyway. I did him a favor.”
Wes: “Well, I’m pulling out before you do me any favors.”

Wes to Sam: “You know, when we were with Quantrill, I thought you were the greatest thing that ever came down the pike. I guess that’s why I stuck with you afterwards. I didn’t have the sense to know the difference between a war hero and a murderer.”

Wes Tancred, as he rides into town and finds businessmen boarding up their shops: “Expecting a twister?”
Barber: “I’d settle for that.”

Sheriff Miller: “Everything will work itself out.”
Lorna Miller: “That’s getting to be quite a motto for you.”