Lambert Hillyer

Lesley Selander is generally considered to be the most prolific director of feature Westerns of all time, with at least 107 to his credit between 1935-67. Hillyer finishes a close second, with 106 horse operas helmed between 1917-49.

The opening scene of Beau Bandit (1930), for example, consists of an eerily atmospheric shot of a posse emerging from a dark, foggy river crossing; it's a somewhat Germanic touch in an otherwise undistinguished film. An incredibly prolific director, Hillyer didn't confine himself to westerns, although they were the majority of his output.

An article in the June 1, 1929 issue of "Hollywood Filmograph" announced that William S. Hart had just signed to star in a talkie western feature for the Hal Roach Studios, to be directed by Roach and Lambert Hillyer. Thelma Todd was to be the female lead. Outdoor locations were to be filmed in Montana. However, no such film was ever made.

A former journalist who came from a show-business family--his mother was actress Lydia Knott--western specialist Lambert Hillyer entered films in 1917. After becoming a director, he soon teamed up with cowboy actor William S. Hart for a series of westerns that resulted in making Hart a star, for which the actor--an old-fashioned man who never forgot a slight or a favor--always gave Hillyer credit. Although he could never be considered a stylist, Hillyer often managed to inject his work with the kind of panache and a flourish that other, bigger-budgeted films lacked.