Rodeo
Brief Synopsis
Cast & Crew
William Beaudine
Jane Nigh
John Archer
Wallace Ford
Gary Gray
Frances Rafferty
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
As a rodeo outfit ends its run in a small town, feed store owner Harry Cartwright sends his no-nonsense daughter Nancy to collect the $1,800 that rodeo business manager Breezy Statler owes him. When she arrives at the business office, however, Statler is out and she is helped by rodeo rider Tex Martin, who is immediately drawn to her beauty. She and her younger brother Joey watch Tex as he rides a bronco, but he becomes distracted when he notes Nancy in the crowd and is thrown. Afterward, while his pal, old rodeo rider and woman-hater Barbecue Jones, chastises Tex for thinking about girls, Tex receives a telegram from Statler stating that he is broke and has left town. Although Nancy at first suspects she is being cheated, she soon changes her mind when the rest of the cast arrive to complain that their prize money and payroll are also gone. Nancy, noticing an article by rodeo promoter Allen H. Grandstead declaring that any rodeo can be a money-maker, advises the group to expand the business themselves, sharing all the profits. The riders, led by champion Bat Gorman, at first refuse, but after Tex convinces Nancy to take over the business side of the outfit, they agree to give it a try. That night, Nancy brings Tex home to dinner, forgetting that her married sister Martha, who wants Nancy to settle down with a stable man, has brought staid Charlie Olenick to meet her. Tex charms Harry and Joey at dinner and later kisses Nancy, who is willing but informs him that she cannot get involved with a drifter. Within weeks, Nancy is running the rodeo efficiently but with an iron fist, and Barbecue, who has taken Joey under his wing, complains bitterly about her bossiness. When Barbecue tries to quiet wild horse Devilgrass, he is thrown and is chastised by Nancy. The rodeo begins to travel and earn money under her command. One day, Tex visits his ranch and discovers that he has only thirty days to pay off its note. Meanwhile, his ex-girl friend, cowgirl Dixie Benson, mentions the ranch to Nancy, adding that Tex only rides in the rodeo in order to save money. Nancy is intrigued at this example of Tex's stability, and after she witnesses him beat up Bat in order to collect half of his winnings for Nancy's fund, she kisses him. That evening, he asks her to marry him, but she states that she cannot turn her back on the rodeo. He nonetheless takes her to his ranch the next day, where they promptly fight because she is still afraid that he is not stable enough, and he accuses her of being shallow. She leaves and over the next weeks they do not talk. One day, Nancy sees Barbecue teaching Joey to ride horses, and when Barbecue later overhears her tell the boy that his hero is washed up, he becomes determined to prove her wrong. When he enters the bronco-riding contest, he quickly is thrown from Devilgrass and seriously injured. Tex, learning that Nancy insulted Barbecue, denounces her and leaves the rodeo. Dixie then informs her that, although Barbecue will survive, the rest of the group is also leaving her. Just then, Nancy receives a telegram from Grandstead stating that he will be attending their next show, possibly to buy it. Despondent, she brings Joey to visit Barbecue in the hospital, where he forgives her and is furious that the group walked out on the rodeo. As soon as he is better, he visits Tex and informs the cowboy that Nancy spent all her earnings on his hospital bill, which prompts Tex to round up the whole gang and return to the show. Dixie visits Nancy and Joey at home to inform them that if they leave immediately, they can make the show, and although Nancy's mother Agatha protests, Harry finally tells her to be quiet. They race to the show, where, before a huge crowd, Tex wins the bronco contest and Grandstead offers Nancy $2,000 for the business. Afterward, Tex informs Nancy he now has enough to pay off the ranch, and she asks him to marry her. He kisses her, as Barbecue laughs at them both.
Director
William Beaudine
Cast
Jane Nigh
John Archer
Wallace Ford
Gary Gray
Frances Rafferty
Sarah Hayden
Frank Ferguson
Myron Healey
Fuzzy Knight
Robert Karnes
Jim Bannon
I. Stanford Jolley
Milton Kibbee
Ann Doran
Edna Holland
Polly Berson
George Steele
Bobby Clark
Buff Brady
Ferris Taylor
Wilbur Mack
Paul Bryar
Perc Launders
Mike Ross
Wheaton Chambers
Tom Daly
Bob Peoples
Russell Hicks
Crew
William Austin
Charles Cooper
Richard Heermance
William R. Holm
Charles R. Marion
Charles R. Marion
Walter Mirisch
Edward Morey Jr.
Harry Neumann
Martin Obzina
Clifford D. Shank
Marlin Skiles
Ilona Vas
Allen K. Wood
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
Footage of rodeo action, parades and crowds is seen throughout the film. The record on the film in the Copyright Catalog mistakenly lists the actor actor who played "Charles Olenick" as Dave Willock instead of Robert Karnes. According to an August 1951 Hollywood Reporter news item, locations were scouted in Arizona, although it has not been confirmed if any footage was shot there.
