Reviews

Tornado leaves his stall to graze in a nearby field. Diego's conniving uncle Estevan finds the horse and decides to keep it and run him in the big race so that he can win much gold. He enlists Sergeant Garcia and Corporal Reyes to supply a place to hide the stolen horse until race time. Garcia recognizes the horse as zorro's steed. Estevan says that after he wins the race, they will release Tornado and then follow him home where they will capture Zorro. It sounds like a good plan. They hide Tornado in the winery and Garcia and Reyes remain there on guard. How can Zorro find his horse and recover him? Lovely Patricia Medina makes another appearance as Margarita. This is a very entertaining episode.

This is the best episode of the series. Don Ricardo convinces the governor to offer Zorro amnesty if he appears in the plaza before noon and unmasks. Ricardo thinks this will help him win Anna Maria's hand in marriage. But Diego decides to accept the offer and marry Anna Maria himself. But a black masked intruder appears and holds Diego and Bernardo hostage, apparently to prevent Zorro from accepting the amnesty. This masked man never speaks, but it has to be someone who knows that Diego is Zorro. Who could it possibly be? I was completely stunned when the identity of the intruder is finally revealed. This episode is the best of the series, IMO, as it keeps the viewer totally engrossed and seems poised to take the Zorro show in an entirely new direction. This one is must see for Zorro fans.

This low budget British film is quite well done. The script, acting, direction, photography, and editing are all first rate.

Carol Blane (Mary Germaine) drives to a dark old mansion to meet with blackmailer Markham (Alexander Gauge). He has a 200 pound check forged by Carol's irresponsible brother Billy (Barry Wynne). Along the drive Carol picks up seeming hobo Jimmy (William Sylvester). She soon comes to believe that he is a notorious escaped convict. Carol offers him 50 pounds to go to the mansion with her and pose as her lawyer. Then, he can steal the check rather paying the blackmailer. Jimmy agrees. At the mansion they meet Markham, Dr Welich (Hugo Schuster) and overbearing American Peter Carter (John Arnatt). Also on hand are sneaky butler Bassett (Dennis Shaw) and maid Emma (Ingeborg von Kusserow). Soon, Markham is murdered and everyone distrusts everyone else. Jimmy pretends to be Carol's fiancé as well as her lawyer. Eventually, the police will have to be notified. What will happen to Jimmy then? Is he really an escaped convict? Is everyone else who they claim to be? Who done it?

Also in the cast is Patricia Owens as Joan, Carol's roommate and model. In her first scenes, she is posing for Carol wearing a gorgeous evening gown that is worth seeing. Patricia brings an intensity to her role and she really dominates every scene that she's in. The viewer will definitely notice Patricia Owens in HOB.

I watched HOB on a DVD that I got from the Amazon. The picture quality and sound were both excellent. Watch HOB if you get the chance. It will keep you interested from the start to the plot twist at the end.

It's great to see Grit TV showing the Zorro TV series again, starting today, 1 September 2024, at 11AM central time. Two episodes will be shown each weekday.

This episode introduces Don Diego as newly returned from military school in Spain, learning that Los Angeles is now under the thumb of evil Captain Monastario. Diego adopts his Zorro disguise and rides a magnificent black horse called Tornado. Zorro writes the wrongs of outwits Monastario at every turn. With the help of his faithful servant, Bernardo, Diego vows to continue the fight against injustice.

Guy Williams and Britt Lomond both auditioned for the roles of Zorro and Monastario. Williams wound up as Zorro and Lomond as Monastario. Gene Sheldon was Bernardo and Henry Calvin the rotund Sergeant Garcia. In 2004, Britt Lomond wrote "Chasing After Zorro," a book giving a behind the scenes look at the making of the series.

I loved watching this show on Walt Disney Presents every Sunday night at 6PM back in 1957, when I was four years old and seeing the reruns in later years. Now the series is back on Grit TV. The mark of "Z" for Zorro!

I just watched "Castle in the Air" on a DVD I bought from EBay. This 1952 B/W comedy is funny and a delight to watch.

The Earl of Locharne (David Tomlinson) presides over a dilapidated castle and is on the brink of bankruptcy. His loyal castle manager, Boss Trent (Helen Cherry) oversees the staff and helps The Earl fight off the creditors who appear at the castle gates. They give tours and rent out rooms to try to keep their heads above water. Miss Nicholson (the great Margaret Rutherford) is one of the boarders who is determined to prove that The Earl is the rightful king of Scotland. There's also a female ghost looming around the castle that appears every now and then.

Disaster looms when governemtn coal board member Mr. Phillips (Brian Oulton) wants to take over the castle as a hostel for coal miners and pay only a pittance for it. But, then a distant relative from Denver, Colorado, Mrs Dunne (Barbara Kelly) arrives. She is wealthy and is interested in buying the castle. Mrs Dunne also seems to be attracted to The Earl, something that's noticed by Boss.

It's quite funny and the movie works because the actors all make the viewers care about their characters. The audience sticks around to find out what will finally happen to the castle. And, who will the Earl end up with: Mrs. Dunne or Boss?

Watch Castle in the Air (1952) if you ever get the chance. It is a delightful little comedy.

Miss London, Ltd, is a respectable escort service which provides proper female dates for British and American servicemen stationed in London. The profits are used to support the prisoner of war fund. Arthur Boden (Arthur Askey) is half owner, joined by his new American partner, Terry Arden (Evelyn Dall). But, the company has fallen on hard times financially and must recruit new girls to survive. They do so but must jump through numerous hilarious hoops to keep the business afloat. The key is getting railway PA announcer Gail Martin (Anne Shelton) to attend a party so that Captain Rory O'Moore (Peter Graves) can spend some time with her. But will she attend?

The singing and dancing are all first rate. Watch for the opening scenes at Waterloo Station where three uniformed female porters push luggage carts around while singing. One of the girls is 18-year old Patricia Owens in her first credited movie role. She and the other girls display fine soprano voices.

Jean Kent has a role written especially for her as "The Encyclopedia Girl" who keeps selling Arthur more encyclopedias each time she sees him.

Richard Hearne is Commodore Wellington, whose slapstick dancing style is a real hoot.

The funniest bit is the Marx Brothers scene with Evelyn Dall hilarious as Groucho.

Miss London, Ltd. Is a Gainsborough Studios production. It is a real classic and well worth watching. The movie is available on DVD and is a fine addition to any collection.

Clay has a wounded right arm and travels to Tucson to the Travers Ranch. Pretty Tracy Travers (Dyan Cannon) and Clay have the hots for each other and her father considers him fine son-in-law material. But nasty Ed Keel follows Clay and plans to take advantage of Clay's wounded condition to kill him. The Tucson sherif is a lazy no account who won't be any help and may even help Keel. It's a tough situation for Clay Hollister to be in. How can he overcome the bad guy in this one? This is a good fast moving episode and Dyan Cannon is always worth watching. Marshall Reed plays Ed Keel, Willis Bouchy is Mr. Travers, and Charles Fredericks plays worthless Sheriff Ike Downey.

Wilfred Prescott (Alfred Drayton) and his wife Joyce (Beatrice Campbell) find that their large country estate house is haunted. Pictures are found turned to the wall, a bearskin rug catches fire, and a window is broken. What's worse, their daughter, Audrey (Gwyneth Vaughan) seems possessed sometimes by this female spirit.

With the help of friend Vincent Ebury (Robertson Hare), insurance investigator Joe Harris (Gordon Harker), and self styled ghost buster Spenser (Garry Marsh), Prescott tries to get rid of the poltergeist.

What follows is a night of comedic slap stick spiced with some clever special effects as the ghost raises windows, levitates plates and vases, and generally bamboozles the ghost hunters. Spenser tries to get a photo, Harris uses a bottle of bug spray as a weapon, and Prescott tries shooting it with a shotgun. It's all quite lighthearted and amusing. Can they ever get this spirit out of the house?

Although uncredited and never seen on camera, Patricia Owens provides the laughing voice of the poltergeist.

I just watched Things Happen at Night (1948) on YouTube. The complete movie is available there. I don't know think it's ever been released on DVD. It's a pleasant way to spend an hour or so.

Bees in Paradise concerns a female society on an uncharted island in the Atlantic Ocean. The Queen (Antoinette Cellier), Rouana (Anne Shelton), and Jani (Jean Kent) run things. Men are scarce because after they marry, the bride and groom have a 60 day honeymoon, and then the man has to fling himself off a cliff and commit suicide).

The women are delighted when a British plane crashes and the four men on board look like sure matrimonial partners. The crewmen are Arthur Tucker (Arthur Askey), Peter Lovell (Peter Graves), Ronald Wild (Ronald Shiner), and Max Adler (Max Bacon). The men like the all female society, but aren't fans of the male's bee-like death after the honeymoon.

This film is a lot of fun with Arthur Askey at his best. The funniest sequence is when he tries to referee a rugby game between two rugged female teams. It's laughing out loud funny. The singing and dancing are well done and are highly entertaining.

Although not listed in her credits, 19-year old Patricia Owens appears in Bees in Paradise. She is one of the guards who carries Arthur around in his chair. She is also the one who selects Max as hers, telling the other girls, "I don't want any arguments. He's mine!" Later, Patricia is one the four girls playing pool. She even sinks a ball in the side pocket. Watch for her if you see this movie.

Bees in Paradise is a very pleasant way to spend 72 minutes. Arthur Askey was always funny and this one will leave you smiling.

Ned Anderson (Robert Clarke) is an eastern reporter sent west to do a story on The Lone Ranger. Ned meets newspaper owner Hale Monroe (Lois Hall). Hale hatches a scheme to have Ned pose as an outlaw in order to get the Ranger to try to find him.

Meanwhile, The Ranger and Tonto are after three convicts who escaped from Brimstone Prison: Big Tom Davis (Richard Reeves), Hawk Mason (Michael Ansara), and a young fellow named Peterson (James Parnell).

The Ranger wounds Peterson in a gun battle with the convicts. Davis then shoots Peterson dead to keep him reporting details of the underground escape system that is operated by hotel owner Moley Sanders (Lester Dorr). Then Davis and Mason flee.

Ned, posing as outlaw Frosty March, encounters Moley and gets involved in a planned robbery by Davis and Mason. The Ranger and Tonto are close behind. It's a real dangerous situation. Can our heroes figure it out or is Moley too smart for them?

Lois Hall plays Hale Monroe. She got her start acting in 1948 and appeared in many westerns. She continued to act on occasion after 1957 but concentrated mostly on caring for her family. After her husband died in 1995, Lois spent most of her time doing volunteer work for her church. She died in 2006.

This is an entertaining episode and the second featuring John Hart as The Ranger.

I just watched FBW on a DVD I got from eBay. It had been taped from TV to VHS and then transferred to DVD. The picture wasn't great, but it was very watchable.

This movie is a bit of a minor league "Stagecoach." Marshall Kirk Reed (Jeff Morrow) is taking five female prisoners to the penitentiary. He is assisted by Deputies Tom Ames (George Kramer) and Big Foot (Guinn "Big Boy" Williams). Also along is a railroad executive whose appears totally uncredited. The prisoners are outlaw Big Pearl Jackson (Irish McCalla), outlaw's wife Ellen Downs (Merry Anders), card cheat Kitty Brewster (Kathy Marlowe), knife killer Maria Garcia (Lucita Blain), and demented baby killer Hanna Gates (Dee Carroll).

Along the way, they have to contend with Ellen's husband, The Missouri Kid (Jim Ross, who also produced), trying to free his wife, and rampaging Comanches. A romance develops between Marshal Kirk and prisoner Ellen. Can the stalwart lawmen possibly get their prisoners safely to the final destination?

Irish McCalla steals the movie. She dominates every scene that she's in with her big personality. Irish is a delight too see. Also, watch closely for just a bit of a suggestion of a romantic relationship between Big Pearl and Kitty. It's pretty subtle, but it's there.

Five Bold Women (1960) is a surprisingly good and entertaining western. It's definitely worth watching.

Producers Releasing Corporation (PRC) made a lot of low budget, low quality movies, but Down Missouri Way (1946) is one of the best things they did. Being from a small Missouri town just north of the Ozarks, I may be a bit biased but I really like this pleasant little film.

College professor Jane Colwell (Martha o'Driscoll) has a scientifically trained mule named Shirley. A Hollywood movie company descends on their small town. They need Shirley to be the star of their movie. Producer Thorny Dunning encourages director Mike Burton (William Wright) to get friendly with Jane to ensure her cooperation with Shirley. But the movie's leading lady, Gloria Baxter (Renee Godfrey) sees Mike as her personal property. All sorts of misunderstandings and conflicts occur. Will Jane agree to let Shirley be in the movie? And more importantly, does Shirley want to be a movie star? Some great singing and fine songs to keep the viewer entertained.

Soon to be singing cowboy star Eddie Dean displays his fine voice as Mortimer. Mabel Todd plays Cindy, and shows off her unique voice. Both Martha O'Driscoll and Renee Godfrey demonstrate truly entertaining singing with memorable songs. Even John Carradine gets to sing in his deep voice. Country singing groups the Tailor Maids and the Notables also help keep the music fest moving along. Shirley is the real star of the show, though. She is one smart mule and steals every scene that she is in.

Down Missouri Way (1946) is also known as Missouri Hayride. It shows up on The Westerns Channel every now and then. It's a very pleasant way to spend 70-75 minutes so watch it if you can. It's one PRC movie that you will enjoy and remember.

I just finished watching "Smilin' Through" on TCM. Others have recounted the plot, so let's just say that the acting is outstanding by Norma Shearer, Leslie Howard, and Fredric March. There really aren't any bad guys in this one, just likable characters who respond to tragedy and love in ways that really tug at your heart strings. This movie is a genuine tear jerker, and one that you will be glad you watched. It's especially interesting to see Norma and Leslie each playing two different characters.. the credits only list one character name for each of them, though. The glimpse of the next world that the viewer is given is an uplifting element to the story. Highly recommended for all viewers, no matter what type of movie you usually watch.

I just watched the last episode on Grit TV. Glad the series is still on Grit TV, the INSP Channel, and The Westerns Channel. For its first five seasons, TOWF was a 30 minute show telecast on Monday nights. For the sixth season, it was moved to Saturday night, expanded to an hour and shot in color. A few regular characters were added and Jim Hardy now owned a ranch in addition to his Wells Fargo work. The change to Saturday is probably what caused the series to finally end its run.

In Vignette of a sinner, a Wells Fargo relay station has been blown up and negotiable letters of credit stolen. The plot was masterminded by banker Les Caldwell (Jeff Morrow), with the assistance of nasty outlaw Lucius Kramm (William Mims). But they double cross each other and both of them get wounded in the gunfire, but Caldwell gets away with the letters of credit. Kramm is in pursuit. Meanwhile, Jim meets his great love from the past, Rachel Whitman (Joyce Taylor). But Rachel is engaged to Caldwell. He and Rachel flee together across the border. Can Jim catch up with them before Kramm? Can Jim recover the letters of credit? Will Kramm shoot Jim in the back? Will anything happen between Jim and Rachel?

This is not a wrap up show for the series. It's just the final episode of season six. But it is very enjoyable and good to watch.

I watched this movie today on a DVD from Amazon. Thunder in Carolina was shot on location in North Carolina and the color looks very good. The script keeps the viewer interested and the story moves right along. It's an entertaining look at the early days of NASCAR.

Big time stock car driver Mitch Cooper (Rory Calhoun) breaks his ankle in a crash and returns to his hometown to recuperate and fix his car at the garage where he used to work. He finds the owner has died and the place is now owned by Les York (Race Gentry) and his pretty blonde wife Rene (Connie Hines in her only movie credit). Les welcomes Mitch and soon Mitch is training him to be a stock car driver, much to Rene's disapproval. Mitch has the hots for Rene but she isn't having any. With Mitch's help, Les soon wins a few races and gets the big head. He leaves Mitch to work for the win-at-all-cost millionaire. Then the big race day arrives. Mitch's ankle has healed and his car is repaired. Now it's Mitch and Les head to head in the final race. What will happen?

Alan Hale Jr (The Skipper on Gilligan's Island) plays a pit crew boss and Mitch's old buddy. There are many amateurs in the cast for whom this is their only movie or TV credit. There is some good stock footage of races. However, some of the filming was done at an actual NASCAR event where Rory Calhoun actually drove a couple of laps during the race with a camera attached to the hood of his car.

Tobacco is a big product in North Carolina and Rory does many of his scenes with a cigarette hanging out out his mouth. Connie Hines also smokes a lot.

Thunder in Carolina is an enjoyable movie and well worth watching.

I am watching Southward Ho on Grit TV right now. Roy and Gabby are Confederate soldiers who bushwhack Union Colonel Denby and steal his chicken dinner, and his pants. They make their getaway before Denby's troopers cac catch them. Then the war ends and Gabby and Roy return to Texas, where Gabby has inherited half interest in a ranch. There they find that the other half owner is none other than Colonel Denby, accompanied by his beautiful daughter Ellen. Denby is appointed military governor of the area, but the soldiers assigned to him are a bunch of ruthless crooks. They use taxes as a way to steal from the townspeople and ranchers. They also use the animosity between Gabby and Denby to keep things stirred up. It's going to be up to Roy, Gabby, and Ellen to open the Colonel's eyes as to what's going on and to stop these no good varmints!

This was the first pairing of Roy and Gabby. Wade Boteler is Colonel Denby. Lynne Roberts, billed as Mary Hart, is Ellen. Lynne's fourth and last husband was professional wrestler and sometimes actor Don Sebastian. They were separated in 1978 when Lynne suffered a serious head injury and died after falling in her bathroom.

Southward Ho is good early Roy Rogers western. Definitely worth watching.

Gilbert Roland was an outstanding actor with leading man credits dating back to the silent era. He had a tremendous screen presence and was good in anything he did. Roland not only appears in this WT episode, but he also wrote the story for it.

Bernal Sierra (Roland) is saved from execution by other Juaristas and sets out to the United States to find some stolen gold, along with the treacherous Gringo gun runners who betrayed him and the cause to the French. He finds them on Major Adams' wagon train. They are the three Reardon brothers, Casey (Louis Jean Heydt), Hughie (Lane Bradford), and Art (James Dobson). Sierra also finds the widow of his murdered friend, Perdita (Charlita), now married to Casey Reardon. Sierra figures they have the stolen gold hidden somewhere, but how to find it? Will Perdita help him, or is she out for herself? There's a lot of conflict between Sierra and the Reardons. Can the Major keep them from killing each other? And just how do these tricky Reardons plan to dispose of that gold? It's a real mystery and the bad guys' final plan is a real work of art.

I just watched The Bernal Sierra Story episode this Friday afternoon on MeTV. It's one of my favorite WT episodes. Be sure to watch it when you can.

Morgan Starr was deservedly one of the most disliked regular characters on TV. John Dehner played him with little or no emotion, just rugged determination. There just isn't much to like about the character. Fortunately, he only lasted a few episodes. In this one, Randy and Starr deliver a herd of cattle to the Sioux in Dakota, but the army doesn't want to give them. The army commanding officer and his civilian scout are the bad guys here. Unfortunately, the Indians are played as ignorant savages. When the chief cuts his own arm, Starr explains, " He sheds his his blood to mourn his son." Not very smart. Really puts the Sioux in a bad light, although the intention was the opposite.

The writers wanted to make a statement about persecution, but the episode just drags on and on with a lot of speechifying about the slaughter of the Buffalo and the plight of the Sioux, but it's not very convincing, just dull.

I only rate this episode as high as four stars because Martine Bartlett appears as a courageous homesteader who helps Randy and Starr. She was a fine actress who should have gotten better roles.

This episode is only for die hard fans of The Virginian. Otherwise, only watch it if you want to cure your insomnia.

The final Bowery Boys film is typical of the series after Leo Gorcey left. Plenty of Sach initiated slapstick. Only Chuck and Blinky provide support in this one.

The plot involves Sach being hired by three jewel thieves to smuggle stolen diamonds on a ship form New York to England. The diamonds are concealed under the fur of a beautiful poodle named Gloria. Sach is hired to be the bodyguard of this valuable canine. There is an inspector from Scotland Yard on board looking for the diamonds.

Lovely Patricia Donahue plays one of the jewel thieves. She really brightens things up.

The series really suffered after Bernard Gorcey died in a car accident and Leo Gorcey left the series. Stanley Clements played Duke, not as a new Slip, but as a combination of the Slip and Gabe Moreno characters. Stanley and Huntz Hall never could duplicate the chemistry between Leo and Huntz.

This last Bowery Boys movie is worth watching, for Patricia Donahue if nothing else. But it is typical BB fare and you like the series, you will like this one, too. I am watching it right now on TCM Saturday morning movies.

In the later seasons, the writers often delved into current day topics. In 1970, the Vietnam War protesters were front and center on the news every night. Rebelling against society was highly respected by some influential media commentators. "The Weary Willies" takes up the subject of a few Civil War veterans trying to avoid living a normal life. Billy (Richard Thomas), Krulak (Kevin Tighe), and Pellemin (Mayf Nutter) descend on Virginia City. They con people into getting handouts from citizens, as Pellemin pretends to have twisted his ankle. General store owner's daughter Angie Colter (lovely Lee Purcell) is taken with Billy and resolves to help, convincing a few friends to do likewise. They camp on Ben's land, cutting down his trees and putting up crude shacks. Then they are joined by a two more Willies, a man and his wife, who is expecting a baby. They seem to come from everywhere.

The Willies are always shown in the best light, as wonderful, decent people. The Virginia City folk who despise them are always shown to be bigots and totally unreasonable. The writers ignore the serious moral and legal questions. When Ben asks why they feel they can cut down trees and put up shacks without permission, Billy tells him that trees die eventually, anyway. And he says they take everything down and leave the land exactly as they found it when they depart. How are they going to put the trees back up. Pellemin tells Ben, "The way I see it, this land isn't doing you any good anyway." So, the Willies are seen as completely justified to trespass, destroy property, and ignore the rights of others. Billy doesn't show up for work when Ben gives a job. And that OK, as this episode believes.

In 1970, the Willies in this episode would be the counterparts to the hippies, druggies, and draft dodgers of that time. Clearly, the writers were trying to curry favor with these groups. And perhaps trying to teach a lesson as to how all people should be allowed to,do their own thing, even if doing their own thing involves being totally irresponsible and violating the rights of everyone else. In 2022, the Willies would be the homeless people who sit on the corner with signs about working for food, when they have no intention of working, only deputing handouts, just like Billy ignoring the job offer in this episode.

Bonanza was at its best when it focused on the family members righting wrongs and defending the Ponderosa. This episode sure isn't that. And it's not very good, either.

Made and released shortly after Pearl Harbor, this high octane musical is designed to encourage enlistments raise the spirits on the home front. It does just that.

The plot involves Harry James being drafted. His entire orchestra then joins up, including crooner Dick Foran. Foran doesn't think he needs any training as he is good condition and already knows how to fire a rifle. Will he ever fit in with the "army way?"

Forget the plot and just sit back and enjoy the great entertainment. The Andrews sisters were real entertainers and the numbers by Harry James and the band are truly memorable. Joe E. Lewis was a unique performer. Don't miss the number by Peggy Ryan. She could sing and dance both.

Among the supporting cast, Shemp Howard and Mary Wickes have some really funny scenes together. This was Shemp's best non-Three Stooges role. Donald O'Connor is on hand also. Watch for Bowery Boy Huntz Hall as a corporal telling Harry he is appointed as company bugler.

I am watching Private Buckaroo on TCM right now on their Saturday morning movie. It's one one the best musicals made during WWII. It's great entertainment from a bygone era that deserves to be remembered by all of us.

Johnny Santos is a Mexican rancher who rustles their gringos' cattle and changes the brand to prevent identification of the stolen cows. He's quits good at changing the brands but he may be in for a big surprise before the end of the episode.

Robert Fuller plays Johnny Santos and it real entertaining to hear his Mexican accent. This was one of Robert's early roles on TV and do3s his best trying to sound Hispanic. Also,Brooklyn born Joan Lora plays Johnny's girlfriend Chiquita, and her Mexican accent has a little Brooklyn-ease thrown in unintentionally.

The episode is worth watching to see a young, slim, Robert Fuller playing a role that could have been played by Martin Landau or Leonard Nimoy.

I watching the episode right now on Grit-TV. Glad to see the old western TV series on the daily schedule.

Ballad of a Gunfighter(1964) is clearly a vehicle for Marty. The script was clearly written to match the lyrics of his popular song "San Angelo."

Marty plays a former Confederate soldier who turns outlaw. He only robs from the rich Yankees, and then gives the money to the poor people. A real western Robin Hood story. But Marty soon comes into conflict with a band of nasty outlaws who who prefer to,keep,their I'll gotten gains themselves. Then the governor suddenly offers amnesty to any outlaw willing to join the Texas Rangers. What? That has to be done to make the plot make the lyrics of the song, even if it is a ridiculous idea. At one point, Marty's stuntman engages in a long fistfight with the stuntman of the main bad guy. It's obvious that it's not the actors doing the action, except for the closeups. The fight is poorly done.

The color is not very good and gives the film the look of a spaghetti western, even though it was filmed in Utah.

Joyce Redd plays Secorro, Marty's love interest. This was her only acting credit and not much info is available about her.

Marty and Joyce are no actors and this film is of interest only to Marty Robbins fans as a curiosity. If you listen to the song "San Angelo," you will know the entire plot of "Ballad of a Gunfighter."

Dale owns a rodeo managed by Gabby Hayes. Roy and The Sons Of The Pioneers are singers in the show. They're in financial trouble, but the offer of a booking at the in Albuquerque can put the rodeo on easy street. But a nasty rival rodeo owner, Tom Keene, tries various nefarious schemes to keep them from getting there. It's up to Roy and Trigger to try to save the day. The highlight is a chariot race between Roy and Keene.

"Lights of old Santa Fe" is a pleasant Roy/Dale entry in their series of numerous movies. The Lights of Old Santa Fe theme song is memorable, one of their best. It gets sung a few times. There is more singing than action in this one, but it's still a enjoyable to watch for us older kids who remember it from our younger days.

I'm watching "Lights of Old Santa Fe" on The Westerns Channel right now. It's a good one so see it if you can.

This is a Columbia studios effort to recruit women into the military during the early days of WWII.

Several civilian nurses hear about the new Parachute Nurse Corps and volunteer for the training. The preamble scrolling down the screen at the start of the movie says that this is a fictitious story, which may be fact in the future. In fact, no Parachute Nurse Corps was ever created for the military.

Glenda (Marguerite Chapman) and Dottie (Kay Harris) are the two main characters going through the difficult training at the jump school. Their two trainers are Lt. Woods (William Wright) and Sgt Peters (Frank Sully). There are the other assorted nurses from all across the country as background characters.

It's all a whitewashed version of military training. The girls are allowed to go the the base canteen, where everyone drinks chocolate soda, instead of beer and whiskey. The Lieutenant and sergeant are entirely too informal, and even drink chocolate sodas together in the canteen. Naturally, the four main characters develop a romance, another unrealistic portrayal of students and instructors fraternizing.

Nobody smokes in this movie, either. A couple of the girls mention going outside to have a cigarette, and one is seen holding a cigarette, but there is no actual smoking in Parachute Nurse. Very one is a true blue American with few vices.

Lauretta Schimmoler plays Captain Morgan, the very overweight commander of the students. Lauretta had created the Aerial Nurse Corps of America in 1936, but it was never officially recognized. It may, however, have been the predecessor of the Army Flight Nurse program, which was introduced during WWII. Lauretta also served as the technical advisor for the movie.

Paraxhute Nurse (1942) can be enjoyed if the viewer just remembers that the goal of making it was to encourage women to become military nurses. RKO and Universal did much better flag waver films during the war, but Columbia Pictures made a big effort also. That's what has to be remembered when judging the quality of these types of movies.