Santa Fe Marshal

In Santa Fe Marshal Bill Boyd is on a mission to round up a notorious gang operating in the Santa Fe area with an appointment as US Marshal on a temporary basis. The law and the title character of the film is played by future cowboy hero star Eddie Dean and he's up against it. After all who would dream that the brains of the outlaw gang is sweet little old lady Marjorie Rambeau.

Even though Hoppy is flying solo in this, Lucky Jenkins leaves the Bar 20 to help him anyway. Russell Hayden's rambunctiousness nearly wrecks Hoppy's undercover, but Boyd finds use for him.

One should see Santa Fe Marshal for Marjorie Rambeau, she gives one great performance here. And as always Earl Hodgins who did more westerns than there were pepper grains in my coleslaw last night is always good. Here Hodgins plays a less than honest but likable medicine show impresario. Hoppy also uses them for a cover as well.

Hoppy did not have his usual black outfit with his two six guns. Instead he's in suit with gun in shoulder holster. Part of his incognito. But he's still Hopalong Cassidy gallant knight of the frontier.

The mayhem begins when the west's favorite sheriff Jack Rockwell confronts the best singing cowboy Eddie Dean (playing the town marshal) about his dismal job performance. To his rescue comes a very theatrical Marjorie Rambeau as Ma Burton. To the town's rescue is an undercover (William Boyd). To our delight, Hoppy is sidetracked by the best snake-oil salesman Earl Hodgins and song and dance star Bernadene Hayes. To add to the excitement is rustic hayseed comic relief from Britt Wood as Axel. Henchman Blake (Kenneth Harlan) would like to eliminate Hoppy but Ma wants to use him for a hold up. It's double trouble when Lucky (Russell Hayden) makes it to town and could inadvertently blow Hoppy's cover. Does Ma and Tex's gang have him dead to rights? Santa Fe has great acting and building suspense but its' strength is in the comic relief. Some great scenes especially when Hoppy masquerades as a mind reader and Hodgins selling the Zerbo Indian Remedy.

In the late 1940s and early 50s, many old series B-westerns were chopped to pieces in order to fit them into one hour time slots on TV. Unfortunately, in some cases, the original longer versions were lost. Fortunately, in the case of Hopalong Cassidy's film, the original excised footage was saved and recently restored. Fortunately, the copy of "Law of the Pampas" that I just saw on YouTube is one of the restored ones...running at 71 minutes instead of the much shorter 54 minutes.

When the story begins, a town out west is being terrorized by criminals. The local sheriff is ineffective in stopping them and soon you learn why...he doesn't realize that his own mother, the sweet Ma Burton, is the gang leader! Because of all the crime, a US Marshall is being sent there from Santa Fe...and that Marshall is Hoppy. But he doesn't want to arrive in town as a lawman....and instead poses as a member of a traveling medicine show. To help Hoppy is Lucky...who, once again, is often more a hindrance than a help! In fact, in most of the films I've seen with Lucky, he's been anything but lucky for Hoppy! A better nickname might be 'Blabber-mouth'!

This B-western is a bit better than average because I really loved the villain--Ma was very intelligently written and well acted by Marjorie Rambeau. Well worth seeing.

One of the biggest stars of early Broadway, Marjorie Rambeau had also already had an entire film career by 1940 - having appeared in dozens of movies - but 1940 was arguably her highlight year.

* Sante Fe Marshal * Primrose Path * Twenty Mule Team * Tugboat Annie Sails Again * East of the River

Her performances are so varied, and her range so limitless, that she simply disappears into her characters. Already in her 50s by this time, Rambeau clearly had fun working with William Boyd and this is one of the best of the long Cassidy series.

Marjorie received an Oscar nomination that year for 'Primrose Path,' a widely misunderstood masterpiece by Gregory LaCava starring Ginger Rogers and Joel McCrea. Watching that film back-to-back with our 'Santa Fe Marshal' shows us why Ginger, many years later, called Rambeau "probably the finest American actress."

Looks like the producers were aiming for a change of pace in the series-- Hoppy without his usual black attire, no Gabby, while guess who gets the girl, and maybe most unusual, it's everybody's grandmother who's the chief bad guy. Then too the story takes place mainly in town with very little scenery, no fisticuffs and only a last minute shoot-out. The plot's nothing special, bad guys stealing silver bars, while both Hoppy and Lucky are undercover and on their trail.

Nonetheless, actress Rambeau makes a convincing 60-year old master-mind (note how softly the script deals with her despite her criminal ways). Then there's the familiar Hodgins doing his fast-talking con-man, that furnishes some comedy relief. And in case you were wondering, we get a chance to see how flat tires are changed 1890's style. Anyway, it adds up to a mediocre entry with some noticeably different touches.