LONE DEFENDER (1930) Rin Tin Tin, Walter Miller & June Marlowe | Family, Western | B&W

The Lone Defender is a 1930 American Pre-Code Mascot serial film starring Rin Tin Tin. It was Mascot's first all-sound serial (the second to have any sound at all, after the partial sound in The King of the Kongo). It was Rin Tin Tin's first serial at Mascot, after being dropped by Warner Bros. when they decided animal pictures would not work with "Talkies". He also starred in the later serial The Lightning Warrior, which was his last appearance (he died in 1932).

The plot revolves around Rin Tin Tin as "Rinty" and a secret gold mine fought over by the criminal "The Cactus Kid" and the legitimate owners. Material from this serial was edited into a feature film version and released under the same name in 1934.

SYNOPSIS
A prospector is murdered by The Cactus Kid and his gang, who hope to find the murdered man's goldmine. The miner's dog, Rin-Tin-Tin, recognizes the killers, who thereafter seek to use the dog to locate the lost mine. With the help of a government agent and a young girl, Rinty saves the mine and brings the bad guys to justice.

Prospector Juan Valdez is murdered by The Cactus Kid and his gang in an attempt to discover the location of his gold mine. Valdez's dog Rinty witnesses the murder and can also lead the gang to the mine, making him the villain's target throughout the serial. In addition Rinty must help Valdez's daughter Dolores legitimately find and claim the mine while being blamed for being the wolf that has been attacking local livestock.

The mysterious figure of Ramon is constantly on hand, overhearing pieces of the villain's conversations. He appears to be another bandit but his actions seem to contradict that. It is revealed in the finale of the serial that Ramon is in fact "Marco Roberto", an agent of the Justice Department.

CAST & CREW
Rin Tin Tin as "Rinty", Juan Valdez's dog
Josef Swickard as Juan Valdez, Prospector who owns a secret gold mine
June Marlowe as Dolores Valdez, Juan Valdez's daughter
Walter Miller as Marco Roberto, Justice Department Agent posing as the "Mysterious Figure", Ramon
Buzz Barton as Buzz, Ramon's sidekick
Lee Shumway as Amos Harkey, the villainous cantina owner
Julia Bejarano as Maria, the Dueña
Lafe McKee as Sheriff Billings
Arthur Morrison as Limpy
Frank Lanning as Burke, Prospector and Juan Valdez's partner
Bob Kortman as Jenkins, one of the Cactus Kid's Henchmen
Victor Metzetti as Red, one of the Cactus Kid's Henchmen
Otto Metzetti as Red's Partner

Directed by Richard Thorpe
Written by William Presley Burt, Bennett Cohen, Harry Fraser
Produced by Nat Levine
Cinematography Benjamin Kline
Edited by Wyndham Gittens
Music by Lee Zahler
Distributed by Mascot Pictures
Release date: 1930
Running time: 12 chapters (217 min)
Country: United States
Language: English
Budget: $40,000 (estimated)

Chapter titles
Mystery of the Desert
The Fugitive
Jaws of Peril
Trapped
Circle of Death
Surrounded by the Law
The Ghost Speaks
The Brink of Destruction
The Avalanche
Fury of the Desert
Cornered
Vindicated

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