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Bucking Broadway
Also known as A l’assaut de boulevard in France
(1917) United States of America
B&W : Five reels
Directed by Jack Ford (John Ford)
Cast: Harry Carey [Cheyenne Harry], Molly Malone [Helen Clayton], L.M. Wells [Ben Clayton, her father], Vester Pegg [Eugene Thornton], William Gettinger (William Steele) [Buck Hoover, the ranch foreman]; Gertrude Astor [Gladys], Martha Mattox [the shocked customer in the general store], [?] ? [the general store owner], [?] Duke R. Lee? [the piano-playing ranchhand], [?] ? [the Mexican ranchhand], [?] ? [the female pickpocket], [?] ? [the male pickpocket], [?] ? [the hotel bellboy]
The Universal Film Manufacturing Company, Incorporated [A Harry Carey Production] production; distributed by The Universal Film Manufacturing Company, Incorporated [A Butterfly Picture; Special Productions]. / Scenario by George Hively, from a screen story by George Hively [?] and Jack Ford (John Ford)? Cinematography by Ben F. Reynolds [?] + John W. Brown? / © 14 December 1917 by The Universal Film Manufacturing Company, Incorporated [LP11840]. Released 24 December 1917. / Standard 35mm spherical 1.33:1 format. / A print of the film was identified in the holdings of the Archives Françaises du Film du Centre National de la Cinématographie film archive in 2002.
Comedy: Western-Romance.
Synopsis: [Variety, 7 December 1917, page 47] Harry Carey is starred in another Universal western feature, directed by Jack Ford. It’s a good one of its conventional kind, relieved by a whirlwind fight at the finish. Carey is a cowpuncher in love with the daughter of a ranch owner. He builds a home, saves his money, proposes and is accepted by the girl and her father. Eugene Thornton, a “city chap,” arrives in an automobile to buy horses. Carey has given the girl a little wooden heart he had carved with his knife, telling her: “Keep this and if you’re ever in trouble, send it to me.” City chap is looked upon as a dude, but when he rides the wildest horse on the ranch, one that has killed three men, they are all astounded. He gets the girl alone and pulls the bromide phrase: “Don’t you get tired of this dreary place, Helen?” Later, “And we’ll be married as soon as we get to New York.” On the night when a party is given to celebrate the formal engagement of the cowpuncher and Helen, the girl elopes with Thornton. He takes her to a house where she is introduced to a woman supposed to be the villain’s sister. Helen has grown suspicious and sends Cheyenne (Carey) the little wooden heart, but gives no address. He hops his horse and overtakes a moving train, hops aboard and drags his saddle with him. (Some stunt.) Comedy stuff of Cheyenne registering at the Columbian Hotel in New York. Meantime the ranch “boys” have come to New York with the shipment of horses. It is not explained how Cheyenne knows they are in town or where they are. Thornton decides to give a party on the Columbian roof restaurant to celebrate his engagement to Helen. While Cheyenne is seated in the hotel lobby a swell dame steals his pocketbook, but when he tells her why he is in New York and shows her Helen’s picture she returns the purse. The crook dame and her male accomplice visit the roof garden. Thornton gets soused, tries to rough-house Helen, the crook same rushes out to tip Cheyenne off; he tells her to phone Buck Hoover and the gang the “S. O. S.,” and they are seen riding like mad up Broadway to the rescue. They seem to be pretty familiar with the town, for they know just where to head for. Meantime Cheyenne is having the fight of his life. The entire staff of the hotel, aided by Thornton and his friends, go to him and he stands them all off in a wonderful rough and tumble until his crowd arrives, and then it begins in earnest. In the end the cowpunchers come out victorious and the clinch finds Helen in Cheyenne’s arms. Ridiculously inconsistent but exceedingly effective for the not over-critical. Jolo. // Synopsis available in AFI-F1 n. F1.0521.
Survival status: Print exists in Archives Françaises du Film du Centre National de la Cinématographie film archive [35mm positive].
Current rights holder: Public domain [USA].
Keywords: Animals: Horses - Cabarets - Cowboys - Criminals - Innocents - Philanderers - Stockbrokers - Transportation: Automobiles - USA: New York: New York
Listing updated: 19 October 2019.
References: Film credits, film viewing : AFI-F1 n. F1.0521; Braff-Universal n. 973; Hirschhorn-Universal p. 26; Sinclair-Ford p. 230 : Variety-19171207 p. 47 : Website-AFI; Website-IMDb; Website-Wikipedia.
Home video: Blu-ray Disc, DVD.
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