The Covered Wagon (1923)

Two wagon trains, one led by Jesse Wingate, one made up of settlers from Liberty, Missouri, converge on what is now Kansas City to begin a 2,000-mile trek to free land in Oregon.

Since the boys from Liberty arrive last, their captain, Will Banion (J. Warren Kerrigan) is assigned the job of watching over the stock to the rear of the train as the trip West begins.

But it’s soon clear that Banion’s a more savvy frontiersman than Sam Woodhull (Alan Hale), the man Wingate relies on for advice as the caravan lumbers westward.

That puts Woodhull and Banion at odds more than once. And there’s another reason behind their disagreements.

Woodhall is engaged to Wingate’s pretty daughter Molly (Lois Wilson). They’re to be married en route to Oregon.

But Molly takes an immediate liking to the younger, more charismatic Banion. And he isn’t exactly immune to her good looks.

Problem is, there’s a hint of scandal in Banion’s past. A veteran of the war with Mexico, he was booted out of the Army, allegedly for stealing cattle.

So Molly promises her father and Woodhull that she’ll stop having anything to do with Banion, unless she discovers he’s been misjudged.

She’ll eventually discover just that. But will it happen in time?

Because that trip West is plagued by problems, from dangerous river crossings to the threat of hunger to marauding Indians.

There’s also rumors that gold has been found in California. And for some of the travelers, that trumps the promise of free land in Oregon.

Review:

The sheer scope of this production is impressive. Check out the dozens and dozens of covered wagons in the panoramic scenes. It’s difficult to imagine anyone making a Western on such a grand scale these day.

And while the development of the romantic triangle is predictable from the film’s opening, it takes enough twists and turns along the way to keep things interesting.

The result was the top grossing U.S. film of 1923.

Viewers might be surprised by the male lead, because he certainly isn’t cut in the mold of most rugged Western heroes. But according to IMDb, this was at least Kerrigan’s 20th pairing with Wilson as a romantic couple on film.

As for those wagons, many of them were apparently the real things — covered wagons that had made the trek West and were kept as family heirlooms. Producers of the film borrowed them for the film. And in some case, apparently used the family members as well as extras.

Directed by:
James Cruze

Cast:
J. Warren Kerrigan … Will Banion
Lois Wilson … Molly Wingate
Alan Hale … Sam Woodhull
Ernest Torrence … William Jackson
Tully Marshall … Jim Bridger
Ethel Wales … Mrs. Wingate
Charles Ogle … Jesse Wingate
Johnny Fox … Jed Wingate
Guy Ollver … Kit Carson

Runtime: 98 min.

Memorable lines:

William Jackson, as Will Banion and Sam Woodhull get into another fuss: “How would knuckle and skull do fer you young roosters?”

William Jackson, when Will Banion refuses to gouge out Woodhull’s eyes: “You poor, big-hearted worm!”

Jesse Wingate, finding a message written on an animal skull: “Brighmam Young, the Mormon leader, left this here bulletin of the plains. If he could get his wives across, I can get my wagons.”

Molly Wingate of Will Banion: “I’ve promised never to see him again. But I’ll make another promise now. If I ever find that I’ve misjudged him, I’ll crawl on my knees to ask his forgiveness!

Kit Carson: “Ye mustn’t marry Sam Woodhull — leastways not until I git drunk enough t’ recollec’ what I’ve got t’ tell ye.”

Molly Wingate as she plies Kit Carson with liquor and he starts gulping it down: “Aren’t you afraid you’ll go beyond the remembering point?”