Boots of Destiny on AllMovie

The first entry in a proposed series of six Westerns starring Ken Maynard and produced for Grand National by M.H. Hoffman, Boots of Destiny featured a script written for Hoffman's previous star, Hoot Gibson. Maynard, whose personality was far removed from the lackadaisical Gibson, played Ken Crawford, a cowboy getting himself involved in a range feud between the Mexican Vascos and the Yankee Wilsons. Hired by Alice Wilson (Claudia Dell), Ken and sidekick Acey Ducey (Vince Barnett) discover that the Wilson foreman, Harmon (Edward Cassidy), is the brains behind a series of cattle rustlings. Harmon attempts to get rid of Ken by framing him in a killing, but the cowboy escapes and saves Alice from both the raiding Vascos and Harmon. A rather downbeat Western featuring a tired-looking Claudia Dell, Boots of Destiny came to life only when Maynard and his horse, Tarzan, performed part of their circus act. Maynard broke his foot prior to filming and was forced to wear a special boot enlarged to accommodate his plaster cast. This less than pleasant situation made the often difficult star even more so and after Trailin' Trouble (1937), Hoffman gave up and sold Maynard's contract to the Alexander brothers, Max and Arthur.