Toughest Gun in Tombstone (1958)

George Montgomery is Matt Sloane, a man put in charge of the Arizona Rangers to bring six-gun justice to the territory so it will have a chance of being admitted into the United States.

He’s perfect for the job because he has an old score to settle. One of Arizona’s bandits — he’s not sure which one — killed his wife while his son Terry (Scotty Morrow) was watching.

But tracking down the outlaws requires Matt to go undercover as an outlaw, and doing that causes his son to turn on him.

Terry prefers the company of pretty young Della Cooper (Beverly Tyler), who helps nurse him back to health after he’s wounded by an outlaw’s bullet.

As for those outlaws, they’re led by the trio of Johnny Ringo (Jim Davis), Ike Clanton (Gerald Milton) and Curly Bill Brosius (Lane Bradford) and Sloane finally figures out what they’re up to.

The gang rustles cattle in the U.S., takes them to Mexico where they’re sold for silver, then runs the silver through a played-out mine and sells that to the U.S. government for a hefty profit.

Now all Matt and his Ranger buddies have to do is get enough evidence to prove that’s what’s happening.

George Montgomery as Matt Sloane, determined to bring the Ringo gang to justice in Toughest Gun in Tombstone (1958)

Beverly Tyler as Della Cooper, a young woman who falls for the son, then the father in Toughest Gun in Tombstone (1958)

Review:

We’ve seen it all before, and we’ve seen it done better than it is in this ho-hum vehicle for George Montgomery.

This marked a rare film role for young Scotty Morrow, who spent most of his time acting on TV shows and has way too big a role considering his acting ability. Bradford, a familiar face on a wide range of Western TV series, isn’t much better as the grimacing Curly Bill.

Beverly Tyler does look lovely as a blonde in one of her last big-screen appearances. She’s a young woman bored with life in the West, who hangs around only for the sake of her father and latches onto Terry because he too seems unsure where he fits in following the death of his mom and his father’s apparent turn toward outlaw ways.

There’s a surprise twist near the end that you probably won’t see coming, but it does little to enliven the film.

Jim Davis as Johnny Ringo, target number one for Matt Sloane in Toughest Gun in Tombstone (1958)

Gerald Milton as Ike Clanton, an outlaw on the lookout for trouble in Toughest Gun in Tombstone (1958)

Directed by:
Earl Bellamy

Cast:
George Montgomery … Matt Sloane
Beverly Tyler … Della Cooper
Jim Davis … Johnny Ringo
Gerald Milton … Ike Clanton
Lane Bradford … Curly Bill Brosius
Don Beddoe … David Cooper
Scotty Morrow … Terry Sloane
Harry Lauter … Joe Barger
Charles Wagenheim … Pete Beasley
Rodolfo Hoyos Jr. … Col. Emilio
John Frederick … Ranger Mac Burgess
Hank Worden … Liveryman
William Forrest … Governor

Runtime: 72 min.

Scotty Morrow as Terry Sloane, a young boy fearing his dad has turned outlaw in Toughest Gun in Tombstone (19580

Lane Bradford as Curly Bill Brosius (left) with one of his outlaw buddies in Toughest Gun in Tombstone (1958)

Memorable lines:

Female stage passenger, to a young boy who has just witnessed the killing of his mother, who barely escaped the killer, who was picked up by the stage, and who is now being told the stage might be robbed: “What are you so worried about?”

Johnny Ringo: “Don’t make jokes with me Sloane. I’ve killed a lot of men. That don’t leave me with much of a sense of humor.”

Della Cooper, to Matt Sloane: “Where are you going?”
Sloane: “Johnny Ringo walks on eggs, but he doesn’t leave many tracks. Let’s just say I’m going out to break some of those eggs.”

Beverly Tyler as Della Cooper and a fellow stage passenger scold Matt Sloane for putting his son in danger in Toughest Gun in Tombstone (1958)

Don Beddoe as David Cooper, an assayer with a closely guarded secret in Toughest Gun in Tombstone (1958)

Rodolfo Hoyos Jr. as Col. Emilio, a Mexican official cooperating with Matt Sloane in Toughest Gun in Tombstone (1958)

William Forrest as the governor, getting an update on the progress of the newly formed Arizona Rangers in Toughest Gun in Tombstone (1958)

Scotty Morrow as Terry Sloane, recognizing the man who killed his mother as Della Cooper (Beverly Tyler) looks on in Toughest Gun in Tombstone (1958)

George Montgomery as Matt Sloane with fellow Arizona Ranger Joe Barger (Harry Lauter) in Toughest Gun in Tombstone (1958)