IMDb > Billy the Kid (1930)

Billy the Kid (1930) More at IMDbPro »

Overview

User Rating:
6.4/10   122 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
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Director:
King Vidor
Writers:
Walter Noble Burns (book)
Wanda Tuchock (continuity)
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Contact:
View company contact information for Billy the Kid on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
18 October 1930 (USA) more
Genre:
History | Romance | Western more
Tagline:
Cattle-thief, outlaw, 2-gun man, Don Juan - was this the youth who ruled the lawless west with a flame-tipped gun and iron courage? more
Plot:
In this version of the Billy the Kid legend, Billy, after shooting down land baron William Donovan's henchmen for killing Billy's boss... more | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
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User Comments:
One Strange Cowboy Flick more (10 total)

Cast

  (in credits order) (verified as complete)

Johnny Mack Brown ... William H. 'Billy the Kid' Bonney (as John Mack Brown)

Wallace Beery ... Deputy Sheriff Pat Garrett
Kay Johnson ... Claire Randall
Karl Dane ... Swenson
Wyndham Standing ... John W. 'Jack' Tunston
Russell Simpson ... Angus McSween
Blanche Friderici ... Mrs. McSween (as Blanche Frederici)
Roscoe Ates ... Old Stuff (as Rosco Ates)
Warner Richmond ... Bob Ballinger (as Warner P. Richmond)
James A. Marcus ... Colonel William P. Donovan (as James Marcus)
Nelson McDowell ... Track Hatfield
Jack Carlyle ... Mr. Dick Brewer
John Beck ... Butterworth
Chris-Pin Martin ... Don Esteban Santiago (as Chris Martin)
Marguerita Padula ... Nicky 'Pinky' Whoosiz
Aggie Herring ... Mrs. Emily 'Emmy' Hatfield
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Hank Bell ... Henchman Polka Dot (uncredited)
Ralph Bucko ... Cowhand (uncredited)
Roy Bucko ... Posseman (uncredited)
Bob Card ... Cowhand (uncredited)
Don Coleman ... Cowhand Tom O'Fallon (uncredited)
Frank Ellis ... Henchman Joe (uncredited)
Frank Hagney ... Bert Grant (uncredited)
Soledad Jiménez ... Santiago's Mother (uncredited)
Bud McClure ... Townsman (uncredited)
Sarah Padden ... Homesteader Mrs. Foster (uncredited)
Frank Reicher ... General Lew Wallace (uncredited)
Carl Stockdale ... Homesteader Mr. Foster (uncredited)
Blackjack Ward ... Outlaw (uncredited)
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Directed by
King Vidor 
 
Writing credits
Walter Noble Burns (book "The Saga of Billy the Kid")

Wanda Tuchock (continuity)

Laurence Stallings (dialogue)

Charles MacArthur (additional dialogue)

Produced by
King Vidor .... producer
Irving Thalberg .... producer (uncredited)
 
Original Music by
Fritz Stahlberg (uncredited)
 
Cinematography by
Gordon Avil 
 
Film Editing by
Hugh Wynn 
 
Art Direction by
Cedric Gibbons 
 
Sound Department
Douglas Shearer .... recording director
Paul Neal .... sound recording engineer (uncredited)
 
Camera and Electrical Department
Roy Ivey .... assistant camera (uncredited)
 
Costume and Wardrobe Department
David Cox .... wardrobe
 
Music Department
William Axt .... composer: stock music (uncredited)
 
Other crew
William S. Hart .... technical advisor (uncredited)
 
Crew verified as complete


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Additional Details

Also Known As:
The Highwayman Rides (USA) (TV title)
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Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parents
Runtime:
98 min | USA:95 min (Turner library print)
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Color:
Black and White
Aspect Ratio:
1.20 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (Western Electric Sound System)
Certification:
USA:Passed (National Board of Review)
Filming Locations:
Gallup, New Mexico, USA more
Company:
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) more

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
The pistols carried by Johnny Mack Brown were the actual pistols that belonged to the real Billy the Kid. They were loaned to the studio for the picture by William S. Hart, who had them in his private collection. more
Movie Connections:
Version of Billy the Kid's Gun Justice (1940) more
Soundtrack:
Turkey in the Straw more

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User Comments

   (Comment on this title)
1 out of 5 people found the following comment useful.
One Strange Cowboy Flick, 18 November 2007
6/10
Author: barnesgene from Virginia, U.S.

By the time King Vidor directed this "Billy the Kid," he already had 36 movies under his belt (most of them silent), so it's weird that the movie seems so arbitrarily thrown together. Brutality and tenderness each try to crowd the other out. Somebody dies, and minutes later everyone's smiling again. I think the Western/Cowboy genre was still developing in Hollywood at the time (even after all those silent Westerns), and the addition of sound just threw another monkey wrench into the works. Nevertheless, you can tick off all the Western conventions and clichés as the film unfolds; they're all there. But it's like they're on steroids or something -- you never know when they're going to take on a life of their own. They just don't add up. I'm tempted to give this movie an "8" rating just for its consummate strangeness, but I think a "6" is probably a fairer assessment.

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