Texas Dynamo (1950)

Charles Starrett plays The Durango Kid in the 1950 Columbia western Texas Dynamo. As a novelty, Starrett not only plays Durango and his "alter ego" Steve Drake, but also takes on a third identity, that of a hired gun in the employ of the film's bad guys. As one critic noted, this may be the only western in which the hero is obliged to chase himself. Jock O'Mahoney -- later known as Jock Mahoney -- plays a secondary role, and also doubles for Starrett during the riskier stunt sequences.

Western

Top billed cast

Charles StarrettSteve Drake / Durango Kid
Smiley BurnetteSmiley Burnette
Lois HallJulia Beck
Jock MahoneyBill Beck
Slim DuncanSlim Duncan
John DehnerStanton
George ChesebroKroger
Gregg BartonLuke
Marshall BradfordWalt Beck
Fred F. SearsHawkins

Similar to Texas Dynamo

Junction City (1952)

Durango, aka Steve Rollins rides into town with saddle pal Smiley Burnette. The boys go to the rescue of pretty Kathleen Case, who is being victimized by greedy relatives.

Western

Backdrop image for movie Outcasts of Black Mesa

Outcasts of Black Mesa (1950)

Our Hero is accused of a crime he didn't commit. Once again, he breaks jail to find the real culprits. And once again, he dons his Durango Kid disguise, whereupon stunt-double Jock Mahoney swings into action. Outcasts of Black Mesa is distinguished by the presence of a relative newcomer to the film game, leading lady Martha Hyer.

Western

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Renegades of the Sage (1949)

The plot finds Steve/Durango attempting to capture ex-Civil War guerilla fighter Miller who may be the man who's been going around knocking down telegraph wires.

Western

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Horsemen of the Sierras (1949)

When Robin Grant inherits a valuable range, certain evil interests try their best to kill off Robin and claim the land for themselves. US Marshall Steve Saunders comes to the boy's rescue.

Western

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Frontier Gunlaw (1946)

Jim Stewart comes to Mesa City and buys a ranch from publisher Matt Edwards, who is confined to a wheelchair. The area is terrorized by an outlaw gang known as The Phantoms. When Jim's cattle herd is rustled and his ranch foreman Pop Evans killed, he takes an active hand against the gang in his guise as the Durango Kid.

Western

Backdrop image for movie Outlaws of the Rockies

Outlaws of the Rockies (1945)

Outlaws of the Rockies is the fourth of Columbia's revitalized "Durango Kid" series. Charles Starrett is back in the saddle as the masked do-gooder Durango, aka easygoing sheriff Steve Williams. Accused of being a member of an outlaw gang, Williams is forced to don his Durango disguise to bring the actual criminals to justice.

Western

Backdrop image for movie Challenge of the Range

Challenge of the Range (1949)

Charles Starrett once more dons the mask of mysterious do-gooder "The Durango Kid" in Columbia's Challenge of the Range. Wandering cowboy Steve Roper (Starrett) is hired by the Farmers Association to stem the activities of a group of gunmen who are driving ranchers off their land. The most likely suspect turns out to be innocent: the real culprits are within the Association itself. With the help of the chief suspect's son, Roper brings the crooks to justice.

Western

Backdrop image for movie Laramie Mountains

Laramie Mountains (1952)

Markham and his men have found gold on the Indian reservation and are trying to get rid of them by starting an Indian war. Dressed as Indians they are attacking the soldiers. Steve Holden is the Indian agent sent to prevent a war. After finding proof that white men posing as Indians were responsible, he is able to locate the gang's hideout but quickly becomes a prisoner slated to be killed. - Written by Maurice VanAuken

Western

Smoky Canyon (1952)

Mahoney is a sheep man who's framed for the murder of a rancher. It's all part of a scheme by a dishonest cattleman who hopes to extenuate a range war for his own profit. The Durango Kid helps clear Mahoney's name.

Western

Backdrop image for movie Trail to Laredo

Trail to Laredo (1948)

Filmed at the Providencia Ranch (today's Forrest Lawn in Burbank, CA), this typical "Durango Kid" Western featured the Cass County Boys performing "Go West Young Lady" by Sammy Cahn and Saul Chaplin, in addition to series regular Smiley Burnette singing his own "It's My Turn" and "The Yodeler. This time, the Durango Kid (Charles Starrett) is chasing down a gang of outlaws shipping stolen gold in crates marked "ring bolts," ably assisted by Smiley, a treasury agent working undercover as a house painter. Virginia Maxey supplies female interest and little Tommy Ivo, in one of his six appearances in the Durango Kid series, also gets in the way of the action.

Western

Backdrop image for movie Whirlwind Raiders

Whirlwind Raiders (1948)

It's 1873 and the disbanded Texas Rangers have been replaced by the corrupt Texas State Police. Steve Lanning arrives posing as a wanted outlaw to get in with them in his attempt to have them replaced. His inside work helps the Durango Kid break up the State Police raids but he is in trouble when his secret identity as Durango becomes known to them.

Western

Backdrop image for movie Quick on the Trigger

Quick on the Trigger (1948)

Quick on the Trigger was Charles Starrett's second "Durango Kid" picture for 1949. It all begins when ousted sheriff Steve Warren (Starrett) is put on trial for the murder of heroine Nora Reed's (Helen Parrish) brother. Steve is innocent, of course, but he doesn't stand a chance against prosecuting attorney Garvey Yager (Lyle Talbot) -- especially since Yager is the real killer.

Western

Backdrop image for movie Both Barrels Blazing

Both Barrels Blazing (1945)

The outlaw gangs are robbing the railroads and the Rangers cannot follow them when they move to New Mexico. So Kip decides to take a vacation to New Mexico and, as the Durango Kid, bring Cass and his gang back to justice. But Cass and his gang are killed at the bank in a double cross and Kip must still find the loot. For this, he enlists the help of Tex and Grubstake, although Grubstake does not know it.

Western

Bonanza Town (1951)

Using marked bills, Steve is looking for the supposedly dead Henry Hardison. Coming to Bonanza Town he gets a job with the town boss Crag Bozeman and gets paid with marked bills. He suspects Hardison is Boseman's boss and he is right as Hardison and his men are now planning to get rid of both him and the Durango kid.

Western

Pecos River (1951)

Steve is a Government Agent looking for the gang that stole the U.S. Mail. He goes undercover...

Western

Backdrop image for movie Ridin' the Outlaw Trail

Ridin' the Outlaw Trail (1951)

Charles Starrett plays lawman Steve Forsythe in Ridin' the Outlaw Trail. Somewhere along the line, of course, Steve is obliged to don the mask of The Durango Kid, mysterious righter of wrongs. The "wrongs" in this instance include the theft of $20,000 in gold, and the "kidnapping" of a blacksmith's forge! Jim Bannon, who only a few months earlier had played the heroic Red Ryder, provides the villainy in this fast-paced "Durango Kid" entry

Western

Backdrop image for movie The Rough, Tough West

The Rough, Tough West (1952)

Charles Starrett returns as the Durango Kid in Columbia's Rough, Tough, West. For most of the film, however, Starrett is known as "Steve Holden," a former Texas Ranger who comes to a wide-open mining town to visit an old friend (Jack -- later Jock -- Mahoney). Alas, said friend has turned bad, and is busy arranging a major land grab when Steve arrives on the scene. With deep regret, our hero dons his Durango disguise to thwart his ex-friend's criminal activities.

Western
Music

Backdrop image for movie Frontier Outpost

Frontier Outpost (1950)

Federal agent Steve Lawton works undercover with his assistant, Smiley Burnette, to track down an outlaw gang that is raiding government gold shipments bound for Fort Navajo.

Western

Backdrop image for movie Streets of Ghost Town

Streets of Ghost Town (1950)

The Durango Kid and his sidekick look for stolen gold with a history.

Western

Phantom Valley (1948)

The Durango Kid, along with assistance from sidekick Smiley Burnett, investigates a pair of murders that threaten to fuel a range war.

Western