Last week I took ya'll back to 1944 with the Roy Rogers and Dale Evans feature "Lights of Old Santa Fe." Today we're going to June 19, 1945, the release date of one of the finest, the Roy Rogers feature "Bells of Rosarita." Not only are Roy and his horse Trigger well featured, the familiar cast of Gabby Hayes, Dale Evans, with Bob Nolan and the Sons of the Pioneers all played wonderful roles. And to top it off, a number of wonderful guest performers from Republic Studios were enlisted. I'll tell you who they are in a moment.
I recall seeing this movie the first time on VHS in 1994. I purchased it myself from some dear friends over near Tulsa who ran a used record store. Owned by the Johnson family, they sold a lot of Sons of the Pioneers radio broadcasts in addition to early country and bluegrass artists. Frontier Records was their store and they ran it as a mail order business for many years. Every month they would send me an updated catalog of their items.
I was beyond excited as usual when my purchase of "Bells of Rosarita" arrived. Uncut, lasting at 68 minutes. I was blown away with the musical segments and Bob Nolan's performing abilities. Bob played a second lead role that kept him very active during the entire film.
The plot gets down to business with Dale and Gabby who are trying to save her circus, since her father, the circus manager, has recently died. The opening scenes show where their circus is in its winter location at Gabby's California based ranch, and Republic is filming a Roy Rogers movie, Bells of Rosarita. This portion of the film shows something rarely seen for a few moments, the shooting of the film.
Later in the film in order to save Dale's circus act, Roy makes a phone call and is able to get assistance from fellow Republic stars. Making guest appearances are Wild Bill Elliott, Don "Red" Barry, Allan "Rocky" Lane, Sunset Carson and Bob Livingston. Many fans remember Livingston playing the Lone Ranger in early versions of the series before Clayton Moore took the television series.
Roy and these Western guest stars chase down a gang of bank robbers, and then rush back to town on horseback in time to participate in a circus performance, which is the closing scene.
As I said earlier, Bob Nolan is quite active in his second lead role, and for the second time on film, Bob is romancing actress Adele Mara. Bob's confidence as an actor truly shows here, and he played his part professionally. He was once offered his own Western series in the late 1930s when the Pioneers were under contract at Columbia, but he turned it down.
There's quite a bit of comical fun in this feature involving Gabby Hayes and Pioneers bass player Shug Fisher. The other Pioneers are well featured as well. Along with Bob and Shug, the other Sons of the Pioneers are Hugh and Karl Farr, Ken Carson, and Doye O'Dell, who filled in for Tim Spencer.
The musical numbers include "Bugler's Lullaby," performed by the Robert Mitchell Boys Choir. They also back Roy on the title number, written by composer Jack Elliott, who wrote many numbers for the Rogers films. Also performed by Dale Evans is a great performance of "Under a Blanket of Blue." During the barbecue scene, Bob Nolan and Adele Mara do a dance as Roy and the Pioneers perform "Singin' Down the Road." Roy and the Robert Mitchell Boys Choir are featured on the Cliff Friend composition, "Gonna Build a Big Fence Around Texas." I've always admired Roy's simple yodel on this number.
The traditional song "Michael Finnegan" is featured by the Robert Mitchell Boys Choir and during the circus parade scene, the Sons of the Pioneers are featured with "When the Circus Came to Town." Bob Nolan will perform his own composition, "Trail Herdin' Cowboy," a moving tune that was popular for a number of years on the group's radio broadcasts.
"Bells of Rosarita" was the second of seven Roy Rogers film releases in 1945. It would be a very busy year for Roy and the Sons of the Pioneers. The Roy Rogers radio show over the Mutual Radio Network aired each Tuesday evening and was immensely popular. Republic Pictures continued this wonderful formula in the Rogers Westerns. As time allowed, there was quite a bit of touring. Everyone enjoyed the fame and all got along well together, as they were all like family. The support of their millions of fans would continue this popularity for years to come.
"Bells of Rosarita" is easy to find if you'd like to see it. The uncut version can be found on YouTube.
Next week it's back to some Taney County community history as I'll take ya'll to the neighborhood my family is from—Flag, Missouri.
Happy trails, ya'll!
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