The Three Mesquiteers is the umbrella title for a series of 51 western B-movies released between 1936 and 1943, including 8 films starring John Wayne. The name was a play on The Three Musketeers, and each film featured a trio of stars.

The series was based on a series of western novels by William Colt MacDonald, which began with Law of the .45's in 1933.

The series blended the traditional Western period with more modern elements, which was not unknown with other B-Western films and serials. Towards the end of the series, during World War II, the trio of cowboys were opposing Nazis.

Lullaby and his World War I buddies head west to farmstead. When the Canfield brothers try to stop them, they get help from Stony and Tucson as Livingstone and Corrigan start their long run as Mesquiteers while Saylor makes his lone appearance. Written by Maurice VanAuken

This is the first of the 51 films (1936-1943) Republic made as "The Three Mesquiteers" series and, as such, it did not, as shown im Movie Connections, "follow Powdersmoke Range or Law of the '45s",since the characters were never identified as "The Three Mesquiteers" in either of those films, and only two of the characters appeared in "Law of the 45's" and one of the character names was 50% changed in that one.Well,to be precise, it did follow those two films in terms of release dates but those two films have no connection (other than William Colt MacDonald) to the "Three Mesquiteers" series of film from Republic. This 1st "Three Mesquiteers" film opens with hundreds of World War I veterans and families, led by Lullaby Joslin (Syd Saylor), rushing into the rich grazing lands of San Juan Basin, New Mexico,to file on homesteads just opened by the government.The straggling army vets meet much opposition from the cattle owners, especially the Canfield brothers (J.P. McGowan and Alan Bridge),who want to keep their government leases for grazing purposes.Coming to the aid of Lullaby and the homesteaders are Stony Brooke (Bob Livingston) and Tucson Smith (Ray Corrigan), a couple of happy-go-lucky trouble shooters. When Bob Bryant (Gene Marvey), one of the homesteaders is killed, leaving alone his beautiful sister, Marian Bryant (Kay Hughes), who is getting courting attention from both Stony and Tucson, they organize the veterans as a fighting unit and go into action against the Canfields and win. At the end, Lullaby joins Stony and Tucson as they ride away into the mesquite brush as "The Three Mesquiteers" in the first film of the series.Syd Saylor was cast as "Lullaby" on a one-picture deal only, and was replaced by Republic term-contract player Max Terhune playing the role. Saylor was not replaced because, as some film historians have written, "the exhibitors and audience didn't like him." (Although there was always a lot about Syd Saylor performances not to like) The second film in the series was already in production before "the exhibitors and audience" saw this one.Republic remade this as another "Three Mesquiteers" film in 1940 as "Oklahoma Renegades." Written by Les Adams