The Carson City Kid

Roy Rogers' title role as The Carson City Kid is another one of those misnomers that makes you think of a bad guy. Of course, Roy is a good guy who has been unfortunately labeled an outlaw. For some reason he rides along with a real outlaw named Laramie (Francis McDonald). Roy looks out for the well-being of the all too trusting Arizona (Noah Beery, Jr.) while he is tracking down the villain, Lee Jessup (Bob Steele).

Bob Steele was a leading cowboy hero during the 30's and continued to be a hero afterward, but it is nice to see him in a different role. The bad-guy/saloon owner was a generic part in B westerns, with only the talents of the individual actors making the part memorable. It was the same year that The Carson City Kid was made (1940) that Bob Steele began making a series of Billy The Kid movies for PRC and also joining The Three Mesquiteers at Republic, so The Carson City Kid may have been made while he was searching for a new movie deal. His talents were put to good use in this movie.

Gabby Hayes was good, but not at his best in The Carson City Kid. His part as the town marshal provides comedy, but not the special appeal of being a sidekick. Seeing Gabby as Roy's pal makes a difference. In The Carson City Kid we get to see Gabby on Roy's side, but there is no real relationship between them.

Overall, The Carson City Kid is an excellent choice for a Roy Rogers movie. The movie is set in the west without automobiles and big band productions. It shows a kind of western that Roy would abandon within a few years in favor of the modern setting movies for which he was known.

The Carson City Kid (1940)

*** (out of 4)

Roy Rogers plays a man disguising himself as The Carson City Kid who is seeking vengeance on the man responsible for his younger brother's death. He thinks the guilty person is a bar owner (Bob Steele) but along the way he falls for a young woman (Pauline Moore) and tries to help a young man (Noah Beery, Jr.) from the same fate as his own brother. This is yet another good Western from Rogers and company, although no one should confuse this for the work of John Ford. Your tolerance of the "B" Western will certainly factor into how much you enjoy this film but if you're one who can put up with their low-budget charm then this here is a good one. The best thing the film has going for it are the performances of the cast. As you'd expect, Rogers has no problem playing the good guy as that laid back style really comes across and it's just really impossible not to like the guy. I'm really not sure what it is but Rogers is just so calm and collective that you can fall for his charm and get behind his cause. Moore makes for a very good love interest as she's certainly cute enough for the part but her performance is also good enough to make you care for her. The same is true for Beery, Jr. whose character really comes across thanks to his fun performance. Steele always makes for an enjoyable bad guy and that's the case here as well as you really want to hiss at him each time he's in the frame. George 'Gabby' Hayes is also on hand doing his typical great support. The story itself isn't the strongest in the world but it's good enough to keep you interested for a hour. The action is fast, the characters enjoyable and overall this is pleasant enough for a time killer.

Roy Rogers (Roy Rogers, and not playing "himself" but playing a character named Roy Rogers), posing as The Carson City Kid, is seeking vengeance on Morgan Reynolds, the man who killed his brother.

Whew!

To find Reynolds in the gold towns, he systematically stops stagecoaches and goes through the mail, hoping to find letters addressed to Reynolds and thus learn his whereabouts.

"The Kid" earns the reputation of a stagecoach robber, although he never takes anything, and the reputation is enhanced by the fact that he travels with Laramie (Francis McDonald), a notorious half-breed outlaw.

Getting complicated yet?

A posse is about to capture them and Roy rides back to get Laramie whose horse has been shot, and Laramie repays the favor by slugging Roy and escaping on his horse Trigger.

The posse rides by the unseen Roy and captures Laramie and, since he is riding the "Kid's" horse, take him to jail as being the "Kid."

Laramie denies this and is told he will be free when he identifies the "Kid".

This is a highly implausible movie that is nonetheless watchable. Nothing is believable. Still it's easy to sit through.

The Carson City Kid goes after a tin horn gambler who murdered his brother during a shady card game. After finding the gambler, the Kid finds that he has not changed his ways and is out to cheat and frame a pal of the Kid's. Carson must stop this nefarious scheme and keep his own hide intact at the same time while also wooing the girlfriend of the sneaky tinhorn. Good western.

This was one of Roy Rogers better B westerns for Republic Pictures. The plot has Roy as a good/badman known as the Carson City Kid. But he's only doing this because he's on a manhunt. Roy's figuring the outlaw guise will afford him better intelligence about the guy he's after.

The trail's taken him to Sonora where he runs into such diverse people as Marshal Gabby Hayes, Pauline Moore, Noah Beery, Jr., and another B picture cowboy, Bob Steele. All of them give a good account of themselves.

Especially Steele as the saloon owner with a number of nefarious sidelines. In B films Steele was usually a good guy. Here he's more like the Steele we saw in such classic Humphrey Bogart films as The Big Sleep and The Enforcer.

Roy only gets one song in this film, a forgettable duet with his leading lady. He hadn't met Dale Evans yet, so he was paired with all kinds of female co-stars at this point in his career. Of course none had the screen or otherwise chemistry Dale and Roy had together.

Fans of the Cowboy King will like it and others will also.