In Old Cheyenne

New York reporter Roy Rogers comes to Cheyenne to write a series of articles about a local band of outlaws and ends up being targeted by the gang. Nevertheless, Roy still finds time to romance a pretty senorita and escort Gabby Hayes' hayseed daughter to a dance.

Although Roy hasn't quite hit his stride yet and the script is a little typical, this one is pretty fast-paced, with plenty of action - definitely a pleasant enough way to spend an hour.

An exciting climax features plenty of gun-play and a flaming stagecoach dropped on a house - quite refreshing considering that in a few of the other early Roy Rogers vehicles hardly a gun is drawn.

Joan Woodbury's accent is a bit lame--why did they force her in this sort of role? reporter In an odd sort of role, Roy Rogers plays a reporter from New York who has traveled to Wyoming to write a story about the lawless land. However, although he's been told that the problem is a cantankerous old man named Arapaho Brown (Gabby Hayes), the real problem is the usual rich boss-man (Drummond) who plans on using his gang of hired thugs to force everyone out of the county. Along the way to help Roy in his investigations is J. Farrell MacDonald (a fine old character actor) and two really annoying women. The worst of these was played by Joan Woodbury--whose Spanish accent was laughably bad. However, despite her bad acting (and it was bad), the film is a typically good Rogers outing--not brilliant but breezy and enjoyable. Another plus that helped the film's pacing was that the number of musical numbers was reasonable--not jam-packed with song after song like a few of his movies. Worth your time.

I guess I'm too questioning to give most movies high grades. In this one, for example: Okay - Roy was born in Wyoming but now he's a New York reporter, sent back home to do a story on the discord between cattlemen and homesteaders. He mustn't have been away long, 'cause he sure hasn't lost any of his excellent horsemanship; or even his ability to call a square dance. Well, if that's all that makes you raise your eyebrows, then this is at least up to standard. Gabby Hayes is here: Accused of being responsible for much more nefariousness than is correct: Somebody else was actually doing all of those bad things and HE was getting implicated, as Roy learns. The object of their efforts is to expose the PROPER party, using - among other tools - a Cheyenne newspaper. Typical, early 40s, b-&-w, one-hour western.

As one of the earlier Roy Rogers features, the emphasis of "In Old Cheyenne" is on action, and there is plenty of it. The story and cast are pretty good, with Roy as a reporter (from New York, of all places) sent to Wyoming to get the story on a series of holdups and other outrages being led by a notorious criminal. Gabby Hayes has one of his cantankerous old-timer roles, Joan Woodbury is a singer whom Roy befriends, and J. Farrell McDonald plays the singer's father. There are also plenty of bad guys around, and a couple of interesting developments as you find out what everyone is up to. It moves quickly, and works well as light entertainment.

That opening sequence in the railroad car is unusual for an oater. It's almost sparkling in an unexpected way, thanks to a lively Woodbury, a handsome Rogers, and a clever script. Anyway, there's more shooting in this hour's runtime than in WWII, but nobody falls no matter what. It's almost like they're shooting cap-pistols. For sure, I don't expect hard-nosed realism in a matinee oater, but this one really goes overboard in that key regard. Then too, maybe you can follow the plot, I couldn't, what with all the twists, turns and impersonations crammed in a short 60-minutes.

All in all, for me, the flick's mainly a personality western thanks to actresses Woodbury, and a feisty Payne who can cowgirl and sidle up to Roy with the best of them. And shouldn't forget crusty old Gabby, who's more here than just a funny sidekick. In fact, the flick has a number of lighter moments even with the baddies. So, despite the drawbacks, there are compensations for a front-row geezer like me.