Tue 15 Feb 2011
Western Movie Review: WHISTLIN’ DAN (1932).
Posted by Steve under Reviews , Western movies[4] Comments
WHISTLIN’ DAN. Tiffany Productions, 1932. Ken Maynard [as Whistlin’ Dan Savage], Joyzelle Joyner, Georges Renavent, Harlan Knight, Don Terry, Tarzan the Wonder Horse. Director: Phil Rosen.
As far as the story line goes, this is a pretty good example of an early 30s western. It overcomes the low budget I’m sure this movie must have had, and even so, I think the worn and washed out look of the buildings the action takes place in – and there’s quite a bit of action – is a lot closer to the buildings and saloons the cowboys of the Old West actually lived (and drank) in.
But to get back to the story, when one of Dan Savage’s range partners is kidnapped by south-of-the-border bandit leader Captain Serge Karloff (Georges Renavent) for $5000 they don’t have, and when Dan and his other partner, a grizzled old fellow named July (Harlan Knight) get to the rendezvous point too late, Dan and July decide to take the not-so-small matter of justice into their own hands.
Posing as crooks themselves, they work their way into Karloff’s gang, and with the help of Mexican saloon girl Carmelita (Joyzelle), they begin to destroy the gang from the inside out. As it turns out, Carmelita is also quite a dancer, with two lengthy barroom scenes with which to display her talents.
Whistlin’ Dan himself even whistles in a another scene, as he’s courting the lady, but otherwise, as was mentioned before, there’s enough action in the rest of the film to satisfy everyone who came to see this movie in 1932, and today too, for that matter.
But as for the man who plays the hero in Whistlin’ Dan, Ken Maynard, that’s something else I’ve been meaning to get around to, but I’ve put it off until now. Maynard was a chunky fellow in this movie, with narrow squinty eyes, and he does a good job playing a cowboy who may not be the brightest bulb on the plains. What Carmelita sees in him, I’m not sure. He doesn’t strike me as the romantic type, but in the early 30s being maybe good with horses and a gun was all a cowboy hero needed.
February 16th, 2011 at 12:07 am
Ken Maynard had quite a career as a stuntman and actor in westerns. Unfortunately he also had a drinking problem and eventually lost all his money, dying penniless in the 1970’s. James Horowitz’s book THEY WENT THATAWAY discusses his final days.
I’ve seen this movie and gave it an high rating with the comment “great villain”. I like the dusty, gritty, westerns in the thirties before the singing cowboys cleaned things up.
February 16th, 2011 at 1:57 am
Aside from everything else Ken Maynard discovered Gene Autry — so he is sort of responsible for the singing cowboy. I agree about this one and the grittier look of the pre singing cowboy western. Maynard did some good serials too.
In the late 1940’s my grandfather was deputy sheriff in Van Zandt county in East Texas and one night had to arrest Ken Maynard who was traveling with some show and had gotten drunk and rode his horse into a cafe (I’ve eaten there, he was lucky they didn’t cook the horse).
My grandmother did the cooking for the jail, so she served him breakfast the next morning, and let him know in no uncertain terms how disapointed she was in one of her favorite cowboy stars.
Maynard dropped her a line once or twice a year from then on, and always apologised for letting her down.
February 16th, 2011 at 2:14 am
Walker, your comment about the villain of the piece, the Mexican bandit Serge Karloff, reminded me of how he initiated new members of his gang — by branding them on the chest with a small K inside a circle!
February 16th, 2011 at 2:22 am
Steve
The Circle k is an actual famous western brand ironically.
Only one year from FRANKENSTEIN and already Karloff is associated with evil — unless they took it from DRUMS OF JEOPARDY where Boris got the name from.