Tumbleweed Trail (1946) User Reviews (4)

"For a minute, I thought that hombre had a charmed life".

[classicsoncall · 5/10 · 29 December 2013]

I'd say Kermit Maynard got himself a pretty easy payday with his effort here, showing up once near the beginning of the film only to get shot, then again at the end to help star Eddie Dean and sidekick Soapy Jones (Roscoe Ates) make the save on the Ryan Ranch before bad guy Barton (Bob Duncan) could take over. At one point it was mentioned that months had gone by before Bill Ryan (Maynard) showed up after being presumed dead. I'd have to wonder - what was he doing that whole time?

Well, trying to analyze stuff like this with these 'B' oaters from the Forties is a thankless task. Not a whole lot of thought was put into these stories, and what the heck, what do you expect in a flick that comes in under an hour? The most original element here were the names of the bad guy henchmen - Deadeye, Blackie, Gringo and Apache. On second thought, forget about originality.

Some consider Eddie Dean's voice among the finest of the singing cowboys. It's on display here with the opening title song, and he also turns in a nice rendition of 'Poor Lonesome Cowboy' a little later on. Pretty Shirley Patterson provides the eye appeal as the distressed daughter of rancher Ryan, but the romance angle isn't taken very far, as Eddie and Soapy have more trails to blaze when this one is over.

Eddie saves the orphans

[bkoganbing · 5/10 · 17 March 2013]

No cowboy hero is going to stand for a girl and her little brother being tossed off their ranch. That's the situation that Eddie Dean and sidekick Roscoe Ates have on their hands in Tumbleweed Trail.

The two are in the area to meet up with the father of the two aforementioned persons when they hear that he's missing and presumed dead and his half brother Bob Duncan has a will naming him sole heir and he's now tossing them out of their home. Snidely Whiplash could not have done it in a nastier fashion. Shirley Patterson and Johnny McGovern have to trust in Dean and Ates and you know it will come out right in the end.

Tumbling Tumbleweeds is an easy to take B western from the PRC company which did not do as much in production values as Republic did. Eddie Dean sings some nice songs which are the best part of the film.

Good Camerawork Helps

[boblipton · 5/10 · 2 January 2023]

Shirley Patterson's father died and willed everything to Ted Adams. He wants Miss Patterson and her brother, John Wilder, off the ranch, but she's more than happy to shoot. So Adams and his henchmen steal the cattle, selling some off across the border for mysterious debts, and blockade the ranch. In ride Eddie Dean and Roscoe Ates. They offer Miss Patterson her help, and speak mysteriously of a "case".

Eddie sings a few songs very well, and Ernest Miller's photography is handsome in the sharp print I saw. The story seems chopped up and poorly edited, but at 57 minutes, it's watchable.

Shirley Patterson played leads in serials and B westerns, and uncredited bits in A pictures from 1942 through 1947, then laid off for six years to raise a family. She returned in 1953 to the same routine, with TV replacing the westerns, through 1959. She died in 1995 at the age of 72.

Tough to Watch

[Jim Tritten · 2/10 · 14 August 2003]

Villain Brad Barton has his men ambush rancher and his half brother Bill Ryan to get control of his ranch. Barton forges a will that gives the ranch and everything on it to him. Bills daughter and son are left out in the cold. Two marshals have been called in to help -- hero and singing cowboy Eddie Dean and sidekick Soapy Jones help the kids and save the day. A surprise ending - but really nothing can save this lackluster performance from itself. Recommended only if you want to hear the hero sign the theme and other songs or watch a teen age girl and young boy successfully chase off the bad guys. Does the hero get the girl or the horse in the end? You will have to see it to find out.