The Bronze Buckaroo (1939)

User Rating:

5.2/10   

Director:

Richard C. Kahn

Writers:

Richard C. Kahn (original story) and
Richard C. Kahn (screenplay)

Release Date:

1 January 1939 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Music | Mystery | Romance | Western

Tagline:

ROARING ROUND-UP OF SONG-STUDDED THRILLS! (original poster - all caps)

Plot:

Bob Blake and his boys arrive at Joe Jackson's ranch to find him missing. While Slim cheats Dusty out...

Plot Keywords:

Singing Cowboy | Modern Western | Poverty Row Film | Land Rights | Black Cowboy

Cast

Herb Jeffries	...	Bob Blake (as Herbert Jeffrey)
Artie Young	...	Betty Jackson
Rollie Hardin	...	Joe Jackson
Clarence Brooks	...	Buck Thorne
F.E. Miller	...	Slim Perkins
Lucius Brooks	...	Dusty
Spencer Williams	...	Pete (as Spencer Williams Jr.)
Lee Calmes	...	Lee
Earle Morris	...	Bartender (as Earl J. Morris)
The Four Tones	...	Singing Quartet
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Leon Buck	...	Member, The Four Tones
Ira Hardin	...	Member, The Four Tones
Rudolph Hunter	...	Member, The Four Tones

Runtime:

58 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:Approved | USA:Passed (National Board of Review)

Filming Locations:

N.B. Murray's Dude Ranch, Victorville, California, USA

Company:

Hollywood Pictures Corporation (I)

Movie Connections:

Featured in That's Black Entertainment: Westerns (2002) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Get Along Mule

The Bronze Buckaroo was an interesting early race western musical

Looking at the remaining list of race movies in the DVD set, "Black Entertainmint in Film", I decided to check out Bronze Buckaroo since it's one of the shortest at 56 min. The plot is a familiar one that dominated many a singing cowboy pic with Buck Thorne (Clarence Brooks) and his henchman Pete (Spencer Williams) hoping to take a ranch from Joe Jackson and his sister Betty (Artie Young) after killing their father. Bob Blake (Herb Jeffries), a friend of Joe, arrives to help find him after he disappears. There's also his sidekick Dusty (Lucius Brooks) along for the ride and a con man named Slim Perkins (F. E. Miller) who provides some amusement with Dusty when he sells him a "talking" mule and plays crooked poker with him. To tell the truth, the movie had some scratches that made it hard to hear some of the dialogue and some of the gun sequences, which is always filmed in medium shot, aren't very exciting. Still, this was pretty entertaining and I loved The Four Tones' (of which Mr. Lucius Brooks was a part of) singing when we first arrived at the bar just before the first shootout. So on that note, The Bronze Buckaroo is worth a look. P.S. The director, Richard C. Kahn, was born in my current home state of Louisiana and the star, Mr. Jeffries, briefly lived in my birth town of Chicago where one of the clubs he performed in was allegedly owned by Al Copone. And as I noted in my comments for The Blood of Jesus, Mr. Williams was born in New Orleans.