Visionary Picks Drawn from the Same DNA as A Woman's Fool: Cult Guide

Dir: John Ford

The head of a band of cattle rustlers is defied, prompting him to call his phantom riders together and route the defier's cattle, and then seek their owner intent on taking his life.

Dir: John Ford

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of A Fight for Love perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

The Northwest Mounties are after Cheyenne Harry for the murder of an Indian boy, and the only witness to the crime is a priest - who can't tell what he saw because the real killer, Black Michael, has confessed to him.

Dir: John Ford

Cheyenne Harry and his pals, bent on helping their friend Rawhide Jack, attend a rodeo with the intent to win the prize and to hand the winnings over to Jack. Harry is the successful winner and after the rodeo the boys get drunk and fall asleep.

Dir: John Ford

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Wild Women perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

An Arizona cattleman defeats the rustlers and the sheriff who is in league with them.

Dir: John Ford

Jim Kyneton, once a member of an outlaw gang, joins the Texas Rangers and is forced to track down his former friends and his half-brother Nick, who have been robbing a gold mine.

Dir: John Ford

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Ace of the Saddle perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

"Cheyenne Harry", owner of the biggest cattle ranch in his corner of the West, is having trouble with John Merritt, a land-grabbing Chicago meat-packer. By some artifice of shrewd legal aid, Merritt manages to seize Harry's ranch under a bogus writ of foreclosure. Failing to get justice by his many letters to Merritt, "Cheyenne Harry" goes East and calls at the millionaire's mansion. At first, Merritt refuses to see him. Then, to cause amusement for his daughter Helen and her guests, he invites the "uncouth" Westerner into his dining hall. He is sure that he will make some grave error in table deportment and afford them all a laugh. To the amazement of Merrit and the guests Harry's table manners are faultless. Then, to trick him into an embarrassing position, Merritt eats with his knife. Harry, realizing that it is proper for the guest to follow the example of the host, does likewise. He leaves the house chagrined but more determined than ever to get justice from Merritt.

Dir: John Ford

Harry's bride is murdered at their wedding along with Harry's mother and father, and the good-hearted outlaw turns grimly malevolent.

Dir: John Ford

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Rider of the Law perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

Convict Cheyenne Harry escapes from prison in a garbage truck and boards a train, where he eludes capture with the help of passenger Henry Beaufort.

Dir: John Ford

The owner of a gambling hall is entrusted with the care of a pretty young girl. He falls in love with her, but he must decide whether to let her go to his best friend, with whom he believes her to be in love, or to try to win her for himself.

Dir: John Ford

A man declined admission to fight in the American Civil War joins a gang of marauders and winds up as a fugitive.