The Painted Desert

The Painted Desert (1931)

BLAZING ACTION

Western pardners Jeff and Cash find a baby boy in an otherwise deserted emigrants' camp, and clash over which is to be "father." They are still bitterly feuding years later when they own adjacent ranches. Bill, the foundling whom Cash has raised to young manhood, wants to end the feud and extends an olive branch toward Jeff, who now has a lovely daughter. But during a mining venture, the bitterness escalates. Is Bill to be set against his own adoptive father?

Date of release
1931-01-18
TMDB
5.2 / 10 (21)
Runtime
1h 19m
Genres
Western
Director
Howard Higgin

Casting

Interesting facts

The Painted Desert is a 1931 American pre-Code Western film released by Pathé Exchange. Produced by E. B. Derr, it was directed by Howard Higgin, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Tom Buckingham. The picture stars low-budget Western stars William Boyd and Helen Twelvetrees, and most notably features an unshaven young Clark Gable in his talking film debut. The film was shot mostly on location in Arizona.

Production

The Painted Desert was put on the slate by Pathé Exchange in June 1930. In July, it was announced that E.B. Derr had selected Higgin to direct the film, as well as naming the stars of the film, William Boyd and Dorothy Burgess.

Higgin was familiar with the area, having worked in and around Flagstaff, Arizona as a lumberjack prior to his entering the film industry. Towards the end of August, it was announced that Clark Gable would join the cast as the antagonist.

In September, it was announced that Helen Twelvetrees had replaced Burgess in the cast. Tragedy struck the production shortly after filming began when the fourteen-month-old baby playing the role of the infant Bill Holbrook, died while on location. Cause of death was not released. The infant's name was Thais Baer, and she was from Glendale, Arizona. Bert Gilroy was named as assistant director, and production began the first week of September.

The film's release was delayed several times. In early October the film's release was announced to be October 26, but by late October that release date was pushed back, to a premiere date of November 20. In the first week of November the cast and crew returned from location in Arizona to finish the interior scenes on the studio lot in Hollywood.

Ninety percent of the film was shot in Arizona, between the Painted Desert in Dinosaur Canyon, and Tuba City, Arizona, as well as a nearby Indian reservation. In mid-November it was reported that the recording portion of the film had been completed. Clarence Kolster edited the film during December 1930. By November, advertisements promoting the film were being released to the trade papers.

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