The Big Trail

La piste des géants – French titleThe Big Trail – English title

A 1930 U.S.A. production [French version] [Fox Film Corporation (Hollywood)]
Producers: William Fox
Directors: Pierre Couderc
Story: Hal G. Evarts (Harry Evarts)
Screenplay: Hal G. Evarts (Harry Evarts)
Cinematography: Sidney Wagner [black & white]
Music: James F. Hanley (James Frederick Hanley)
Running time: 105 minutes

French cast:
Pierre Calmine - Gaston Glass
Denise Vernon - Jeanne Helbling
Flack - Raoul Paoli
Lopez - Louis Mercier
padre - Emile Chautard
Pepin - George Davis
Blancart - André Ferrier
Wellmore - Jacques Jou-Jerville
Lucien - Frank O’Neill
Yvette - Margot Rousseroy
Mayer - Jacques Vanaire
with; Jules Raucourt

Die Große Fahrt– German title
La Große Treck – German title
The Big Trail – English title

A 1930 U.S.A. production [German version] [Deuische Fox-Film Corporation
(Hollywood)]
Producers: William Fox, William Goetz
Directors: Raoul Walsh, Lewis Seiler
Story: Hal G. Evarts (Harry Evarts)
Screenplay: Jack Peabody, Florence Postal
Dialogue: Maire Boyle
Cinematography: Lucien N. Androit, Arthur Edeson [black & white]
Music: Arthur Kay
Running time: 79 minutes

German cast:
Bill Coleman - Theo Shall
Ruth Winter - Marion Lessing
Fichte - Peter Erkelenz
Thorpe - Ulrich Haupt
Peter - Arnold Korff
Lopez - Paul Panzer (Paul Panzerbeiter)
Bull Flack - Anders Van Haden

Il grande sentiero – Italian title
The Big Trail – English title

A 1930 U.S.A. production [Italian version] [Fox Film Corporation (Hollywood)]
Producers: William Fox, William Goetz
Director: Louis Loeffler
Story: Hal G. Evarts (Harry Evarts)
Screenplay: Francisco Moré de la Torre, Paul Perez
Cinematography: Sidney Wagner [black & white]
Music: James F. Hanley
Running time:

Italian cast:
Bill Coleman - Franco Corsaro
Ruth Winter - Luisa Caselotti (Louise Caselotti)
with; Guido Trento, Franco Puglia, Agostino Borgato, Lucino Garuffi, Violet Galeotti

Horizontes Nuevos – Spanish title
La gran jornado – Argentinian title
The Big Trail – English title

A 1930 U.S.A. production [Spanish version] [Fox Film Corporation (Hollywood)]
Producers: William Fox, William Goetz
Directors: David Howard (David Davis III), Samuel Schneider, Raoul Walsh
Story: Hal G. Evarts (Harry Evarts)
Screenplay: Francisco Moré de la Torre, Paul Perez
Cinematography: Sidney Wagner [black & white]
Music: James F. Hanley
Running time:

Spanish cast:
Raul Coleman - Jorge Lewis (George Lewis)
Isabel Prados - Carmen Guerrero
Tomas - Roberto Guzmán
Martin - Martin Garralaga (Norman Garralaag)
Flack - Al Ernest (Allan Garcia)
Daniel - Tito H. Davison
Orena - Carlos Villarías (Carlos Llano)
Lopez - Charles Stevens
Carson - Julio Villarreal
Sacerdote - Lucio Villegas
with; Adriana Delano, Aurelio Manrique, Renee Torres


As in the case of several other American made westerns, European versions of the same film were shot at the same time and released in France, Italy, and Germany with those country’s actors in important roles. In the American “The Big Trail”, starring John Wayne, it is the story of a young man who helps lead a wagon train across the western plains while also looking for the killers of his friend. He suspects Red Flack and his henchman Lopez. While on the trek he falls in love with Ruth Cameron and tries to avoid death at the hands of Flack while looking for evidence to prove his guilt in his friend’s murder.