Desperado starring Alex McArthur as Duell McCall

Desperado was the first of several made-for-TV movies revolving around the exploits of itinerant cowboy Duell McCall (Alex McArthur). There were a total of five made for television movies that originally aired on network broadcast television, and since have infrequently made brief appearances on premium channels such as Encore Westerns and CMT. There has been no commercial DVD release of the series. The movies are not available in any retail stores in North America.

Screenwriter Elmore Leonard wrote the first Desperado movie. From his web site, The Elmore Leonard Website, he describes, "Desperado was designed as the pilot for a weekly series, centered around around the exploits of itinerant cowboy Duell McCall (Alex McArthur). Instead, it was the first of several feature-length TV movies, produced between 1987 and 1989. In Desperado, Duell McCall (Alex MacArthur) finds himself in the middle of a deadly feud in a small mining town. As the only honest man in the territory, he is naturally double-crossed. Framed for the murder of Sheriff Whaley (Robert Vaughn), McCall wanders the frontier to find the one man who can clear him. Desperado was alright TV but the movie didn’t have the Elmore Leonard western feel of his original script."

Desperado starring Alex McArthur as Duell McCall

Desperado (1987)
The Return of Desperado (1988)
Desperado: Avalanche at Devil's Ridge (1988)
Desperado: The Outlaw Wars (1989)
Desperado: Badlands Justice (1989)

Desperado

McCall finds himself in the middle of a deadly feud in a small mining town. As the only honest man in the territory (comparatively speaking), our hero is ripe for a double-cross. Framed for the murder of Sheriff Whaley (Robert Vaughn), McCall is forced to wander the wild frontier in search of the one man who can clear him.

The Return of Desperado

Alex McArthur is back as Duel McCall, a frontiersman on the lam from a trumped-up murder rap. Now he's in New Mexico running afoul of local land baron Robert Foxworth. McCall pauses long enough in his escape flight to come to the aid of black homesteader Billy Dee Williams, who is being victimized by the diabolical Foxworth.

Desperado: Avalanche at Devil's Ridge

McCall is about to be hanged. He is freed on one condition: That he head up a posse to rescue the kidnapped daughter of land baron Rod Steiger. Alice Adair plays the hostage (who isn't precisely what she appears to be), and Lise Cutter appears as McCall's romantic interest.

Desperado: The Outlaw Wars

In exchange for clearing Duell McCall's name, the cowboy's assistance is needed in locating the murderer of the sheriff's wife.

Desperado: Badlands Justice

Alex McArthur returns as cowboy Duell McCall, who wanders the wide frontier in search of the one man who will clear him of a murder charge. McCall finds himself in a corruption-ridden mining town. Since no one knows his true identity, he is able to establish a modicum of law and order, despite the concerted efforts of greedy land baron John Rhys-Davies. It is only a matter of time, however, before McCall will be forced to move on to other adventures.

Availability

As of 2013 these movies have not been released commercially in the U.S. in either VHS or DVD format. There was a limited VHS release in the U.K. The Desperado series has also been shown on the Encore Westerns premium movie channel, CMT, and possibly other pay channels. It is confirmed that sometime around 2007 the first movie in the five movie series was on Encore Westerns. Some viewers recorded the movies with their DVR.

There are some bootleg disc sets of the Desperado movies available online. These are mastered from ~~VHS tapes~~ SD recordings from cable or satellite and offered in DVD format. The quality is typically standard definition in 4:3 screen aspect. They have been observed for sale on eBay(.com), iOffer(.com), and Sell(.com). These bootleggers are burning DVDr discs, quickly, and hand writing the label. They are often poorly assembled, with part of another movie is on the tail end of the recording. Sometimes the bootleggers have mixed up the labels or have shipped blank discs in their haste. Purchase these at your own risk.

With that being said, there are collectors that are satisfied with their bootleg purchase. The bootleg five disc collection, if received without incident, has all of the movies and although not high definition, certainly good enough for viewing. Since the copyright holder will not offer an official DVD release of these movies, obtaining the bootlegs, or sitting around waiting for them to air again on premium television are a fan's only options at this time (as of 2013).

References

IMDB

The actor Alex McArthur who played Duell McCall on IMDB.

Other

This seller on Amazon.com is asking too much for one of the movies on VHS.

Desperado starring Alex McArthur as Duell McCall

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