The Auteur's Selection In the Shadow of Wagon Tracks: Cult Guide

Dir: Lambert Hillyer

Sergeant O'Malley, a member of the Northwest Mounted Police, is assigned to bring in the murderer of a saloon keeper named La Grange. Disguised as a cowboy, O'Malley attends a rodeo, where he believes a group of outlaws, including the alleged killer, are performing. He follows them to their stronghold in the mountains, then robs a bank in order to ingratiate himself into the gang. After making off with $5000, he is chased by a posse, but he manages to elude them, and then is admitted into the gang. O'Malley falls for Rose Lanier, who cooks for the gang. Rose's brother, Bud, is the alleged killer. When the leader of the gang, Red Jaeger, makes unwanted advances towards Rose, O'Malley thrashes him. Jaeger decides to betray the gang, and secretly rides to the sheriff's office. There, he learns that the stolen bank money has been returned, and that O'Malley is working undercover. Jaeger shows the evidence to the gang, and they tie O'Malley to a tree. He is placed under guard, and is set to be hanged at daybreak. Rose secretly gives O'Malley a knife, enabling him to escape, along with her and her brother. While the three are on the run, O'Malley learns that Bud killed La Grange because the saloon keeper had wronged Rose. Later, O'Malley leaves a note telling Rose and Lanier who he really is. He also informs then he is headed back to his post to resign, but will return for Rose if she is willing to wait for him.

Dir: Lambert Hillyer

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of The Lone Star Ranger perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

An outlaw named Duane (Tom Mix), captured by the Texas Rangers, is promised a pardon if he rounds up a gang of cattle thieves. The man he suspects as the leader is revealed to be the father of Duane's sweetheart, Helen (Billie Dove). Duane captures the gang, gets a pardon for Helen's father, and marries Helen.

Dir: Lambert Hillyer

Ben Trego dies defending his twin sons from Indian attack. Separated, the two boys grow up very differently, one as Paul Marsden, the other as a cowboy named Three Word Brand. Paul becomes governor of Utah while Brand partners with George Barton in a ranch. The owner of the adjacent ranch plots to get Barton and Brand out of the way in order to control water rights. When Governor Marsden comes to the area to investigate, Brand sees the resemblance between them, though neither knows about his twin. Brand waylays Paul and takes his place as governor in an attempt to thwart the crooked rancher in the water-rights scheme.

Dir: Lambert Hillyer

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Three Word Brand perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

When her baby daughter Eleanor is traumatized after her father perishes in a storm at sea, Mother Coutierre sends the girl to live with her aunt in Paris. Years later, Eleanor, now a successful model in Paris, is surprised by a visit from her elder sister Marie, who has come to hide the birth of her illegitimate child. When Mother Coutierre arrives and believes Eleanor to be the infant's mother, Eleanor continues the deception so that her sister can marry Pierre Bondel, a fisherman. Soon after Marie returns to her village of Normandy, her brother Jean is accused of murdering Raoul Bergere, a man of loose morals of the village. When Jean's conviction seems certain after witnesses testify that they heard him threaten to kill Raoul for stealing his boat, Marie confesses that she killed the rogue for fathering her child. Following her expose, Pierre takes Marie into his arms and promises to care for her and the child, and Eleanor's honor is at last vindicated.

Dir: Lambert Hillyer

Bruce Thornton, a forest ranger, arrests Ruth Melier, who is accused of murdering her stepfather. However, Ruth reveals that her brutal husband, Horgan, is the murderer. Bruce and a fellow ranger capture Horgan and his gang of timber thieves, establishing Ruth's innocence.

Dir: Lambert Hillyer

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

Crook Bud Doyle returns from the war intending to go straight but finds it difficult because of his crook-like features. His wife, her new companion Joe Culver, and Boss McQuarg conspire to frame Bud, and he goes to jail. He escapes, has an accident, and is taken to a hospital for plastic surgery. His features transformed, he discovers the plot against him, helps District Attorney Carlson bring the conspirators to justice, and marries his nurse.

Dir: Lambert Hillyer

Three men, Lucky Bill (Tom Mix), Landry (J. Gordon Russell), and Morgan (Jim Mason) are in love with the same girl, pretty Molly (Betty Jewel). Lucky Bill finally wins her with his skillful horsemanship and dogged determination.

Dir: Lambert Hillyer

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

John Oxford owns a gambling hall in an Alaskan mining town, but it known far and wide as an honest man. However, one day he finds that in order to save the life of Doris Henry, who has come to Alaska to marry Wallace Towers, he has to cheat. It turns out that Wallace has incurred huge gambling losses and is being threatened by those to whom he owes the money, and they in turn are threatening Doris--who mistakenly blames John for the predicament that she and Wallace are in.

Dir: Lambert Hillyer

After losing his money and horse in the trail town of Chloride, Arizona, in a crooked faro game run by Wes Prentice, the owner of of the local land company, cowboy Careless Carmody becomes sheriff of Chloride. Unknown to Carmody, Prentice is selling land that has no titles to naive settlers, then reselling the land to other buyers. After saving pretty young Ruth Fellows from the unwanted attentions of a local ruffian, Carmody finds himself more and more attracted to her. However, things take a turn for the worse when Prentice has Carmody serve Ruth with papers throwing her off the land he has just sold her. Complications ensue.

Dir: Lambert Hillyer

In this lost adaptation of the 1903 novel, Roy Glennister and Cherry Malotte fight against crooked politicians to keep a gold mine.