A four-minute-long scene near the end of this film is an exact copy - line-for-line and shot-for-shot - of a scene in Tim Holt's Come on Danger (1942). It begins with the hero and two sidekicks listening outside a window as the villain discusses murdering the heroine, followed by a fight in which the villain's cook comes out of the kitchen and disrupts the fight by cutting the rope that holds up a suspended wagon-wheel chandelier. In "Come on Danger" the hero is Holt and his sidekicks are Ray Whitley and Lee 'Lasses' White. In this film the hero is George O'Brien, and his sidekicks are Whitley (again) and none other than Holt. In both versions, Holt pretends to be injured and staggers past two guards, then he falls over while his two companions jump the distracted guards.
Both George O'Brien and Tim Holt were decorated veterans of World War II who served in the Pacific. O'Brien achieved the rank of Commander in the U.S. Navy, and Holt served as a bombardier aboard a B-29.
Even though Tim Holt co-stars in this movie, George O'Brien is the star and the hero. O'Brien was a very popular western hero during the 1930s and 1940s, and he eventually received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Ironically, Holt was never given this same honor, in spite of the 30+ westerns he made, including his role in The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948).
From "Daily Variety": "Rita Hayworth playing opposite [George O'Brien] turns in one of the finest femme sagebrush performances seen in a long while. Ideally cast, she displays both acting and riding skill."
Hollywood cowboy heroes are famous for having loyal steeds with colorful names. The Lone Ranger had Silver, and Tonto had Scout. Roy Rogers had Trigger. In Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok (1951), the star rode Buckshot. Hopalong Cassidy (1952) rode a white stallion named Topper. Gene Autry's loyal horse was Champion, and Tim Holt often rode a golden palomino named Lightning. However, George O'Brien's four-legged friend didn't follow this western tradition; his horse was named Mike.