Wall Street Cowboy

Roy Rogers is about to have his ranch repossessed, but Gabby Hayes discovers a molybdenum deposit on the property, so Roy heads to Wall Street financier Pierre Watkins . Watkins is busy with his horse running in the steeplechase, but his daughter, Ann Baldwin is interested -- in Roy, if nothing else. So she has Roy ride her father's horse and win. But the bad guys want the mine for themselves, and Watkins wants his daughter back, so this goes on for another twenty minutes.

There are some plot holes that are ignored, and the songs are nothing special, but there's some nice interplay between Hayes and Raymond Hatton, and some location shooting at Red Rock Canyon State Park. Republic Studios were riding Rogers hard, with nine westerns in 1939, but Roy's amiable and simple line readings help to keep things moving along pleasantly.

It's really hard to review this and many other Roy Rogers films because so many only now exist in severely truncated versions. That's because back in the 1950s, the films were chopped apart to fit them into a one hour time slot for television. In many cases, ten or more minutes are gone--and in this case, 14 minutes is gone. Perhaps the 14 minutes were bad (such as some songs)--but I just don't know. Maybe this film exists in BOTH versions--the original and the truncated. All I know is that this Netflix streaming version is the shorter one.

This film stars the familiar pair of Roy Rogers and Gabby Hayes. While Dale Evans hadn't yet joined the team (she would become a regular in the 1940s), there seemed to be a love interest in this one. The very familiar cowboy sidekick Raymond Hatton is on hand as Gabby's...um...friend. I say it this way because in their films together, they sound much more like a couple than a couple of friends. Perhaps I'm reading too much into this....

Anyway, the film is about some evil claim-jumpers who want to steal away Roy's land. Why? Well, first, because they are evil (duh) and second, because there is a rare mineral (Molybdenum--which is used for various steel alloys) on the property and it could be worth millions. The problem is that Roy has no idea this is so and he also has to deal with a grouchy Wall Street tycoon who has a cute daughter (Roy's love interest). The plot is a bit strange and not all that much time is spent on Wall Street (this might have made the film a lot more interesting). It's about average for a Rogers film--meaning it's passable entertainment but not especially inspired. Worth a look if you love the genre, otherwise it's just okay.

Roy Rogers got in more of an eastern than a western when he became a Wall Street Cowboy. The villains in this horse opera are not just located in Apache Junction where Roy has his ranch, but in the very canyons of the financial district.

It's also where Roy hopes to find salvation. There's some skullduggery afoot as the banker/villain so popular in the Thirties wants to foreclose on the mortgage on Roy's Circle R. He's got good reason to want that real estate.

Roy's two sidekicks, Gabby Hayes and Raymond Hatton, think they've found the answer, Gabby thinks he's found some gold ore. But it ain't gold it's molybdenum, a good deal more valuable than gold some would say.

Anyway the Gordon Gekko of his day, Reginald Barlow, wants Roy's ranch. Roy's salvation might be tycoon Pierre Watkin. Roy's impressed his daughter Ann Baldwin well enough, a song or two usually does it, but between him and his tanglefoot geniuses of sidekicks, he's not doing so well on Watkin.

Most of the film takes place in the East, in Wall Street offices and on Long Island with the horsey set. Still the action returns to Apache Junction for some rootin' tootin' shootin' action as only Herbert J. Yates and Republic Pictures could deliver.

Wall Street Cowboy's not too bad a western, it probably pleased the Saturday matinée kids no end.

Roy Rogers (as Roy Rogers) and his two loyal hands George "Gabby" Hayes (as Gabby) and Raymond Hatton (as Chuckawalla) must save Mr. Rogers' Circle R ranch from wicked New York bankers, after the cowboy hero has trouble coming up with the mortgage payments. Complicating matters: a gold-like substance is discovered on Rogers' land.

Not surprisingly, the film fails to live up to the promise of its title "Wall Street Cowboy". Other than a "Wall St." sign and a "New York Chronicle" newspaper, there is not much to distinguish this from any other California-located Rogers western. Fast moving transportation moves the otherwise aimless story along. Rogers sings/yodels on a few good songs, like "Ride 'em Cowboy" and "Me and the Rollin' Hills". Smooth, but forgettable.

** Wall Street Cowboy (8/6/39) Joseph Kane ~ Roy Rogers, George 'Gabby' Hayes, Raymond Hatton