Western RoundUp: Tom Tyler
In June 2024 I somewhat impulsively signed up for a Kickstarter project to bring a pair of long-unseen silent Tom Tyler Westerns to Blu-ray.
The Kickstarter was started by Tom Tyler fan extraordinaire Mary Della Vale, creator of the website Aventuras de Tom Tyler.
One of the set’s films, The Man From Nevada (1929), was in the library of the HMH Moving Image Archive at the University of Southern California, while four of five reels for The Law of the Plains (1929) were at the Library of Congress.
The original nitrate prints were scanned in 2K by the USC School of Cinematic Arts (for The Man From Nevada) and Ben Model’s Undercrank Productions (for The Law of the Plains), with the set of both films ultimately released by Undercrank.
I was especially glad I signed up for the Kickstarter when Tom Tyler’s niece, Sandra Slepski, coincidentally appeared at the Lone Pine Film Festival in October 2024, just a few months after I supported the Kickstarter.
Slepski was interviewed by Henry C. Parke at a screening of one of the movies Tyler had made in Lone Pine, Rip Roarin’ Buckaroo (1936). I quite enjoyed the movie and became eager to see more of his films.
In her interview Sandra shared insights into her uncle’s life; he was born to Lithuanian immigrants in New York, birth name Vincent Markowski, and raised in Michigan. He aspired to be an actor from an early age, moving to Hollywood and working hard to lose his Lithuanian accent.
Renamed Tom Tyler, he starred in many silent and sound “B” Westerns, not to mention the popular serial Adventures of Captain Marvel (1941).
Tyler also took small but memorable roles in more prestigious “A” level Westerns, including John Ford’s Stagecoach (1939), where he played villainous Luke Plummer, and Ford’s She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949), where he was cast as Cpl. Mike Quayne. In the latter film Quayne was the soldier operated on in a moving wagon during a memorable storm sequence.
Late in his life Tom was beset by ill health, caused by an incurable autoimmune disease, and moved in with Sandra’s family in Michigan, so she knew him well when she was young. He was only 50 when he passed away.
Tom was buried in Detroit, Michigan. A beautiful gravestone depicts Tom as a young man in cowboy gear.
For those who would like to learn more about Tom Tyler, a biographical sketch of the actor is posted at Lone Pine’s Museum of Western Film History website.
As for the Tom Tyler Silent Film Collection, which I received earlier this year, I found it highly enjoyable.
I first watched The Man From Nevada, a 48-minute film originally released in August 1929. It was directed by J.P. McGowan, shot by Hap Depew, and written by Sally Winters, all of whom also worked on the other film in the set, The Law of the Plains.
The Man From Nevada has a fairly simple plot, in which Jack Carter (Tyler) intervenes when shiftless Jim Watkins (Alfred Hewston) and his family are threatened by a claim jumper (Al Ferguson).
Jack has taken a shine to Jim’s pretty adult daughter Virginia (Natalie Joyce), who is responsible for her three motherless brothers (played by Kip Cooper, Godfrey Craig, and Frank Crane).
Tyler is quite personable, and with such a short running time the movie is packed with story and action, notably including a sequence with a baby in a runaway wagon.
Much of the movie was filmed outdoors; I’ve been trying to find out the location, as I didn’t recognize it as one of the standard locations used on many “B” Westerns shot in Southern California.
Joyce, Ferguson, and William “Bill” Nolte also appeared with Tyler in The Law of the Plains, and the movie’s director, J.P. McGowan, even took an acting role in this one, playing the murderous villain.
Tyler has a dual role in The Law of the Plains, initially playing O’Brien, a former Marine ranching somewhere in South America. About to sell his ranch, he’s instead murdered by Seagrue (McGowan) as O’Brien’s young son Dan (Robert Parrish) watches.
Fast forward in time and Tyler then plays the adult Dan, a cowboy whose trail drive brings him back to his former home. Seagrue is still running the ranch he stole from Dan’s father, and, having recognized Dan, he intends to kill him too.
Dan not only battles Seagrue, he saves Seagrue’s niece Natalie (Joyce) from being forced to marry a man she doesn’t love.
It sounds like melodrama, and it is, but this 55-minute film is well done, with plenty of outdoor filming and action. One reel is missing, but the story is filled in with photo stills and narrative cards, which fill the gap nicely.
One of the most interesting aspects of The Law of the Plains was that the actor who played Dan as a child, Robert Parrish, grew up to be an Oscar-winning editor (for 1947’s Body and Soul which starred John Garfield) and then a director.
Parrish directed Westerns including Saddle the Wind (1948) with Robert Taylor and The Wonderful Country (1959) with Robert Mitchum. Parrish also directed a good Joel McCrea movie filmed in England, Shoot First (1953), aka Rough Shoot.
The prints of both movies in this Blu-ray set were remarkably good for minor “B” films of the ‘20s which have been out of the public eye for many years. Both films in this set have new scores by Ben Model of Undercrank Productions.
The disc also includes a short yet informative introduction to Tom Tyler.
I found these quite entertaining and encourage anyone who enjoys silent films or “off the beaten path” Westerns to give them a try. If a Volume 2 of Tyler films were ever to be released, I would definitely buy it!
…
– Laura Grieve for Classic Movie Hub
Laura can be found at her blog, Laura’s Miscellaneous Musings, where she’s been writing about movies since 2005, and on Twitter at @LaurasMiscMovie. A lifelong film fan, Laura loves the classics including Disney, Film Noir, Musicals, and Westerns. She regularly covers Southern California classic film festivals. Laura will scribe on all things western at the ‘Western RoundUp’ for CMH.
