The Painted Desert The Painted Desert The Painted Desert is a 1931 American pre-Code film released by Pathé Exchange. Produced by E. B. Derr, it was directed by Howard Higgin, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Tom Buckingham. It starred low-budget Western stars William Boyd (in his pre-Hopalong Cassidy days) and Helen Twelvetrees, and featured a young Clark Gable in his talking film debut. The picture was shot mostly on location in Arizona. Two cowboy friends, Jeff (J. Farrell MacDonald) and Cash (William Farnum), are traveling through the desert in the southwest U.S., when they come upon a baby who has been abandoned
The Painted Desert he did not know how to ride a horse prior to this film, and learned specifically for his supporting role in "The Painted Desert". However, Gable had been a horseman since his early years, and merely took several lessons in Griffith Park prior to the commencement of filming in order to hone his skills. William Farnum was a large star during the silent era in Hollywood, starring in one of the earliest and most popular Westerns, the 1914 film "The Spoilers". When he was injured during the filming of 1924's "The Man Who Fights Alone", that effectively ended his leading