Trail of the Rustlers(1950)
Sizzling Starrett Action! Sparkling Smiley Rhythms!
Charles Starrett goes up against an entire family of criminals posing as respectable citizens in this entry in Columbia's long-running Durango Kid Western series.
Movie: Trail of the Rustlers
Top 10 Billed Cast
Steve Armitage / The Durango Kid
Mary Ellen Hyland
Todd Hyland
Mrs. J.G. Mahoney
Chick Mahoney
Smiley Burnette
Rancher (uncredited)
Ben Mahoney (uncredited)
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Across the Badlands(en)
Charles Starrett once more hits the trail as "The Durango Kid" in Columbia's Across the Badlands. By now, the formula was a well-oiled machine: Starrett becomes a lawman, is challenged by the local criminal element, and ultimately goes beyond the law as the masked Durango.
Fort Savage Raiders(en)
Fort Savage Raiders is another entry in Charles Starrett's "Durango Kid" western series. Starrett once again does double duty as a peacekeeper named Steve (this time his last name is Drake) and as masked avenger Durango. The heavy of the piece is escaped military prisoner Craydon (John Dehner) who, with several other fugitives from justice, forms an army of terrorists.
Texas Dynamo(en)
Charles Starrett plays The Durango Kid in the 1950 Columbia western Texas Dynamo. As a novelty, Starrett not only plays Durango and his "alter ego" Steve Drake, but also takes on a third identity, that of a hired gun in the employ of the film's bad guys. As one critic noted, this may be the only western in which the hero is obliged to chase himself. Jock O'Mahoney -- later known as Jock Mahoney -- plays a secondary role, and also doubles for Starrett during the riskier stunt sequences.
Outcasts of Black Mesa(en)
Our Hero is accused of a crime he didn't commit. Once again, he breaks jail to find the real culprits. And once again, he dons his Durango Kid disguise, whereupon stunt-double Jock Mahoney swings into action. Outcasts of Black Mesa is distinguished by the presence of a relative newcomer to the film game, leading lady Martha Hyer.
Renegades of the Sage(en)
The plot finds Steve/Durango attempting to capture ex-Civil War guerilla fighter Miller who may be the man who's been going around knocking down telegraph wires.
Horsemen of the Sierras(en)
When Robin Grant inherits a valuable range, certain evil interests try their best to kill off Robin and claim the land for themselves. US Marshall Steve Saunders comes to the boy's rescue.
El Dorado Pass(en)
Charles Starrett returns as The Durango Kid in Columbia's El Dorado Pass. It all begins when Durango, in his everyday guise of Steve Clanton, is falsely accused of robbing a stagecoach. The genuine criminal is not only a thief but a coin collector, searching for a valuable specimen by staging holdups.
Frontier Gunlaw(en)
Jim Stewart comes to Mesa City and buys a ranch from publisher Matt Edwards, who is confined to a wheelchair. The area is terrorized by an outlaw gang known as The Phantoms. When Jim's cattle herd is rustled and his ranch foreman Pop Evans killed, he takes an active hand against the gang in his guise as the Durango Kid.
Outlaws of the Rockies(en)
Outlaws of the Rockies is the fourth of Columbia's revitalized "Durango Kid" series. Charles Starrett is back in the saddle as the masked do-gooder Durango, aka easygoing sheriff Steve Williams. Accused of being a member of an outlaw gang, Williams is forced to don his Durango disguise to bring the actual criminals to justice.
Raiders of Tomahawk Creek(en)
Charles Starrett, aka "The Durango Kid", is back in Raiders of Tomahawk Creek. Starrett plays Steve Blake, a novice Indian agent, sent out to investigate a series of mysterious murders.
Snake River Desperadoes(en)
Starrett tries to prevent a range war between settlers and the Native Americans. Blue and his fellow scoundrels think they can profit from the bloodshed,but the Durango Kid along with a couple of precocious youngsters put an end to Blue's terrorism.
Challenge of the Range(en)
Charles Starrett once more dons the mask of mysterious do-gooder "The Durango Kid" in Columbia's Challenge of the Range. Wandering cowboy Steve Roper (Starrett) is hired by the Farmers Association to stem the activities of a group of gunmen who are driving ranchers off their land. The most likely suspect turns out to be innocent: the real culprits are within the Association itself. With the help of the chief suspect's son, Roper brings the crooks to justice.
Smoky Canyon(en)
Mahoney is a sheep man who's framed for the murder of a rancher. It's all part of a scheme by a dishonest cattleman who hopes to extenuate a range war for his own profit. The Durango Kid helps clear Mahoney's name.
Whirlwind Raiders(en)
It's 1873 and the disbanded Texas Rangers have been replaced by the corrupt Texas State Police. Steve Lanning arrives posing as a wanted outlaw to get in with them in his attempt to have them replaced. His inside work helps the Durango Kid break up the State Police raids but he is in trouble when his secret identity as Durango becomes known to them.
Quick on the Trigger(en)
Quick on the Trigger was Charles Starrett's second "Durango Kid" picture for 1949. It all begins when ousted sheriff Steve Warren (Starrett) is put on trial for the murder of heroine Nora Reed's (Helen Parrish) brother. Steve is innocent, of course, but he doesn't stand a chance against prosecuting attorney Garvey Yager (Lyle Talbot) -- especially since Yager is the real killer.
Trail to Laredo(en)
Filmed at the Providencia Ranch (today's Forrest Lawn in Burbank, CA), this typical "Durango Kid" Western featured the Cass County Boys performing "Go West Young Lady" by Sammy Cahn and Saul Chaplin, in addition to series regular Smiley Burnette singing his own "It's My Turn" and "The Yodeler. This time, the Durango Kid (Charles Starrett) is chasing down a gang of outlaws shipping stolen gold in crates marked "ring bolts," ably assisted by Smiley, a treasury agent working undercover as a house painter. Virginia Maxey supplies female interest and little Tommy Ivo, in one of his six appearances in the Durango Kid series, also gets in the way of the action.
Gunning for Vengeance(en)
Steve Landry arrives as the new Marshal of a town that is having trouble with outlaws. When an outlaw escapes over the State line out of his jurisdiction, the Durango Kid brings him in. The Durango Kid then continues to break up the outlaw raids. But Belle, the saloon owner who is in cahoots with the outlaws, notices the the boot prints of the Durango Kid match those of the new Marshal and a trap is sent to get Durango.
Ridin' the Outlaw Trail(en)
Charles Starrett plays lawman Steve Forsythe in Ridin' the Outlaw Trail. Somewhere along the line, of course, Steve is obliged to don the mask of The Durango Kid, mysterious righter of wrongs. The "wrongs" in this instance include the theft of $20,000 in gold, and the "kidnapping" of a blacksmith's forge! Jim Bannon, who only a few months earlier had played the heroic Red Ryder, provides the villainy in this fast-paced "Durango Kid" entry
The Rough, Tough West(en)
Charles Starrett returns as the Durango Kid in Columbia's Rough, Tough, West. For most of the film, however, Starrett is known as "Steve Holden," a former Texas Ranger who comes to a wide-open mining town to visit an old friend (Jack -- later Jock -- Mahoney). Alas, said friend has turned bad, and is busy arranging a major land grab when Steve arrives on the scene. With deep regret, our hero dons his Durango disguise to thwart his ex-friend's criminal activities.