The Painted Desert selected Higgin to direct the film, as well as naming the stars of the film, William Boyd and Dorothy Burgess. Later in the month it was reported that Higgin would head to Arizona to begin location scouting for the film, accompanied by fellow director, Tay Garnett, however in August Higgin began scouting in the Arizona desert with the screenwriter, Tom Buckingham. It was announced that the film would employ over 300 extras. Higgin was familiar with the area, having working in and around Flagstaff, Arizona as a lumberjack prior to his entering the film industry. Towards the end of August
The Oregon Desert bobcat food, and high desert ghost towns. From its first release in 1964, "The Oregon Desert" has received excellent reviews from numerous sources. On 7 October 1964, the Eugene "Register-Guard" newspaper said: To commemorate Oregon's sesquicentennial in 2009, the Oregon State Library recommended 150 Oregon-related books including "The Oregon Desert". According to the Oregon State Library, this book is "a classic account of the places, events, animals and people in the High Desert region." In highlighting "The Oregon Desert" in its section on Oregon authors and books, the Oregon Blue Book quoted from Google Books as follows: "The Oregon Desert"