One of umpteen Hollywood films that exploited the well recognized names of Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday to attract an audience to a show that had little to do with their historic realities. We had to wait until the 1990s("Wyatt Earp", "Tombstone") to get a reasonably authentic telling of Wyatt and his association with Doc. Wyatt's widow reportedly bullied Fox into deleting Wyatt's name from the title. The planned title was the same as the fanciful biography it was based upon.
This film was released in that magical year for Hollywood films: 1939. It's the year Fox released their big budget Technicolor western 'Jesse James", in addition to this low budget B&W, which nonetheless included a number of reasonably high profile actors. Young Nancy Kelly was the leading lady in both films. John Carradine played the chief villain in both. Randolph Scott played a major character in both films: the lead in this one. Cesar Romero was employed as a handsome Latino version of the historically blondish-headed Holliday, whose name was altered to Halliday, perhaps to diffuse any objections to the fictionalization of his period in Tombstone. Romero's speech gave no hint of Holliday's Georgia upbringing. However, he did occasionally exhibit his semi-namesake's frequent coughing fits from his TB. Holliday had guessed correctly that moving to an arid climate might extend his life, after his doctor predicted he would die within a year. Unlike portrayed in this film and the subsequent "My Darling Clementine", Holliday was trained as a dentist, not medical doctor. This fictionalization provided an opportunity for more dramatic heroics for the character: in this case, saving the life of a Mexican boy accidentally shot in an assassination attempt on Wyatt.
Cast as the good-time saloon girlfriend of Doc's, Binnie Barnes(Jerry) livens up this otherwise rather somber tale, with her streetwise flamboyant personality. Her character has a historic basis in 'Big Nose' Kate: Holliday's longtime girlfriend in the West, and frequent prostitute and madam. Although she didn't look it, Binnie was twice the age of her 18 y.o 'good girl' competition: Nancy Kelly, who seems remarkably mature for her age. Nancy had long been a child actress in films and was now experiencing her peak in adult roles. She plays Doc's former girlfriend in the East: a nurse, who's been hunting all over the West for Doc, after he decided it was best for both if he left for unknown parts without saying goodbye. Doc wants her to leave, saying he's a completely different person(gambler and gunslinger) than the man she knew. But, Wyatt convinces her that Doc will change his mind and find her the only reason to keep on living. Well, Wyatt doesn't change Doc's mind. Instead, Doc unexpectedly gets on the stage for Tucson, which happens to include Wyatt, as shotgun, and is scheduled for a holdup by Ben Carter's gang(Ben owns the saloon where Binnie works). Doc is wounded, but Carter is killed in the ensuing gun battle. Back in town, Binnie and Nancy vie with each other to attend to Doc's wound(reminds me of the competition between 2 women to restore Jimmy Stewart, after shot up, in "Far Country".)
Poor Binnie: all her plans to get rid of Wyatt, because he dumped her in that horse trough for being obnoxious, and because her boss wants him gone, have gone awry. First, she convinced her old flame, Doc, to come to Tombstone to do in Wyatt. Instead, they became buddies. Then, she talked up the stage holdup, with Wyatt aboard, hoping Wyatt would get shot. Instead, Doc got shot. The last insult is that Doc is shot dead in the street by 'Curley' Bill and the remainder of Carter's gang. She gets a small measure of revenge in shooting 'Curley' Bill during the subsequent gunplay between Wyatt and Carter's gang, before deciding Tombstone is getting too tame for her, hence warranting a relocation. Nancy unexpectedly decides to stay in Tombstone, with the very slim suggestion that Wyatt may be Doc's replacement in her life(grossly overplayed on the DVD jacket!)
Eddie Foy Jr. is present in parts of the middle portion, recreating the type of stage entertainment his father was famous for, back in the days of the actual Wyatt and Doc. He gets shoved around in the competition between 2 saloons for his entertainment services, and decides Tombstone is too dangerous for him.
When playing the hero, Scott didn't quite always follow the formula of ending up with the 'good' girl. For example, in "Abilene Town", clearly his tempestuous relationship with the flamboyant saloon entertainer(Anne Dvorak) was more important to him than his flirtation with the 'good' girl(Rhonda Fleming}.
Among the most glaring departures from history are: the absence of Wyatt's 2 brothers or the Claytons, the nonexistent Ben Carter as the chief villain, the death of Doc from assassination, and the ridiculous version of the shootout near the OK Corral. 'Curley' Bill was a historic person, whom Wyatt eventually killed, blaming him for his brother's assassination.
All in all, not a bad horse opera, centered more around Doc and his problems than Wyatt. In one scene, Doc is drunk in the saloon, sees himself in the big mirror, says "I hate you", and shoots at his image, shattering the mirror.
This film was released in that magical year for Hollywood films: 1939. It's the year Fox released their big budget Technicolor western 'Jesse James", in addition to this low budget B&W, which nonetheless included a number of reasonably high profile actors. Young Nancy Kelly was the leading lady in both films. John Carradine played the chief villain in both. Randolph Scott played a major character in both films: the lead in this one. Cesar Romero was employed as a handsome Latino version of the historically blondish-headed Holliday, whose name was altered to Halliday, perhaps to diffuse any objections to the fictionalization of his period in Tombstone. Romero's speech gave no hint of Holliday's Georgia upbringing. However, he did occasionally exhibit his semi-namesake's frequent coughing fits from his TB. Holliday had guessed correctly that moving to an arid climate might extend his life, after his doctor predicted he would die within a year. Unlike portrayed in this film and the subsequent "My Darling Clementine", Holliday was trained as a dentist, not medical doctor. This fictionalization provided an opportunity for more dramatic heroics for the character: in this case, saving the life of a Mexican boy accidentally shot in an assassination attempt on Wyatt.
Cast as the good-time saloon girlfriend of Doc's, Binnie Barnes(Jerry) livens up this otherwise rather somber tale, with her streetwise flamboyant personality. Her character has a historic basis in 'Big Nose' Kate: Holliday's longtime girlfriend in the West, and frequent prostitute and madam. Although she didn't look it, Binnie was twice the age of her 18 y.o 'good girl' competition: Nancy Kelly, who seems remarkably mature for her age. Nancy had long been a child actress in films and was now experiencing her peak in adult roles. She plays Doc's former girlfriend in the East: a nurse, who's been hunting all over the West for Doc, after he decided it was best for both if he left for unknown parts without saying goodbye. Doc wants her to leave, saying he's a completely different person(gambler and gunslinger) than the man she knew. But, Wyatt convinces her that Doc will change his mind and find her the only reason to keep on living. Well, Wyatt doesn't change Doc's mind. Instead, Doc unexpectedly gets on the stage for Tucson, which happens to include Wyatt, as shotgun, and is scheduled for a holdup by Ben Carter's gang(Ben owns the saloon where Binnie works). Doc is wounded, but Carter is killed in the ensuing gun battle. Back in town, Binnie and Nancy vie with each other to attend to Doc's wound(reminds me of the competition between 2 women to restore Jimmy Stewart, after shot up, in "Far Country".)
Poor Binnie: all her plans to get rid of Wyatt, because he dumped her in that horse trough for being obnoxious, and because her boss wants him gone, have gone awry. First, she convinced her old flame, Doc, to come to Tombstone to do in Wyatt. Instead, they became buddies. Then, she talked up the stage holdup, with Wyatt aboard, hoping Wyatt would get shot. Instead, Doc got shot. The last insult is that Doc is shot dead in the street by 'Curley' Bill and the remainder of Carter's gang. She gets a small measure of revenge in shooting 'Curley' Bill during the subsequent gunplay between Wyatt and Carter's gang, before deciding Tombstone is getting too tame for her, hence warranting a relocation. Nancy unexpectedly decides to stay in Tombstone, with the very slim suggestion that Wyatt may be Doc's replacement in her life(grossly overplayed on the DVD jacket!)
Eddie Foy Jr. is present in parts of the middle portion, recreating the type of stage entertainment his father was famous for, back in the days of the actual Wyatt and Doc. He gets shoved around in the competition between 2 saloons for his entertainment services, and decides Tombstone is too dangerous for him.
When playing the hero, Scott didn't quite always follow the formula of ending up with the 'good' girl. For example, in "Abilene Town", clearly his tempestuous relationship with the flamboyant saloon entertainer(Anne Dvorak) was more important to him than his flirtation with the 'good' girl(Rhonda Fleming}.
Among the most glaring departures from history are: the absence of Wyatt's 2 brothers or the Claytons, the nonexistent Ben Carter as the chief villain, the death of Doc from assassination, and the ridiculous version of the shootout near the OK Corral. 'Curley' Bill was a historic person, whom Wyatt eventually killed, blaming him for his brother's assassination.
All in all, not a bad horse opera, centered more around Doc and his problems than Wyatt. In one scene, Doc is drunk in the saloon, sees himself in the big mirror, says "I hate you", and shoots at his image, shattering the mirror.