Way back when the west was young and the Santa Fe Railroad was being built, entrepreneur Fred Harvey set up a chain of restaurants along the railway for the hungry, weary passengers to get a good meal and rest up. Each location boasted good food, efficient waitresses, and thick, juicy steaks. In this 1946 Judy Garland film, we see her as Susan Bradley, a mail order bride, come to New Mexico to marry a man she’s only met through letters. When she arrives in town, she finds that the man she’s supposed to marry is not the man who wrote the letters, but is instead a backward, shy rancher who would rather not marry her. She is furious – who really did write those beautiful letters to so completely win her over? Did he think it was some sort of a trick? She goes off in search of him, to find Ned Trent (John Hodiak) the owner of a saloon and house of ill repute. Telling him where he can get off with his fancy words, she goes across the street and applies for a job in the brand-new Harvey House.
She doesn’t know it, but the judge in charge of the town is crooked, and he doesn’t want the wholesome influence of the Harvey House in his jurisdiction. He tries everything he can to run the girls out, and is successful with some of them, only to find that he’s swallowed more than he can chew. The girls who stay are determined to see him out, and they win in the end.
Ned Trent doesn’t know what to do. He’s quite taken with Susan, especially with the way she barged into his saloon, brandishing guns to demand that the saloon return the meat they stole from the restaurant. But if the Harvey House is a success, it means the downfall of his own business. He’s not sure how to proceed, but he knows he’s in love with Susan.
I liked this movie a lot. John Hodiak is quite the romantic, although I’ve never seen him before. He’s sort of a Howard Keel/Clark Gable type, and quite the looker. He and Judy have good chemistry in this film. You’ll recognize the song “On The Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe.” You’ll spot a young Angela Lansbury as the star act in the saloon, and you’ll see Cyd Charisse in a small role as one of the Harvey Girls.
A side note: Ray Bolger is also in this film as a blacksmith who is afraid of horses. You’ll remember him as starring opposite Judy Garland seven years earlier in “The Wizard of Oz” – he was the scarecrow.
This film was not rated.
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