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SYNOPSIS:After becoming a film favorite in the nickelodeon era as "Broncho Billy," G.M. Anderson left the movie business for a couple of years while pursuing other business opportunities. They didn't pan out very well, so he returned to the screen in 1918, producing a series of western features. Judging from the surviving material, they were terrific films, but problems arising from skimpy distribution cut short Anderson's comeback.
The Son-of-a-Gun! (1919, 61 min)
The second film in the series, and it's a real delight. Here he plays a trigger-happy drifter who practically terrorizes a western town with his rough and rowdy ways... but proves to be a hero in the end. Sadly, this is the only film of the series that survives intact, but it's a testament to the talent of the screen's first cowboy star. You don't need to be a fan of westerns to enjoy the wit, the characterizations and the honest sentiment of "The Son-of-a-Gun!" Organ score by Bob Vaughn.
Shootin' Mad (1919, 30 min)
Anderson's next film was It was ultimately condensed into a two-reel short, and it's presented here in that length. It's another example of a tightly-plotted, fast-paced western that was dumped into the independent distribution market, and few people ever got to see it. It's a real treat, though, with Anderson starring as his usual rough-around-the-edges western hero, who cleans up the town with both guns blazing!
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