Song of the Gringo (1936)

Tex is sent to investigate miners being killed and their mines confiscated. The culprit is Evans and after Tex joins the gang, he is sent to kill two more miners. When Estaban is killed, Tex is put on trial for all three murders.

Director:

John P. McCarthy (as John McCarthy)

Writers:

John P. McCarthy (screenplay) (as John McCarthy), Robert Emmett Tansey (screenplay) (as Robert Emmett)

Stars:

Tex Ritter, Ted Adams, White Flash

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Tex Ritter	...	Tex
White Flash	...	White Flassh
Joan Woodbury	...	Lolita Valle
Ted Adams	...	Evans
Fuzzy Knight	...	Zony
Monte Blue	...	Sheriff
Warner Richmond	...	Henchman Cherokee
Al J. Jennings	...	Judge (as Al Jennings)
Martin Garralaga	...	Don Esteban Valle
William Desmond	...	Bailiff
Forrest Taylor	...	Prosecuting Attorney
Robert Fiske	...	Defense Attorney
José Pacheco	...	Orchestra Leader
Rosa Rey	...	Rosita - the Maid
José Pacheco and his Continental Orchestra	...	Fiesta Orchestra

Storyline

For Tex Ritter's first starring film Producer Edward Finney and director J.P.McCarthy chose to do a remake of a 1930's "Oklahoma Cyclone" which McCarthy had directed and Wellyn Totman wrote. McCarthy brought Totman's original along, Robert Tansey adapted it and he and McCarthy shared story and screenplay credit, and Finney added ex-outlaw Al Jennings name to it for whatever value it may have added. ("Very little" Finney wrote in a 1976 letter.) The story differs little (since "Oklahoma Cyclone" also had several songs, including the mincing "He a Lavender Cowboy" which died a quick deserved death in the first version) in that a young U.S.Deputy Marshal (Tex Ritter) hunting for his missing father, poses as a wanted outlaw and is chased by a posse into the rancho hacienda of Don Estaban Valle (Martin Garralaga) where he takes refuge in the bedroom of Lolita Valle (Joan Woodbury), the Don's daughter. She hides him from the searching sheriff (Monte Blue) and Evans (Ted Adams) the manager ...

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Plot Keywords:

b movie | poverty row film | song | singer | singing | 

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Taglines:

THE WEST'S OWN SINGING COWBOY STAR...With His Horse WHITE FLASH! (original lobby card)

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Music | Romance | Western

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 November 1936 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Old Corral

Filming Locations:

Monogram Ranch - 24715 Oak Creek Avenue, Newhall, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Boots and Saddles Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

62 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This film's earliest documented USA telecasts took place in Cincinnati Thursday 29 December 1949 on WKRC (Channel 11), and in Los Angeles Thursday 23 March 1950 on KNBH (Channel 4).

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Quotes

Cherokee: You know, boys, it would be right peaceful here if this whinin' and playin' suddenly stopped.
Tex: [continues to strum his guitar] That reminds me of an hombre I once knew... always braggin' about how tough he was, and how fast he was on the draw. He and I had a crush on the same girl. 'Course it was no contest... my singin' and good looks cinched it. She fell for me. The showdown came when I was singin' a song he didn't like. I told him to go for his gun. Now considerin' everything, he was powerful ...

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Connections

Featured in Golden Saddles, Silver Spurs (2000)

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Soundtracks

Rye Whiskey
(uncredited)
Music and Lyrics by Tex Ritter
Sung by Tex Ritter

User Reviews

Tex Goes Undercover

Just like another country/western star, Gene Autry, was brought to Hollywood to be a singing cowboy, the fledgling Grand National Pictures hired Tex Ritter from the Grand Old Opry to be its singing cowboy. It was a good move, though Grand National never gave him quite the same decent properties as Republic did Autry and Roy Rogers. Song of the Gringo was Tex Ritter's debut film.

Tex is a deputy sheriff who goes undercover to foil a dastardly plot by outlaws who are killing various mine owners who've been financed by Joan Woodbury's father. The climax of this scheme is for the head villain to marry Woodbury.

Even bearing in mind that this was for the Saturday matinée kiddie trade, Tex is hardly convincing as an undercover operative. In fact one of the outlaws, Warner Richmond, has suspicions about him from the gitgo. All undercover guys ride a very noticeable white stallion named White Flash which was Ritter's horse as Trigger was to Roy Rogers and Champion to Gene Autry.

Playing a bit role as a judge is real life desperado, Al Jennings who had a colorful career in the previous century and showed Ritter the movie cowboy ropes. It's worth seeing Song of the Gringo just to see a real part of western history.

And Ritter himself is a man with a pleasant voice and easy to listen to. Also look for Fuzzy Knight as the sidekick and Monte Blue as the sheriff. And dig that Perry Mason like ending.