Catching the attention of Republic Pictures executive Lou Grey, he was signed to a contract and given his own series of B-westerns beginning in 1944, changing his name to "Sunset Carson".

In 1944 he starred in Bordertown Trail, Code of the Prairie, and Firebrands of Arizona opposite Smiley Burnette.

In 1945 (the peak of his career), his first film was Sheriff of Cimarron, followed by Santa Fe Saddlemates, Bells of Rosarita, Oregon Trail, Bandits of the Badlands, Rough Riders of Cheyenne, and The Cherokee Flash.

In 1946, Carson began the year strongly, starring in Days of Buffalo Bill and Alias Billy the Kid.

Years later, he played the lead in a B-movie called The Marshal of Windy Hollow (1972), a film that co-starred a host of old time actors, including Ken Maynard, Tex Ritter, and Bill Cody, Jr.

In the early 1980s, Carson hosted ″Six-Gun Heroes″,[2] a South Carolina Educational TV (SCETV) show produced by Jim Welch presenting classic B Westerns.