KING OF THE COWBOYS

Roy Rogers behind bars

KING OF THE COWBOYS (1943). Director: Joseph Kane.

Rodeo star Roy Rogers, playing himself, is importuned to quit the show so he can go undercover to find some WW2 saboteurs. His sidekick, Frog Milhouse (Smiley Burnette),  goes along with him and they hook up with another show of which Judy Mason (Peggy Moran of Horror Island) and her pal Ruby (Dorothea Kent of Young Fugitives) are a part. The gals work with Maurice  (Gerald Mohr) -- the "Mental Marvel" -- who does a mind-reading act via which he communicates with his fellow spies. James Bush plays Dave Mason, the show manager, who may not be on the side of the angels. Lloyd Corrigan plays Karley, the governor's private secretary, who is definitely not on the side of the angels.

Kent, Moran and Mohr

King of the Cowboys is often mistaken as Roger's first starring role, but he starred in a great many films-- mostly for Republic Studios  --  before he made this one. The plot in this "modern" nominal western is negligible, but Rogers has a nice voice and the film's highlights are the musical numbers: "I'm an Old Cowhand;" "Ride, Ranger, Ride;" and especially "Prairie Moon." An odd moment occurs when the governor (Russell Hicks) tells Roy how his last agent was killed and that his final words were "following May." Rogers, who is not too swift, assumes that May was some hot tamale, says "sounds like nice work," and shows absolutely no concern for the agent who was murdered! Otherwise, Rogers is pleasant, handsome and bland, and Burnette is only mildly amusing. The two gals don't get much to do, but Mohr and Corrigan are as professional as ever. Irving Bacon, Ethel's dad on I Love Lucy, has a small role as well. In addition to other Roy Rogers features, as well as co-directing a couple of serials, Joseph Kane also helmed Jubilee Trail for Republic.

Verdict: Odd mixture of cowboys and spies with some good songs. **1/2.