Robin Hood of Texas

Gene Autry and the Cass County Boys are broke, but they've got a gig to play in front of a saddle store. It turns out that they've been hired by bank robbers, why want a distraction while they hit the bank across the street. They get away with the money, and the cowpokes are thrown ino the pokey as part of the gang. While there, one of their number gets a telegram that he and his sister, Lynne Roberts, have inherited a ranch. The cops let them go, figuring they'll meet up with the rest of the gang. Meanwhile, Gene and company have converted the worthless ranch into a dude rest ranch for tired city slickers. James Cardwell steals the money from the other bank robbers and decides to hide out on the ranch. Eventually the others make their way there.

Autry's last movie for Republic is directed by the competent Lesley Selander, and there are the usual good songs like "The Merry-Go-Round Roundup" and "Going Back To Texas" and a couple of nice stunt sequences. The story makes sense, although it sags a little in places, and the title makes no sense at all. With Sterling Holloway and Adele Mara.

Robin Hood of Texas was one of five movies Gene Autry made for Republic, while waiting for the courts to decide if his contract was still valid after serving in the Army Air Corps. Autry maintained that the time limit had expired while he was in the service and Republic claimed that they still had the right to his services. Autry had returned to Republic to find that Roy Rogers was known the Western king of the box office. He wanted to produce his own films over at Columbia, but needed a release from Republic. Robin Hood of Texas was heavy on music and comedy, using the talents of the Cass County Boys, Autry's musical back-up on his radio show. Republic used the term "Robin Hood" in several of their movies to create the image of the hero who often had to flee from the law to capture the real thieves. In this particular picture, Autry and his friends are accused of assisting bank robbers make their getaway.

Things start off with a bang when Gene Autry and the Cass County Boys play a show in the middle of town unwittingly hired to front for a bank hold-up. Things get even more lively when one of the boys is willed a ranch and they arrive to find the gorgeous and talented Lynne Roberts playing the piano. Detective Lacey (Ray Walker) arrives as a guest undercover and Sterling Holloway comes on strong with his comic shenanigans as a hypochondriac futilely trying to get some peace and quiet. James Caldwell, who left us too soon is next to arrive as the Duke with the lute. The kingpin Jim Prescott (Archie Twitchell) is hot on Duke's trail. He's accompanied by his undercover nurse, the lady who taught John Wayne to Jitterbug, Adele Mara. Good to see the most versatile actor in the business Al Bridge, Fred Ziffel himself Hank Patterson and everyone's favorite grandmother Dorothy Vaughan.

It's interesting that I watched another Gene Autry film, "Saddle Pals" before I watched "Robin Hood of Texas" because many of the cast members are the same....the Cass County Boys, Lynne Roberts as well as Sterling Holloway. Considering that both films were made by Republic in 1947, this isn't totally surprising. What is surprising is that Holloway plays a hypochondriac in both!

When the story begins, Gene and his friends (the Cass County Boys) are broke and need money fast. A man offers them $40 to sing outside his store and they quickly take this job. But the man turns out to be a crook and he wanted the band to sing to distract folks from a robbery! Not surprisingly, the law thinks Gene and his pals were in on it...but without a lot of evidence they decide to let them out of jail...hoping that they'll soon meet up with the robbers. Oddly, and for no logical reason at all, one of the robbers DOES show up at the dude ranch Gene and his friends operate...and soon more follow.

Overall, this is an enjoyable change of pace. Sure, the fact that the gang shows up at the dude ranch makes little sense...but if you ignore that, you'll likely enjoy this murder mystery western.

There's a slam-bang finale with-- surprise, surprise-- some good rear-projection. Usually, a matinée production's got the rear-projection going one speed while the horse or buckboard goes another. Not here. Anyhow, Gene and crew start up a dude ranch, even while the cops think they've robbed a bank. Meanwhile, the real baddies show up, except they're even meaner to each other than to Gene. It's a more complex screenplay than usual, playing more like a modern crime drama than an oater. Frankly, too much so for my liking, plus too much time is spent indoors rather than out. Nonetheless, the bad guys really are a convincing lot, while there're two eye-candy girls instead of just one. Holloway does comic relief, but in a less annoying way than usual. On the whole, it's a rather odd Autry oater, his last for Republic. His new studio, Columbia, would provide a big production boost. Good!

A "5" on the matinée scale.