I watch these old Westerns in which Indians play a large part and I can't help but think about those folks who insist that the Washington Redskins change the name of the team. They'd be absolutely apoplectic over the way Native Americans are depicted here, even when Gene narrates a respectful tribute to rituals like the Eagle Dance and the Buffalo Dance. Oh well, times certainly do change.
Gene goes under cover in this story, ditching his military garb and returning to the town of Apache Springs as a regular rancher, taking along sidekick Pat Buttram. He's also got a female operative helping out, as singer and Medicine Show owner Carolina Cotton seeks justice for the murder of her father at the hands of villain Dave Kilrain (Harry Lauter). I'm always curious to see how Lauter turns up in Autry's stories, sometimes cast as an outlaw and sometimes as a good guy. My first recollection of him is from the old TV Western "Tales of the Texas Rangers" where he played the amiable Ranger Clay Morgan. Just checking his credits here on the IMDb and he's got over three hundred career listings!
In the story, Kilrain creates local havoc by supplying Indians with guns and stoking up trouble as a cover for his own gang's bandit activities. I got a kick out of an opening scene when his raiders attacked the stagecoach with Gene, Pat, Carolina and Kilrain's fiancée Laura Rayburn (Mary Scott) on board. At one point, an outlaw bullet shoots off Carolina's bonnet, but when she pulls back into the stagecoach it's back on her head!
Probably the highlight of the picture, at least for me, had nothing to do with the story per se. When Carolina Cotton goes into song and begins to yodel it's a wonder to behold. She did a number here that was absolutely incredible in the way she controlled her voice to create those musical sounds. You really have to hear it to appreciate it.
As for the story itself, well it was pretty standard when all is said and done. For an Autry film, I think it might have set a record in a reverse direction for number of tunes; I only counted two which would be the least of any picture I've seen. Pat Buttram got my summary line in when he prefaced it by stating Gene should get a promotion. I thought about it, and it sounded like something Leo Gorcey would have come up with.
Gene goes under cover in this story, ditching his military garb and returning to the town of Apache Springs as a regular rancher, taking along sidekick Pat Buttram. He's also got a female operative helping out, as singer and Medicine Show owner Carolina Cotton seeks justice for the murder of her father at the hands of villain Dave Kilrain (Harry Lauter). I'm always curious to see how Lauter turns up in Autry's stories, sometimes cast as an outlaw and sometimes as a good guy. My first recollection of him is from the old TV Western "Tales of the Texas Rangers" where he played the amiable Ranger Clay Morgan. Just checking his credits here on the IMDb and he's got over three hundred career listings!
In the story, Kilrain creates local havoc by supplying Indians with guns and stoking up trouble as a cover for his own gang's bandit activities. I got a kick out of an opening scene when his raiders attacked the stagecoach with Gene, Pat, Carolina and Kilrain's fiancée Laura Rayburn (Mary Scott) on board. At one point, an outlaw bullet shoots off Carolina's bonnet, but when she pulls back into the stagecoach it's back on her head!
Probably the highlight of the picture, at least for me, had nothing to do with the story per se. When Carolina Cotton goes into song and begins to yodel it's a wonder to behold. She did a number here that was absolutely incredible in the way she controlled her voice to create those musical sounds. You really have to hear it to appreciate it.
As for the story itself, well it was pretty standard when all is said and done. For an Autry film, I think it might have set a record in a reverse direction for number of tunes; I only counted two which would be the least of any picture I've seen. Pat Buttram got my summary line in when he prefaced it by stating Gene should get a promotion. I thought about it, and it sounded like something Leo Gorcey would have come up with.