Border Cafe


1h 7m 1937
Border Cafe

Brief Synopsis

Cowboys clash with gangsters and Boston snobs in the modern West.

Film Details

Also Known As
In the Mexican Quarter, Mexican Quarter
Genre
Western
Release Date
Jun 4, 1937
Premiere Information
not available
Production Company
RKO Radio Pictures, Inc.
Distribution Company
RKO Radio Pictures, Inc.
Country
United States
Screenplay Information
Based on the short story "In the Mexican Quarter" by Tom Gill in Hearst's International-Cosmopolitan (Jun 1930).

Technical Specs

Duration
1h 7m
Sound
Mono (RCA Victor System)
Color
Black and White
Theatrical Aspect Ratio
1.37 : 1
Film Length
7 reels

Synopsis

After bailing his irresponsible, alcoholic son Keith out of jail, Senator Henry Whitney announces that Keith must join the family law firm in Boston or lose his allowance. Keith, however, chooses to seek his fortune elsewhere and winds up in Verde, Texas, a small town on the Mexican border. Free from his father's scrutiny, Keith spends his time drinking in a café, where he meets Dominga, a pretty Mexican singer. He also wrangles a job playing piano in exchange for bar credit and a bed in Dominga's room. Down to his last dollar, Keith wires his father for a $2,000 loan, telling him that he needs the money to buy a ranch. When Keith, who has spent the loan on alcohol and gambling, later receives word that his parents are on their way to Texas to visit him, he turns to veteran rancher Tex Stevens for aid. Tex, grateful for Keith's life-saving help in a bar fight, agrees to let him work on his ranch and tell the senator that they are partners. At the same time, Dominga, who has witnessed the aftermath of a murder committed by an ardent admirer, Eastern gangster Rocky Alton, quits her café job out of fear and begs for a job cooking on Tex's ranch. Soon after, Rocky visits Tex and "invites" him to join his Cattlemen's Protection Agency, but Tex, wise to Rocky's highly organized cattle rustling business, refuses the offer and later suffers the loss of several cattle. When Henry, his wife Emma, and Janet Barry, Keith's Boston fiancée, arrive at the ranch, they are greeted by a reformed Keith. Although satisfied with his son's transformation, Henry disapproves of his romance with Dominga and his future as a rancher. While Keith, Tex and Henry argue the point, Rocky and his men, who are now wanted for murder, burst in and take Dominga and Henry hostage. After a fierce gun battle in the hills, Rocky is defeated and Dominga is reunited with Keith, who finally receives his father's complete blessing.

Film Details

Also Known As
In the Mexican Quarter, Mexican Quarter
Genre
Western
Release Date
Jun 4, 1937
Premiere Information
not available
Production Company
RKO Radio Pictures, Inc.
Distribution Company
RKO Radio Pictures, Inc.
Country
United States
Screenplay Information
Based on the short story "In the Mexican Quarter" by Tom Gill in Hearst's International-Cosmopolitan (Jun 1930).

Technical Specs

Duration
1h 7m
Sound
Mono (RCA Victor System)
Color
Black and White
Theatrical Aspect Ratio
1.37 : 1
Film Length
7 reels

Quotes

Trivia

Notes

The working titles of this film were In the Mexican Quarter and Mexican Quarter. Marjorie Lord made her screen debut in this film. Motion Picture Herald's "In the Cutting Room" adds Dudley Clements to the cast, while Hollywood Reporter production charts and news items add Alec Craig and Hooper Atchley. Their participation in the final film has not been confirmed.