Frank Stillwell

"Anytime you got one of them down-home sheriffs, you always got a town full of vigilantes."

- Frank Stillwell.

Frank Stillwell is the main antagonist of Disney's 1975 live-action film The Apple Dumpling Gang. He is the leader of the Stillwell gang and Amos and Theodore's former boss.

He was portrayed by the late Slim Pickens, who also played Naman Tucker in Hawmps?.

Role in the Film
Frank is the leader of the Stillwell gang and the former boss of Theodore and Amos, when the latter accidentally shoots him in the leg. He hears about the gold nugget Bobby, Clovis and Celia Bradley find and plans to steal it. He impersonates a priest and goes to the bank it's in, but Bobby, Clovis, Celia, Theodore, and Amos get in the run. As Stillwell and his men haul the gold from the vault, Theodore and Amos run inside with guns and dynamite, but are quickly subdued. Displeased by the reunion with his former henchmen, Stillwell orders Mayor Sharpe to lead them to the stagecoach, but young Clovis kicks Stillwell’s bad leg and his men drop the gold crate on Amos’s feet. Presuming the approaching stagecoach is the law, a member of Stillwell’s gang sets off a gun battle with the townspeople, who return fire. Stillwell decides to escape without the gold and takes little Celia hostage instead. Donavan and Dusty give chase and as Donavan jumps aboard a hijacked fire wagon, Dusty grabs Celia. The fire wagon careens into a river with Stillwell and Donavan fighting aboard. After Donavan takes control and pulls Stillwell to the riverbank, Dusty jumps on Donavan and they kiss in the water. Sheriff McCoy and the townsmen arrive and see an explosion in the distance. Back in Quake City, the bank is destroyed by Theodore and Amos’s dynamite, but the onlookers are delighted to discover nuggets of gold scattered on Main Street. When Sheriff McCoy, Donavan, Dusty and Celia return to town, Wintle tells Donavan that he can have the kids. The door of the bank vault falls open and reveals Theodore and Amos inside, plugging their ears. The next day, Donavan is rewarded $5000 for the capture of Stillwell.