James Mitchell is Parson Terrell Butler, an ex-gunslinger turned preacher who’s determined to cleanse the town of Penbrook with the good word rather than a fast gun.
He steps into the middle of a land war between cattlemen led by Lathe Sawyer (Hugh Sanders) and farmers led by Ed Halcomb (Jess Barker). Seems when the railroad came through, it wound up with one mile of land on either side of the tracks and sold that land to farmers when ranchers couldn’t meet the asking price, robbing them of land where they used to graze their cattle.
The man behind the feuding is Gray Arnett (Herbert Patterson), who wants to scare the ranchers off their land, then snatch it up at bargain prices. He has his own fast gun (Jan Merlin as Viggo Tomlin) working for him.
The parson allays the fears of the townsfolk when they learn of his past, wins a brawl with Viggo then nurses him back to health, and spends most of the film encouraging his congregation to love — not kill — their neighbors.
The rest of the cast includes Rosemarie Bowe as Ann Davis, the shopkeeper’s daughter who falls for the preacher; and Dorothy Patrick as Edith Sawyer, who angers her dad by falling for and marrying Halcomb, the leader of the ranchers.
Review:
Strictly a B affair, but not that bad if you don’t mind the preachy nature of the film.
Of all the men the parson tries to save from violence, it’s the gunman Viggo he identifies with the most. He sees himself in the youngster, and figures he still might be toting a gun for the highest bidder if he hadn’t been thrown in jail and found religion as a result.
The film marked the directorial debut of Ted Post, who later worked with Clint Eastwood on the Rawhide series. When Eastwood returned to the U.S. as a mega star from his stints in Spaghetti Westerns, Post directed some of his big-budget films, including Hang ‘Em High. Rosemary Bowe was the wife of actor Robert Stack.
Directed by:
Ted Post
Cast:
James Mitchell … Parson Butler
Rosemarie Bowe … Ann Davis
Jess Barker … Ed Halcomb
Hugh Sanders … Lathe Sawyer
Herbert Patterson … Gray Arnett
Dorothy Patrick … Edith Sawyer
Jan Merlin … Viggo Tomlin
Taylor Holmes … Mr. Wren
Robert Armstrong … Sheriff Ben Seale
Philip Tonge … Elijah Maddox
David McMahon … Sam Davis
Wheaton Chambers … Doc Runyan
Jack Holland … Walt Kemper
Runtime: 82 min.
Memorable lines:
Viggo Tomlin: “It’s a funny town stranger. Man can live long or die sudden.”
Parson: “I’ve heard that before. Just what does this depend on?”
Viggo Tomlin: “Simple, friend. Just watch the ground before your feet. Folks have been known to live for months that way.”
Parson: “Why you’re a light in the darkness? A bit dim and uncertain. But still a light.”
Parson: “Quoting the scriptures with every breath doesn’t make a man any better or worse. It’s what’s inside — the way a man secretly thinks — that’s what he is, no matter what his mouth declares.”
Gary Arnett, about Viggo being a hired gun for the farmers: “You don’t fight rifles with a willow stick.”
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