I haven't seen "Hopalong Cassidy Returns" a couple of other reviewers mention, so I don't know it came up in that picture, but this is the one and lonely time I've ever heard reference made to Hopalong Cassidy's real first name. Hoppy calls himself 'Bill' when introducing himself to town of Gunsight mayor and newspaper editor, Jim Stuart (Morris Ankrum), while also tracing his lineage back to Ireland. Kind of makes sense considering William Boyd portrays the character. Another aspect of Hoppy's back story is also revealed when Stuart recalls that Hoppy's an ex-sheriff of Santa Fe who cleaned up the town single-handed. The self effacing Cassidy states that he had plenty of help.
An unusual aspect of this story has the villain gang leader a woman, who just happens to fall for Cassidy in a big enough way to affect the outcome of the picture. Belle Langtry (Evelyn Brent) is the owner of the Paradise Saloon, and routinely sends out her henchmen to rustle cattle and subvert local mining claims. When the 'Gunsight Clarion' calls for local citizens to band together to fight against the corruption, it's only natural for Hoppy to accept a sheriff's badge from Mayor Stuart, especially since he was already hot on the trail of rustlers that ran off with some of his stock from the Bar 20.
So with Belle Langtry sidling up to Hoppy, and the mayor's daughter just a smidgen too young for Lucky Jenkins (Russell Hayden), it's up to Andy Clyde to provide some of the comedy relief as Hoppy's partner California. There's a running gag throughout the picture where California is repeatedly warned by Joan Stuart (Cara Williams) to keep away from a doo-dad on the Clarion's printing press. You know it was only a matter of time before he got a face full of ink for disregarding that message. There was also a sequence in the story in which California proved he would never make a good busboy.
You know, if you study the cast list for this picture, it reads like a mini-'Who's Who' of B Western character actors, with folks like Victor Jory, Glenn Strange, Morris Ankrum, Roy Barcroft, Ed Cassidy and Jack Rockwell in the mix, and that's just the credited names besides the good guy trio at the top of the bill. I got a kick out of that scene in which Hoppy gets into a scuffle with Victor Jory's character, Steve Fraser. They're in a hotel room, and Cassidy punches Fraser out of a window, but if you take note, Jory had to give himself a little push with his leg to fall out the window!
An unusual aspect of this story has the villain gang leader a woman, who just happens to fall for Cassidy in a big enough way to affect the outcome of the picture. Belle Langtry (Evelyn Brent) is the owner of the Paradise Saloon, and routinely sends out her henchmen to rustle cattle and subvert local mining claims. When the 'Gunsight Clarion' calls for local citizens to band together to fight against the corruption, it's only natural for Hoppy to accept a sheriff's badge from Mayor Stuart, especially since he was already hot on the trail of rustlers that ran off with some of his stock from the Bar 20.
So with Belle Langtry sidling up to Hoppy, and the mayor's daughter just a smidgen too young for Lucky Jenkins (Russell Hayden), it's up to Andy Clyde to provide some of the comedy relief as Hoppy's partner California. There's a running gag throughout the picture where California is repeatedly warned by Joan Stuart (Cara Williams) to keep away from a doo-dad on the Clarion's printing press. You know it was only a matter of time before he got a face full of ink for disregarding that message. There was also a sequence in the story in which California proved he would never make a good busboy.
You know, if you study the cast list for this picture, it reads like a mini-'Who's Who' of B Western character actors, with folks like Victor Jory, Glenn Strange, Morris Ankrum, Roy Barcroft, Ed Cassidy and Jack Rockwell in the mix, and that's just the credited names besides the good guy trio at the top of the bill. I got a kick out of that scene in which Hoppy gets into a scuffle with Victor Jory's character, Steve Fraser. They're in a hotel room, and Cassidy punches Fraser out of a window, but if you take note, Jory had to give himself a little push with his leg to fall out the window!