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Macbeth (1948)

Shot in 23 days on a shoestring budget at the cheapjack Republic Pictures, Orson Welles’ “Macbeth” was poorly received by American critics and audiences when it first came out in 1948 and again in 1950 when its compact 107-minute running time was edited by about a half-hour and the Scottish burr used by the actors was redubbed into accent-free English. Even today, Welles’ original vision doesn’t carry the same level of respect that his later Shakespearean films “Othello” (1952) and “Chimes at Midnight” (1966) enjoy.
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Western Wednesdays: Fighting Mustang (1948)

SYNOPSIS:
A horse rustling outfit, the Black Diamond gang, is making off with wild horses intended to be used by the Texas rangers. During one of the ambushes, the unscrupulous marauders rustle five horses while injuring Cyclone, one of the rangers’ best and most temperamental stallions.

Having had his fill of these incidents, Ranger Sunset Carson [Sunset Carson] is charged with the task of recapturing the stolen mares and apprehending the rustlers. As it turns out, the rangers do not possess jurisdiction over the Three Corners territory in which the gang is hiding out as the stretch of land has yet to be annexed into the state of Texas.
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Western Wednesdays: Santa Fe Saddlemates (1945)

SYNOPSIS:
Special investigator Sunset Carson [Sunset Carson] is recruited by the governor of the territory of New Mexico, L. Bradford Prince [Frank Jaquet], to investigate a diamond smuggling ring taking place at the border. Along the way he meets city slicker Aloysius J. Phillpotts [Olin Howland] and makes him his saddlemate and partner and rechristens him “Deadeye.”
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Vera Ralston: Queen of Republic Pictures

During the 1940s and 1950s, Vera Ralston was the major female star at Republic Pictures. Often maligned by critics who claimed her stardom was due solely to her relationship with studio boss Herbert Yates (whom she married in 1952), Ralston’s film output was diverse and intriguing, with a colorful mix of productions co-starring major Hollywood talent.
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The Bootleg Files: The Fighting Kentuckian – The 8mm Version

BOOTLEG FILES 655: “The Fighting Kentuckian – The 8mm Version” (severely truncated 8mm version of the 1949 John Wayne film).

LAST SEEN: On YouTube.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: Severely edited version of a feature film in a long-defunct home entertainment format.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Not likely.

Prior to the proliferation of video cassette recorders in the late 1970s and early 1980s, movie lovers who wanted to screen their favorite classic films at home made use of portable projectors that screened the 35mm or 70mm Hollywood theatrical fare in the much smaller 16mm, 9.5mm, 8mm and Super 8 formats.
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