Allan William Colt MacDonald(December 2, 1891 – March 27, 1968), who used thepen nameWilliam Colt MacDonald,was an American writer ofwestern fictionborn inDetroit,Michiganwhose work appeared both in books and on film.
Biography
editHis many novels includedGun Country(1929),Rustler's Paradise(1932),The Crimson Quirt(1949),Action at Arcanum(1958), andCalifornia Gunman(1957).[1]
His film credits, all for character writing, are about his most famous ones, The Three Mesquiteers−Stony Brooke, Tucson Smith and Lullaby Joslin. They first appeared together[2]in the 1933 novelLaw of the Forty-Fives.
The novel was adapted into a movie in 1935,The Law of the 45's,by the independent producersArthur AlexanderandMax Alexander.It featured only two of the characters: Stony Brooke played byAl St. Johnand called Stoney Martin, and Tucson Smith played byGuinn 'Big Boy' Williams.InPowdersmoke Range,another novel adaptation shot in the same year forRKO,the three appeared together. Stony Brooke is played byHoot Gibson,Tucson Smith byHarry Carey,and Lullaby Joslin by 'Big Boy' Williams.
Between 1936 and 1943,Republic Picturesreleased aThree Mesquiteersfilm series, starting withThe Three Mesquiteers,withRobert Livingstonas Stony Brooke,Ray Corriganas Tucson Smith, andSyd Sayloras Lullaby Joslin. Among the 51 movies of the series, 8 haveJohn Wayneas Stony Brooke:Pals of the Saddle,Overland Stage Raiders,Santa Fe StampedeandRed River Rangein 1938, andThe Night Riders,Three Texas Steers,Wyoming OutlawandNew Frontierin 1939.
Novels
edit- Gun Country(1929)
- Restless Guns(1929)
- Rustler's Paradise(1932)
- Law of the.45's(1933) a.k.a.Law of the.45sandSunrise Guns
- Powdersmoke Range(1934)
- Riders of the Whistling Skull(1934)
- King of Crazy River(1934)
- Ghost-Town Gold(1935)
- The Town That God Forgot(1935)
- The Red Rider of Smoky Range(1935)
- Roaring Lead(1935)
- California Gunman(1936)
- Bullets for Buckaroos(1936)
- Sleepy Horse Range(1938) a.k.a.Fighting Kid from Eldorado
- Six-Gun Melody(1939)
- Six-Shooter Showdown(1939)
- The Phantom Pass(1940)
- The Riddle of Ramrod Ridge(1942)
- Boomtown Buccaneers(1942)
- The Vanishing Gun-Slinger(1943)
- The Shadow Rider(1943)
- Cartridge Carnival(1945)
- The Crimson Quirt(1949)
- Gunsight Range(1949)
- Thunderbird Trail(1949)
- The Deputy of Carabina(1949) a.k.a.Two-Gun Deputy
- Stir Up the Dust(1950)
- Ambush at Scorpion Valley(1950) a.k.a.The Singing Scorpion
- Dead Man's Gold(1951)
- Sombrero(1952)
- Three-notch Cameron(1952)
- Cow Thief(1953)
- Peaceful Jenkins(1953)
- Showdown Trail(1953)
- The Killer Brand(1953)
- Blind Cartridges(1953)
- Ranger Man(1954)
- Law and Order Unlimited(1955)
- Lightning Swift(1955)
- The Range Kid(1955)
- The Black Sombrero(1956)
- Flaming Lead(1956)
- Hellgate(1956)
- The Mad Marshal(1958)
- Ridin' Through(1958)
- Blackguard(1959)
- Gun Branders(1962)
- Trouble Shooter(1962)
- Guns Between Suns(1963)
- Battle at Three Cross(1963)
- Incident at Horcado City(1964) a.k.a.The Osage Bow
- The Gloved Saskia(1965)
- Shoot Him on Sight(1966)
- Fugitive from Fear(1968)
- West of Yesterday(1968)
- Alias Dix Ryder(1969)
- Powder Smoke(1969)
- Marked Deck at Topango Wells(1970)
- Rebel Ranger(1971)
- The Riddle of Ramrod Ridge(1972)
- Master of Mesa(1973)
- Punchers of Phantom Pass(1973)
- Whiplash(1973)
- Wheels in the Dust(1973)
- Bullet Trail(1974)
- Snake Hunt(1994)
- Winchester Welcome(1994)
- The Gun-slingin' Gringo(1995)
- Gun Fog(1997)
- The Red Raider(2004)
References
edit- ^"William Colt MacDonald".amazon.com.Retrieved2014-09-21.
- ^Two of the three Mesquiteers actually appeared in an earlier novel published in 1929,Restless Guns.