Trouble in Texas

Trouble In Texas finds Tex Ritter and sidekick Horace Murphy on the trail of a gang that is killing rodeo champions. The mistake that this gang headed by Earl Dwire makes is in killing Ritter's brother. He and Murphy have been on the trail for five years.

Devotees of the B western will find that a lot of usual players like Glenn Strange and Yakima Canutt are there. But if Trouble In Texas has any reason to be saved it is because one Rita Cansino who was the leading lady. All of 19 Ms. Cansino was playing a government agent who was also on the trail of the outlaws.

Of course we all know her better as Rita Hayworth so fans of the eternal Cover Girl will have a great opportunity to see her cowgirl attire.

There was a John Wayne B film from the Thirties where the same gambit was used to kill the rodeo cowboys. I can't remember which one so I don't know who stole from who.

TROUBLE IN Texas is an entertaining little B western with wider appeal than the norm due to the leading lady being the very young Rita Hayworth (billed under her real name, Cansino). The appealing Tex Ritter stars as a rodeo circuit cowboy/entertainer who remains on the circuit in hopes of tracking down the bad guys who killed his brother. As it happens, beautiful young government agent Carmen (Rita) is also after them although Tex suspects she may be part of their gang (she is, but is undercover for the government) though he also attempts to woo this gorgeous young woman, no fool he.

This little movie is clearly a quickie with is blatant stock footage (including quite a bit filmed at an actual rodeo which isn't exactly smoothly edited into the film and the scenes with the actors), threadbare sets, and the like but the cast is very appealing and 18-year-old Rita is stunningly beautiful and beams with unmistakable star quality (she has some absolutely gorgeous closeups in this low-budget effort that would rival those in an important studio film that are probably due more to her natural beauty than to the cinematography).

Tex Ritter is great as the always smiling, down-to-earth hero of the tale and while sidekick Horace Murphy (57 at the time, to modern eyes he seems a decade older) is fairly amusing in apparently one of the bigger roles of his career (according to IMDb, most of his parts were unbilled bits). Throw in some classic B western bad guys, excellent stunt work, a nice dance number by Rita, and some good western songs and you've got a pretty terrific if unambitious little B western.

"Trouble in Texas" is arguably the best of the 12 westerns that Tex Ritter turned out for Grand National in the late 1930s. It is notable for the appearance of Rita Hayworth (as Rita Cansino) and the showcasing the many talents (excluding acting) of Yakima Canutt.

The story has the bad guys headed by Earl Dwire and henchmen Canutt and Charlie King rigging rodeo results to favor them by eliminating competitors. Hayworth is a federal agent sent to infiltrate the gang. Along comes Ritter and his sidekick Horace Murphy. Tex plans to compete in the next rodeo. He enters and beats Canutt in every event despite the gang's efforts to eliminate him. Finally, Tex and sheriff Glenn Strange settle things with the gang.

This film is memorable for the stunts performed by the legendary Canutt. He performs several dangerous stunts on the backs of a team of runaway horses and on the speeding wagon. Having been a champion Rodeo rider in his youth, Canutt had no difficulty in the rodeo scenes in spite of the extensive usage of stock footage.

Hayworth was about to adopt that name and move over to Columbia as one of its greatest stars. She gets to perform a dance sequence in which her considerable talent is displayed. Ritter sings a few forgettable songs as well. And the casting of veterans Dwire, King and Strange didn't hurt either.

Not a bad little programmer.

While Tex Ritter (as Tex Masters) sings "Down the Colorado Trail", accompanied by harmonica-playing sidekick Horace Murphy (as Lucky), pretty government agent Rita Hayworth (as Carmen Serano) is sent out to investigate a series of mysterious rodeo deaths. Ms. Hayworth and Mr. Ritter cross paths in Middletown Valley, where Ritter is looking for the gang that killed his brother.

Undercover girl Hayworth and singing cowboy Ritter are the main attractions. Hayworth and Hank Worden have a couple of smooth dance numbers. Ritter's "Down the Colorado Trail" and "I'm Bound to Leave Ol' Texas Now" are highlights; the latter ballad is especially nice. The "Trouble in Texas" is, most obviously, its poorly edited "rodeo footage". It might have, otherwise, been a better movie.

Tex Ritter tours the rodeo circuit, looking for the murderous cowboys that he believed caused the death of his brother, killed by the gang for taking too much money from them by winning. Meanwhile, undercover agent Rita Hayworth (who's beautiful and very brunette) is also on the case.

A remake of the John Wayne vehicle The Man From Utah (with Yakima Canutt playing virtually the same role), this is actually the better of the two with the usual winning performance by Tex, some great songs to pass the time, and a load of exciting stock footage of the real rodeo.

There's also some good villainy by eternal heavies Earl Dwire and Charles King, while the usually villainous Glenn Strange (the future Frankenstein monster) gets to be a good guy.

An exciting climax features some excellent stunt work and an explosive finale.