This is a good, adventurous wagon-train western with Jimmy Stewart hired to lead settlers to farmland in Oregon. Stewart is elusive as to a questionable past. There are a few pretty potential love interests on the wagon train that might make a roaming horseman inclined to settle down. Stewart picks up a stray frontiersman who helps him fend off an Shoshone attack in the dark. Both men know a little more of each other's pasts than they'd like. There are some fancy, civilized scenes in old Portland, where Rock Hudson makes his entrance as a handsome young gambler. But a Gold Strike soon turns Portland into a rowdy outpost. Meanwhile, the settlers try to honestly farm their land, and their fate may well depend on who best confronts and surmounts his past, McKintock (Stewart) or Cole (Kennedy). A good Western with travel, adventure and suspense. Another solid pairing of Mann and Stewart (the B-Side Cowboy collaboration to Ford-Wayne). Some of these characters keep you guessing, and there are some peculiar and lively small roles such as 'Steppin' Fetchit' Also, look for Mayberry's own Aunt Bea, doing her damnedest to feed the hungry pioneers. Chalk this one up as a Good View.

--Jed

Cast:

• James Stewart....Glyn McLyntock
• Arthur Kennedy ....Emerson Cole
• Julie Adams ....Laura Baile
• Rock Hudson....Trey Wilson
• Lori Nelson ....Marjie Baile
• Jay C. Flippen....Jeremy Baile
• Chubby Johnson....Cap'n Mello
• Harry Morgan....Shorty
• Royal Dano.... Long Tom
• Frances Bavier....Mrs. Prentiss
• Howard Petrie....Tom Hendricks
• Stepin Fetchit....Adam