1942. In December it was announced Frances Hyland was working on the script and that the film would be a vehicle for John Wayne. The film still took a number of months to move into production. Eleanor Griffin and Ethel Hill were hired to work on the script "which puts the feature in the big league class" according to the Los Angeles Times. They were "to give the story the epic flavor." The movie was retitled In Old Oklahoma and filming was to start 15 June. Martha Scott was signed for the female lead, which was seen as a coup for Republic because she was associated with prestigious films such as Our Town (1940). The film was allocated a bigger budget than usual for a Republic Pictures film. Shooting Filming took place near Bakersfield. Parts of the film were shot in Johnson Canyon, Paria, Utah, Cedar City, and Virgin, Utah. Release Republic Pictures released it on December 6, 1943. The film did extremely well at the box office and encouraged Republic to make more bigger budgeted films. The movie was reissued in 1947 as War of the Wildcats. Lawsuit Screenwriter Griffin's ex-husband, William Rankin, later launched a $115,000 lawsuit against Griffin, Hill, Burtis and Republic, alleging the script included elements in three original scripts of his that he submitted to Republic: Indian Territory, Gasoline War, and Fire in Heaven. He alleged that the writers were hired to combine his scripts into the story of In Old Oklahoma but that he received no compensation. See also John Wayne filmography Public domain film List of American films of 1943 List of films in the public domain in the United States References External links 1943 films 1943 Western (genre) films American black-and-white films American Western (genre) films 1940s English-language films Films directed by Albert S. Rogell Films scored by Walter Scharf Films set in 1906 Films set in Oklahoma Works about petroleum Republic Pictures films Films shot in Utah Films produced by Robert North 1940s American films