''The Medico of Painted Springs'' (also known as ''Doctor's Alibi'') is a 1941 American

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

film produced by

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...

. Based on the novel of the same name by James Lyon Rubel, the film stars

Charles Starrett Charles Robert Starrett (March 28, 1903 – March 22, 1986) was an American actor, best known for his starring role in the ''Durango Kid'' westerns. Starrett still holds the record for starring in the longest series of theatrical features: ...

, Terry Walker,

Ben Taggart Ben Taggart (April 5, 1889 – May 17, 1947) was an American actor. Taggart's stage experience began in Seattle, and he went on to play leading roles in Washington, Portland, San Francisco, Trenton, Milwaukee, and Philadelphia. He was described ...

, Wheeler Oakman, and the Simp-Phonies in a

cameo appearance A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly ei ...

. It was directed by

Lambert Hillyer Lambert Harwood Hillyer (July 8, 1893 – July 5, 1969) was an American film director and screenwriter. Biography Lambert Harwood Hillyer was born July 8, 1893, in Tyner, Indiana. His mother was character actress Lydia Knott. A graduate of ...

and written by

Wyndham Gittens Wyndham Gittens (7 February 1885 – 18 June 1967) was a West Indian screenwriter. He wrote for more than 60 films between 1917 and 1966. He was born in Barbados, West Indies and died in Dunedin, Florida. Selected filmography * ''Tim Tyle ...

and

Winston Miller Winston Miller (June 22, 1910 – June 21, 1994) was an American screenwriter, film producer, and actor. He wrote for more than 60 films and television shows between 1936 and 1976. He began as an actor in silent films, appearing in eleven fi ...

. In the film, Starrett's character, Dr. Steven Monroe, travels to a tumultuous Painted Springs and attempts to resolve a raging conflict between two camps – the cattlemen and the sheep ranchers. The film received mixed reviews from contemporary film critics. After the release of the film in June 1941, Columbia allowed the release of two more Medico films, ''Thunder Over the Prairie'' (July 1941) and ''Prairie Stranger'' (September 1941). Starrett, who went on to star in around sixty other western flicks, found ''The Medico of Painted Springs'' to be his favorite film. The film has many noticeable differences from Rubel's original work.

Plot

Upon arriving at Painted Springs, Dr. Steven Monroe witnesses a clash between sheep herders and cattle breeders. As Monroe starts to investigate the cause of the conflict, he finds out about Fred Burns' diabolical scheme – he intends to steal John Richards' cattle and frame sheep rancher Ed Gordon for the deed. After a series of fights, during which Burns and his men kidnap Richards' daughter Nancy, Monroe rescues Nancy and manages to get Burns to confess. With his evil intentions revealed, the two camps cease battling, and Monroe quietly leaves Painted Springs.

Cast

as Dr. Steven Monroe * Terry Walker as Nancy Richards *

as John Richards * Ray Bennett as Ed Gordon *

Wheeler Oakman Wheeler Oakman (born Vivian Eichelberger; February 21, 1890 – March 19, 1949) was an American film actor. Early years Oakman was born as Vivian Eichelberger in Washington, D.C., and educated in that city's schools. He grew up in Fairfax, Vir ...

as Fred Burns *

Richard Fiske Thomas Richard Potts (November 20, 1915 – August 10, 1944), known professionally as Richard Fiske, was an American film actor. He appeared in over 80 films between 1938 and 1942. Career Born Thomas Richard Potts, Fiske was born to Frank a ...

as Kentucky Lane *

Edmund Cobb Edmund Fessenden Cobb (June 23, 1892 – August 15, 1974) was an American actor who appeared in more than 620 films between 1912 and 1966. Biography Cobb was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the son of William Henry Cobb and Eddie (Edmundi ...

as Sheriff *

Edythe Elliott Edythe Elliott (born Edythe Fletcher; July 14, 1886 – April 9, 1978) was an American character actress active primarily during the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s. Biography Edythe Elliott was born in San Francisco, California where her parents were ...

as Maw Blaine *

Bud Osborne Leonard Miles "Bud" Osborne (July 20, 1884 – February 2, 1964) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 600 films and television programs between 1912 and 1963. Biography Osborne was born Miles Osborne in Knox County, Texas ...

as Karns *

Steve Clark ''yes'Steve is a masculine given name, usually a short form ( hypocorism) of Steven or Stephen Notable people with the name include: steve jops * Steve Abbott (disambiguation), several people * Steve Adams (disambiguation), several people * Steve ...

as Ellis *

Chuck Hamilton Charles George Hamilton (born January 18, 1939) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey forward who played four games in the National Hockey League for the Montreal Canadiens and St. Louis Blues The St. Louis Blues are a professional i ...

as Pete *

Lloyd Bridges Lloyd Vernet Bridges Jr. (January 15, 1913 – March 10, 1998) was an American film, stage and television actor who starred in a number of television series and appeared in more than 150 feature films. He was the father of four children, includi ...

as Henchman (uncredited) * The Simp-Phonies as Musical Ensemble

Production

Charles Starrett, who had previously appeared in the 1940

film '' The Durango Kid'', was cast as Dr. Steven Monroe. Terry Walker was chosen to play Nancy Richards, and Ben Taggart portrayed John Richards. Ray Bennett was announced to play Ed Gordon. Wheeler Oakman was cast as Fred Burns. The Simp-Phonies made a cameo appearance in the film. Then-novice actor

, who joined Columbia Pictures in 1941, also had a brief and uncredited role in the film. It marked one of the earliest films he made an appearance in. Lambert Hillyer directed the film. Winston Miller and Wyndham Gittens wrote the screenplay based on James Lyon Rubel's 1934 novel ''The Medico of Painted Springs''. Jack Fier was in charge of production for Columbia Pictures. Benjamin Kline served as cinematographer, while Mel Thorsen edited the film. Filming began on May 5, 1941, and ended on May 14, 1941. All of the songs in ''The Medico of Painted Springs'' were sung by the Simp-Phonies. There were a total of four distinct songs in the film, namely "Corny Troubles", "We'd Just as Soon Fiddle as Fight", "Lonely Rangeland", and "Rocking and Rolling in the Saddle".

Release and reception

The film premiered at the Lido Theater, a cinema in Newport Beach, California. It was released in the United States in June 1941. Up till at least January 1942, screenings of the film were still available at cinemas. It was re-screened in September 1957 at the Apollo Theatre. It received mixed reviews from contemporary film critics. A reviewer for ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' wrote, "Saddled with sophomoric episodes and dialog, ''The Medico of Painted Springs'' will find a groove for Saturday matinees, where the kids will stand for anything as long as it's western." In an entry for the film in his book ''The

film Encyclopedia'', Phil Hardy commented that " e picture's main failing is Miller and Gittens' dialogue which has Starrett oscillate between a brash cowboy and a wild-mannered medico." Michael R. Pitts, in his book ''Western Movies'', found the film to be " pretty good actioner in Charles Starrett's Columbia series." Towards the end of his film career spanning sixty-odd western flicks, Starrett commented that his best films were from the 1940s, and that his favorite one was ''The Medico of Painted Springs''.

Differences between the film and the novel

The film has a handful of differences from Rubel's original work. Many character names were changed for the film, including Cliff Monroe to Steven Monroe, Puff Gordon to Ed Gordon, and Nancy Starweather to Nancy Richards. Additionally, the majority of the characters in the film were nameless in the book. The ending was also tweaked. In the novel, Monroe professes his love for Nancy Starweather and they happily marry in Painted Springs. In the film, this does not happen, and Monroe just leaves the area.

Sequels

The film marked the first entry of the ''Medico'' film series by Columbia Pictures. The following two films in the series were ''Thunder Over the Prairie'' (July 1941) and ''Prairie Stranger'' (September 1941). However, they were not based on Rubel's works. More sequels to ''The Medico of Painted Springs'' were planned for production, but were never greenlit after the dismal box office performance of the two released sequels. All three films had Charles Starrett playing the role of Dr. Steven Monroe.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * *

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Medico of Painted Springs 1941 films 1941 Western (genre) films Films directed by Lambert Hillyer Columbia Pictures films American Western (genre) films American black-and-white films Films based on American novels 1940s American films 1940s English-language films