The Lawless Frontier 1934 John Wayne - Gabby Hayes Western - 16mm Original Print

Description

This is a 16mm Original print of the John Wayne western, The Lawless Frontier (1934). I would describe it as a good condition Original print with minimal wear. There is no vinegar odor. It is on two - 1200' reels. It has a running time of approximately 51 minutes.
The Lawless Frontier (1934) Written and Directed by Robert N. Bradbury. Cast: John Wayne, Sheila Terry, Jack Rockwell, George 'Gabby' Hayes, Jay Wilsey, Yakima Canutt, Gordon De Main, Earl Dwire, Tommy Coats, Herman Hack, Arthur Millett, Artie Ortego, Tex Phelps and Lloyd Whitlock.
A fake-Mexican bandit plots to have Gabby Hayes killed so that he could step in and "save the day" for Gabby's daughter, thus making her one of his conquests. Luckily, she overhears their plans and John Wayne is nearby. Unlucky for Wayne, the local sheriff is a stubborn idiot who immediately suspects him of being one of the bandits!
This is one of the best and faster-paced of Wayne's Lone Star vehicles, with lots of action and stunts, great locations, and a colorful ruthless villain played nicely by Earl Dwire.
Now, I know what you're thinking. How do I know it's an original print? That is a good question. How do we know ANY print is original? I mean, if I had to go to court and give conclusive evidence to prove to a judge and jury that a print was an original or not...I don't believe I'd be able to do it...and I don't believe you would either.
All I can do is give you some provenance and offer my opinion.
I purchased this film several years ago from a film dealer located in Tinley Park, IL with whom I had many transactions. She was a person I enjoyed doing business with because she was knowledgeable and reliable. She was in the process of liquidating the collection of a film collector who had passed away. This collector, whose name I just can't remember, had a reputation for having the best prints he could acquire. He was known for going through the trouble to make composite prints in order to have the best print posible. (This would explain why the print is on multiple film stocks. Some of it is AG2S and Agfa Gevaert, while most of it is on Fuji.) Anyway, she was assisted in her labor by a film collector who himself passed away a couple of years ago, Packy Smith. Now, Packy told her that it was original and she passed the info on to me. I, myself, was somewhat skeptical. The reason I doubted the print was original was that it is in the public domain. It has been my experience that acquiring original prints of public domain films, while not impossible, was indeed difficult.
I trusted my friend and I trusted Packy Smith's reputation, so I took the chance and made the purchase. It was indeed a good original print.
Now, getting back to the question, how do I know it's original? Well, the honest answer is I don't. I don't believe anyone does. The actual question maybe should be, what do you believe it to be? Well, all I can tell you is that in my 50 plus years of collecting 16mm film, I have seen countless dupes and countless original prints and countless reversals. Some of those dupes were good. In fact, some were REAL good. A few of them you could almost swear were original...almost being the operative word. I viewed this film again just before listing on eBay. I was looking particularly close to make sure it was an original. It is clear and sharp and I'm still convinced it is an original...but I can't prove it in a court of law. I will say this, if it is a dupe, and I don't for one moment believe it is, it would be, by FAR, among the BEST dupes I have EVER seen in my entire life...but I STILL believe it is an original.