The Groom Wore Spurs (1951)

80-81 mins | Romantic comedy | March 1951

Director:

Richard Whorf

Producer:

Howard Welsch

Cinematographer:

Peverell Marley

Editor:

Otto Ludwig

Production Designer:

Perry Ferguson

Production Company:

Fidelity Pictures, Inc.
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HISTORY

The working title of this film was Illegal Bride. Robert Carson's novel was serialized in Collier's (30 Jul--3 Sep 1949) prior to its pubilcation. It is possible that the novel was published previous to 1955, but no earlier publication date has been confirmed. Although the onscreen credits list Robert Libott and Frank Burt as screenplay writers, reviews also include Carson as a co-screenwriter. According to HR news items, some scenes were shot on location at the Neil McCarthy estate in California. Modern sources credit Charles Maxwell as co-writer of the music score. ...

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The working title of this film was Illegal Bride. Robert Carson's novel was serialized in Collier's (30 Jul--3 Sep 1949) prior to its pubilcation. It is possible that the novel was published previous to 1955, but no earlier publication date has been confirmed. Although the onscreen credits list Robert Libott and Frank Burt as screenplay writers, reviews also include Carson as a co-screenwriter. According to HR news items, some scenes were shot on location at the Neil McCarthy estate in California. Modern sources credit Charles Maxwell as co-writer of the music score.

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GEOGRAPHIC LOCATIONS
PERSONAL & COMPANY INDEX CREDITS
HISTORY CREDITS
CREDIT TYPE
CREDIT
General (mod):
SOURCE CITATIONS
SOURCE
DATE
PAGE
Box Office
10 Feb 1951
---
Daily Variety
5 Feb 1951
p. 3
Film Daily
5 Feb 1951
p. 8
Hollywood Citizen-News
14 Apr 1951
p. 1
Hollywood Reporter
23 May 1950
p. 3
Hollywood Reporter
4 Jul 1950
p. 4
Hollywood Reporter
21 Jul 1950
p. 11
Hollywood Reporter
25 Aug 1950
p. 15
Hollywood Reporter
5 Feb 1951
p. 3
Motion Picture Herald Product Digest
10 Feb 1951
p. 705
Motion Picture Herald Product Digest
24 Feb 1951
p. 722
New York Times
14 Mar 1951
p. 41
Variety
7 Feb 1951
p. 6
CAST
PRODUCTION CREDITS
NAME
PARENT COMPANY
PRODUCTION COMPANY
DISTRIBUTION COMPANY
NAME
CREDITED AS
CREDIT
DIRECTORS
Asst dir
Airplane seq dir by
PRODUCER
WRITERS
PHOTOGRAPHY
Dir of photog
ART DIRECTOR
Prod des
FILM EDITOR
Film ed
SET DECORATOR
Set dec
COSTUMES
Selection of cost for Miss Rogers
Eloise Jenssen
Selection of cost for Miss Davis
Miss Rogers' hats
MUSIC
SOUND
Mac Dalgleish
Sd
MAKEUP
Makeup artist
Hairstylist
PRODUCTION MISC
Prod supv
SOURCES
LITERARY
Based on the novel Legal Bride by Robert Carson (London, 1955).
LITERARY SOURCE AUTHOR
SONGS
"No More Wandrin' Around," words by Leon Pober, music by Emil Newman; "The Groom Wore Spurs," composer undetermined.
SONGWRITER/COMPOSER
DETAILS
Alternate Title:
Illegal Bride
Release Date:
March 1951
Premiere Information:
New York opening: 13 Mar 1951
Production Date:
early Jul--late Aug 1950 at Motion Picture Center
Copyright Info
Claimant
Date
Copyright Number
Fidelity Pictures, Inc.
9 January 1950
LP720
Physical Properties:
Sound
RCA Sound System
Black and White
Duration(in mins):
80-81
Country:
United States
Language:
English
PCA No:
14820
SYNOPSIS

In his California home, heartthrob movie cowboy "Wild" Ben Castle explains to his new lawyer, Abigail "A. J." Furnival, that he owes $60,000 in gambling fees to mobster Harry Kallen. Ben, who is attracted to A. J.'s brains and beauty, asks her to accompany him to Las Vegas to confer with Kallen. In Las Vegas, A. J. is so smitten with Ben that she fails to notice that he is neither as competent nor as virtuous as he appears to be in his movies. As they wait for Kallen, they dance and kiss in the moonlight, and when Ben asks her to marry him, A. J. agrees immediately. They marry that night and then meet with Kallen, who tells A. J. that he was indebted to her father, a famous lawyer, and that he will drop the debt as a wedding present. Upon hearing this, Ben's pilot friend, Steve Hall, accuses Ben of marrying A. J. just to have his debt cleared, and A. J. realizes that Steve is right. She returns home, where her feisty roommate, Alice Dean, convinces her to fight for Ben and make a man out of him. The next morning, A. J. returns to Ben's house and begins to take charge. After waking him from a drunken stupor and firing his lazy housekeeper, A. J. poses with Ben for studio press photographers. When they are persuaded to kiss for the cameras, they cannot stop. That night, however, Ben regales A. J. with one of his movie songs, and she realizes that he is lip-synching and cannot actually carry a tune. She grows increasingly disillusioned, especially after his rowdy, flirtatious friends visit. The next day, ...

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In his California home, heartthrob movie cowboy "Wild" Ben Castle explains to his new lawyer, Abigail "A. J." Furnival, that he owes $60,000 in gambling fees to mobster Harry Kallen. Ben, who is attracted to A. J.'s brains and beauty, asks her to accompany him to Las Vegas to confer with Kallen. In Las Vegas, A. J. is so smitten with Ben that she fails to notice that he is neither as competent nor as virtuous as he appears to be in his movies. As they wait for Kallen, they dance and kiss in the moonlight, and when Ben asks her to marry him, A. J. agrees immediately. They marry that night and then meet with Kallen, who tells A. J. that he was indebted to her father, a famous lawyer, and that he will drop the debt as a wedding present. Upon hearing this, Ben's pilot friend, Steve Hall, accuses Ben of marrying A. J. just to have his debt cleared, and A. J. realizes that Steve is right. She returns home, where her feisty roommate, Alice Dean, convinces her to fight for Ben and make a man out of him. The next morning, A. J. returns to Ben's house and begins to take charge. After waking him from a drunken stupor and firing his lazy housekeeper, A. J. poses with Ben for studio press photographers. When they are persuaded to kiss for the cameras, they cannot stop. That night, however, Ben regales A. J. with one of his movie songs, and she realizes that he is lip-synching and cannot actually carry a tune. She grows increasingly disillusioned, especially after his rowdy, flirtatious friends visit. The next day, Ben brings A. J. to the studio boss, J. Norman Birgin, to renegotiate his contract. Although Birgin is crafty and intimidating, A. J. manages to draw up an improved contract for Ben and secure a $60,000 advance. She then informs Ben that she is leaving him because she has done all she can for him. Days later, even while Steve is pursuing her, A. J. continues to pine for Ben. At the same time, Ben brings the $60,000 to Kallen and admits that he misses A. J. Just as he turns to leave, an intruder shoots Kallen and runs off. Ben grabs Kallen's body, then is discovered and booked for murder. He insists that A. J. handle his case, and she quickly convinces the chief of police to allow them one day to identify the real killer. Thanks to her clever detecting skills and her father's old contacts, they soon track the killer, Tony Lomac, to a plane that is about to take off for Mexico. Steve helps them delay the pilot and they jump into the plane, but when Lomac recognizes Ben, he attacks. A. J. drives the plane until it crashes, after which they chase Lomac into the hangar. There, Ben traps and disarms Lomac using rope tricks he learned in his movies. With Lomac safely imprisoned, A. J., impressed by Ben's newfound bravery, kisses him as the press cameras snap.

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Legend
Viewed by AFI
Partially Viewed
Offscreen Credit
Name Occurs Before Title
AFI Life Achievement Award

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