Harlem on the Prairie

Herb Jeffries stars in the first of four oaters. He faces off against Maceo Bruce Sheffield and his henchmen to rescue pretty Consuelo Harris. Musical accompaniment is by two quartets, including The Four Tones, a Mills-Brothers type of group. Comic relief is a two-act of F. E. Miller (who also gets a writing credit) and Mantan Moreland. Moreland sees a bit overawed by Miller, who had quite a resume on Broadway, including writing the book for "Shuffle Along"; with his partner, Aubrey Lyles, he had his Broadway debut in 1907.

The camerawork by William Hyer is good, and the dialogue is far more naturalistic than most race films. Except for the all-black cast, it's simply a good B western. With it, it's a bit of a landmark.