One inexpensive way to find out: Mill Creek Entertainment’s release of “Heroes of the Old West
With the exception of John Wayne in 1963’s “McLintock!,” the movies are hardly classics, mostly of the solid-B variety — in other words, nothing anyone but Grandpa Joe remembers. Wayne stars in all but three of them; other names include Errol Flynn and future POTUS Ronald Reagan. I recommend checking out — for weirdness, if nothing else — the not-even-an-hour “The Riders of the Whistling Skull,” starring “The Three Mesquiteers,” one of whom is Ray “Crash” Corrigan (better-known to “Mystery Science Theater 3000” fans as the star of the waterlogged “Undersea Kingdom” serial).
In the TV department, tune in to the lone episode of the Oklahoma Territory-set “Outlaws,” which features a sexy saloon singer, Ray Walston as a corrupt judge, future Disney stalwart Dean Jones, and ol’ Vic Morrow. You also get half a dozen of “Bonanza” and the first 13 of my childhood favorite, “The Lone Ranger.” If your child can’t answer the question, “Who was that masked man?,” now’s a prime opportunity to inform them, before the planned big-budget movie hits the screen.
Mill Creek’s prints aren’t pristine, but certainly watchable. Besides, on budget sets like this, Criterion-level quality is far from the point. —Rod Lott
This article appears in Aug 24-30, 2011.