Across the Rio Grande

Across the Rio Grande featured the musical talents of a young Polly Bergen who had just started in films. She does a duet with Wakely in the saloon, where she's working as a musician (this was a kid' western, we didn't know about ladies like Miss Kitty). Playing the guitar, she sings the title song. In a letter to me, she said that this was the film that got her a Guild card. I think she was on for about 15 minutes. Her duet is included in the original trailer for the film, which is available in several groups of B western trailers. While Wakely may not have been a big star in westerns, he was influential in getting several performers their start in show business and wrote many songs. He and his family did a nightclub act in Harrah's in Las Vegas for years.