Wildcat riggers risk their lives in the pursuit of oil. Their jobs get even more dangerous when ruthless oil baron, J.G. Anderson sets his sights on their territory. When longtime driller Dan O'Reilly falls to his death from a well tower sabotaged by Anderson's strong-arm thugs, his teenage son "Fishtail" inherits the property and the troubles that come with it. With the help of his geologist pal, Hank Langford, the boy fights to bring in a gusher before the deed to the well-site expires.

Black Gold is a gritty look back at the early days of oil exploration, when independents could still gamble on striking it rich through luck and hard work. Russell Hopton directed only one other film, having spent his career on the other side of the lens, acting in dozens of features in the 20s, 30s and 40s. Frankie Darro, only nineteen when Black Gold was shot, had already been in over eighty films and had at least that many still to come, the most notable being several inspired pairings with black comic actor, Mantan Moreland.