Fury at Furnace Creek

Fury at Furnace Creek
Fury at Furnace Creek
	Theatrical release poster
Directed by	H. Bruce Humberstone
Written by	Charles G. Booth; Winston Miller;
Story by	David Garth
Produced by	Fred Kohlmar
Starring	Victor Mature; Coleen Gray; Glenn Langan; Reginald Gardiner;
Cinematography	Harry Jackson
Edited by	Robert L. Simpson
Music by	David Raksin
Production; company	20th Century Fox
Distributed by	20th Century Fox
Release date	April 30, 1948 (US);
Running time	88 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Fury at Furnace Creek is a 1948 American Western film directed by H. Bruce Humberstone and starring Victor Mature, Coleen Gray, Glenn Langan, and Reginald Gardiner.^[1]

Plot

Troops are massacred at a Furnace Creek fort in 1880 after an army captain, Walsh, cites orders forcing him to abandon a wagon train. Apache Indians hid inside the wagons to gain access to the fort.

General Blackwell is blamed for the incident and court-martialed. Denying that he sent any such order, the general has a stroke and dies on the witness stand. No written evidence of the order is presented.

One of his sons, Rufe, a captain from West Point, travels west to find out what happened. His brother, Cash, reads of their father's death in a Kansas City newspaper and also heads toward Furnace Creek in search of answers.

Using an alias, Cash learns that Capt. Walsh has become a drunkard. A mining boss, Leverett, is impressed by the stranger in town and hires him, not knowing Cash's real name or intent. Rufe arrives in town and also assumes a false identity.

Cafe waitress Molly Baxter, whose father was killed at the fort, still considers General Blackwell the man to blame. But the real villain is Leverett, who bribed Walsh and organized the Apache raid. A guilty conscience causes Walsh to write a confession. Leverett sends one of his henchmen to do away with Walsh, but the confession is found by Cash.

Rufe is framed, arrested and tried, but escapes. Cash gives him the confession and tells him to take it to the Army as proof. Wounded in a gunfight with Leverett but victorious, Cash recovers and reads in the paper about the proof of General Blackwell's innocence.

Cast

Promotional still for the film with Glenn Langan and Coleen Gray

Victor Mature as Cash Blackwell
Coleen Gray as Molly Baxter
Glenn Langan as Rufe Blackwell
Reginald Gardiner as Captain Walsh
Albert Dekker as Leverett
Fred Clark as Bird
Charles Kemper as Peaceful Jones
Robert Warwick as Gen. Fletcher Blackwell
George Cleveland as Judge
Roy Roberts as Al Shanks
Willard Robertson as Gen. Leads
Griff Barnett as Appleby
Jay Silverheels as Little Dog

Production

The film was originally called Ballad at Furnace Creek. Shooting took place near Kanab, Utah,^[2] specifically, in Zion National Park. Virgin River, Springdale Johnson Canyon, Utah, as well as on the Arizona Strip.^[3]^: 288 Victor Mature's role was originally meant to be played by John Payne.^[4]

References

^ "Fury at Furnace Creek". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved April 23, 2014.
^ Frank Daugherty Special to The (October 17, 1947). "Letter From Hollywood". Christian Science Monitor. p. 5.
^ D'Arc, James V. (2010). When Hollywood came to town: A history of moviemaking in Utah (1st ed.). Layton, Utah: Gibbs Smith. ISBN 9781423605874.
^ Thomas F. Brady (August 30, 1947). "The News of the Screen". New York Times. p. 9.

External links

Fury at Furnace Creek at IMDb

[tcm-1] "Fury at Furnace Creek". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved April 23, 2014.

[2] Frank Daugherty Special to The (October 17, 1947). "Letter From Hollywood". Christian Science Monitor. p. 5.

[3] D'Arc, James V. (2010). When Hollywood came to town: A history of moviemaking in Utah (1st ed.). Layton, Utah: Gibbs Smith. ISBN 9781423605874.

[4] Thomas F. Brady (August 30, 1947). "The News of the Screen". New York Times. p. 9.

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