Allan William Colt MacDonald (December 2, 1891 – March 27, 1968), who used the

pen name A pen name or nom-de-plume is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen name may be used to make the author's na ...

William Colt MacDonald, was an American writer of

western fiction Western fiction is a genre of literature set in the American Old West frontier and typically set from the late eighteenth to the late nineteenth century. Well-known writers of Western fiction include Zane Grey from the early 20th century and ...

born in

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

whose work appeared both in books and on film.

Biography

His many novels included ''Gun Country'' (1929), ''Rustler's Paradise'' (1932), ''The Crimson Quirt'' (1949), ''Action at Arcanum'' (1958), and ''California Gunman'' (1957). His film credits, all for character writing, are about his most famous ones, The Three Mesquiteers−Stony Brooke, Tucson Smith and Lullaby Joslin. They first appeared togetherTwo of the three Mesquiteers actually appeared in an earlier novel published in 1929, ''Restless Guns''. in the 1933 novel ''Law of the Forty-Fives''. The novel was adapted into a movie in 1935, ''

The Law of the 45's ''The Law of the 45's'' (also known as ''The Mysterious Mr. Sheffield'' in the United Kingdom) is a 1935 American Western film directed by John P. McCarthy. The screenplay was based on the 1933 novel of the same name by William Colt MacDonald. ...

'', by the independent producers

Arthur Alexander Arthur Alexander (May 10, 1940 – June 9, 1993) was an American country-soul songwriter and singer. Jason Ankeny, music critic for AllMusic, said Alexander was a "country-soul pioneer" and that, though largely unknown, "his music is the stuf ...

and Max Alexander. It featured only two of the characters: Stony Brooke played by Al St. John and called Stoney Martin, and Tucson Smith played by

Guinn 'Big Boy' Williams Guinn is both a surname and a given name. Notable people with the name include: Surname: *Bill Guinn or Lew Meehan (1890–1951), American film actor *Colin Guinn, contestant in ''The Amazing Race'', a U.S. TV series *Dominick Guinn, (born 1975), A ...

. In '' Powdersmoke Range'', another novel adaptation shot in the same year for

RKO RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, is an American film production and distribution company, historically one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Kei ...

, the three appeared together. Stony Brooke is played by

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 ...

, Tucson Smith by Harry Carey, and Lullaby Joslin by 'Big Boy' Williams. Between 1936 and 1943,

Republic Pictures Republic Pictures is currently an acquisition-only label owned by Paramount Pictures. Its history dates back to Republic Pictures Corporation, an American film studio that originally operated from 1935 to 1967, based in Los Angeles, California ...

released a '' Three Mesquiteers'' film series, starting with '' The Three Mesquiteers'', with Robert Livingston as Stony Brooke,

Ray Corrigan Ray or RAY may refer to: Fish * Ray (fish), any cartilaginous fish of the superorder Batoidea * Ray (fish fin anatomy), the bony or horny spine on ray-finned fish Science and mathematics * Half-line (geometry) or ray, half of a line split at an ...

as Tucson Smith, and

Syd Saylor Syd Saylor (born Leo Sailor; March 24, 1895 – December 21, 1962) was an American comedic actor and movie cowboy sidekick who appeared in 395 films and television series between 1926 and 1962. Early years Saylor was born Leo Sailor in 18 ...

as Lullaby Joslin. Among the 51 movies of the series, 8 have

John Wayne Marion Robert Morrison (May 26, 1907 – June 11, 1979), known professionally as John Wayne, was an American actor. Nicknamed "Duke", he became a Pop icon, popular icon through his starring roles in films which were produced during Hollywood' ...

as Stony Brooke : '' Pals of the Saddle'', ''

Overland Stage Raiders ''Overland Stage Raiders'' is a 1938 " Three Mesquiteers" Western film starring John Wayne and directed by George Sherman. The film is notable for being the final film in which silent film icon Louise Brooks performed. Wayne played the lead in ...

'', ''

Santa Fe Stampede ''Santa Fe Stampede'' is a 1938 American " Three Mesquiteers" Western film directed by George Sherman and starring John Wayne, Ray Corrigan, and Max Terhune. Wayne played the lead in eight of the fifty-one films in the popular series. Plot Th ...

'' and ''

Red River Range ''Red River Range'' is a 1938 " Three Mesquiteers" Western film starring John Wayne, Ray Corrigan, Max Terhune, and Polly Moran. Wayne played the lead in eight of the fifty-one movies in the popular series. The director was George Sherman. Plo ...

'' in 1938, and '' The Night Riders'', ''

Three Texas Steers ''Three Texas Steers'' (UK title ''Danger Rides the Range'') is a 1939 American " Three Mesquiteers" Western B-movie directed by George Sherman. It stars John Wayne, Ray "Crash" Corrigan and Max Terhune as the Mesquiteers; with Carole Landis as ...

'', ''

Wyoming Outlaw ''Wyoming Outlaw'' is a 1939 American " Three Mesquiteers" Western film directed by George Sherman and starring John Wayne, Ray Corrigan, and Raymond Hatton. Wayne played the lead in eight of the fifty-one films in the series. Plot Cast * J ...

'' and ''

New Frontier The term ''New Frontier'' was used by Democratic presidential candidate John F. Kennedy in his acceptance speech, delivered July 15, in the 1960 United States presidential election to the Democratic National Convention at the Los Angeles Memo ...

'' in 1939.

Novels

*''Gun Country'' (1929) *''Restless Guns'' (1929) *''Rustler's Paradise'' (1932) *''Law of the .45's'' (1933) a.k.a. ''Law of the .45s'' and ''Sunrise Guns'' *''Powdersmoke Range'' (1934) *''Riders of the Whistling Skull'' (1934) *''King of Crazy River'' (1934) *''Ghost-Town Gold'' (1935) *''The Town That God Forgot'' (1935) *''The Red Rider of Smoky Range'' (1935) *''Roaring Lead'' (1935) *''California Gunman'' (1936) *''Bullets for Buckaroos'' (1936) *''Sleepy Horse Range'' (1938) a.k.a. ''Fighting Kid from Eldorado'' *''Six-Gun Melody'' (1939) *''Six-Shooter Showdown'' (1939) *''The Phantom Pass'' (1940) *''The Riddle of Ramrod Ridge'' (1942) *''Boomtown Buccaneers'' (1942) *''The Vanishing Gun-Slinger'' (1943) *''The Shadow Rider'' (1943) *''Cartridge Carnival'' (1945) *''The Crimson Quirt'' (1949) *''Gunsight Range'' (1949) *''Thunderbird Trail'' (1949) *''The Deputy of Carabina'' (1949) a.k.a. ''Two-Gun Deputy'' *''Stir Up the Dust'' (1950) *''Ambush at Scorpion Valley'' (1950) a.k.a. ''The Singing Scorpion'' *''Dead Man's Gold'' (1951) *''Sombrero'' (1952) *''Three-notch Cameron'' (1952) *''Cow Thief'' (1953) *''Peaceful Jenkins'' (1953) *''Showdown Trail'' (1953) *''The Killer Brand'' (1953) *''Blind Cartridges'' (1953) *''Ranger Man'' (1954) *''Law and Order Unlimited'' (1955) *''Lightning Swift'' (1955) *''The Range Kid'' (1955) *''The Black Sombrero'' (1956) *''Flaming Lead'' (1956) *''Hellgate'' (1956) *''The Mad Marshal'' (1958) *''Ridin' Through'' (1958) *''Blackguard'' (1959) *''Gun Branders'' (1962) *''Trouble Shooter'' (1962) *''Guns Between Suns'' (1963) *''Battle at Three Cross'' (1963) *''Incident at Horcado City'' (1964) a.k.a. ''The Osage Bow'' *''The Gloved Saskia'' (1965) *''Shoot Him on Sight'' (1966) *''Fugitive from Fear'' (1968) *''West of Yesterday'' (1968) *''Alias Dix Ryder'' (1969) *''Powder Smoke'' (1969) *''Marked Deck at Topango Wells'' (1970) *''Rebel Ranger'' (1971) *''The Riddle of Ramrod Ridge'' (1972) *''Master of Mesa'' (1973) *''Punchers of Phantom Pass'' (1973) *''Whiplash'' (1973) *''Wheels in the Dust'' (1973) *''Bullet Trail'' (1974) *''Snake Hunt'' (1994) *''Winchester Welcome'' (1994) *''The Gun-slingin' Gringo'' (1995) *''Gun Fog'' (1997) *''The Red Raider'' (2004)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Macdonald, William Colt 1891 births 1968 deaths American male screenwriters Western (genre) writers 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American screenwriters