Heldorado (1946)

Heldorado is an annual parade celebrating Las Vegas as a frontier town. Roy is captain of the guards at Boulder Dam. He helps celebrate the town's anniversary while capturing racketeers involved with the local casinos.

Director:

William Witney

Writers:

Gerald Geraghty (original screenplay), Julian Zimet (original screenplay)

Stars:

Roy Rogers, Trigger, George 'Gabby' Hayes

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Roy Rogers	...	Nevada State Ranger Roy Rogers
Trigger	...	Trigger - Roy's Horse
George 'Gabby' Hayes	...	Gabby
Dale Evans	...	Carol Randall
Paul Harvey	...	C.W. Driscoll
Brad Dexter	...	Alec Baxter (as Barry Mitchell)
John Bagni	...	Johnny - Driscoll Henchman
John Phillips	...	Sheriff Glenn
Malcolm 'Bud' McTaggart	...	Bellboy Henchman (as James Taggart)
Rex Lease	...	Charlie - Bartender
Steve Darrell	...	Mitch - Driscoll Henchman
Doye O'Dell	...	Ticket Taker
LeRoy Mason	...	State Ranger
Charles Williams	...	Carnival Judge
Eddie Acuff	...	Carnival Shooting-Gallery Attendant

Storyline

Roy Rogers, a Nevada State Ranger Captain in charge of the Rangers Reclamation Service, makes a trip to Las Vegas for the annual Heldorado Frontier Days Festival, as he wants to help his old friend Gabby Whittaker who originated the idea (at least, in this film).In Las Vegas, Roy meets heiress Carol Randall, who has been selected as the Queen of the Heldorado. Roy is informed that the F.B.I. wants an immediate investigation of the counterfeit thousand dollar bills that are being passed over the gambling tables at the casino.

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Plot Keywords:

investigation | boulder dam | newspaper reporter | carnival barker | carnival queen | 

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Taglines:

There's a treat on every trail... a thrill in every spill... in hootin'... howlin'... HELDORADO!

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Genres:

Music | Western

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 December 1946 (USA)

Also Known As:

Helldorado

Filming Locations:

Hoover Dam, Arizona-Nevada Border, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Republic Pictures (I)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

70 min (original) 54 min (edited)

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Though the title of the movie in the opening credits is "Heldorado," signs all through the movie say "Helldorado". This was clearly an effort to avoid displaying the world "Hell" on the marquee.

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Soundtracks

Heldorado
Written by Jack Elliott
Performed by Roy Rogers and the Sons of the Pioneers

User Reviews

Decent Rogers Film

Heldorado (1946)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Roy Rogers plays a Nevada State Ranger in Las Vegas for some relaxation but he's quickly recruited to help locate some counterfeiters passing around fake money at the Helldorado convention. While the story is certainly lacking, I still found this to be much better than its reputation. The film certainly isn't a classic by any stretch of the imagination but I think there's enough charm in it to make it worth viewing for fans of "B" Westerns. The majority of the fun comes from Dale Evans who plays somewhat of an airhead who gets an honorary job with the police but she takes it a step further by becoming a Sherlock Holmes and trying to solve the case by herself. This leads to some of the best moments as she and Rogers are constantly going after one another as they keep getting in each other's way. The chemistry between the two is certainly very high and it really helps keep the film moving. Rogers, as normal, has no problems playing the good time but by this time he could have done that in his sleep. George 'Gabby' Hayes appears for the final time with Rogers but it's strange that the two really don't have much to do together. Hayes' role isn't the best of his career but he does get a few funny bits. The action doesn't happen all that often but we do get a couple nice shoot outs to also help keep the film moving. The story itself isn't anything we haven't already seen countless times but I think the charm of the actors at least keep it entertaining and the short running time doesn't hurt either.