Gene Autry and sidekick Frog Millhouse depart Madison Square Garden and NYC heading west for home in their car and a horse trailer carrying Gene's horse, Champion. They discover that Ronnie Willoughby, a young boy just off the boat from school in England, has hitched a ride, thinking that Gene and Frog were sent by his father to meet him. Ronnie thinks his father is a big rancher in the west and doesn't know that his father, Alfred Willoughby, is serving time in San Quentin prison because of a frame-up by the officials of a packing company. To keep the father from testifying against them, the packing company officials, Carter, Jenkins and Martin, have arranged for the boy to be kidnapped. Along the way a runaway bride, Joyce Halloway, and her young sister Patsy join the troupe.
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The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.
This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.
I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.
A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.
Good story, out of the ordinary for Gene and Frog, where they're driving home from New York City (a rodeo appearance there in Madison Square Garden), and by sheer chance wind up picking up two sisters who are fleeing the wedding the older doesn't want to go to (as the bride), and a young boy who thinks he's visiting his father's "Rancho San Quentin." Of course, his dad is actually in the prison of that name.The plot isn't "hard to understand" nor will it have you "scratching your head," as other reviewers who love to denigrate Gene Autry's movies have said. And watch a climactic scene where Gene is chasing a speeding train on Champion. Aboard, the bad guys are trying to kidnap the young boy. Autry makes his own transfer from Champ's back to the train, climbing up a ladder attached to the side of a freight car. And it's obvious that it's really Gene; not a case of "Autry CLAIMED to have made the transfer," as another negative reviewer once wrote.All in all, a darn good flick, with comedy, action, and plenty of good songs by Gene and others. I highly recommend it.
You can't go too wrong with a singing straight-arrow cowboy. Gene Autry and his sidekick Frog Milhouse(Smiley Burnett)are heading home from New York City via automobile with Gene's horse, Champion, in a horse trailer. Westward and onward Gene and Frog find a young man named Ronnie Willoughby(Clifford Severn Jr.)trying to hitch a ride. The boy joins the two thinking they were sent by his father to pick him up and take him to his father's ranch. Well there isn't such; because Mr. Willoughby is in San Quentin Prison after being framed by a big packing company. To keep the elder Willoughby from testifying against the company, it is thought a good idea to kidnap young Ronnie. Plenty of action and reasons to belt out a tune or two; cause now filling out the movie is a runaway bride played by Joyce Halloway with a precocious younger sister(Mary Lee). Other cast members: Joseph Crehan, Smith Ballew, Wade Boteler, William Ruhl and Duncan Renaldo. A few of the tunes in this 66 minute Republic Pictures feature: "The Singing Hills", "Wide Open Spaces", "A Song of Sunset", "Keep Rollin" and of course the "Gaucho Serenade".
What a fine Autry outing, just what the country needed trying to come out of the depression in 1940 right prior to WWII. Mary Lee, a very underrated singer from the era was only about 16 in this film and what a fine voice, as another user said a western Judy Garland. The young boy, played by Clifford Severn sort of reminded me of Freddie Bartholemew in his acting style. June Storey fine as usual in these B westerns; Duncan Renaldo later the Cisco Kid played Guacho Don Jose. Smiley Burnette, well what can we say?; the guy was fantastic. The on location shooting was wonderful, maybe Big Bear Lake area of California. The songs were fine in this film and was one of Autry's finest endeavours; not seen as often some others and deserves more airplay. The restored print aired on Encore Westerns is perfect.
As Gene and Frog cross the USA they meet up with 2 sets of stowaways, two sisters running away from a wedding ceremony and a boy being chased by criminals. As Gene sings several pleasant songs the movie moves at a rapid pace never dragging and includes a great railroad hijacking sequence. The new print from the Autry museum is perfect in every way and makes this movie indeed a serenade As b-westerns go this a 10.