Streets of Laredo (film)

Streets of Laredo is a 1949 American Western film directed by Leslie Fenton and starring William Holden, Macdonald Carey and William Bendix[3] as three outlaws who rescue a young girl, played by Mona Freeman. When they become separated, two reluctantly become Texas Rangers, while the third continues on a life of crime.

Streets of Laredo
Directed byLeslie Fenton
Produced byRobert Fellows
Written byLouis Stevens (story)
Elizabeth Hill (story)
Charles Marquis Warren
King Vidor (uncredited)
StarringWilliam Holden
Macdonald Carey
Mona Freeman
William Bendix
Music byVictor Young
CinematographyRay Rennahan
Edited byArchie Marshek
Production
company
Paramount Pictures
Distributed byParamount Pictures
Release date
  • May 11, 1949 (1949-05-11) (New York City)
  • May 27, 1949 (1949-05-27) (United States)
Running time
93 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$1,472,000[1]
Box office$2,150,000[2]

The film is a Technicolor remake of King Vidor's black-and-white film The Texas Rangers (1936), which starred Fred MacMurray in Holden's role, Jack Oakie in William Bendix's, Lloyd Nolan in MacDonald Carey's role, and Jean Parker as the girl they rescue.

Plot

A trio of outlaws, Jim Dawkins (Holden), Lorn Reming (Carey), and Reuben "Wahoo" Jones (Bendix), rob a stage. But when a young lady, Rannie Carter (Freeman), is menaced by rich and ruthless Charley Calico (Alfonso Bedoya) after her uncle is killed, the robbers come to her rescue. They run him off, then pay old Pop Lint (Clem Bevans) to watch over her at his ranch.

Lorn ends up separated from his partners but continues his life of crime. Jim and Wahoo inadvertently aid some Texas Rangers and are sworn in as Rangers themselves. Lorn sees an opportunity, steals a herd of cattle the Rangers are guarding, then lets Jim and Wahoo enhance their reputation by being the ones who bring the cattle back.

Lorn's friends turn a blind eye to his activities for a while. Calico is a worse villain, burning Pop's barn and causing the old man to have a fatal heart attack. Calico assaults a Ranger as well, and is ultimately killed by Jim.

But it doesn't end there. Lorn now wants Calico's empire for himself. He also wants Rannie, who has grown to be a beautiful woman. Jim, who loves her, calls off the agreement to look the other way at Loren's misdeeds. But he does remove a bullet when a wounded Lorn hides out at Rannie's after a holdup.

Jim resigns as a lawman, then vows revenge after Wahoo is gunned down. Now that Rannie can see Lorn for what he really is, she wishes Jim luck as he rides to Laredo for a showdown. The former partners face each other for the last time, then Lorn is killed by Rannie.

Cast

Inspiration

The film takes its title from the old Western ballad "The Streets of Laredo".

References
  1. Hollywood Must Keep Zest to Hold Public: Henry Ginsberg of Paramount Says Defeat Talk Hurts Box Office Schallert, Edwin. Los Angeles Times (1923-Current File) [Los Angeles, Calif] 13 Feb 1949: D1.
  2. "Top Grossers of 1949". Variety. 4 January 1950. p. 59.
  3. José David Saldívar, The Dialectics of Our America: Genealogy, Cultural Critique, and Literary History (Duke University Press, 1991), 52.
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