Undressed Under Duress, Season Two Part 7  

                  Pintsize Divide and Conquer 

In the 1976 movie, Across the Great Divide, the pint-sized this time turn the tables, getting the drop (literally) on a con man at gun point. Two kids, Holly and Jason Smith, played by Heather Rattray and Mark Edward Hall, are forced to set out on their own after their grandpa dies unexpectedly. The girl and boy are determined to get themselves across the Rocky Mountains by following the Oregon Trail. Their own inherited, four hundred acre ranch awaits them, if they can possibly make it. The Pacific International Enterprises film was written and directed by Stewart Raffill and filmed in Utah and Canada.

Just as the kids are starting out on their trek, they wake up and come across Zachariah Coop (Robert Logan), a smooth talking dandy on the run away from a gang of disgruntled gamblers whom he had cheated at cards. What?!  Coop, the youngsters discover, is attempting to steal their only horse. He must to be stopped!

The young girl pulls her rifle on him, ordering him to stop in his tracks. The surprised, would-be horse thief can't believe he has been caught with his pants down, so to speak. Actually, his pants are soon to be down, around his ankles!

To safely retrieve their horse, the fast thinking girl orders Coop to step away from the horse and to drop his pants. Her agitated little brother tells her to "shoot him in the leg." 

Coop protests. Her order is preposterous. He's not dropping his pants for anyone, especially a girl. With a shot from her rifle, barely missing him, he quickly changes his mind. This girl means business so he had better do as she instructed. And fast! So, off come his vest, then his suspenders, next his belt...

...and finally, down come his pants and up go his hands, high above his head.  

Coop looks ridiculous standing there to all the world 

in what is obvious his union suit underwear.

Suddenly, Holly takes another shot over his head as she orders him "down on the ground." The kids then retrieve their nearly stolen horse. The girl keeps her gun trained on the prostrate Coop. Off the kids ride while the bewildered Coop looks after them. How could he have been overtaken by a couple of snot-nose kids?! 

As Holly and Jason disappear over the hill, riding double on their horse, Coop carefully and guardedly pulls himself up from the ground. He wants no more encounter with those brats, at least not with his pants still down.

Just you kids wait. No one gets the best of Zachariah Coop!

Since Coop is generally headed in the same direction as Jason and Holly, their paths meet up again and again. Eventually, the trio hooks up hoping to reach Oregon together. Trust building, their adventures include fighting off a pack of wolves, facing down a mountain lion, almost being run down by a stampeding heard of bison, and joining an Indian encampment.

At one point, Jason nearly drowns as he attempts to ride his horse across a fast moving river. Hearing Holly scream for help, Coop wakes sleep and eventually realizes the little boy is having a hard time staying on his horse. He needs help!

Coop makes his way to the river and seeing Jason 

is in real trouble, quickly dives in to the cold water 

and frantically swims towards the boy.

After a time, Coop pulls Jason back across the river and on to land. A boy saved, a tragedy averted and trust continues to build. Safely back at camp, the man and boy down to their long underwear, wrap themselves in blankets while their wet clothes dry by the camp fire. 

While Holly tends to her little brother, Coop pulls his blanket up around his shoulders, somewhat modestly, covering his union suit. In boots, the boy-saving hero gathers fire word, preparing for another cold and dark night in the mountain wilderness.

So, will the threesome meet their goal, safely? Check out this family film to find out presently streaming across several platforms.

This completes my seven part Undressed Under Duress – Pint-size. Again, I would like to thank young Josh of Vermont for suggesting another season of Undressed movies for Union Suit Fans like him. As film critics, Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel, use to say, “See you at the movies.” I'll be watching, probably in my union suit...Chris