Reel Cowboys of the Santa Susanas -- James Ellison

James Ellison (1910-1993) was an American actor who appeared in nearly seventy films between the 1930s and 1960s.  During the mid 1930s he played the sidekick of William Boyd in Paramount's successful Hopalong Cassidy series.

In 1936, he won a starring role, as Buffalo Bill in Cecil B. DeMille's The Plainsman (which also starred Gary Cooper and Jean Arthur).  Most of his career was fairly lack-luster as he switched back and forth between low budget westerns and other supporting roles.

In 1950 he co-starred with Russell Hayden in a series of Western films produced by Lippert Pictures.  Between 1951 and 1952 he co-starred with an aging Johnny Mack Brown in a series of B-Westerns for Monogram.

James Ellison's Santa Susana locations filmography includes:

Plainsman, The (1936) starring Gary Cooper, Jean Arthur and James Ellison (Iverson Ranch) Paramount

Colorado Ranger (1950) starring Russell Hayden, James Ellison, Raymond Hatton - Lippert

Crooked River (1950) starring James Ellison, Russell Hayden and Raymond Hatton - Lippert

Fast on the Draw (1950)  starring James Ellison, Russell Hayden, Raymond Hatton - Lippert

Hostile Country (1950) starring James Ellison, Russell Hayden and Raymond Hatton (photo courtesy of Bruce Hickey)(Iverson Ranch)  Lippert

Marshal of Heldorado (1950) starring James Ellison, Russell Hayden and Raymond Hatton - Lippert

The Texan Meets Calamity Jane (1950) starring Evelyn Ankers, James Ellison (Iverson Ranch) Columbia

West of the Brazos (1950) starring James Ellison, Russell Hayden and Raymond Hatton, Fuzzy Knight - Lippert

Oklahoma Justice (1951) starring Johnny Mack Brown, James Ellison and Lane Bradford - Monogram

Texas Lawmen (1951) starring Johnny Mack Brown, James Ellison and I. Stanford Jolley - Monogram

Whistling Hills (1951) starring Johnny Mack Brown, James Ellison and Noel Neill - Monogram

Dead Man's Trail (1952) starring Johnny Mack Brown, James Ellison and Barbara Woodell - Monogram

Man from the Black Hills (1952) starring Johnny Mack Brown, James Ellison and Rand Brooks (Iverson Ranch) Monogram

Texas City (1952) starring Johnny Mack Brown, James Ellison and Lois Hall - Monogram

'Reel Cowboys of the Santa Susanas' is a continuing series about "six-gun heroes that performed on movie location ranches in Chatsworth, California.  For more information about Chatsworth filming locations see http://www.cowboyup.com/ to find information about my books: Rendezvous at Boulder Pass: Hollywood's Fantasyland - 2010 and Reel Cowboys of the Santa Susanas - 2008.