Ride Lonesome



Ride Lonesome is a 1959 CinemaScope Western film directed by Budd Boetticher starring Randolph Scott, Karen Steele, Pernell Roberts, Lee Van Cleef, and James Coburn in his film debut. This Eastmancolor film is one of Boetticher's so-called "Ranown cycle" of westerns, made with Randolph Scott, executive producer Harry Joe Brown and screenwriter Burt Kennedy, beginning with Seven Men from Now.

Plot
Bounty hunter Ben Brigade (Randolph Scott) captures wanted outlaw Billy John (James Best), who brags that his brother Frank (Lee Van Cleef) will never allow Brigade to take Billy John to justice in Santa Cruz County, AZ. AIong the way, Brigade comes to the rescue of a woman, Carrie Lane (Karen Steele), whom he and a pair of unwelcome new partners, gunmen Sam Boone (Pernell Roberts) and his friend Whit (James Coburn), take along toward safety. But Brigade knows that the reward on Billy John's head is the real motive behind Sam's and Whit's arrival, and that outlaw leader Frank won't be far behind.

Cast

 * Randolph Scott as Ben Brigade
 * Karen Steele as Mrs. Carrie Lane
 * Pernell Roberts as Sam Boone
 * James Best as Billy John
 * Lee Van Cleef as Frank
 * James Coburn as Whit
 * Bennie E. Dobbins as Outlaw (uncredited)
 * Roy Jenson as Outlaw (uncredited)
 * Dyke Johnson as Charlie (uncredited)
 * Boyd "Red" Morgan as Outlaw (uncredited)
 * Boyd Stockman as Indian Chief (uncredited)

DVD release
In 2008 a DVD box set of five Budd Boetticher films starring Randolph Scott was released. Along with Ride Lonesome the set includes  Buchanan Rides Alone, Decision at Sundown, Comanche Station, and The Tall T.

In Popular Culture
In The Middle (TV series) episode The Cursed Tuba Contingency, the Middleman goes to see Ride Lonesome and is followed there by Lacey Thornfield, a photogenic young artist. The Middleman, solver of exotic problems, tells her that he's seen the first act of the movie 16 times. And, true to form, is again called away before he can see the end.