Bonus 78s - Boots and Saddles!

As my custom after watching a musical from the 1930s or 1940 is to listen to the studio recordings (if any) of the songs from the film, so it is with "Boots and Saddles," the 1937 Gene Autry movie featuring Ronald Sinclair, young Scrooge from 1938's "A Christmas Carol."

Gene recorded a couple of the songs that he sang on the movie for the Brunswick umbrella of labels, which show up on Vocalion, Melotone, Conqueror, Perfect, etc.

The records on these budget labels were extremely popular with Gene's fans in rural areas.

So, here's Gene with the more-or-less title song, "Take Me Back to My Boots and Saddle":

Gene also sang "Ridin' the Range" in the movie:

The lyrics of that song don't make the cowboy life sound like too much fun, but it helped convince Ronald's character to want to save the ranch!

Also featured in the movie was "The One Rose (That's Left in My Heart):

That particular song has its roots as a Hawaiian number, but has been performed in all sorts of styles over the years in addition to country versions like Gene's.

I'm particularly partial to the 1937 hit version by the great Larry Clinton band with vocalist Bea Wain on Victor Records:

Good songs can be performed in any style!

Ronald Sinclair 101 - Part 3!

Continuing to dig up additional movies featuring Ronald Sinclair, the child actor who portrayed young Scrooge in MGM's 1938 version of "A Christmas Carol," we come across "Boots and Saddles" from Republic Pictures in 1937, the western with Gene Autry referred to in the clipping from last time.

The Autry vehicle features Ronald Sinclair (still billed under his sort-of real name Ra Hould) as a young British earl who inherits the ranch of which Gene is the foreman.

Will Gene transform the lad into a real westerner and save the ranch? Watch the movie and see!

If you like one Autry movie from the 1930s, you probably like them all, but this one stands out for a couple of reasons.

One is the somewhat different story element of the British lad going West.

Future Wild Bill (standing, in yellow shirt) doesn't look too concerned!

Another is that the villain is portrayed by Gordon Elliott, who just the next year would star as Wild Bill Hickock in Columbia's 1938 serial "The Great Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok." That was such a success that he became a major Western star billed as Wild Bill Elliott!

He was a good actor and makes a good villain, with the thin little mustache and all and it's fun to see such a stalwart cowboy star in that manner!

Gene plays his usual version of himself and has his usual sidekick Smiley Burnette as Frog Millhouse with his usual antics.

Judith Allen gives the movie a little zip as Gene's love interest and Guy Usher as Judith's father gives good support as well.

Ronald/Ra isn't given too much to do past the setup of the story, but he does a good job and has some fun scenes with Smiley.

Easy to see why MGM snatched him up when they needed a quick Freddie Bartholomew replacement!

Good fun!