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The Three Mesquiteers

Republic Pictures

51 films released
from 1936 - 1943




(From Old Corral collection)

Above from L-to-R are Helen Deverall, George J. Lewis and Tom Tyler in a lobby card from THE BLOCKED TRAIL (Republic, 1943).


Variant 9 - six films
Bob Steele (as Tucson Smith)
Tom Tyler (as Stony Brooke)
Jimmie Dodd (as Lullaby Joslin)
SHADOWS ON THE SAGE (1942)
VALLEY OF HUNTED MEN (1942)
THUNDERING TRAILS (1943)
THE BLOCKED TRAIL (1943)
SANTA FE SCOUTS (1943)
RIDERS OF THE RIO GRANDE (1943)



(From Old Corral collection)

From top to bottom are Tom Tyler, Jimmie Dodd and Bob Steele, the last group of actors to portray the Three Mesquiteers in the last half-dozen films of the series.


The final Mesquiteers grouping had Steele and Tyler.  But Rufe Davis was out and a fellah named Jimmie Dodd was Lullaby Joslin.  Dodd is best remembered as one of the two hosts (along with Roy Williams) of TV's THE MICKEY MOUSE CLUB.

After concluding the 1942-43 Mesquiteers releases, Republic decided that the trio had run out of gas and concentrated their efforts on the existing cowboy series of Roy Rogers, Don Barry, Wild Bill Elliott ... and a new star they were grooming named Eddie Dew. Thus, Republic did not exercise the contract renewal options on Tyler and Steele.

Republic Pictures did 51 Three Mesquiteers adventures during the period from 1936-1943.

The finale was RIDERS OF THE RIO GRANDE (Republic, 1943) which was released in May, 1943.



(From Old Corral collection)
Left to right are Tom Tyler, Jimmie Dodd and Bob Steele in a melodious moment in a lobby card from SHADOWS ON THE SAGE (Republic, 1942).



(From Old Corral collection)

Above is a duotone B&W title lobby card from the 1950 re-release of THUNDERING TRAILS (Republic, 1943). From left to right are Tom Tyler, Jimmie Dodd, and Bob Steele. The pretty gal in the photo inset in the upper right corner is Nell O'Day, frequent heroine to Johnny Mack Brown at Universal. These B&W duotone cards became the norm in the later days of the B western to reduce costs.

The question about whether James Wesley Dodd (1910-1964) used "Jimmy" or "Jimmie" as his first name has been solved. Scott Michaels provided a picture of Dodd's grave marker at Forest Lawn-Hollywood Hills, Los Angeles to the Find A Grave website, and the marker shows Jimmie W. Dodd: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/3513/jimmie-dodd




(From Old Corral collection)

Above is another duotone B&W lobby card from the 1950 re-release of THUNDERING TRAILS (Republic, 1943). From left to right are Jimmie Dodd, Bob Steele, Nell O'Day, Forrest Taylor and Tom Tyler.



(From Old Corral collection)
Tom Tyler had one more starring role left as the lead in Columbia's cliffhanger, THE PHANTOM (1943). In the picture on the left, Tyler is costumed as the Phantom, the guardian of the jungle and fabled "ghost who walks".

Though still young, arthritis would soon cripple him, and his remaining movie work consisted of supporting parts and bad guy roles (in such films as the Tim Holt RKO westerns and the Russ Hayden/Jimmy Ellison group of six sagebrush cheapies for Lippert Pictures in 1950).

With the demise of the Mesquiteers, Bob Steele galloped over to Monogram Pictures to add some zip to the Ken Maynard/Hoot Gibson Trail Blazers oaters.  Steele's career would continue for another thirty years or so --- as a cowboy star, then to supporting roles, and into TV, as "Trooper Duffy" on F TROOP.



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