MovieChat Forums > Public Cowboy No. 1 (1937) Discussion > It was 1937, not the Old West

It was 1937, not the Old West


The reviewers keep harping on what they think is incongruous... the refrigerated trucks and the airplanes and short wave radios. The movie is set in a western town in 1937. That's why all the modern things. The audience was Great Depression era and they WANTED songs because that's what Gene was famous for. Certainly it was not his acting. There was no TV back then and the movie goers wanted to see radio stars no matter how good or bad the songs were. The gags were slapstick because Gene's movies were 60 minute wonders and not Shakespeare. Before you watch these movies, put on your 1937 glasses. These are movie history. It is amazing they were saved.

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everyone understands that except the airplane can't be airborne all the time and ready for action at the drop of the hat and neither can the outlaws with their trucks be deployed in the field ready to strike on a moments notice...newspaper headlines in a small town don't occur on the spot either...we understand that the story needs these actions to move along quickly for a one hour film but its just too unbelievable all the same...the best things about these films was providing employment

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