| Treasure of Ruby Hills | |
| Director: | Frank McDonald |
| Producer: | William F. Broidy |
| Starring: | Zachary Scott Carole Mathews Barton MacLane Dick Foran Lola Albright |
| Music: | Edward J. Kay |
| Cinematography: | John J. Martin |
| Editing: | Ace Herman |
| Distributor: | Allied Artists |
| Studio: | William F. Broidy Productions |
| Runtime: | 71 minutes |
| Country: | United States |
| Language: | English |
Treasure of Ruby Hills is a 1955 American black-and-white Western film[1] directed by Frank McDonald and starring Zachary Scott, Carole Mathews, Barton MacLane, Dick Foran, and Lola Albright.[2] [3] [4] [5] The film is based on the story "The Rider of the Ruby Hills" by Louis L'Amour.[6] He wrote the story under the pen-name Jim Mayo; the story was later expanded as the novel Where the Long Grass Blows in 1976.
The film is set in 1877 in Arlington. In the government-owned Ruby Hills Valley all the small landowners and ranchers are dispossessed of their property by two wealthy breeders, Chalk Reynolds and Walt Payne, who continue to wage war for total control of the area. Hills. Their henchmen do not hesitate to kill others to establish the supremacy of their leaders. Their war is turned upside down by the arrival of Ross Hayne, the son of a famous outlaw, who legally acquired part of the area with the only source of water capable of supplying the valley. When Hayne's partner is shot by Reynolds' henchman, Hayne goes to Ruby Hills for revenge. He discovers that a third man, Alan Doran, intends to take control of the place after the death of the two clans who are supposed to destroy each other. Hayne becomes involved in a deadly fight for land and water.[7]