Last of the Wild Horses
Last of the Wild Horses is a 1948 American Western film directed by Robert L. Lippert and starring James Ellison, Mary Beth Hughes and Jane Frazee. It was featured in episode 611 of Mystery Science Theater 3000. Plot Duke Barnum, a rogue cowboy just outside of Jacksonville Oregon, appears to be planning to rob a stagecoach when he spots three men trying to catch a small horse thief. Not knowing the reason behind the chase and figuring the odds are unfair, he intervenes, stopping them in their tracks. After some banter, Duke tries to leave, but one of the three men, Hank, takes a shot at him. Duke shoots Hank in the arm, and upset at the attempted double cross, Duke forces the men off their horses, and makes them take off their boots, forcing them to walk back to their destination barefoot. It turns out the three men work for the Double C Ranch, and Duke has to stop by there to get his horse reshod. The ranch is owned by Charlie Cooper, a man who is running other local small ranchers out of business, but worse than that, he is depleting the herds of wild horses all around.