The Ballad of Billie Blue

This movie is a true oddity - an early 70's Christian film that warns of the dangers of show biz and evil. Obviously, the fact that a very young Erik Estrada has a small part in it and veteran stand-up comic Marty Allen plays a sleazy press agent gives it some cache in a cult type of way - the movie is a mess but a fun mess. Very funny in an unintentional way - the opening credits have a song that literally explains EVERYTHING that is going to happen in the movie via hokey lyrics AND a quick montage shows Billy Blue quickly becoming a successful Country singer. So by the time the opening credits are done - Billy Blue is singing at a big Hollywood awards show (we know because there is stock footage of an audience at a Hollywood Awards show) but Billy himself is just standing in front of an ugly brown velvet curtain as he sings his big hit (which is supposed to be a country/western song but sounds like Ray Coniff or Perry Como). The film has tons of badly done scenes of show business partying and sinning and the performance by the actress who plays Billy's ungrateful wife, Mae - well, it has to be seen to be believed - she chews up the scenery and then the grass and then the trees, etc. Wow - is she awful. So awful you want to rewind and listen to her line readings again! For fans of bad cheesy movies, Billy Blue is lots of fun. He, of course, learns the evil of his ways, cleans up his life and embraces the Lord Jesus Christ. Good for him. Regardless of the message, the movie is filled with bad acting and creaky dialogue.

The filming of THE BALLAD OF BILLY BLUE was a sincere effort to proclaim the atonement offered by Jesus Christ. The story-line successfully achieves its goal.

Eric Estrada starred in THE CROSS AND SWITCHBLADE and did a fantastic job. Because of that he was sought out to be in the Ballad of Billy Blue as a trial run to also star in the life story of Nicky Cruz, which the producers had the contract to produce.

Before the BBB was released, word got out that THE CROSS AND SWITCHBLADE was in financial trouble, which had the ultimate effect of drying up funding the the Nicky Cruz film--never produced.

Meanwhile Eric Estrada went on to make it big on his own, and has earned the respect of everyone involved in the efforts to make two films total. The "preacher" was played by the Executive Producer of the film and author of this review. The movie is in the hands of Dr. Ken Curtis in Valley Forge, PA and he is the distributor of it today. (2008).

Signed: Dr. Robert J Plekker, Executive Producer of THE BALLAD OF BILLY BLUE.