That Gang of Mine

In That Gang Of Mine, the East Side Kids get themselves involved in the horse racing game when they offer shelter to Clarence Muse and the thoroughbred horse he won in a poker game. Muse has been around the race tracks for a long time and he's convinced he's got a winner on his hands. As it turns out Leo Gorcey has ambitions to be a jockey and the horse and Gorcey's ambition form the basis for the plot of this film.

The horse may be talented and Milton Kibbee whose son Eugene Francis hangs out with the East Side Kids agrees. They pony up the entry and stabling fees and then later takeover the training of the horse itself with their stable string and their professional trainer. Clarence Muse however is not cut out of the picture at all.

The problem is Gorcey who just hasn't got the experience and maybe not the raw talent needed to be a jockey. But he doesn't want to hear that from anyone. Both Gorcey and Muse deliver some really great performances in That Gang Of Mine, making it maybe the best of the East Side Kids features.

Also in the cast is Canadian jockey Nick Wall playing a rather arrogant top jockey who came from the East Side and forgets his roots or would like to. When Gorcey finally wakes up and smells the coffee he gives Wall an attitude adjustment and Wall rides him in the big race at the finale.

Definitely the best or one of the best of the East Side Kids features.

Streetwise Muggs Maloney (Leo Gorcey) has dreams of becoming a world class jockey and finally gets his chance after befriending a kindly old poor black man named Ben (Clarence Muse) who just happens to possess and take care of a championship thoroughbred race horse.

This movie proves far more dramatic than most East Side Kids films with a fine performance from Clarence Muse as wise old Ben, who acts as a sort of adviser/mentor for Muggs and shows considerable care for him, something which is not lost on Leo Gorcey's Muggs either. The type of friendship displayed here was arguably ahead of its time in many respects. Leo Gorcey too does surprisingly well in this more dramatic role displaying the inner struggle going on in Muggs when he has to try and come to grips with his fear of racing and also his fear of letting everyone down.

While no doubt some may be a bit disappointed the humor more or less takes a back seat to the drama in this one, it actually proves a far more effective drama, and director Joseph H. Lewis does manage to keep an exciting focus on the horse racing too, than I thought was possible from many involved.

That Gang of Mine was the second Monogram East Side Kids movie and was the first to feature Leo Gorcey as Muggs, the archetypal character he would play uninterrupted for the next seventeen years. Thanks to his small stature, he gets roped into jockeying in this episode, and while the narrative is no more complex or interesting than in any of the other series entries, the film has points of interest. First and foremost is the direction of Joseph H. Lewis, the 'B' specialist who is remembered today for Gun Crazy and The Big Combo. Lewis does his best to create interesting moments in the film, notably during an opening sequence atop a swaying gangplank. Also of considerable interest is the third billed presence of Clarence Muse as Ben, the African-American trainer of the horse Muggs' is going to ride. Whilst his role isn't entirely free of the racial stereotyping of the period, Muse is such a fine actor that he inevitably rises above it, offering perhaps the finest acting performance of ANY of the post-Warners East Side Kids/Bowery Boys productions. It's also worth noting that Sam--the analogous character in the recent Hollywood production Seabiscuit--has virtually no dialogue and simply follows orders. Things really haven't changed as much as we'd like to think they have.

This is a solid East Side Kids feature that combines their familiar style with an equally familiar story setup about a young man's dream, producing something slightly different from either. It successfully avoids being predictable, while offering Leo Gorcey, Bobby Jordan, and the rest plenty of chances to display their boisterous style.

The story has Gorcey, as Muggs, dreaming of becoming a famous jockey. This seemingly unsuitable choice of profession sets up an interesting story that even has a few thoughtful moments. Clarence Muse does quite a good job as Muggs's kindly, wise mentor (and as a side-note, it's one of the better roles for an African-American to be found in the B-movies of the era). While the other adult characters are mostly one-dimensional, they each serve a purpose in the way that things turn out.

Along the way there are a number of chances for Gorcey, Jordan, and the rest to engage in some amusing silliness, yet director Joseph H. Lewis maintains a decent balance between that and more substantial material. As a result, it's not bad at all, and is worth seeing, at least for those who like the East Side Kids and their style.

Muggs wants to follow in the footsteps of a kid who left the street years earlier to become a jockey. Muggs' idol turns out to be a stuck up kid who wants nothing more than to forget the old days now that he is a successful jockey. undeterred Muggs continues on his quest and eventually has the chance to ride a champion horse.

Very good East Side Kids movie that nicely balances the serious and the silly. Muggs attempt at bettering himself and the gang is nicely handled, and the craziness of the gang prevents things from getting too dark.

Definitely worth seeing for both fans and non-fans of the series.