Lost Treasures of the West: Bad Buck Of Santa Ynez (1916) (Silent) / The Uncovered Wagons (1923) (Silent) / Pals Of The Prairie (1933)

Bad Buck Of Santa Ynez (1916, B&W, Silent): Bad Buck Peters manages to escape the sheriff's hanging party and heads for his mountain hideout. On the road he encounters Mary Gail, a young pioneer mother, who begs him to bury her husband, who has just died of a prairie fever. He obliges the grieving widow while his hardened-heart is melted by her six-year-old daughter, Honey. Playing by the creek, the little girl is bitten by a poisonous rattler. Knowing that she has one chance to survive, Buck rides into town to bring back the doctor - even though he realizes he faces certain death. William S. Hart began as a highly acclaimed Shakespearean actor on Broadway who entertained no aspiration for movie acting prior to age 49. A major western buff, he purchased Billy The Kid's pistols and boasted friendships with both Wyatt Earp and Bat Masterson. Partnering with producer Thomas Ince in 1915, Hart went on to star in and direct dozens of memorable westerns.

The Uncovered Wagons (1923, B&W, Silent): Starring Paul Parrott; directed by Jay A. Howe.

Pals of the Prarie (1933, B&W): Starring Buffalo Bill, Jr.; directed by Craig Hutchinson.

• western