''The Singing Hill'' is a 1941 American

western film The Western is a film genre defined by the American Film Institute as films which are "set in the American West that mbodythe spirit, the struggle, and the demise of the new frontier." Generally set in the American frontier between the Calif ...

directed by

Lew Landers Lew Landers (born Louis Friedlander, January 2, 1901 – December 16, 1962) was an American independent film and television director. Biography Born as Louis Friedlander in New York City, Lew Landers began his movie career as an actor. In 1914, ...

and starring

Gene Autry Orvon Grover "Gene" Autry (September 29, 1907 – October 2, 1998), nicknamed the Singing Cowboy, was an American actor, musician, singer, composer, rodeo performer, and baseball team owner, who largely gained fame by singing in a Crooner ...

Smiley Burnette Lester Alvin Burnett (March 18, 1911 – February 16, 1967), better known as Smiley Burnette, was an American country music performer and a comedic actor in Western films and on radio and TV, playing sidekick to Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, and ...

, and

Virginia Dale Virginia Dale (born Virginia Paxton; – October 3, 1994) was an American actress and dancer. Biography Dale was born in North Carolina. She was the daughter of Lula Helms Paxton, and she graduated from Central High School in Charlotte. D ...

. Based on a story by Jesse Lasky Jr. and Richard Murphy, the film is about a

singing cowboy A singing cowboy was a subtype of the archetypal cowboy hero of early Western (genre), Western films. It references real-world campfire side ballads in the American frontier. The original cowboys sang of life on the trail with all the challenges, ...

and foreman of a

ranch A ranch (from /Mexican Spanish) is an area of landscape, land, including various structures, given primarily to ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle and sheep. It is a subtype of farm. These terms are most often ap ...

that may be sold to an unscrupulous banker by the young madcap

heir Inheritance is the practice of receiving private property, titles, debts, entitlements, privileges, rights, and obligations upon the death of an individual. The rules of inheritance differ among societies and have changed over time. Offi ...

ess who is unaware that the sale will result in the local ranchers losing their free grazing land and their ranches.Magers 2007, pp. 187–188. In the film, Autry performed the 1940 song "

Blueberry Hill "Blueberry Hill" is a popular American song published in 1940 and first recorded and released by Sammy Kaye in 1940 on RCA Victor. It is best remembered for its 1950s rock and roll version by Fats Domino. Glenn Miller peaked at no. 2 on the ' ...

", first recorded by

Sammy Kaye Sammy Kaye (born Samuel Zarnocay Jr.; March 13, 1910 – June 2, 1987) was an American bandleader and songwriter, whose tag line, "Swing and Sway with Sammy Kaye", became one of the most famous of the Big Band Era. The expression springs fr ...

, which would become a standard recorded by such artists as

Louis Armstrong Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and several era ...

(1949),

Fats Domino Antoine Caliste Domino Jr. (February 26, 1928 – October 24, 2017), known as Fats Domino, was an American singer-songwriter and pianist. One of the pioneers of rock and roll music, Domino sold more than 65 million records. Born in New Orl ...

(1956), and

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...

(1957). The song became one of Autry's best-selling recordings.Magers 2007, p. 188. In 1987, "Blueberry Hill" received an ASCAP Award for Most Performed Feature Film Standards on TV.

Plot

Singing cowboy Gene Autry (

) is the foreman of the Circle R Ranch, which has been in the Adams family for generations. The ranchers in the area have enjoyed free grazing rights on the Circle R for years. Recently, the madcap heiress of the ranch, beautiful Jo Adams (

), negotiated the sale of the ranch in order to pay off some of her debts. She accepted a $25,000 down payment, with an option to purchase in 60 days, from unscrupulous cattle broker John Ramsey (

George Meeker George Meeker (March 5, 1904 – August 19, 1984 ) was an American Character actor, character film and Broadway theatre, Broadway actor. A graduate of the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, Meeker made several films such as ''Crime, Inc.'' (1 ...

) who is conspiring with Adams' business manager James Morgan (Harry Stubbs) to buy the ranch and cut off grazing rights to the ranchers. As the head of the cattlemen's association, Gene is accused of betraying the ranchers after they learn that the Circle R is being sold and that their grazing rights, bequeathed to them by Jo's late grandfather, will be taken away. Without access to the Circle R pasture lands, most of the ranches in the area will go bankrupt. Determined to persuade Jo to change her mind, Gene and his pals, Frog Millhouse (

), Cactus Mack (Cactus Mack), and Patsy ( Mary Lee), drive to Jo's palatial house in the city. The scatterbrained Jo mistakes them for the band hired to play at her birthday party that evening, and they perform in order to stay. After the party, Gene explains who they are and urges Jo to return to the ranch and run it the way her grandfather did. The frivolous heiress, however, has no intention of changing her extravagant lifestyle. With few options available to him, Gene abducts Jo and her butler, Dada (Gerald Oliver Smith), and takes them back to the Circle R Ranch, where Pop Sloan (Wade Boteler), a rancher who has known Jo all her life, has organized a welcoming party for her. Despite her appreciation, Jo tells Gene that she is broke and has to sell the ranch to pay her debts. Soon after, Gene approaches Judge Henry Starbottle (

Spencer Charters Spencer Charters (March 25, 1875 – January 25, 1943) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 220 films between 1920 and 1943, mostly in small supporting roles. Biography Charters was born in Duncannon, Pennsylvania. Until aroun ...

) and explains the impact the sale of the Circle R would have on the ranchers in the area. They conspire to have Jo declared legally incompetent in order to buy some time. At the hearing, Henry rules that she is to become a ward of the court, and Gene is placed in charge of the ranch until Jo can prove her competency. In order to raise enough money to repay Ramsey his down payment, Gene and the ranchers drive their cattle to market. When Ramsey learns of their intentions, he sends his henchmen to blow up a dam and flood the valley through which the cattle are passing. The dam is destroyed and the cattle stampede. In the ensuing chaos, most of the cattle are drowned or dispersed, and Gene is barely able to save Pop from drowning. Meanwhile, Jo wins her competency hearing, regains control over the ranch, and quickly fires Gene and the other Circle R cowboys. As the men are packing to leave, Jo arrives to say goodbye to the men, but is distressed to see families who will be displaced because of her actions. She drives away, but is stopped on the road by Judge Henry, who tells her that she must say goodbye to Pop before she leaves. Jo is overcome with grief when the judge brings her to the old man's funeral; the old man did not survive his ordeal. Later, after Jo reveals that she told Ramsey about the cattle drive, Gene realizes that Ramsey was behind the dam explosion. When Jo tells him that she now intends to keep the ranch, Gene devises a plan, sending her to Ramsey's office where she tells him that Gene is holding Morgan in an attempt to get information from him. Worried that Morgan will implicate him in the dam explosion, Ramsey hires a group of gunmen to kill Gene. When the hired guns sneak onto the Circle R that night, they are beaten and captured by Gene and the ranch hands. Gene himself apprehends Ramsey after giving the corrupt cattle broker a beating. Afterwards, the ranchers are promised a good deal on their next herds, and Jo keeps Gene as her foreman.

Cast

as Gene Autry *

as Frog Millhouse *

as Jo Adams * Mary Lee as Patsy *

as Judge Henry Starrbottle *

Gerald Oliver Smith Gerald Wilson Oliver Smith (June 26, 1892 – May 28, 1974) was an English-born actor who spent most of his career in the United States, both in New York City as a stage actor and in the Hollywood film industry. Biography Born in Sidcup, ...

as 'Dada' the Butler *

as John R. Ramsey *

Wade Boteler Wade Boteler (October 3, 1888 – May 7, 1943) was an American film actor and writer. He appeared in more than 430 films between 1919 and 1943. Biography He was born in Santa Ana, California, and died in Hollywood, California, from a heart ...

as Pop Sloan * Harry Stubbs as James Morgan * Cactus Mack as Cactus Mack * Jack Kirk as Rancher Flint * Frankie Marvin as Short Dancing Cowhand * William H. O'Brien as Butler * Dan White as Rancher (uncredited) * Champion as Gene's Horse (uncredited)Magers 2007, p. 187.

Production

Filming and budget

''The Singing Hill'' was filmed March 11–24, 1941. The film had an operating budget of $86,869 (equal to $ today), and a

negative cost Negative cost is the net expense to produce and shoot a film, excluding such expenditures as distribution and promotion. Low-budget movies, for example '' The Blair Witch Project'', can have promotional expenses that are much larger than the ne ...

of $87,184.

Casting

was a former Earl Carroll showgirl. Working for Paramount as a contract player, she was loaned out to Republic Pictures for ''The Singing Hill'' when the studio's original choice, Patricia Morison refused the part because of the unsuitability of the story and the clothes.

Stuntwork

* Joe Yrigoyen (Gene Autry's stunt double) * Tommy Coats * Nellie Walker * B. Kane * Yakima Canutt

Filming locations

* Andy Jauregui Ranch, Placerita Canyon Road, Newhall, California, USA * Walker Ranch, Placerita Canyon Road, Newhall, California, USA * Red Rock Canyon State Park, Highway 14, Cantil, California, USA

Soundtrack

* "

" (Al Lewis, Larry Stock, Vincent Rose) by Gene Autry * "The Last Round-Up" (Billy Hill) by Gene Autry * "Let a Smile Be Your Umbrella on a Rainy Day" (Sammy Fain, Irving Kahal, Francis Wheeler) * "Tumbledown Shack in Havana" (Jule Styne, Eddie Cherkose, Sol Meyer) by Virginia Dale * "Sail the Seven Seas" (Smiley Burnette) by Smiley Burnette and Mary Lee * "Patsy's Birthday Routine" (Jule Styne, Sol Meyer) by Mary Lee * "Ridin' Down That Old Texas Trail" (Milt Mabie, Dott Massey) by Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, Cactus Mack, and Mary Lee * "Good Old-Fashioned Hoedown" by Gene Autry * "There'll Never Be Another Pal Like You" (Gene Autry, Johnny Marvin)

References

;Notes ;Citations ;Bibliography * * *

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Singing Hill, The 1941 films 1941 Western (genre) films American Western (genre) films American black-and-white films Republic Pictures films Films directed by Lew Landers Films scored by Raoul Kraushaar 1940s English-language films 1940s American films English-language Western (genre) films