GO WEST, YOUNG LADY

Glenn Ford

GO WEST, YOUNG LADY (1941). Director: Frank R. Strayer. Colorized.
 

The town of Headstone is regularly besieged by a masked villain known as "Killer" Pete and his gang. Then into town comes the official replacement for the murdered sheriff, Tex Miller (Glenn Ford of Gilda). Bar owner Jim Pendergast (Charlie Ruggles) is expecting his nephew, Bill, to take over as sheriff, but "Bill" turns out to be his niece, Belinda (Penny Singleton of Young Widow), who's dad always wanted a boy. Belinda and Tex are immediately drawn to one another, while Pete keeps robbing the saloon. Judge Harmon (Jed Prouty), Deputy Hank (Allen Jenkins), and businessman Tom Hannegan (Onslow Stevens of The Vanishing Shadow) are at their wit's end, but one of them is hiding a secret. Meanwhile dance hall gal Lola (Ann Miller) knows much more than she's telling. 

Penny Singleton and Ann Miller have at each other!

Go West, Young Lady is a delightful western musical comedy that is bolstered by fast-paced direction, a great spirit of fun, and terrific performances. Ford is appealingly boyish, and while Singleton could be accused of simply playing Blondie Out West, she is also very good. Miller is suitably nasty as Lola, and she and Singleton have a protracted "cat fight" (they are not fighting over Ford) that is one of the best examples of a femme fight scene I've ever seen in the movies. Ruggles, Stevens, and Jenkins are also terrific -- Jenkins has a funny song and dance number with Miller -- and Edith Meiser is also notable in a small bit as an angry townswoman (she appeared in the I Love Lucy episode when Ricky makes the mistake of putting Lucy on a schedule). 

Charlie Ruggles and Ford

Go West, Young Lady is punctuated by several songs -- the title tune and "Take Your Time" are the most memorable -- but all of the tunes are pleasant. Waffles the dog makes an impression, and we've got numbers by the Foursome, as well as Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys. The opening, with Ford and Singleton shooting attacking Indians, is a bit problematic, but the ending, in which the ladies of the town take matters into their own hands, is wonderful! Frank R. Strayer also directed several installments of the Jones Family movie series in which Jed Prouty played the father. 

Verdict: An utterly charming musical comedy with the added bonus of a major "cat fight!" ***.

VALLEY OF FIRE

Gene Autry

VALLEY OF FIRE (1951). Director: John English. Colorized.  

Although Tod Rawlings (Harry Lauter of The Crooked Web) and hard-boiled gal pal Bee Laverne (Christine Larson of Valley of Headhunters) try to fix the election, Gene Autry (Gene Autry of The Phantom Empire) manages to become mayor, appointing buddy Breezie (Pat Buttram of Twilight of Honor) as sheriff. Gene decides to send for a wagon train full of women who want husbands, and one of the gals is the gold-digging Laurie (Gail Davis). Rawlings does his best to shanghai the ladies to the new town where he's taken up residence, while Laurie falls for Steve Guilford (Russell Hayden), who actually shot the driver of a stagecoach and stole the gold on board. Gene and Breezie have their hands full dealing with Rawlings and also trying to prove that Guilford is both a crook and a murderer. 

Autrey with Larson and Lauter

Gene Autry once said of himself: "I'm not a good actor, a good rider or a particularly good singer, but they seem to like what I do, so I'll keep on doing it as long as they want." Autry was also not particularly attractive and was a bit paunchy as well. In spite of all that, he was hugely popular and is still considered by many to be the greatest cowboy star of them all. Valley of Fire has a couple of pleasant and forgettable song numbers, and is, like the star, completely amiable. The film is well-produced when it comes to cinematography and scoring and there is an enthusiastic supporting cast. Teddy Infuhr is amusing as young Virgil, a bratty kid who keeps bedeviling Breezie; he amassed 104 credits! 

Verdict: Minor western comedy-musical-drama is easy enough to take and to forget. **1/4. 

WALL STREET COWBOY

WALL STREET COWBOY (1939). Director: Joseph Kane.

Roy Rogers, playing himself in this "modern" western, never actually gets to Wall Street, so banish those images of the cowboy walking into the boardroom and busting ass. Instead Roy learns that there's gold on his property, and there are nefarious forces who want to acquire the land and cheat him out of it. Gabby Hayes -- as "Gabby," naturally -- is along for the ride as Rogers' pal, and we've got the perennial Pierre Watkin as the no-nonsense, blustering John Hammond, who always seems ready to be furious with Roy and his pals until his daughter, Peggy (Ann Baldwin), intercedes. Craig Reynolds [The Perils of Pauline] plays a lawyer-type helping the bad guys who gets socked by Roy, Adrian Morris [Fighting Marines] is another creep, and Louisiana Lou, a singer in a bar, is played by, well, Louisiana Lou. Roy [Son of Paleface] substitutes for a downed jockey at one point and rides in a steeple race.

Verdict: About standard Roy Rogers movie. **.

MCLINTOCK!

Stefanie Powers, Patrick Wayne, and John Wayne

MCLINTOCK! (1963). Director: Andrew V. McLaglen.

G. W. McLintock (John Wayne) is a wealthy cattle baron in a homestead awaiting statehood. His snooty estranged wife, Katherine (Maureen O'Hara), comes back into his life when their daughter, Becky (Stefanie Powers), comes home from college and Katherine is horrified to think that she may live with her hard-drinking father and his cronies. Katherine also isn't too crazy about the fact that G.W. has hired a pretty new live-in cook, Louise (Yvonne De Carlo), the mother of handsome new employee Dev (Patrick Wayne), who likes Becky but finds her a little spoiled like her mother. Meanwhile Becky dallies with nerdy Matt (Jerry Van Dyke) while Dev simmers. Will the situation with the battling McLintocks finally boil over or will true love win out in the end? McLintock! is way too long, but it has some funny sequences -- a mud slide and a drunken bit with a staircase -- although the gags are repeated too much and nothing is exactly on the level of the stateroom scene in A Night at the Opera. Still McLintock!  is basically amiable and entertaining, even if it has a very sixties sensibility and a subtext of sissies threatening to ruin the world [as opposed to big, tough John Wayne]. Wayne, already starting his trend toward ossification, is okay, Powers is quite good, O'Hara is very strong as the insufferable but uncompromising Katherine and gives one of her more memorable performances, De Carlo is fun, and Patrick Wayne proves no great actor but is acceptable. An interesting aspect of the picture -- when you consider that Wayne starred in several cliffhanger serials early in his career -- is that two of Wayne's enemies are played by other serial stars, Gordon Jones (The Green Hornet) and Robert Lowery (Batman and Robin). A sub-plot has to do with a contingent of Comanche Indians who are to be taken to a fort for what they see as charity when they only want the freedom to live and die as men. Although the movie seems to be pro-Indian, the social statements don't really fit comfortably into the piece as a whole. Mari Blanchard has a small role as a saloon  gal/hooker who comes afoul of Katherine.

Verdict: Not exactly a classic but one of Wayne's more palatable latter-day movies. **1/2.