Riders of the Purple Sage
by Zane Greyliterary work· published 1912
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Riders of the Purple Sage is a novel that tells the story of a woman by the name of Jane Withersteen and her battle to overcome persecution by members of her polygamous Mormon fundamentalist church. A leader of the church, Elder Tull, wants to marry her, but she has evaded him for years. Things get complicated when Bern Venters and Lassiter, a famous gunman and killer of Mormons help her look after her cattle and horses. She is blinded by her faith to see that her church men are the ones harming her. But when her adopted child disappears... she abandons her beliefs and discovers her true love. The plot deepens and it involves a horse race and a decision to whether to roll a large stone that forever closes off the only way in or out of her hiding place.
Adaptations (5)
Riders of the Purple Sage has been adapted into 5 films, from 1918 to 1996.
Riders of the Purple Sage1918 · film · 57 min · dir. Frank Lloyd · IMDb ↗Lassiter quits the Texas Rangers and spends his life in pursuit of a group of Mormons who kidnapped his married sister. In a town on the Utah border, he meets the Withersteens and falls in love with their daughter, Jane. He also befriends Venters, and helps him track down some bandits who have been rustling the Withersteens' cattle.
Riders of the Purple Sage1931 · film · 58 min · dir. Hamilton MacFadden · IMDb ↗IMDb6.3Lassiter's sister was killed and her young daughter taken and raised by outlaws. Years later Lassiter arrives at the Withersteen ranch looking for the now grown daughter. He immediately gets caught up in the ranch's struggle against rustlers. Trailing a rustled herd of horses leads him to the rustler's hideout and the missing daughter.
Riders of the Purple Sage1941 · film · 54 min · dir. James Tinling · IMDb ↗IMDb5.7Lassiter discovers the judge who cheated his neice of her inheritance leads a gang of bad guys posing as vigilantes. This 1941 Fox production stars a young George Kennedy as Lassiter.
Riders of the Purple Sage1996 · film · 98 min · dir. Charles Haid · IMDb ↗IMDb6.3Jim Lassister seeks the man responsible for his sister's death. His quest draws him into an insular community ruled by an uncompromising charlatan and his brutal riders.
