Westward Ho
Brief Synopsis
Cast & Crew
John English
Bob Steele
Tom Tyler
Rufe Davis
Evelyn Brent
Donald Curtis
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
Spring Valley banker Mrs. J. L. Healey is the secret leader of a gang of bank robbers who have been terrorizing neighboring towns. The desperate members of the banker's association, of which Mrs. Healey is the president, decide to offer a $5,000 reward for the capture of the gang. When Mrs. Healey's henchman, Rick West, complains about the pressure the reward has put on the men, she orders him to frame some passing strangers as the robbers, kill them and collect the reward money to divert attention from their own activities. That same day, Wayne Henderson returns home to Spring Valley after being away at college. While he waits for his brother Jimmy and sister Anne to meet him, Wayne is tricked by the gang into taking to the bank what he believes is a deposit for a drunken man. Actually, the paper he carries is a hold-up note, and one of the gang members shoots and kills him after he gives it to the teller. That same afternoon, a trio of wandering cowboys known as The Three Mesquiteers--"Tucson" Smith, "Stony" Brooke and "Lullaby" Joslin--arrive in Spring Valley. The gang targets Lullaby as their next patsy and get him to go to the bank with the money and message. Jimmy, who saw the gang approach Lullaby, watches from outside as one of the hoodlums accidentally shoots someone else. Jimmy rides off, but he is accused of being Lullaby's partner when the sheriff arrests Lullaby. Afraid that Lullaby will reveal the scheme, Mrs. Healey orders Rick to organize a lynching mob, but Tucson and Stony rescue Lullaby just before he is hanged by the angry townspeople. Having heard the accusations against Jimmy, the Mesquiteers decide that he is their best lead and arrive at the Henderson ranch as the sheriff is arresting him. The Mesquiteers rescue Jimmy, who leads them to an abandoned mine to hide out. Stony and Tucson then send Lullaby, disguised as a fortune-teller, to town to obtain more information. Lullaby intimidates one of the gang into revealing that he will soon be going to Mesa City, and the Mesquiteers and Jimmy then steal the money being transferred to the Mesa City bank before the robbers can. Tucson and Stony use the theft as a way to enter the gang, then return the money to the sheriff, who is apprised of their infiltration of the real gang. When the sheriff returns the money to Mrs. Healey, however, and tells her of the Mesquiteers' plans, she orders Rick to convince the sheriff that they are the real bandits and then dispose of them. Rick tells the Mesquiteers that they will be pulling another heist in Mesa City, but after the Mesquiteers send a warning message to the sheriff, Rick instead takes them with the gang to Mrs. Healey's bank. Mrs. Healey pretends to alert the posse, but it soon becomes clear that she is in league with the robbers. While Tucson and Stony are shooting it out with the gang, Mrs. Healey shoots Rick when he hinders her escape. Before he dies, Rick implicates Mrs. Healey, and she is captured with the others. Soon after, the sheriff thanks the Mesquiteers for their help, and they ride out of town.
Director
John English
Cast
Bob Steele
Tom Tyler
Rufe Davis
Evelyn Brent
Donald Curtis
Lois Collier
Emmett Lynn
John James
Tom Seidel
Jack Kirk
Budd Buster
Ken Duncan
Bud Osborne
Al Taylor
Monte Montague
Alfred Hall
Glen "slim" Lucas
Jayne Hazard
Milt Kibbee
Edmund Cobb
Tony Roux
James C. Morton
Joe De La Cruz
Burr Caruth
Crew
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
Some contemporary sources list this film's title as Westward, Ho! The opening title card reads: "Republic Pictures presents The Three Mesquiteers in Westward Ho," followed by photographs of Bob Steele, Tom Tyler and Jimmie Dodd with their names and character names superimposed. Modern sources include the following actors in the cast: Horace B. Carpenter, John Cason, Jack O'Shea, Ray Jones, Tex Palmer, Jack Montgomery and Curley Dresden. For more information on the series, consult the Series Index and the entry for The Three Mesquiteers in AFI Catalog of Feature Films, 1931-40; F3.4617.
