The Kid from Texas

The Kid from Texas was a good starting film for the young newcomer Audie Murphy. Murphy was not yet officially under contract with Universal Studios when he played Billy the Kid and his performance for this , his first real major role is commendable. Billy ( Audie Murphy ) finds himself caught up in the middle of the Lincoln County, New Mexico range war. When ranch boss Mr.Jameson is murdered, Billy’s only real trusted friend, he goes on a killing spree to seek justice. Here Murphy’s portrayal of Billy is sympathetic with the underlying sense of hate and anger the Kid feels toward the men who shot his friend. The new ranch boss takes advantage of the Kid and encourages the young Billy’s murder for revenge. Soon Billy is blamed for the killing spree with the ranch boss nowhere to be found. Billy escapes to the hills but stays close close around the area to be near the conniving and beautiful Irene Kain ( Gale Storm ) the ranch owners wife. Eventually , the Kid is confronted by Pat Garrett in a showdown shootout. While clearly new to the profession of acting, Murphy’s wooden style actually works to his advantage and he shows promise of becoming a popular western film star. Will Geer gives a winning performance in this film as the comical sidekick and Gale Storm lights up the screen with fetching allurement. Beautifully filmed in Technicolor with plenty of exciting action scenes, this early effort from Audie Murphy is pleasing and well worth watching.