#136 Son of a Wanted Man (Louis L'Amour)

Louis L'Amour brings you almost 3 hours of western adventure in Son of a Wanted Man. Based loosely on the full length Louis L'Amour novel this story tells the tale of Miguel "Mike" Santos. Orphaned at a young age by outlaws who killed his father in a robbery he is taken to live with the gang and raised by their leader Ben Curry. He's grown up learning the ways of living on the wrong side of the law. He knows how to cheat at cards, rustle cattle, work over a brand, crack a safe, plan a hold up, rob a bank, a stage or a train, and make a get away without getting caught. He's good with a gun. Pistol or rifle, makes no difference. He can hunt and track. But Mike has also been educated on the ways of the outside world as well. Now as an adult his adoptive father is about to leave the outfit to him. Will this be the life he chooses to lead or will he choose another path? Will Mike have time to make a decision one way or another before the law pinpoints the hideout and all hell breaks loose? Will he be able to stave off an insurrection by some of Ben's own men?

Son of a Wanted Man is traditional high stakes fun from Louis L'Amour. This production offers a strong story and exceptional acting. Produced in the truest sense of a radio drama this presentation has, with the exception of the opening introduction, no narration. Son of a Wanted Man is a first rate drama any western fan is sure to enjoy.

From Louis L'Amour:

Son of A Wanted Man tells the story of Ben Curry and his adopted son Mike Santos. In a remote corner of California's High Sierra mountains lies the secret outlaw kingdom of Ben Curry. For fifteen years Curry has ruled supreme. But the king is getting old, and he wants to turn his legacy over to someone and get out -someone like Mike. Mike is a young man who can handle a knife, a gun, his fists, and who's been trained in every criminal skill. But so far he's never broken the law. Now, as treachery explodes among Ben's riders, Mike must choose.between his loyalty to Ben or his yearning for a different life.

Listen to the trailer:
http://www.sonofawantedman.com/trailer.htm

Buy or learn more about Son of a Wanted Man:
http://www.louislamour.com/audio/sonofawantedman.htm

#119 Riding For the Brand (Louis L'Amour)

Louis L'Amour brings you Riding For The Brand for a second time. This time produced by son Beau L'Amour along with David Rapkin and Charles Potter. It's the story of drifter Jed Asbury. After discovering the dead body of Michael Latch on the prairie Asbury assumes his identity and heads for California to claim a large ranch left as Latch's inheritance.  Upon arriving at Casa Grande the new Michael Latch has to contend with not only the ranch's foremost residents, foreman Toni Costa and Carol Arden, but also the villainous Walt Seaver who believes the ranch is his to have.

This version of Riding For The Brand is significantly different from the one produced by Soundelux which featured Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Johnny Cash, and Kris Kristofferson. Both are well produced with music and sound effects and fun to listen to. If you enjoy tales of the old west then you'll find both versions to be a real treat.

From Louis L'Amour:
The open West was a land where wanderers could find themselves a home--a home to fight for, to be changed by, sometimes to die for. Jed Ashbury was one such journeyman, taking on the identity of a dead man. Allen Ring was another: he'd won his plot of land in a card game only to find he had to win again with a gun. From a has-been boxer to a ranch hand taking on his bosses' troubles, the characters in these classic Louis L'Amour short stories are all "riding for the brand"-staying loyal to what matters, staking the West with their courage and their blood.

http://www.louislamour.com/audio/riding_cassette.htm

Riding For the Brand featuring The Highwaymen.
http://radiodramaspotlight.blogspot.com/2011/07/27-riding-for-brand-louis-lamour.html

#110 Merrano of the Dry Country (Louis L'Amour)

Merrano of the Dry Country is a classic gritty western that pits a young Mexican rancher named Miguel Merrano against Mirror Valley, New Mexico's three most powerful ranchers: Tom Drake, Joe Stangel and Jim Hill. Drought has come to the valley and the once magnificent ranches of these three men have wilted under the harsh heat and blowing winds. The water has dried up. Their cattle are gaunt, dying of thirst. And now their fortunes have dwindled away to nothing along with their prospects for the future. Pride, desperation, and prejudice create strong emotions leading to accusations of rustling followed by a heated confrontation between the three leading citizens of the area and Merrano. As tensions heighten Tom Drake's daughter Candy and local store owner Clouse Mayer hope to find a way to restore reason with these men before things get so far out of hand they can't be repaired.

This is one of L'Amour's best. A superb western tale that evokes strong emotions.

From Louis L'Amour:

When Miguel Merrano first came to Mirror Valley, the land was green and lush . . . and off limits to Mexicans. Ranchers such as Tom Drake and Joe Stangle tried to drive Merrano out, to fence him out; and when he warned them that greed and overgrazing would ruin their land, they refused to listen.

Now Merrano's predictions have come true. Mirror Valley is so dry it's about to blow away. The cattle are hollow-ribbed and dying. And the ranchers are broke . . . flat broke. Only Merrano's ranch is still thriving. As the ranchers watch him pay for goods in gold and sell his cattle at a mighty profit, their hatred grows and festers . . . until they draw their guns in a desperate act that will pit daughter against father, friend against friend - an act that could tear the valley apart... forever.

http://www.louislamour.com/audio/merrano.htm

#105 Bill Carey Rides West - Louis L'Amour

Great acting, sound effects and music make this highly entertaining story come to life. Louis L'Amour is a master of transporting the reader, in this case the listener, back to the days of the old west. Bill Carey Rides West once again shows why Louis L'Amour is the best selling western novelist of all-time.

A note about Louis L'Amour - Unlike other writers who sometimes fictionalize locations, customs and other details of the western era L'Amour was a tireless researcher. He would search out old newspapers, diaries and maps to learn not only about the people of the western era but also the topography and geography of the area. He talked to those who knew the land and many times knew figures of historical significance to those areas. L'Amour eagerly learned about landmarks, waterholes and other points of interest found in the regions he was writing about. He learned how the Indians and settlers identified these landmarks. In order to further accurately convey the lay of the land he would traverse the landscape sometimes even taking an aerial view by plane. His tireless pursuit of details certainly shines through in his storytelling.

Bill Carey robbed the bank in Churchfield making off with two bags of gold. But not before getting himself shot up. With the law hot on his trail Bill stumbles half dead onto a ranch run by Jess Conway and his daughter Jane. Jane patches up him up but he quickly learns that this is no safe haven. The ruthless outlaw Tabat Ryerson and his gang have the Conway's mercilessly doing their bidding. As Bill starts to mend he must decide what to do, get out of the territory or stay and help the sweet young woman and her father.

From Louis L'Amour:
Life on an Ohio farm couldn't hold young Bill Carey.  He wanted the adventure he knew waited in the territories to the west.  He'd drifted into the outlaw life, and now he found himself shot up, a lawman on his trail, holed up on a small farm near the lair of Tabat Ryerson.  Ryerson, the man who'd introduced him to cattle rustling and bank robbery, a cold-blooded killer.  The man who'd turned the sweet young woman who'd saved Carey's life into an unwilling accomplice.  On a remote little farm, Carey's caught between both sides of the law, and he finds a reason for staying alive in a rancher's pretty daughter.

http://www.louislamour.com/audio/BillCarey.htm

#95 Get Out Of Town - Louis L'Amour

Growing up to the point of being viewed as a man wasn't always an easy thing in the west. Neither was re-establishing yourself after having been convicted of a crime. In this story Tom Fairchild, a teenager yearning to be looked upon as a man, hires a just released from prison saddle bum named Riley. Everyone in the town except the boy's mother objects. Riley's served his time but the town's people seem to figure once a man's been in prison that makes him a criminal for life. Together Mrs. Fairchild, Tom and Riley face tough choices and challenging situations that will alter all their lives. Louis L'Amour brings you yet another wonder tale of the old west in Get Out Of Town. 

From Louis L'Amour:
Ever since his father died, fourteen-year-old Tom Fairchild has helped his mother keep the ranch going. Soon it would be time to gather the cattle to market, and Tom was sent to ride into town to hire a hand. When he chose a stranger named Riley, the townspeople, the former hands, and the local law didn't approve. Worse yet, the sheriff said Riley was a former convict. But Tom didn't care. It was the first real decision Tom ever made on his own. Now he must face a threat closer to home, a danger he never expected. Tom Fairchild isn't about to back down—but he's in more trouble than he can handle by himself.

http://www.louislamour.com/audio/GetOutOfTown.htm

#79 The Outcasts of Poker Flat - HTE

California (1850). Poker Flat is a rough and tumble town out of control and the citizens want it cleaned up. In doing so John Oakhurst (a professional gambler) is run out of town along with "The Duchess" (a saloon girl), "Mother Shipton" (a brothel owner), and Uncle Billy, (the town drunkard and suspected robber). Half  way to their destination the party meets up with pair of young lover's (Piney Woods, a fifteen year old girl and Tom Simson, a young man) who have run away to get married. What happens from there is a tragic tale of western proportions. Poker Flat is very different from a Louis L'Amour western as it leaves out the western romanticism and retains the gritty, realistic feel of the old west. Forest Tucker (F-Troop, Chisum) stars in this full-cast western. Produced and directed by Yuri Rasovsky.

From HTE:
Although both Harte's popularity and critical admiration for his work have declined since his death, "The Outcasts of Poker Flat" (1869) remains an important piece of American literature and one of the best tales of the rough-and-tumble days of the California Gold Rush In his use of the Western setting and local color, Harte proved to be a model for other authors, including Mark Twain, whose career he helped launch. Indeed, the familiarity of many of Harte's characterizations — the quick-witted gambler or the prostitute with a heart of gold — attest to the durability of his impact on popular culture.

http://www.irasov.com/outcasts.htm

#59 West of the Tularosas - Louis L'Amour

It's fast paced western action as only Louis L'Amour can write it. This is the second of two Ward McQueen stories available in the audio drama series - McQueen of the Tumbling K being the first.

Pelona was a strange town, and Ward McQueen was a stranger to it. The stalward foreman of the Tumbling K had come to the high country to take legal possession of the Firebox range. But the sight that greeted him when he arrived was an ugly one: the battle-stained and bullet-ridden body of its former owner. It was clear that young Jimmy McCracken had gone out fighting, for his killers left behind a trail of blood. Now McQueen has followed that trail - straight into Pelona, a town so full of double-dealings and trickery that the truths can only be uncovered from behind the barrel of a gun . . .

http://www.louislamour.com/audio/westofthetularosas.htm

#46 Four Card Draw - Louis L'Amour

What do you get from a high stakes poker game when you put your trust in a Four Card Draw? Trouble... and lots of it. Louis L'Amour weaves a great tale of tension and distrust on the western frontier. This time in the Arizona Territory. A fun story any fan of the western genre is sure to listen to over and over again.

From Louis L'Amour:
Allen Ring won the Red Rock Ranch in a poker game. But a man was shot in the back there a couple of years back. The murder is still unsolved, but someone seems convinced that Allen Ring has the missing answer. Ross Bilton was one of the men who found the body, and now he's the town marshall. Ring finds himself in the middle of a mysterious conflict—and maybe headed for a showdown with the marshall.

http://www.louislamour.com/audio/fourcarddraw.htm

#39 There's Always A Trail - Louis L'Amour

Another great tale from the king of the western genre. A fun adventure the whole family is sure to love. Gather around the radio and get set for western adventure at its best.

From Louis L'Amour:
Cass Bailey went over the ground with a fine toothed comb and came up without a clue. When the stranger, Handy, offered to track down his stolen money for a stake in the CB range. Ann was livid. Certain that Handy couldn't find the money unless he'd had a hand in stealing it, she set out to follow him every step of the way.
Once better known as the infamous outlaw Sonora Hack, the handsome young man who now called himself Handy knew there was always a trail. This one led to Maria, a dark-eyed temptress who might be persuaded to talk about her thieving lovers for a bigger piece of the take. Handy had just hit pay-dirt when Miss Bailley burst in to damn him for a liar and a thief, grab the loot and send all his plans to blazes. One minute, he'd found Bailey's money; the next, he faced a shoot-out with the pack of thieving villains who held both Ann and his future hostage - and a challenge to prove he wasn't a thief to the woman he loved.

http://www.louislamour.com/audio/theresalways.htm

#22 One For The Mojave Kid - Louis L'Amour

One For The Mojave Kid is one of Louis L'Amour best western tales. Produced by by his son Beau L'Amour, Charles Potter and David Rapkin this tale comes to sonic life right before your every ears.

From Louis L'Amour:
Few men were as deadly, or troublesome, with a gun as the Mohave Kid. Ab Kale, marshal of Hinkley, had warned the Kid to stay away from his town. Even as he trained his own adopted son, Riley, to handle a gun, he worried for both of them. He knew the Kid was the bloodthirsty sort who would one day force a showdown. But he couldn't know when...or prepare Riley for the test of his young life.

http://www.louislamour.com/audio/oneforthemojave.htm