User Reviews

I was surprised to learn this film was made as late as 1952, it looks like it could have been from the Forties, or even the Thirties. Part of that comes from the stock footage used throughout the story, but even Clayton Moore's scenes have a certain aged look. Moore filmed this while on leave from "The Lone Ranger" TV series during the 1952 season, and it's not hard to spot the Ranger's mannerisms and pick up the speech pattern. As Buffalo Bill Cody, Moore looks like one of the characters he would portray in the TV show when he took off the mask and wore a disguise.

Though the story is rather formulaic, I found the scenes between Buffalo Bill and Chief White Cloud (Chief Yowlachie) to be very well done. Credit the script writers for utilizing what sounds to be authentic dialog, particularly that of the Chief. It always intrigues me to hear the lyrical flow of Indian language.

The movie's opening scene offers something you won't see very often in a Western. During an Indian attack on a wagon train, everyone defending the circled wagons (except for Buffalo Bill and Cactus) is wearing a dress, and you'll find yourself saying - 'Those are some pretty ugly women'. I'm still not convinced soldiers would have disguised themselves that way, but at least it was a creative effort.

The other notable Indian actor in the film but in a smaller role is Chief Thundercloud, going by the name of Black Hawk. Thundercloud has the distinction of being the very first film sidekick to the Lone Ranger, portraying Tonto in the 1938 serial aptly titled "The Lone Ranger". He reprised the role a couple of years later in "The Lone Ranger Rides Again".

The more times I heard young Indian lad Pinfeathers repeat the phrase 'You betchum', I had to squint a little harder to see who was playing the part. You would too if you saw enough Red Ryder films from the 1940's. His sidekick Little Beaver would always respond to Red Ryder's request with 'You betchum'; the boy in the role was Bobby Blake, many years before he became Robert Blake.

Apart from his role as The Lone Ranger, one would expect to see Clayton Moore in other films as a good guy. That's why seeing him as the heavy is a unique experience. He was cast as a villain in at least three Charles Starrett Durango Kid Westerns - "South of Death Valley", "Bandits of El Dorado", and "Cyclone Fury". I also caught him as a henchman not long ago in a Gene Autry film - "Riders of the Whistling Pines". Even if you're only used to seeing Moore in his trademark Ranger mask, you'll know him by the distinctive voice, a dead giveaway.

Complete with those unforgettable long black curls that made his character's hairstyle legendary, Clayton Moore takes a break from his role as The Lone Ranger to play the equally memorable Buffalo Bill in a movie that only gives a glimpse into the truth about his life. It's a very low budget Western that looks like something made for television, filled with some alleged Native American actors but focusing less on action and more on Bill's attempts to keep the peace with his friends in spite of interference that threatens to disrupt it. Of course there's a cute Native American kid who becomes like his sidekick as well as a comical pal for Bill as well, the typical grizzled comic relief who really doesn't add much comedy. You have to take everything in this lightly as it seems to have been quickly rushed together to take advantage of Moore's popularity, but it's all rather ordinary. At least there's no unnecessary romantic stories to interrupt what little action there is.