Ann Rutherford Movies

Ann Rutherford, who would later rise to fame in the Andy Hardy series at M-G-M and in a number of musical roles, made one of her first screen appearances in this Gene Autry musical western. Teenage runaway Lettie Morgan (Rutherford) stows away with a group of showgirls en route to California after an argument with her aunt. When the stagecoach is attacked near the California border, Capt. Tex Autry (Gene Autry) and his men save the day, but the petulant Lettie complains to his superior officers after Autry scolds the women for traveling through a dangerous area without a proper escort. This, coupled with the actions of rangers-gone-bad Buck LaCrosse (Warner Richmond) and Utah Joe (Alan Sears), leads many to suspect Autry has become a traitor, but when LaCrosse and Utah kidnap Lettie, Autry and his sidekick Frog (Smiley Burnette) are chosen to come to the rescue. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Gene Autry's second starring western for Republic was the well-named Melody Trail. Unlike Autry's inaugural vehicle Tumbling Tumbleweeds, which offered an equal blend of action and music, this second effort is virtually all music, with occasional comedy relief from Smiley Burnette. The story finally takes flight when a baby left in Gene's care is kidnapped, and travelling gypsy Frantz (Willy Castello) is suspected. All turns out okay, albeit with a minimum of fisticuffs and gunplay. The film's mass-wedding finale (an intriguing precursor to Seven Brides for Seven Brothers) features several lovely starlets who figure significantly in the storyline, the most prominent of whom is 18-year-old Ann Rutherford. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Lonely Trail, directed by Joseph Kane, stars John Wayne as veteran Union officer John Ashley. Ashley (Wayne), upon his return to his hometown in Texas, finds his presence unwanted by his former neighbors, who have all sided with the Confederacy. Law and order is being maintained by the smooth-talking Benedict Holden's (Cy Kendall) armed troopers. Though initially duped by the seedy northerner, Ashley realizes that Holden (Kendall) is merely a carpetbagger who, without the knowledge of the governor, is killing, stealing, and taxing the local ranchers out of their property under the pretense of state authority. In an attempt to thwart Holden's continuous betrayal of the Texas citizens, Ashley himself enlists in Holden's troops. The Lonely Trail also features actors Sam Flint, Bob Kortman, and actress Anne Rutherford. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide

Gene Autry's acting skills were still shaky when he made Comin' Round the Mountain, but his singing abilities could not be faulted. An uneven blend of comedy and melodrama, the story has something to do with the formation of the Pony Express, though much of the action takes place at the hacienda of Senorita Dolores (19-year-old Ann Rutherford). After dwelling too long on a comic bullfight, the film comes to a thrilling conclusion as Autry, astride his wonder horse Champion, embarks upon a grueling 10-mile horse race. Perennial comedy relief Smiley Burnette is here saddled by poor material, but he makes the most of what little he has. The 1951 Abbott & Costello opus Comin' Round the Mountain is not a remake. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

What would such second-echelon studios as Republic have done without the popular "rural" novels of Gene Stratton-Porter? This adaptation of Stratton-Porter's The Harvester stars Alice Brady in a rare dramatic role as Mrs. Biddle, the domineering matriarch of a farming family. Hoping to secure the future happiness of her daughter Thelma (Joyce Compton), Mrs. B practically ropes and hog-ties eligible bachelor David Langston (Russell Hardie). But it's a bad match, as David discovers when he falls in love with winsome Ruth Jameson (Ann Rutherford). The Harvester was treated as a prestige production by Republic, who accordingly gave the film as close to an "A" treatment as economically possible. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Though released by Republic, The Oregon Trail was actually filmed by the Lone Star unit at Monogram. John Wayne stars in a bargain-basement rehash of his earlier The Big Trail. Battling his way through reams of stock footage, the Duke leads a wagon train through the rugged frontier. He also keeps both eyes peeled for the man who murdered his father. 18-year-old Ann Rutherford is the feminine interest. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Based on The Bride from Trieste by Ferenc Molnar, The Bride Wore Red stars Joan Crawford as the eponymous heroine. A singer in a seedy Budapest dive, Anni (Crawford) is mistaken for a socialite thanks to a practical joke perpetrated by the cynical Count Armalia (George Zucco). Though a bit confused about her new favored status, Anni happily hobnobs with the "best people" on the Tyrol, including handsome Rudi Pal (Robert Young), who falls in love with her. She manages to pull off her charade for two full weeks, at which time the Count callously reveals the truth. Rudi Pal gallantly offers to marry Anni anyway, but she settles for a happier -- if less financially advantageous -- union with humble village postman Guilio (Franchot Tone, Crawford's husband at the time). When all is said and done, The Bride Wore Red is essentially a showcase for MGM's wardrobe department, with Joan Crawford garbed in a variety of gorgeous gowns, each one more dazzling than the last. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this 20th-century western, hero Gene Autry uses his old-fashioned horse and six-shooter to foil the plans of cattle rustlers who ply their trade via airplanes, refrigerated trucks and shortwave radios. Songs include: "The West Ain't What It Used to Be?", "I Picked up the Trail When I Found You", "Heebie, Jeebie Blues" (sung by Smiley Burnette) and "Defective Detective from Brooklyn" (also by Burnette). ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

The third of MGM's Andy Hardy series (discounting the "pilot" film, A Family Affair) stars, as ever, Mickey Rooney as the teenaged protagonist. Andy finds himself in dutch with girlfriend Polly Benedict (Ann Rutherford) when he agrees to escort his best friend's gal, Cynthia Potter (Lana Turner). Having gone out of town, Andy's buddy wants Cynthia kept out of circulation, and pays Andy to make sure she stays that way. Andy is in no position to refuse: he needs the dough to pay for a car he's just purchased. Further complications ensue when Andy falls for a third girl, Betsy Booth (Judy Garland). It is up to Betsy to play little miss fix-it when Andy's romantic entanglements threaten to overwhelm him. (Mickey Rooney could have used a "Betsy Booth" in real life as well!) Originally running shorter than its present 90 minutes, Love Finds Andy Hardy was expanded during filming to showcase the splendid singing talents of Judy Garland. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Clarence Brown directed this heart-tugging piece of Americana, set during the Civil War era. Walter Huston plays a stern family patriarch, a preacher who thrusts his family into poverty in order to set an example for his parishioners. As a result, his son (James Stewart) grows up to resent him. He looks to travel East and go to medical school, but his father's iron-fisted vow of poverty holds him back from education. Defying the father, his mother (Beulah Bondi) sells off part of her dowry to finance her son's education. The young man travels East and becomes so embroiled in his studies he neglects to stay in contact with his family, returning only when he receives news of his father's death. After father's passing, he goes off to war as a doctor, leaving his mother abandoned back home. Having heard nothing from her son since his departure for the Civil War, mother thinks he may have died and contacts President Lincoln (John Carradine) to investigate his whereabouts. Surprisingly, Lincoln responds to the mother's pleas and seeks to find out about the status of her son. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

The title tells the story in this fourth of MGM's "Hardy Family" series. Judge Hardy (Lewis Stone) takes his family to the Wide Open Spaces when a friend has legal difficulties over water rights. Andy Hardy (Mickey Rooney) thinks he can pass as a westerner, which results in saddle sores for the bethumped young Hardy and (hopefully) laughs for the audience. Andy's sister Marian (Cecilia Parker, who before her MGM days had been a western movie ingenue) falls in love with a handsome cowboy hero (Gordon Jones) who turns out to be a jerk. And Virginia Weidler plays a girl named Jake: ha ha. Out West with the Hardys goes through the series' usual paces with the novelty of an outdoorsy backdrop. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Gone With the Wind boils down to a story about a spoiled Southern girl's hopeless love for a married man. Producer David O. Selznick managed to expand this concept, and Margaret Mitchell's best-selling novel, into nearly four hours' worth of screen time, on a then-astronomical 3.7-million-dollar budget, creating what would become one of the most beloved movies of all time. Gone With the Wind opens in April of 1861, at the palatial Southern estate of Tara, where Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh) hears that her casual beau Ashley Wilkes (Leslie Howard) plans to marry "mealy mouthed" Melanie Hamilton (Olivia de Havilland). Despite warnings from her father (Thomas Mitchell) and her faithful servant Mammy (Hattie McDaniel), Scarlett intends to throw herself at Ashley at an upcoming barbecue at Twelve Oaks. Alone with Ashley, she goes into a fit of histrionics, all of which is witnessed by roguish Rhett Butler (Clark Gable), the black sheep of a wealthy Charleston family, who is instantly fascinated by the feisty, thoroughly self-centered Scarlett: "We're bad lots, both of us." The movie's famous action continues from the burning of Atlanta (actually the destruction of a huge wall left over from King Kong) through the now-classic closing line, "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn." Holding its own against stiff competition (many consider 1939 to be the greatest year of the classical Hollywood studios), Gone With the Wind won ten Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Actress (Vivien Leigh), and Best Supporting Actress (Hattie McDaniel, the first African-American to win an Oscar). The film grossed nearly 192 million dollars, assuring that, just as he predicted, Selznick's epitaph would be "The Man Who Made Gone With the Wind." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide