Pirates on Horseback

The Hopalong Cassidy movies and television show are fond childhood memories. This is the first Hoppy movie I have seen in more than five decades. While I certainly hope I watch B Westerns with a different eye than I did when a child, I still enjoy them and this one was superb. Hoppy's comic sidekick, California (Clyde) receives word that his distant cousin, a prospector named Ben, has been murdered. Ben had recently struck gold at the El Dorado mine and unfortunately talked about it in the saloon. Ankrum wonderfully plays the cold and vicious gang leader Ace Gibson whose henchmen murder Ben. The ambush of Ben at his cabin is a gripping scene worthy of being in an A Western. Hoppy, California and Lucky (Russell Hayden) head out to Rim Rock to find Ben's mine. Upon arriving at the cabin, they find Ben's niece Trudy (Eleanor Stewart) already there. Pretending to be an old friend of Ben's, Ace has befriended Trudy and later turns her against Hoppy, California and Lucky. Unraveling a cryptic clue Ben left, the three do discover the mine. I much enjoyed the comic moments, particularly the scene where Hoppy and California tease Lucky over his falling so quickly for Trudy. I know Ankrum often played the bad guy in Westerns but every time I see him, I think of his role as a judge on the Perry Mason television show. At any rate, this is a superior oater whose only flaw for me is the ending, which makes no sense in terms of any succeeding Hoppy films.