Jim Hardie has been sent to Amity, Kansas to investigate a robbery of one of their offices they share jointly with the Kansas-Illinois Railroad. While there, he teams up with an old friend and railroad investigator, Mike Forbes, who was sent there to investigate the robbery as well. After solving the crime, things take a turn when a second robbery of the office occurs, and the two find this incident is somewhat more involved than the first.
I'll say up front, this is a darned good one. It's got a great script from NB Stone, Jr, with some terrific dialogue and an original story. Jim Hardie shares the screen in equal time with Mike Forbes, and they make a great team. The plot moves along quickly, and the two soon find themselves investigating another robbery after solving the first without a lot of effort. As I mentioned, the dialogue is brisk and plenty quotable, and there's considerable intrigue, although without too much action. But it's not a minus here, as the story is more character driven. Although he wasn't killed, the episode had it in for office agent Joe Rivers (John Alvin), who was doubly unlucky with a gun butt to the head in the first robbery and a knifing in the second. I would imagine he resigned his job shortly thereafter. Interestingly, the Jim Hardie cool factor takes a back seat to that of Mike Forbes, which for me makes the episode that much better. I don't want to even approach any spoilers, so no more discussion here on any plot details.
The cast isn't particularly well-known, but there are a couple noteworthy names for sure. Guinn "Big Boy" Williams appears as Mike Forbes. His career was most interesting, and he appeared in some great pictures. Even before he became well-known he had an extensive list of credits in silents and pre-code pictures, and not just westerns. But in the genre, he appeared with Harry Carey, Hoot Gibson, and Bob Steele in the first onscreen depiction of the The Three Mesquiteers, Powdersmoke Range in 1935. But his fame rose in 1939, when he appeared in Dodge City with Errol Flynn. It was a smash hit and he would appear in 3 more with Flynn, Santa Fe Trail, Virginia City, and Rocky Mountain. He appeared with Roy Rogers in The Cowboy and the Senorita, which is famous not as much for the picture itself, but more for the fact that during the filming Rogers met and fell for Dale Evans. He also appeared with Clint Walker in one of the two most popular episodes of Cheyenne, The Conspirators. Irving Bacon appears as the sheriff, and although his name isn't known at all, he was an *extremely* recognizable face with 514 credits, far too many to reference here. And lastly, Jack Lambert appears as Luke Stevens, and was one of my favorite heavies along with actors such as Charles Horvath, Leo Gordon, and George Keymas.
Again, another good one from season 3. But as I've mentioned often, Jim Hardie is always a good watch, so don't miss this one!
I'll say up front, this is a darned good one. It's got a great script from NB Stone, Jr, with some terrific dialogue and an original story. Jim Hardie shares the screen in equal time with Mike Forbes, and they make a great team. The plot moves along quickly, and the two soon find themselves investigating another robbery after solving the first without a lot of effort. As I mentioned, the dialogue is brisk and plenty quotable, and there's considerable intrigue, although without too much action. But it's not a minus here, as the story is more character driven. Although he wasn't killed, the episode had it in for office agent Joe Rivers (John Alvin), who was doubly unlucky with a gun butt to the head in the first robbery and a knifing in the second. I would imagine he resigned his job shortly thereafter. Interestingly, the Jim Hardie cool factor takes a back seat to that of Mike Forbes, which for me makes the episode that much better. I don't want to even approach any spoilers, so no more discussion here on any plot details.
The cast isn't particularly well-known, but there are a couple noteworthy names for sure. Guinn "Big Boy" Williams appears as Mike Forbes. His career was most interesting, and he appeared in some great pictures. Even before he became well-known he had an extensive list of credits in silents and pre-code pictures, and not just westerns. But in the genre, he appeared with Harry Carey, Hoot Gibson, and Bob Steele in the first onscreen depiction of the The Three Mesquiteers, Powdersmoke Range in 1935. But his fame rose in 1939, when he appeared in Dodge City with Errol Flynn. It was a smash hit and he would appear in 3 more with Flynn, Santa Fe Trail, Virginia City, and Rocky Mountain. He appeared with Roy Rogers in The Cowboy and the Senorita, which is famous not as much for the picture itself, but more for the fact that during the filming Rogers met and fell for Dale Evans. He also appeared with Clint Walker in one of the two most popular episodes of Cheyenne, The Conspirators. Irving Bacon appears as the sheriff, and although his name isn't known at all, he was an *extremely* recognizable face with 514 credits, far too many to reference here. And lastly, Jack Lambert appears as Luke Stevens, and was one of my favorite heavies along with actors such as Charles Horvath, Leo Gordon, and George Keymas.
Again, another good one from season 3. But as I've mentioned often, Jim Hardie is always a good watch, so don't miss this one!
