George "Gabby" Hayes Movies

In this excellent western, Roy, Trigger and Gabby ride out to stop angry Confederate terrorists from harassing Missouri residents because they voted to side with the Union in the days leading up to the Civil War. Roy plays a Union captain who is faced with a difficult situation when he is ordered to execute his best friend, one of the terrorists. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

A randy stud, a Kentucky Derby winner, sires a successor on the sly and creates all sorts of problems for his owner in this drama. The mare carrying the heir belongs to an impoverished nobleman and his beautiful granddaughter whom the stud's owner despises. Fortunately, the stable-owner's son, who loves the granddaughter, helps them train the promising young colt for the Big Race. When Derby day finally arrives, her horse is slated to run against one belonging to her rival. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

British Writer/director Anthony Kimmins was willing to expand his range from drawing room comedy to the "low" humors of the provincial music halls. Kimmins' Come on George is an unadorned vehicle for toothy, ukelele-strumming North Country comedian George Formby. Formby plays a somewhat overage stableboy who is the only person able to calm a jittery race horse. In the foregone conclusion, Formby rides the horse to victory. Come on George was a product of George Formby's peak movie years; after the war he suffered a professional eclipse and was back making the cheap programmers (vide George in Civvy Street) whence he had started his cinematic career. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Roy Rogers is forced to chase down his own kid brother in this exemplary Republic Pictures oater produced and directed by Joseph Kane. Roy Rogers Sr. (Lane Chandler) is brutally murdered by nasty Ed Tasker (Frank M. Thomas), who takes off with the only witness to the killing, Rogers' youngest son, Tim (Buz Buckley). Years later, Roy Rogers Jr. returns to the family's Circle R ranch under the name of Roy Reynolds and quickly resumes a lost romance with the neighbor's now-grown granddaughter, Ann Meredith (Doris Day). Tasker is still around as well, alas, nastier than ever and extracting protection fees from the local farmers and ranchers. Although seemingly willing to pay his way out of trouble, Roy secretly organizes a vigilante committee to "protect the valley from protection" and ends up hunting down not only Tasker but his own brother, a now grown-up Tim (Don "Red" Barry). The Saga of Death Valley was filmed at Lone Pine, CA, rather than the arid location indicated by the title. Leading lady Doris Day is not the later singer-star but a brunette Republic starlet under contract to the studio from September 9, 1939 to January 28, 1940. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide

In this complicated comedy chronicles a caper involving jewel thieves and an unlucky parking lot jockey whom they mistake for the American gunman they have been awaiting. Naturally they don't discover the truth until the day of the heist when the real mobster appears. Mayhem ensues. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Roy Rogers fans were in for a shock in the opening scenes of Billy the Kid Returns--for there was Rogers, playing the title character, being gunned down in the dark by sheriff Pat Garrett! Within a few minutes, however, things were explained satisfactorally when Rogers showed up again as a young cowpoke who bears a striking resemblance to the late Billy. Mistaken for the the notorious outlaw, Rogers finally clears himself by bringing villains Morgansson (Morgan Wallace) and Matson (Fred Kohler Sr.) to justice. The musical numbers are strategically placed throughout the film as tension-breakers during the more hair-raising moments. Lynne Roberts, who briefly changed her name to Mary Hart before reverting to Lynne Roberts again, made the first of several appearances opposite "The King of the Cowboys". ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

When Hopalong Cassidy (William Boyd) and his pals Windy (George "Gabby" Hayes) and Lucky (Russell Hayden) come across teacher June Lake (Evelyn Venable) and her little schoolhouse of students (played by members of the St. Brendan Boys' Choir), they decide to help further the cause of education until a group of lowlife rustlers show up. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide

This Roy Rogers musical western (his second starring vehicle for Republic) concerns itself with a group of Texas Rangers, forced to disband when Texas is admitted the Union. The state brings in members of the U.S. Cavalry to provide law enforcement in the Rangers' stead, yet the Cavalry officers become hopelessly confused and muddled -- not only from their ignorance of the territory, but by the guerilla tactics of Texas bandits and local political corruption. When ex-ranger Rogers's brother is killed, he recognizes that the Cavalry will not be able to respond with proper force, and asks his fellow ex-rangers to take up arms in vengeance. The film co-stars Mary Hart, Raymond Hatton, J. Farrell MacDonald and Purnell Pratt. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this detective drama, a secret service agent is assigned to investigate the death of a bag lady who was discovered to be carrying highly classified airplane blueprints. He ends up taking a room at the boarding house where she lived. There he soon discovers that all of her housemates are part of a ring of spies. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

In this entry in the long-running western series, Hoppy and his pals must journey to Mexico after receiving a summons. Upon arrival, they realize that it was fake and that a good friend has been mysteriously murdered. They solve the puzzle with the assistance of the killer's feisty sister and a band of helpful caballeros. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Sometimes mistakenly referred to as Bride of the West, this superior "Hopalong Cassidy" entry packs every conceivable ingredient for surefire entertainment into its 55 minute. Hoppy (William Boyd) plays it cool as he seeks out a stagecoach robber. Once he's determined who the guilty party is, Hoppy and his saddle pals Windy Halliday (George-not yet "Gabby Hayes) and Lucky Jenkins (Russell Hayden) swing into action. The script is by Nate Watt, a former director who knew his onions so far as nonstop action was concerned. Pride of the West was the 17th installment in the Hopalong Cassidy series, and there was more where that came from. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

One is immediately aware that The Plainsman is a Cecil B. DeMille production in the opening scene, wherein President Abraham Lincoln (Frank McGlynn Sr.), on the verge of signing crucial legislation which will determine the future of the American West, is dragged away from his Cabinet by a scolding Mrs. Lincoln (Leila McIntyre), who informs her husband that he'll be late for the theater! The story proper picks up in the years just following the Civil War, as crooked arms dealer John Lattimer (Charles Bickford) schemes to sell a huge shipment of repeating rifles to the Indians. Constantly thwarting Lattimer's schemes is lawman Wild Bill Hickok (Gary Cooper), who soon forms a strong alliance with Indian scout Buffalo Bill Cody (James Ellison). Rambunctious Calamity Jane (Jean Arthur) is crazy about Wild Bill, but he refuses to have anything to do with her, contemptuously wiping his mouth whenever he kisses her. He prefers the company of winsome Louisa (Dorothy Burgess), but gallantly steps aside when Louisa marries Buffalo Bill. Upon learning that a band of Indians armed with Lattimer's rifles have attacked a military garrison, Wild Bill tells General Custer (John Miljan), who in turn sends Buffalo Bill to the garrison with a consignment of weapons. Wild Bill then tries to arrange a peace conference with Indian chief Yellow Hand (Paul Harvey), but is sidetracked when he sees Calamity Jane being captured by two Indian braves. Riding to her rescue, Wild Bill is himself captured and tortured in the hope that he'll reveal the whereabouts of Buffalo Bill and his weapons. He refuses to talk, but Calamity, horrified at the agony endured by Wild Bill, tells all. Her breach of confidence leads indirectly to Custer's death at the Little Big Horn (not seen, but described by a young Indian played by DeMille's then son-in-law Anthony Quinn), whereupon Wild Bill disgustedly breaks off all communication with her. Hoping to make up for her past sins, Calamity warns Wild Bill that Lattimer has come to town a-gunning for him. Wild Bill makes short work of Lattimer, only to be shot in the back by the villain's snivelling confederate Jack McCall (Porter Hall). As he breathes his last, Wild Bill forgives Calamity for revealing the whereabouts of the ammunition; with tears in her eyes, Calamity plants a kiss on Wild Bill's lips that he'll never wipe off. As can be seen, accuracy is not the strong suit of The Plainsman; DeMille, like Buffalo Bill before him, was more interested in putting on a helluva good show than offering a dry history lesson. Unfortunately, the film often promises more than it can deliver, thanks to DeMille's insistence upon filming more of his big scenes indoors and relying far too heavily on grainy process screens. Still, the DeMille version of The Plainsman is infinitely more entertaining than the 1966 remake with Don Murray and Abby Dalton. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Based on Clarence E. Mulford's Mesquite Jenkins, Tumbleweed from 1932, Heart of the West addresses the issue of fences on the hitherto free range. Hopalong Cassidy (William Boyd) and Johnny Nelson (James Ellison) have been hired to head a cattle drive by Trumbull (Sidney Blackmer), but then learn that their would-be employer is waging a war against young rancher Jim Jordan (Charles Martin). The latter is erecting fences on his part of the range in order to keep his cattle pure. At first, Hoppy is less than willing to accept Jim's offer of a job, but he agrees once it becomes clear that Trumbull has been using Jim's Black Valley as a safe conduit for cattle rustlings. Heart of the West, which came complete with a title song by Sam Coslow and Victor Young, was partially filmed along California's Kern River. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide