The Royal Rodeo (1939)

User Rating:

5.1/10   

Director:

George Amy

Writers:

Nate Gatzert (story)
Owen Crump (writer)

Release Date:

25 November 1939 (USA)

Genre:

Short | Musical | Romance | Western

Plot:

A young monarch, bored with responsibility and craving excitement, invites a traveling rodeo show to perform at his palace.

Plot Keywords:

King | Show | Cowboy | American | Rodeo

Cast

John Payne	...	Bill Stevens
Lucile Fairbanks	...	Marianne (as Lucille Fairbanks)
Cliff Edwards	...	Shorty
Scotty Beckett	...	The King
Boyd Irwin	...	Regent

Runtime:

15 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:Approved

Company:

Vitaphone Corporation, The

Movie Connections:

Featured in Movieland Magic (1946)

Soundtrack:

Oh! Susanna

Audacious kitsch

This amazing short, in glorious Technicolor, brings together disparate elements one would never expect to see combined, except perhaps in a surrealist play - a vaguely European royal court presided over by a chipper, 1930s American-style kid who orders a command performance of a wild west show (which just happens to be passing through the area). Add a couple of songs and some rousing American patriotism, and you have a startlingly audacious slice of kitsch. The disparate elements aren't smoothly meshed; they're strung together with a daring, in-your-face boldness. Hats off to Warner Brothers for this crazy experiment!