4.0 out of 5 stars
"Roy Rogers B-Western Series ... Hands Across the Border (1944) ... Republic Pictures ", October 9, 2007
Republic Pictures present "HANDS ACROSS THE BORDER" (5 January 1944) (73 mins/B&W) (Fully Restored/Dolby Digitally Remastered) --- Roy Rogers (born Leonard Slye) moved to California in 1930, at the age of 18 --- played in such musical groups as The Hollywood Hillbillies, Rocky Mountaineers, Texas Outlaws and his own group, the International Cowboys --- In 1934 he formed a group with Bob Nolan and Tim Spencer called "Sons of the Pioneers" --- While in that group he was known as Leonard Slye, then Dick Weston and finally Roy Rogers --- Their songs included "Cool Water" and "Tumbling Tumbleweeds" --- They first appeared in the western "Rhythm on the Range" (1936), starring Bing Crosby --- In 1937 Roy went solo and made his first starring film in 1938, "Under Western Stars" (1938) --- He made almost 100 films --- then came television, "The Roy Rogers Show" (1951) ran on CBS from October 1951 through September 1964.
Under Joseph Kane (Director), Harry Grey (Producer), J. Benton Cheney (Screenwriter), Bradford Ropes (Screenwriter), Reggie Lanning (Cinematographer),
Hoagy Carmichael (Songwriter), Phil Ohman (Songwriter), Walter Scharf (Composer (Music Score), Morton Scott (Musical Direction/Supervision), Ned Washington (Songwriter), Tony Martinelli (Editor), Fred A. Ritter (Art Director), David Gould (Choreography) - - - - Our story line and plot, Roy helps a young female ranch owner gain an Army contract for horses --- Trigger plays a significant roles in the story, winning a race that simulates wartime battle action --- This film concludes with a lengthy and elaborate musical production that emphasizes the need for good neighbor relations with Mexico --- Very little action but plenty of songs, featuring musical numbers by composers Hoagy Carmichael and Ned Washington --- Guinn "Big Boy" Williams and Mary Treen supply the comedy relief, when asked if she's afraid of Indians, Treen quips "not if there are cigar stores behind them" --- plus that zany European comedy trio The Wiere Brothers --- watch for Duncan Renaldo as Juan Morales --- some wonderful tunes, WHEN YOUR HEART'S ON EASY STREET -- THE GIRL IN THE HIGH BUTTONED SHOES -- HANDS ACROSS THE BORDER -- HEY, HEY -- DREAMING TO MUSIC -- COOL WATER -- AY JALISCO.
the cast includes
Roy Rogers ... Roy Rogers
Trigger ... "Smartest Horse in the Movies"
Ruth Terry ... Kim Adams
Guinn 'Big Boy' Williams ... Teddy Bear
Onslow Stevens ... Brock Danvers
Mary Treen ... Sophie Lawrence
Joseph Crehan ... Jeff 'Bet-a-Hundred' Adams
Duncan Renaldo ... Juan Morales
LeRoy Mason ... Sheriff
Janet Martin ... Rosita Morales
Sons of the Pioneers ... Musicians
Bob Nolan ... Bob / Sons of the Pioneers
Pat Brady ... Pat, Sons of the Pioneers
Tim Spencer ... Musician / Sons of the Pioneers
Ken Carson ... Musician / Sons of the Pioneers
Hugh Farr ... Musician / Sons of the Pioneers
Karl Farr ... Musician / Sons of the Pioneers
The Wiere Brothers ... Comedians
Harry Wiere ... Harry (Wiere Brothers) (as The Wiere Brothers)
Herbert Wiere ... Herby (Wiere Brothers) (as The Wiere Brothers)
Sylvester Wiere ... Comedian (Wiere Brothers) (as The Wiere Brothers)
Roy Barcroft ... Deputy
The Boyd Triplets ... Themselves
Kenne Duncan ... Deputy
Jack Kirk ... Race official
Jack O'Shea ... Deputy
Julian Rivero ... Señor Morales
BIOS:
1. Roy Rogers (aka: Leonard Franklin Slye)
Date of Birth: 5 November 1911 - Cincinnati, Ohio
Date of Death: 6 July 1998 - Apple Valley, California
Check out a new book from Empire Publishing - "THE ROY ROGERS BOOK: A REFERENCE TRIVIA SCRAPBOOK" (Paperback) --- reference trivia scrapbook of Roy Rogers written by Western film historian David Rothel whose accounts of thrilling adventures of B-Western heroes during the Saturday matinees of yesteryear takes us back to our childhood, family and friends --- this is a wish come true, reliving those wonderful years from the past through the pen of David Rothel --- Roy was a top box office draw for Republic Pictures when you went to see him on the big screen, you got exactly what the marquee said --- plenty of thrills, action and hard riding with a song or two thrown in for good measure --- Elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1980 as a member of the "Sons of the Pioneers" and elected again in 1988 as Roy Rogers "King of the Cowboys" --- Roy got his horse "Trigger" in 1938 and rode him in every one of his films and TV shows after that --- "Trigger" died in 1965 age of thirty-three --- Roy's dog's name was "Bullet" and appeared in almost as many of his films as "Trigger" did --- Roy's theme song, "Happy Trails", was written by Queen of the West and his wife Dale Evans --- inducted (with his wife Dale Evans) into the "Hall of Great Western Performers of the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum" in 1976 --- inducted as a member of the "Sons of the Pioneers into the "Hall of Great Western Performers of the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum" in 1995 just three years before his death --- Don't miss this one --- now appearing on Amazon and Empire Publishing --- Don't hesitate - rush out and pick up your copy today --- Great reading in the days and weeks to come --- I guarantee it!
Hats off and thanks to Les Adams (collector/guideslines for character identification), Chuck Anderson (Webmaster: The Old Corral/B-Westerns.Com), Boyd Magers (Western Clippings), Bobby J. Copeland (author of "Trail Talk"), Rhonda Lemons (Empire Publishing Inc), Bob Nareau (author of "The Real Bob Steele") and Trevor Scott (Down Under DVD Com) as they have rekindled my interest once again for Film Noir, B-Westerns and Serials --- looking forward to more high quality releases from the vintage serial era of the '20s, '30s & '40s and B-Westerns ... order your copy now from Amazon where there are plenty of copies available on DVD --- stay tuned once again for top notch action mixed with musical adventure --- if you enjoyed this title, why not check out Amazon where they are experts in releasing B-Westerns --- all my heroes have been cowboys!
Total Time: 73 min on VHS/DVD ~ Republic Pictures ~ (9/06/2007)
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