''Clearing the Range'' is a 1931 American

pre-Code Pre-Code Hollywood was an era in the Cinema of the United States, American film industry that occurred between the widespread adoption of sound in film in the late 1920s and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorship gui ...

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 starring

Hoot Gibson Edmund Richard "Hoot" Gibson (August 6, 1892 – August 23, 1962) was an American rodeo champion, film actor, film director, and producer. While acting and stunt work began as a sideline to Gibson's focus on rodeo, he successfully transitioned ...

and his then wife

Sally Eilers Dorothea Sally Eilers (December 11, 1908 – January 5, 1978) was an American actress. Early life Eilers was born in New York City to a Jewish-American mother, Paula (or Pauline) Schoenberger, and a German-American father, Hio Peter Eilers (a ...

. Directed by

Otto Brower Otto Brower (December 2, 1890 – January 25, 1946) was an American film director. He directed more than 40 films between 1928 and 1946. He was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and died in Hollywood, California, from a myocardial infarction, ...

, it was the first film released by the Poverty Row studio

Allied Pictures Allied Pictures was an American film production company that operated between 1931 and 1934. Controlled by the producer M.H. Hoffman, it was one of the Poverty Row companies of the era turning out low-budget B pictures. The company's best known f ...

. Gibson remade the film in 1933 as '' The Dude Bandit''.

Plot

Curt Fremont pretends to be a clueless "peaceful man" in front of his friends, but when trouble starts—in this case, his Banker brother has been murdered by his assistant—he resorts to clever trickery without being seen or suspected to undo the villain. By going underground, so to speak, his efforts are more effective in uncovering the murderer than a run-and-gun approach. Inevitably, the female lead, as in this film, looks down her nose at Gibson's public persona, but admires his "other" self's deeds of daring and courage, not realizing it's the same man. Eventually, he relies on fists and guns to finish the job he started with trickery. This unusually complex dual-identity plot device is a hallmark of many of Gibson's films, something that set him apart from many other

film heroes of the era (and afterwards) who were quick to draw their six shooter to settle disputes.

Cast

as Curt "El Capitan" Fremont *

as Mary Lou Moran *

Hooper Atchley Lemuel Hooper Atchley (April 30, 1887 – November 17, 1943) was an American film actor. Atchley was the son of Mr. and Mrs. P. S. Atchley. He was a 1908 graduate of the Knoxville, Tennessee, school system. Atchley's first professional ac ...

as Lafe Kildare *

Robert Homans Robert Edward Homans (November 8, 1877 – July 28, 1947) was an American actor who entered films in 1923 after a lengthy stage career. Life and career Robert Homans was born November 8, 1877, in Malden, Massachusetts. Although he studied ...

as "Dad" Moran * Edward Peil Sr. as Sheriff Jim * George Mendoza as Juan Conares * Edward Hearn as Jim Fremont *

Maston Williams Maston Williams (April 23, 1879 – July 15, 1978) was an American actor who appeared in films during the 1930s. He appeared in more than 40 films between 1931 and 1939. Selected filmography * '' Clearing the Range'' (1931) * '' Without Hon ...

as George "Slim" Allen

Production

It was filmed in

Wildwood Regional Park Wildwood Regional Park is a suburban regional park in the western Simi Hills and Conejo Valley, in Ventura County, California. It is located in western Thousand Oaks, northern Newbury Park, and southern Moorpark. Wildwood is home to over 27 ...

Thousand Oaks, California Thousand Oaks is the second-largest city in Ventura County, California, located in the northwestern part of Greater Los Angeles. Approximately from the city of Los Angeles and from Downtown Los Angeles, it is named after the many oak trees pr ...

.Schad, Jerry (2009). ''Los Angeles County: A Comprehensive Hiking Guide''. Wilderness Press. Pages 35–36. .

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Clearing the Range 1931 films 1931 Western (genre) films 1930s romance films American Western (genre) films American black-and-white films American romance films Films directed by Otto Brower 1930s English-language films 1930s American films English-language Western (genre) films English-language romance films