Dale Evans((Dorothy Brunt) is the absentee owner of the Bar X ranch, near Cold Brook, Utah. She inherited the ranch from her grandfather, but is a musical thespian in Chicago. Now, her producer has a problem. Their main financial backer has pulled out of a show scheduled to open soon. Dale suggests she may have a solution, if she can quickly sell her inherited ranch. The producer figures they probably need $25,000. Dale sends a telegram to Roy Rogers: the ranch forman, saying she is coming with the idea of selling the property. Of course, Roy and the others don't like the idea of losing their job, so hope to convince her not to sell. Besides, the likely buyer is a sheep man, which is considered bad in this cattle country. Buyer and real estate man, Bow Bowman, and his pal, Steve Lacy somehow learn about Dale's idea. They get an offer from a sheep man for $100,000. and tell Roy, who refuses to support it. Later, when Roy and Gabby Hayes are riding to meet the train that carries Dale, for a reason I don't understand, Bowman and Lacy try to ambush them, but fail. Roy and Gabby then take off after them, and eventually knock them off their horses, resulting in a fisticuff that Roy and Gabby win. Apparently , they weren't charged with attempted murder.....At the train station, not one, but 5, young women get off., as Dale brought some of her girlfriends. Gabby is fit to be tied, and is not shy about making his attitude known to the women. "Women!. Next to sheep, they are the dumbest critters on this earth", says he. Dale was afraid Roy had a similar opinion, but he denied it. On their way to the ranch, Roy gets a devious idea. Instead taking them to the Bar X, he takes them to Gabby's next door rundown ranch. He hopes they will think its probably not worth much in a sale, and thus not worth the time to try to find a buyer. Hopefully, they will soon return to Chicago before they discover his deception. At first, it seems to be working out that way. But, Dale then changes her mind and will look for a buyer. Roy realizes his plan may backfire. Sure enough, Bowman and Lacy show up to check out the property, supposedly the Bar X, and offer her $5000, for it, $1000.now as a check, and the other $4000. in a few weeks. Since they don't have much cash, they hope to sell the cattle of the real Bar X, and use some of that money to pay the $4000. But, they have to sell the cattle fast, before it's discovered their check is worthless. Dale thinks she's lucky to get that much. Why didn't she have several appraisers look at it, who could have detected the deception? ........Roy and Gaby find out that Bowman is sending the cattle to Chicago. Roy arranges to have his men go with that train. Meanwhile, Bowman and Lacy took the passenger train(why?). The 2 groups meet in the Chicago stockyard, but Bowman and Lacy immediately run away>Why? Apparently, they were the owners of the cattle. Perhaps, they feared their bogus check had been found out. Eventually, Roy and Gabby catch them and beat them in a fisticuff. Police arrived, and took everyone to the police station. Roy's neck was saved by a serendipitous phone call from Cold Brook, stating that Bowman's check had been found fraudulent, and thus the sale was invalid. But, now, Roy had to tell Dale about his trickery. We don't see this encounter(maybe in the uncut version?), but we would assume , at first Dale would be shocked and irate, but then happy that she had a much more valuable ranch than she thought. When we next see them together, she is smiling, and talking about quitting showbusiness, and moving to Utah. Before they leave, they help with the new play, called "Utah", remembering that the play "Oklahoma" had opened not long ago.
Review of Utah
