Musical Monday: San Fernando Valley (1944)

It’s no secret that the Hollywood Comet loves musicals.
In 2010, I revealed I had seen 400 movie musicals over the course of eight years. Now that number is over 600. To celebrate and share this musical love, here is my weekly feature about musicals.

This week’s musical:
San Fernando Valley (1944) – Musical #815

Studio:
Republic Pictures

Director:
John English

Starring:
Roy Rogers, Trigger, Dale Evans, Jean Porter, Andrew Tombes, Charles Smith, Edward Gargan, Dot Farley, LeRoy Mason, Adele Mara (uncredited), Pat Starling (uncredited), Helen Talbot (uncredited), Doodles Weaver (uncredited)
Themselves: Bob Nolan & Sons of the Pioneers, Vernon and Draper, Morrell Trio, Bob Nolan

Plot:
Cyclone Kenyon (Tombes) runs a ranch with his two granddaughters, Dale (Evans) and Betty Lou (Porter). Cyclone and Dale are tired of their lazy ranch hands (Bob Nolan & the Sons of the Pioneers) spend more time singing with Betty Lou than working around the ranch. The hands are fired, and they search for new hands, who are a group of women riders, and then Roy (Rogers) and his friend, Keno (Gargan), are hired on as cooks. Betty Lou hatches a plan to get their old ranch hands rehired.

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Musical Monday: Song of Nevada (1944)

It’s no secret that the Hollywood Comet loves musicals.
In 2010, I revealed I had seen 400 movie musicals over the course of eight years. Now that number is over 600. To celebrate and share this musical love, here is my weekly feature about musicals.

This week’s musical:
Song of Nevada (1944) – Musical #777

song of nevada2

Studio:
Republic Pictures

Director:
Joseph Kane

Starring:
Roy Rogers, Trigger, Dale Evans, Thurston Hall, John Eldridge, Mary Lee, Lloyd Corrigan, Forrest Taylor, George Meeker, Emmett Vogan, LeRoy Mason, Bob Nolan, Si Jenks (uncredited), Ruth Roman (uncredited)
Themselves: Sons of the Pioneers

Plot:
Wealthy John Barrabee (Hall) is discouraged that his daughter Jennie (Evans) has “left the prairie for Park Avenue,” especially now that she’s engaged to snooty Rollo Bingham (Eldridge). Barrabee leaves New York City to head back out west to Nevada. During the flight, the plane makes an emergency landing and Barrabee wanders off, meeting Roy Rogers (himself) and his friends. He’s having such a good time with Roy, that Barrabee misses his flight which crashes; leading the newspapers and Jennie to believe that he’s dead. As soon as his death is announced Rollo begins liquidating Barrabee’s estate. Barrabee and Roy hatch a plan to keep Jennie out west where she belongs.

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Musical Monday: The Yellow Rose of Texas (1944)

It’s no secret that the Hollywood Comet loves musicals.
In 2010, I revealed I had seen 400 movie musicals over the course of eight years. Now that number is over 600. To celebrate and share this musical love, here is my weekly feature about musicals.

This week’s musical:
The Yellow Rose of Texas (1944) – Musical #742

yellow rose of texas

Studio:
Republic Pictures

Director:
Joseph Kane

Starring:
Roy Rogers, Dale Evans, Trigger, Grant Withers, Harry Shannon, George Cleveland, William Haade, Don Reynolds (uncredited)
Themselves: Sons of the Pioneers

Plot:
Roy (Rogers) plays an insurance investigator, who is working undercover as a singing cowboy on a performing show boat. Roy is searching Sam Weston (Shannon), who escaped out of jail, and he’s looking for the bankroll money Sam is accused of searching for. Betty Weston (Evans) is Sam’s daughter and tries to prove his innocence, with the help of Roy.

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Musical Monday: Trail of Robin Hood (1950)

It’s no secret that the Hollywood Comet loves musicals.
In 2010, I revealed I had seen 400 movie musicals over the course of eight years. Now that number is over 600. To celebrate and share this musical love, here is my weekly feature about musicals.

This week’s musical:
Trail of Robin Hood (1950) – Musical #642

Studio:
Republic Pictures

Director:
William Witney

Starring:
Roy Rogers, Trigger, Penny Edwards, Gordon Jones, Clifton Young, Emory Parnell, Ed Cassidy, Carol Nugent, Bullet the Dog, Foy Willing, Cheryl Rogers (uncredited), Ralph Bucko (uncredited), Roy Bucko (uncredited), Lane Bradford (uncredited)
As themselves: Jack Holt, Rex Allen, Allan “Rocky” Lane, Monte Hale, William Farnum, Tom Tyler, Ray Corrigan, Kermit Maynard, Tom Keene, George Chesebro

Plot:
Actor Jack Holt (himself) is spending his retirement from films running a Christmas tree farm. His goal is to sell the trees at a low rate so all children can have a holiday tree. The problem is a competing Christmas tree farm, owned by J. Corwin Aldridge (Parnell), tries to put Holt out of business so they can beat him to market – his low prices will cause people not to buy their trees. Soil conservationist Roy Rogers (himself) comes to help Holt, and Aldridge’s daughter Toby (Edwards) arrives to work about Rogers and Holt.

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Watching 1939: Rough Riders’ Round-Up (1939)

In 2011, I announced I was trying to see every film released in 1939. This new series chronicles films released in 1939 as I watch them. As we start out this blog feature, this section may become more concrete as I search for a common thread that runs throughout each film of the year. Right now, that’s difficult. 

1939 film: 
Rough Riders’ Round-up (1939)

Release date: 
March 13, 1939

Cast: 
Roy Rogers, Trigger, Lynne Roberts (billed as Mary Hart), Raymond Hatton, Eddie Acuff, William Pawley, Dorothy Sebastian, George Meeker, Duncan Renaldo, Jack Rockwell, Guy Usher

Studio: 
Republic Pictures

Director: 
Joseph Kane

Plot:
At the end of the Spanish-American War, Roy (Rogers) and his unit of Rough Riders are reassigned as border patrol near Mexico. The Border Patrolmen are trying to stop outlaws from smuggling gold from stay coaches. In the process, Dorothy Blair (Hart/Roberts) is kidnapped during a raid.

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Musical Monday: Under Western Stars (1938)

It’s no secret that the Hollywood Comet loves musicals.
In 2010, I revealed I had seen 400 movie musicals over the course of eight years. Now that number is over 600. To celebrate and share this musical love, here is my weekly feature about musicals.

This week’s musical:
Under Western Stars (1938) – Musical #608

Studio: Republic Pictures

Director: Joseph Kane

Starring: Roy Rogers, Trigger, Smiley Burnette, Carol Hughes, Guy Usher, Tom Chatterton, Kenneth Harlan, Stephen Chase, Dick Elliott, Dora Clement, George Montgomery (uncredited)
Themselves: Maple City Four

Plot:
Conditions for farming are terrible for ranchers due to the Dust Bowl and drought. Roy (Rogers) runs for Congress in order to get more federal help for ranchers and cowboys.

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