The Kid from Texas

"The Kid from Texas" is a pleasant B-movie starring Dennis O'Keefe of all people as a cowboy. William (O'Keefe) leaves his native Texas to hang with rich swells and play polo. But not surprisingly, the uncouth cowboy is way out of his element with these folks and the only reason he seems to stay is that he's smitten with Margo (Florence Rice). However, after making a fool of himself, he ends up hooking up with a Buffalo Bill-style wild west show...and now another lady has set her eyes on him. So what's going to happen next?

This movie is pleasant and the actors do their best. But it also is a movie that seems a bit improbable and silly to say the least. A nice time passer but not much more.

Bill (Dennis OKeefe) and Margo (Florence Rice ) have a run-in when they meet for the first time, and they hate each other so much, you can tell its only a matter of time before they fall in love. LOVE Jessie Ralph! (She was the perfect foil to W.C. Fields.) You'll also see a 30 year old Buddy Ebsen as the dancing ranch hand. Jack Carson is in here too. He will go on to great roles, like along-side Joan Crawford in Mildred Pierce. The premise in "Kid From Texas" is a little wacky... when a rancher sells a horse, his ranch hand wants to along with it. The jet set plays polo, so the ranch hand takes it up too. It's all pretty silly. Everyone keeps getting knocked into the water. Rice wouldn't stick around very long...she disappeared pretty quickly from the Hollywood scene. This one needed a better script... the meandering plot seems to be aimed at a younger audience, maybe as the second Saturday matinée. It's OK. Don't really need to see this one again. Some early roles for some big names, though.

---of a double or triple bill during the studio era. Pleasant enough to watch with your popcorn. Older viewers like me remember it well.

Dennis O'Keefe is a loud mouthed braggart who has trained a paint cow-pony to play polo Texas style. The horse only obeys him and when some easterners come to the ranch to buy ponies for their polo teem, it is a deal to have the rider and the pony as a team, if O'Keefe can make his own way back east.

Our hero gets into much trouble with the sister of the buyer and continually has disasters, like dunking her in the lake etc. Not extremely funny, but not horrible, except for the attitudes toward women. But that was then, this is now; and this was one of O'Keefe's early roles playing a bumbling fellow, which in later films he perfected. Jack Carson and Buddy Ebson provide some humorous moments. 6/10