Customer Reviews

Bowery Boys - Bowery Buckaroos [VHS]

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The Bowery Boys go hunt for a lost treasure in Texas with the help of a map tattooed on the back of a sweet-shop owner, whom, they hang around on the Bowery named "Louie". When they travel to Texas to free Louie, a fugitive from justice, (of which he was wrongfully accused) they find out information with the help of a undercover friend (Gabe). On their way there, they tattoo the tattoo on the back of a dim-witted character name Sach, who gets kidnapped by being bribed with a slingshot. He then walks through water and washes off the map which he maintained. With lots of funny wise-cracks and slapstick, and the gang getting into trouble they find the real murderer and through torture they make him confess. Louie is brought to Texas by a Marshal of the town (Hangman's Hallow) and Sach captures the rest of the bad guys gang. Then, it turns out that Sach was just dreaming the entire movie.

The Bowery Boys originated their roles in "Dead End" a Broadway play and movie (1937) in which, some of them were killed. But, they came back alive for the movie "Angels with dirty faces". They started their own gang, and renamed it a few times to: "The Dead End Kids" to "Little Tough Guys", "The East Side Kids" and finally "The Bowery Boys". The Bowery stars of this film are:

Leo Gorcey as Terence Aloysius 'Slip' Mahoney

Huntz Hall as Horace Debussy 'Sach' Jones

Bernard Gorcey as Louie Dumbrowsky

David Gorcey as Chuck

Benny Bartlett as Butch

Gabriel Dell as Gabe and

Billy Benedict as Whity.

This may not be one of their best movies, but it is a very funny one.

This is the 8th film in the Bowery Boys film series and the gang is celebrating 10 years together on film since the first, DEAD END (1937) as the Dead End Kids when they were so young and later The East Side Kids. Now the Bowery Boys, they made 48 films for this Bowery Boys film series 1946-1958. Sadly, only 6 are available on VHS. For this review, I will include the age of each main Bowery Boy in the cast. Leo Gorcey 32, Huntz Hall 27, Bobby Jordan 25, Gabriel Dell 28, Billy Benedict 30, David Gorcey 32. This film starts on Louie's Sweet Shop. Bernard Gorcey (Leo & David's father) as "Louie" is singing a western tune. Huntz is reading a comic book, "Western Yarns" and Bobby, Billy and David are sitting at the counter. Suddenly, an old western Sheriff, Luke Barlow comes in with his horse. Leo walks in too. The Sheriff has been looking for Louie for 20 years. He's wanted for murder and there is a $5,000 reward. After the sheriff leaves, Louie comes out of hiding. Of course, it is not true. You see, years ago, Louie and a friend discovered gold. Blackjack killed Louie's best firend for the gold. Now, Louie is the only one with he map of where the gold is. So the men go to New mexico to Hangman's Hollow in search of the gold that belongs to Louie and his best friend's daughter. By the way, Indians including Iron Eyes Cody finds the gang. The next eleven films are not available on VHS. Try BLUES BUSTERS (1950).

I grew up watching the East side kids. This one I havent seen since I was a kid. It was funny and sure brought back memories.

This VHS tape looks in decent shape. A little worn. I have not watched it yet.

The film begins outside of Louie's Sweet Shoppe. Louie sings a song [for comedy]. A man rides up on a horse. Sheriff Luke Barlow is searching for Louie the Lout, dead or alive. So Louie explains what happened 20 years ago; he was blamed for a murder he didn't do. Louie saved the map to the gold mine. The Bowery Boys decide to go West to get the gold, and find Pete's daughter. Are the days of the Wild West gone? [Not for Hollywood.] Some Indians greet them in an unusual manner. "Do you want your arrows back?" The Indian Chief warns them against Hangman's Hollow, a dangerous place.

Did someone talk too much? Black Jack gets a warning and sets an ambush. Shots are fired, "real bullets". Marshall K. T. Barlow halts the shooting. One of the boys is kidnapped for the map on his back. So the others go to rescue him. They seek help, and find someone (a coincidence). There are comic scenes. Slip enters and fire shots, nobody looks at him. There is a card trick to impress the crowd. [All those shots must keep the carpenters busy.] Katherine Briggs sings a song to entertain the audience. Black Jack plots to find the map during a dance. But Slip kidnaps Black Jack, and the chase begins. Will they use threats to get a confession? [Is that funny?] Louie is exonerated by Black Jack's confession. So what will happen next? The ending redeems the story.

This is a low budget production to provide popular entertainment for those who go to a movie every weekend. Malapropisms aren't that funny. TV will soon put an end to these films.