Riding High (1950)
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42% of users liked it
(989 ratings)
Anxious to remain active in the 1950s, director Frank Capra wanted to prove to Paramount Pictures that he could deliver an "A" picture on a modest budget. To that end, Capra bought the rights of his 1934 film Broadway Bill from Columbia, and remade it under the title Riding High. He then… More Anxious to remain active in the 1950s, director Frank Capra wanted to prove to Paramount Pictures that he could deliver an "A" picture on a modest budget. To that end, Capra bought the rights of his 1934 film Broadway Bill from Columbia, and remade it under the title Riding High. He then hired many of the supporting actors who'd appeared in Broadway Bill -- including Clarence Muse, Douglass Dumbrille, Ward Bond, Charles Lane and Frankie Darro -- so he could match up his newly shot scenes with stock footage from the earlier film. Capra even kept the musical costs down by having star Bing Crosby sing such public-domain favorites as "Camptown Races" (though there is one delightful original song, "We Ought to Bake a Sunshine Camera" performed without dubbing by Crosby, Muse, and leading-lady Colleen Gray). Crosby steps into the old Warner Baxter role as Dan Brooks, scion of a wealthy family who prefers hanging around racetracks to the responsibilities of his family business. Scheduled for a "proper" marriage to Margaret Higgins (Frances Gifford), the snooty daughter of millionaire J. L. Higgins (Charles Bickford), Dan infinitely prefers the company of Margaret's younger sister Alice (Coleen Gray), who loves horses as much as he. Hoping to declare his financial independence, he pins his future on a racehorse named Broadway Bill. Though not in the same league as Capra's earlier classics, Riding High is lots of fun. It is especially enjoyable for film buffs, thanks to Capra's decision to fill the picture with uncredited celebrity cameo appearances -- including Oliver Hardy, minus Stan Laurel, as an apoplectic horse player. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Directed By
- Frank Capra
- Written By
- Robert Riskin
- Genres
- Musical & Performing Arts, Classics, Comedy
Unrated,
- In Theaters
- Apr 12, 1950 Wide
- On DVD
- Aug 31, 2004
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Cast
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Bing Crosby
as Dan Brooks
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Coleen Gray
as Alice Higgins
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Charles Bickford
as J.L. Higgins
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Frances Gifford
as Margaret Higgins
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Raymond Walburn
as Prof. Pettigrew
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William Demarest
as Happy McGuire
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Clarence Muse
as Whitey
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Margaret Hamilton
as Edna
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Douglas Dumbrille
as Eddie Howard
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Ward Bond
as Lee
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Charles Lane
as Erickson
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Frankie Darro
as Jockey Williams
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Paul Harvey
as Whitehall
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Marjorie Lord
as Mary Winslow
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Marjorie Hoshelle
as Mary Early, Mary Winslow
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Rand Brooks
as Henry Early
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Willard Waterman
as Arthur Winslow
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James Gleason
as Racing Secretary
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Dub Taylor
as Joe
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Stanley Andrews
as Veterinarian
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Irving Bacon
as Hamburger man
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M.A. Bogue
as Musician
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Candy Candido
as Musician
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Harry Davenport
as Johnson butler
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Roger Davis
as Butler
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Edgar Dearing
as Deputy
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Ann Doran
as Nurse
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Tom Fadden
as Whitehall's trainor
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Margaret Field
as Maid
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Byron Foulger
as Maitre d'
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Joe Frisco
as Himself
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Oliver Hardy
as Horse player
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Percy Helton
as Pawnbroker
- Ish Kabibble
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Percy Kilbride
as Pop Jones
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Gene Lockhart
as J.P. Chase
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Jim Nolan
as Deputy
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Garry Owen
as Harry
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Victor Romito
as Barber
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Max Baer Jr.
as Bertie
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Richard Kipling
as Jailer
- Douglass Dumbrille
