Rawhide (1938)

Rawhide (1938)

„Rawhide“ is a 1938 western film directed by Ray Taylor from a screenplay by Jack Natteford and Daniel Jarrett.

As he announces that he is retiring from baseball, famed New York Yankee first baseman Lou Gehrig (as himself) tells reporters that he and his sister Peggy have bought a ranch near the town of Rawhide. While Lou is heading west, the citizens of Rawhide are pressured by the strong-arm tactics of Ed Saunders and his henchmen, Butch and Gil Gillam, to join the Ranchers Protective Association.

When rancher Bascomb tries to bring in supplies from another town, Saunders and his men destroy them and injure Bascomb. Idealistic lawyer Larry Kimball tries to convince Bascomb to fight Saunders in court, but he instead joins the association, which is the only outlet through which the ranchers can buy supplies and sell their cattle.

Lou arrives in town and refuses to join the association, despite Saunders’ veiled threats, and he, Peggy and Pop Mason, their ranch hand, go to their ranch. Butch and his men destroy the Gehrigs’ fence and shoot Pop in the arm, after which Lou storms into the town saloon to denounce Saunders. Lou and Larry team up in a fistfight against Saunders and his men, and afterwards, Lou hires Larry to go to court and bust up the association.

At dinner that night, Larry explains to Lou and Peggy that the owner of the association, L. G. McDonnell, is an honest man who has been ill for months and that only Saunders has access to him. Saunders, who has been holding McDonnell captive while his doctor slowly poisons the old man, orders his men to make life tough for the Gehrigs, and the next day, when Lou and Larry attempt to bring in cattle feed, Butch and his men destroy it. Larry and Lou then trick Fuller, one of Saunders’ ranch hands, into giving them supplies from Saunders’ ranch, and in retaliation, Saunders’ men dam the water flowing onto Lou’s land.

Peggy, who has fallen in love with Larry, is worried about his safety and that of her brother, and decides to sign up with the association herself. Lou hits a well-aimed baseball into Saunders’ office to stop Peggy from signing the contract, while Larry goes to McDonnell’s house. Larry arrives just after Butch has murdered the doctor, who had refused to give McDonnell a final dose of poison so that Saunders could directly receive the profits of the cattle sales. Butch is about to poison McDonnell himself, but Larry rescues the old man and captures Butch. As Saunders and his men prepare for a showdown, Larry, Lou and Peggy organize the ranchers. The ranchers chase Saunders and his gang as they are attempting to flee, and after a rousing battle, all the wrongdoers are apprehended, including Sheriff Kale, whom Saunders had bribed. When peace is restored, Lou and Peggy relax with Larry on their porch. Pop brings Lou a telegram stating that his terms are acceptable and that he is to report for spring training immediately. Pop, Larry and Peggy then share a laugh as Lou hollers with joy and races into the house to pack.

A 1938 American Black & White Western film directed by Ray Taylor, produced by Sol Lesser, screenplay by Jack Natteford and Daniel Jarrett, cinematography by Allen Q. Thompson, starring Lou Gehrig, Smith Ballew, Evalyn Knapp, Arthur Loft, Dick Curtis, Si Jenks, Cy Kendall, and Sheik the Horse. Released by Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation.

The movie was This is the only Hollywood movie in which baseball great Lou Gehrig made a screen appearance, playing himself as a vacationing ballplayer visiting his sister Peggy (played by Evalyn Knapp) on a ranch in the fictional town of Rawhide, Montana.

Filming took place in January 1938 during the baseball off-season.

The New York City-born Gehrig joked that it was the first time he had ever been on a horse.

Soundtrack music:
„A Cowboy’s Life“ – by Charles Rosoff and Eddie Cherkose
„When a Cowboy Goes to Town“ – by Albert von Tilzer (who is better known for composing „Take Me Out to the Ball Game“) and Eddie Grant, performed by Smith Ballew
„Drifting“ – by Albert von Tilzer and Harry MacPherson
„That Old Washboard Band“ – by Norman Phelps and Willie Phelps

Lou Gehrig’s singing voice (while driving the hay wagon) was dubbed by Ray Whitley.

Researchers presented a paper to the American Academy of Neurology in 2006, reporting on an analysis of Rawhide and photographs of Lou Gehrig from the 1937–39 period, to ascertain when Gehrig began to show visible symptoms of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, the disease that forced his retirement from baseball in 1939, and claim his life in 1941. They concluded that while atrophy of hand muscles could be detected in 1939 photographs of Gehrig, no such abnormality was visible at the time the movie was made. „Examination of Rawhide showed that Gehrig functioned normally in January 1938“, the report concluded.

If you’re a Lou Gehrig fan, then you must watch this celebrity-driven production, where Gehrig’s movie …

Cast:

• Smith Ballew – Larry Kimball
• Lou Gehrig – Lou Gehrig
• Evalyn Knapp – Peggy Gehrig
• Arthur Loft – Ed Saunders
• Cy Kendall – Sheriff Kale
• Dick Curtis – Butch, Saunders Henchman
• Si Jenks – Pop Mason
• Ken Card – Banjo Player at Party
• Rube Dalroy – Barfly
• Al Hill – Bartender
• Carl Stockdale – Bascomb, Rancher
• Norman Phelps – Bass Player at Party
• Sidney Kibrick – Boy Playing Baseball
• George Sowards – Cowhand
• Edward Cecil – Doctor
• Earl Phelps – Fiddle Player ar Party
• Ed Cassidy – Fuller
• Charles Murphy – Gehrig Cowhand
• George Morrell – Gehrig Party Guest
• Ray Whitley – Gehrig Party Guitarist
• Harry Tenbrook – Gil, Henchman
• Cecil Kellogg – Gil Gillam
• Lee Shumway – Johnson
• Lafe McKee – L.G. McDonnell
• Sheik the Horse – Larry Kimball’s Horse
• Fred Parker – Man Asking Larry to Sing
• Wally West – Man in Pool Hall
• George Plues – Man on Wagon with Lou
• Cliff Parkinson – Pete
• Al Haskell – Poll Hall Brawler
• Merrill McCormick – Pool Hall Brawler
• Charles Brinley – Pool Hall Manager
• Kernan Cripps – Railroad Official
• Fred Burns – Rancher Driving Buckboard
• Jack Hendricks – Rancher on Phone
• Bill Patton – Rancher on Phone
• Donald Kirke – Reporter
• W.E. Lawrence – Reporter
• Edward Peil Sr. – Reporter
• Carleton Young – Reporter
• Tom B. Forman – Rudy, Henchman
• Francis Walker – Saunders Henchman
• Slim Whitaker – Saunders Henchman
• Franklyn Farnum – Saunders’ Secretary
• Willie Phelps – Washboard Player at Party

„Rawhide“ ist ein Western von 1938 unter der Regie von Ray Taylor nach einem Drehbuch von Jack Natteford und Daniel Jarrett.

Als der berühmte New Yorker Yankee-First-Baseman Lou Gehrig (als er selbst) seinen Rücktritt vom Baseball ankündigt, teilt er Reportern mit, dass er und seine Schwester Peggy eine Ranch in der Nähe der Stadt Rawhide gekauft haben. Während Lou sich auf den Weg nach Westen macht, werden die Bürger von Rawhide von Ed Saunders und seinen Handlangern Butch und Gil Gillam unter Druck gesetzt, der Ranchers Protective Association beizutreten.