Home on the Range (1946)

User Rating:

4.9/10   

Director:

R.G. Springsteen

Writers:

Betty Burbridge (story) and
Bernard McConville (story) ...

Release Date:

18 April 1946 (USA)

Genre:

Western

Tagline:

TWO New stars are born...MAGNACOLOR! and MONTE HALE! (original poster)

Plot:

When two brothers settle a wilderness, one builds the largest cattle ranch in the state while the other...

Plot Keywords:

Brother | Cattle Ranch | Ranch | Game Preserve | Conservation

Cast

Monte Hale	...	Himself
Lorna Gray	...	Bonnie Garth (as Adrian Booth)
Bob Nolan	...	Bob
Sons of the Pioneers	...	Ranch Hands / Musicians
Tom Chatterton	...	'Grizzly' Garth
Robert Blake	...	Cub' Garth (as Bobby Blake)
LeRoy Mason	...	Dan Long
Roy Barcroft	...	Clint Baker, Henchman
Kenne Duncan	...	Slim Wallace, Henchman
Budd Buster	...	Sheriff Cutier
Jack Kirk	...	Rancher Benson
John Hamilton	...	State Official

Runtime:

55 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Magnacolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #11383)

Filming Locations:

Brandeis Ranch, Chatsworth, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Republic Pictures (I)

Soundtrack:

Happy-Go-Lucky Cowboy

gimmicks galore

As the genre wears on, I guess it becomes increasingly dependent on gimmicks. Well, perhaps these'll be enough to trip your trigger: pretty scenery filmed in color; a plot that emphasizes the importance of the game preserve (complete with much scene-stealing by the animals); the singing cowboy, reinforced by The Sons of the Pioneers; and a 13-year-old Robert (in those days, Bobby) Blake. These features produced my above-average vote. The storyline involves an inheirited tract, split between two brothers - one deceased, who's daughter is currently in charge of its being ranched; the other, doing nothing with his land other than allowing it to be a home for wild creatures. A would-be buyer of the conservationist's property, however, incites its neighbors by simulating the bear-caused deaths of their cattle, thinking that maybe it'll become "for sale" if everybody is mad at its owner. Monte Hale is the songster who is summoned by the surviving brother. I can't quite dismiss the corniness of the concept, but, if you're a REAL fan of the genre, then that doesn't seem to matter.