The 'brains' and 'action' heavies who had meaty roles and lots of dialog ... and the players who were fathers, ranch owners, lawman, mayors, judges, lawyers, storekeepers, newspaper editors, wardens, etc.

Above, Bob Steele has the drop on Earl Dwire in this blue duotone 1950 re-release lobby card from THE GUN RANGER (A. W. Hackel/Republic, 1937), one of the A. W. Hackel produced 'Supreme' westerns that was released by Republic Pictures, and directed by Robert North Bradbury, Bob Steele's father.

According to Bob Nareau, the author of several books on Bob Steele, Earl Dwire was a personal friend of Steele and his father, Robert North Bradbury ... and they would often go fishing and hunting together.  Apparently, this close relationship carried over into the film business, as Dwire was often seen in Bradbury directed oaters of the 1930s.

Dwire was pencil thin, and had a distinct and easily recognizable drone to his voice.  In one film, he'd play a typical henchman, with dark hair and moustache ... and he even did a film or two as an Indian ... and with a terrible accent, Dwire also portrayed Mexican bandidos and French Canadians. An example is the John Wayne THE LAWLESS FRONTIER (Lone Star/Monogram, 1934) in which Dwire is the half Apache "Zanti", the killer of Wayne's parents.  In some sagebrushers, such as Steele's SUNDOWN SAUNDERS (A. W. Hackel/Supreme, 1935), he'd wear a suit, play a lawman, and have grey hair and moustache.

My favorite Dwire role: RIDERS OF DESTINY (Lone Star/Monogram, 1933) was John Wayne's first in a string of sixteen Lone Star oaters which were released through Monogram. Robert North Bradbury directed and the youthful Wayne plays an undercover lawman named "Singing Sandy". Dwire is Forrest Taylor's gunslingin' henchman "Slip Morgan", and in the street shootout near the end of the film, Wayne plugs Earl through both wrists (and there's even lots of fake blood oozing from Dwire's wounds).

In Les Adams' Prolific Performers listing on the Old Corral, you'll find that Dwire has about 165 sound era credits, and of that number, 116 were B westerns and 6 were serials.  His work at Republic consisted of about two dozen films during the period 1935 - 1939.  Of these, about half were the A. W. Hackel produced westerns which were released by Republic during their first couple of years in existence.  One of the most recognized bad guys of the 1930s, Dwire passed away in 1940.

You may want to check the In Search Of ... page on the Old Corral and then go to the California Death Records database. There you will find a record for: Earl D. Dwire, born 10/3/1883 in Missouri, Mother's maiden name of Sparks, and he passed away on 1/16/1940. No Social Security number is listed.

(Courtesy of Les Adams) Above from L-to-R are Fred Kohler, Jr., Ed Cassidy (minus his usual moustache) and Dwire in THE PECOS KID (Commodore, 1935).  Kohler, Jr. was the real life son of movie bad guy Fred Kohler, Sr. and played the hero in a couple of cheap oaters in the mid 1930s.  He then drifted into playing baddies, just like his father, and was seen in many of the later Roy Rogers films. Above, a young John Wayne has collared a young and thin Eddie Parker, and on horseback, Yakima Canutt has Earl Dwire under wraps.  This re-release lobby card is from THE STAR PACKER (Lone Star/Monogram, 1934), another of the Wayne westerns directed by Bob Steele's father, Robert North Bradbury. (Courtesy of Ken Jones) Above from L-to-R are Earl Dwire, Steve Clark, Tom Keene, Oscar Gahan, Charles B. Murphy (wearing the badge) and Denver Dixon (Victor Adamson) in a scene from Keene's ROMANCE OF THE ROCKIES (Monogram, 1937), another oater directed by Robert N. Bradbury.

  Although some of the data is incomplete or inaccurate, the Internet Movie Database (IMDB) has information on Earl Dwire: http://us.imdb.com/name/nm0245429/.

(Courtesy of Jack Tillmany)

Richard 'Dick' Cramer 1889 - 1960 Dick Cramer was born in Ohio, and his film credits begin in the late 1920s.  He became typecast as a swarthy and downright mean and ornery fellah in westerns, Laurel & Hardy shorts, and various other films. Les Adams has Cramer with 200+ sound era film credits, and of these, 94 are westerns and 14 are cliffhangers. I tend to remember Cramer just as pictured in the below photo --- wearing a bartender's apron.  He was also one who had a unique sound (drone) to his voice, though he was often monotone in dialog delivery.  One of his last film roles was as a mild-mannered cattle buyer in the Eddie Dean Cinecolor SONG OF OLD WYOMING (PRC, 1945). You may want to go to the In Search Of ... page on the Old Corral, and then check the California Death Records database. There you will find a record for: Richard E. Cramer, born 7/3/1890 in Ohio, and he passed away on 8/9/1960.

(Courtesy of Les Adams) Above, Richard 'Dick' Cramer has his grip on Gertrude Messinger while hero Lane Chandler looks on in this title card from LAWLESS VALLEY (Kent, 1932). Above is Bob Custer tangling with Cramer in the serial, the LAW OF THE WILD (Mascot, 1934). (Courtesy of Les Adams) Above, from L-to-R are Richard 'Dick' Cramer, Cliff 'Ukelele Ike' Edwards and Tim Holt in PIRATES OF THE PRAIRIE (RKO, 1942). PIRATES was a re-make of the earlier George O'Brien LEGION OF THE LAWLESS (RKO, 1940), and Cramer did his bartender role in that film also.

  Although some of the data is incomplete or inaccurate, the Internet Movie Database (IMDB) has information on Dick Cramer: http://us.imdb.com/name/nm0186191/.