Best movies like Short Grass
ROD CAMERON...as the fabulous "Man from Santa Fe" who battled the Southwest's deadliest badmen!
A unique, carefully handpicked, selection of the best movies like Short Grass Starring Rod Cameron, Cathy Downs, Johnny Mack Brown, Raymond Walburn, and more. If you liked Short Grass then you may also like: Open Range, Overland Telegraph, The Raiders, Raiders of San Joaquin, Bar-Z Bad Men and many more popular movies featured on this list. You can further filter the list even more or get a random selection from the list of similar movies, to make your selection even easier.
Steve Llewellyn hung up his guns after killing a man in self-defense, left Willow Creek and went on the drift for five years. Now he’s back. And the bad blood stirred up by his return and the violence caused by a cattleman’s grab for all the good grasslands mean Steve must strap on his sidearms again. Rod Cameron -- who became a marquee draw with a pair of espionage serials in the 1940s and went on to establish himself as a popular cowboy star -- makes Steve a hero to reckon with in Short Grass, one of the actor’s 10 films with busy shoot-‘em-up director Lesley Selander. Johnny Mack Brown, a sagebrush stalwart in his own right, plays the marshal who allies with Steve. Adding to the Western pedigree is costar Cathy Downs, who plays the title role in the iconic My Darling Clementine. Buffs will note other familiar faces, including Alan Hale, Jr., well remembered as the skipper who takes a “three-hour tour” to Gilligan’s Island.
Short Grass
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Overland Telegraph
Not to be confused with the 1929 film The Overland Telegraph, this Western from director Lesley Selander stars Tim Holt as a cowboy appropriately named Tim Holt. In order to hinder the construction of a new telegraph line for his own financial gain, scheming shopkeeper Paul Manning (George Nader) enlists the assistance of a gang of outlaws led by Brad Roberts (Hugh Beaumont in one of his many pre-Leave it to Beaver roles). Unfortunately for the bad guys, Holt and his cohort Chito Rafferty (Richard Martin) sense that there's foul play afoot and embark on an investigation.
The Raiders
A rancher who has staked a claim during the California gold rush goes after the gang of murderous claim-jumpers who have stolen his claim and murdered his wife.
Raiders of San Joaquin
In this western, two cowboys ride to the rescue of ranchers who are fighting to keep a land-grabber from taking their land and selling it to the railroad
Bar-Z Bad Men
Jim Waters arrives at Ed Parks' ranch to find Parks' cattle herd mysteriously increased. Hamp Harvey has been losing cattle and he suspects Parks. But the culprit is Harvey's foreman Brent who gets his orders from the town's leading citizen Sig Barstell. Barstell wants Harvey's ranch and after trying to frame Harvey by killing Parks, Waters takes over and goes after both the killer and the rustlers.
Heaven with a Gun
Jim Killian arrives in a small Arizona town hoping to establish a peaceful life as the local preacher, but he soon finds himself in the middle of a feud between sheep ranchers and cattlemen. Leloopa, a young Native American woman, pleads for Killian's help after her shepherd father is hung by Coke Beck, the vicious son of the head cattle rancher. Killian must weigh his actions carefully lest he perpetuate the cycle of retribution and revenge.
Saddles and Sagebrush
Krag Sabine has aroused the wrath of all the ranchers by stealing their land with the aid of his henchmen, led by Ace Barco; when Lafe Martin objects, the outlaws shoot him down. Lucky Randall promises Ann Martin he will avenge her wounded father. He sets up headquarters on the Martin ranch and sends for Bob Merritt and his men, the Texas Playboys (Jesse Ashlock, Leon McAuliffe, Cotton Thompson, Junior Barnard and Luke Wills). Krag organizes his remaining men for an attack on the ranch. Lucky's men get the upper hand but Krag escapes with Ann as his hostage.
Hell to Pay
Ten legendary Western stars are reunited in this action-packed tale of brothers at odds-one a decorated soldier and reluctant hero, the other a gambler who keeps company with card sharks and corrupt women-in a small mining town torn apart by civil war. When they fall for the same woman, the brothers become divided; and one man is left to face a band of ruthless killers on his own. A tribute to the great American Western, Hell to Pay is a gritty and mesmerizing tale of love, honor, duty, treachery and betrayal.
Fort Osage
Rod Cameron stars as frontier scout Tim Clay, assigned to guide a wagon train through Indian territory. Clay knows that he's in for a lot of trouble because of the treaty-violating activities of white criminals Pickett and Keane. Fortunately for the hero, Pickett and Keane double-cross each other somewhere along the line, weakening their ability to foment an all-out Indian attack.
The Texican
Wanted north of the border, Jess Carlin resides safely in Mexico. Then he hears his brother was killed in a gunfight with another man. Knowning his brother never carried a gun he heads north to find his brother's killer. After battling bounty hunters he arrives in Rimrock, a town controlled by Luke Starr. Starr is the man he wants but he unable to find any evidence until he is given an item found by his brother's body.
Stagecoach
Story follows a stagecoach ride through Old West Apache territory. On board are a cavalry man's pregnant wife, a prostitute with a broken heart, a Marshal taking in his prisoner Johnny Ringo, a crooked gambler, and the infamous Doc Holliday
Arizona Bushwhackers
During the Civil War, a Confederate spy takes a job as marshal of a small western town as a cover for his espionage activities. However, he soon finds out that a local businessman is selling weapons to a band of rampaging Indians.
Boss of Hangtown Mesa
It is now an accepted fact that the best of Johnny Mack Brown's Universal westerns were directed by the talented Joseph H. Lewis. Boss of Hangtown Mesa may not be in the same league as the Brown-Lewis classic Arizona Cyclone, but it comes awfully close. This time around, hero Steve Collins (Brown) comes to the aid of Betty Wilkins (Helen Deverell), who has taken over the telegraph-line business established by her uncle John (Henry Hall). The latter was murdered by outlaws who don't cotton to having the territory linked up electronically with the rest of the world.
The Bounty Killer
Willie Duggans, a tenderfoot from the east, arrives in the wild west and soon experiences its violence. Willie discovers the easy money in bounty killing and must choose between that violent lifestyle and the love of a beautiful saloon singer.
Deep in the Heart of Texas
Hoping to increase its box-office allure by adopting the title of a popular song, Deep in the Heart of Texas (clap!clap!clap!clap!) was the first Johnny Mack Brown western of the 1942-43 season. The plot concerns a group of insurrectionists who intend to keep Texas separate from the rest of the USA.
Stampede
Brothers Mike and Tim McCall own a large ranch in Arizona, using the surrounding lands for grazing cattle. Stanley Cox and LeRoy Stanton sell this land to settlers who arrive to find it bone dry, as a dam on the McCall ranch controls the water. Among the settlers are John Dawson and his daughter Connie. The latter goes to the nearest town to take action, but Sheriff Ball tells him there is nothing he can do. Tim falls for Connie but Mike is unimpressed with her charms. While returning from a town dance, Tim discovers Stanton trying to dynamite the dam, and is killed in the ensuing gunfight. Stanton later sends his men to stampede the cattle while he and Cox blow up the dam. Despite the efforts of Mike and Sheriff Ball, the cattle are wiped out and Mike races to the dam and kills Stanton in a gunfight.
Stick to Your Guns
Buck Peters arranges for Hoppy, California, Johnny and other cowboys to go to the aid of friends whose cattle are being rustled. Hoppy and California locate the rustlers' hideout and join the gang by posing as outlaws themselves, but must find a way to let the rest of the posse know where they are.
Stranger from Santa Fe
Burly Johnny Mack Brown once again plays undercover U.S. Marshal Nevada McKenzie in this overly complicated series oater from low-budget Monogram. This time, McKenzie, who goes under the alias of Roy Ferris, is waylaid by would-be stage robber Cy Manning (John Merton) en route to the Bar X Ranch.
Ghost Guns
Supernatural events on the range prompt an investigation by cowboy Brown in this western.
Land of the Outlaws
The old bromide about the western town run by outlaws as a hideout for their fellow crooks makes a return appearance in Monogram's Land of the Outlaws. Since the crooks include such reliable disreputables as Charles King and John Merton, the good guys really have their work cut out for them. But not to worry! The heroes are Johnny Mack Brown and Raymond Hatton, whose B-western track record is unbeatable. Land of the Outlaws was directed by Lambert Hillyer, whose sense of rhythm and pace had saved many another inexpensive oater.
Silver Range
Veteran cowboy star Johnny Mack Brown plays a cattle buyer turned prairie sleuth in this low-budget oater from Monogram, which co-stars perennial old-timer Raymond Hatton as a retired U.S. Marshal assigned to investigate the mysterious disappearance of a rancher. As the two old friends soon learn, a gang of smugglers headed by the town's banker (Frank LaRue) needs the use of the Flying Arrow Ranch for their nefarious purposes.
Shadows on the Range
Johnny Mack Brown stars in the formula oater Shadows on the Range. The film was made at a time when Monogram was experimenting with the notion of passing Brown off as a singing cowboy. While his voice is dubbed, he's definitely handling all the action sequences himself, and that's what the fans really wanted.
Valley of Fear
Johnny Williams (Johnny Mack Brown) returns to his home town of Beaufort, and finds himself when being chased by banker Henry Stevens (Tristram Coffin), Grangers Association head Les Travers (Ed Cassidy as Edward Cassidy) and real estate agent Frank Wilkins (Ted Adams.)
The Lost Trail
Having briefly abandoned his standard "Nevada Jack McKenzie" characterization in Flame of the West, cowboy star Johnny Mack Brown was back as Nevada Jack in Monogram's The Lost Trail. Vowing to bring in a gang of stagecoach outlaws, Nevada redoubles his efforts when he learns that the owner of the stagecoach line is pretty Jane Burns (Jennifer Holt).
Range Law
Range Law stars Johnny Mack Brown as "Nevada" and Raymond Hatton as "Sandy", the same characters they played in most of their mid-1940s Monogram westerns. This time, Nevada and Sandy, US marshals both, set out to collar some renegades who've been driving out the local ranchers. It's just possible that one of said ranchers is behind this land-grabbing scheme.
Six Gun Mesa
To get the herd on Six Gun Mesa, Carson has the owner and hands killed. But one hand, Dave Emmett was in town instead of with the cattle. So Carter kills a man and frames Dave for the murder. Johnny Mack Brown arrives just in time to stop the lynching and sets out to find the real killer. Getting the Doctor who falsified the murder evidence drunk gets him the information he wants and this leads to the showdown with Carson.
Six Gun Gospel
U.S. Marshal Johnny Mack Brown once again goes undercover in this Nevada Mckenzie series entry from Great Westerns Prod./Monogram. Masquerading as a parson and a drifter, Sandy Hopkins (Raymond Hatton) and Nevada Jack McKenzie (Mack Brown) come to the aid of the beleaguered residents of Goldville, a small ranching community being terrorized by greedy saloon keeper Ace Benton (Kenneth MacDonald) and his gang of cutthroats. Unbeknownst to the citizenry, the railroad is planning to build tracks through town and Benton is attempting to secure the land by scaring off the settlers.
Robin Hood of the Range
Inasmuch as western star Charles Starrett gained screen fame as the Robin Hood-like "Durango Kid", it stands to reason that Starrett would head the cast of Robin Hood of the Range. The star plays Steve Marlowe, the foster son of railroad manager Henry Marlowe (Kenneth McDonald). When it becomes apparent that the railroad is using underhanded methods to drive local homesteaders off their land, Steve adopts the guise of "The Vulcan", a legendary champion of justice.
Flame of the West
Flame of the West has always attracted more attention than most of Johnny Mack Brown's Monogram westerns, if for no other reason than the offbeat casting of Douglass Dumbrille. Usually seen in villainous roles, Dumbrille herein offers a sincere, effective performance as a scrupulously honest US marshal named Nightlander. When he takes on a gang of crooked gamblers, Nightlander is shot down in cold blood, compelling frontier doctor John Poole (Johnny Mack Brown) to put his Hippocratic oath on the back burner and strap on the shootin' irons.
Drifting Along
Monogram added several songs and a barn dance to this otherwise standard Johnny Mack Brown hay burner, in which the veteran cowboy star comes to the aid of a beleaguered female rancher. Just "drifting along," Steve Garner (Mack Brown) obtains the job of foreman on a spread belonging to pretty Pat McBride (Lynne Carver). Unbeknownst to Pat, local banker Jack Dailey (Douglas Fowley) not only holds the mortgage on the ranch but is also the man responsible for the death of Pat's father. Read more at http://www.allmovie.com/movie/drifting-along-v90041#OtPRR6jLd1ubhlQv.99
The Gentleman from Texas
In one of his better Monogram Westerns, Johnny Mack Brown goes up against a crooked saloon owner with more than one murder on his conscience. Steve Corbin (Tristram Coffin) and his gang of cutthroats are terrorizing the townspeople of Rimrock, who in self-defense hire Johnny Macklin (Mack Brown) as new town marshal.
Open Range
A former gunslinger is forced to take up arms again when he and his cattle crew are threatened by a corrupt lawman.