Wells Fargo (1937)

INFORMATION FROM IMDb

Plot Summary
The life and career of a Wells Fargo official frames this fictionalized account
of the express company's formation.

Cast
Joel McCrea ... Ramsay MacKay
Bob Burns ... Hank York - a Wanderer
Frances Dee ... Justine Pryor
Lloyd Nolan ... Dal Slade
Henry O'Neill ... Henry Wells
Mary Nash ... Mrs. Pryor
Ralph Morgan ... Nicholas Pryor
Johnny Mack Brown ... Talbot Carter (as John Mack Brown)
Porter Hall ... James Oliver
Jack Clark ... William Fargo
Clarence Kolb ... John Butterfield
Robert Cummings ... Dan Trimball - Prospector
Granville Bates ... Bradford - Banker
Harry Davenport ... Ingalls - Banker
Frank Conroy ... Ward - Banker
Brandon Tynan ... Edwards - Newspaper Publisher
Peggy Stewart ... Alice MacKay
Bernard Siegel ... Pawnee
Stanley Fields ... Abe - Prospector
Jane Dewey ... Lucy Dorsett Trimball
Frank McGlynn Sr. ... Lincoln (as Frank McGlynn)
and many more...

Directed
Frank Lloyd

Writing Credits
Paul Schofield ... (screen play) &
Gerald Geraghty ... (screen play) and
Frederick J. Jackson ... (screen play) (as Frederick Jackson)
Stuart N. Lake ... (based on a story by)
Duke Atteberry ... (contributor to dialogue) (uncredited)
Howard Estabrook ... (contributor to screenplay construction and dialogue) (uncredited)
Seena Owen ... (suggestion of subject) (uncredited)
Eddie Welch ... (contributor to dialogue) (uncredited)
Produced
Howard Estabrook ... associate producer
Frank Lloyd ... producer
William LeBaron ... executive producer (uncredited)

Music
Victor Young

Cinematography
Theodor Sparkuhl ... (photographed by)

Trivia
Paramount claimed the set to recreate San Francisco's Portsmouth Square was the largest ever built. Seven acres of a hilltop were leveled and graded, and 32 buildings were erected.

Assistant propman Jack Leys accidentally shot himself when he reached into the prop chest for a gun.

One of over 700 Paramount productions, filmed between 1929 and 1949, which were sold to MCA/Universal in 1958 for television distribution, and have been owned and controlled by Universal ever since. It was released on DVD 24 November 2015 as part of the Universal Vault Series.

Film debut of Peggy Stewart.

Memorable Quotes

Filming Locations
Angels Camp, California, USA
Chico, California, USA
Iverson Ranch - 1 Iverson Lane, Chatsworth, Los Angeles, California, USA
Kernville, California, USA
Malibu Lake, California, USA
Napa Valley, California, USA
Paramount Ranch - 2813 Cornell Road, Agoura, California, USA
Sonora, California, USA
Canon City, Colorado, USA
Columbia State Historic Park, 11255 Jackson Street, Columbia, California, USA
Parrott's Ferry, California, USA

Watch the Movie

[extendedmedia]

Wells Fargo (1937) is an American Western film directed by
Frank Lloyd and starring Joel McCrea, Bob Burns and Frances Dee.
This is the third of four movies in which real life husband and wife McCrea and Dee starred together.

It was nominated for an Academy Award in the category Best Sound (Loren L. Ryder).

User Review

Extremely episodic and disjoint.
30 January 2017 | by MartinHafer (Bradenton, Florida)
This film is a very fictionalized account of the early days of Wells Fargo---long before it metastasized into the gigantic mega-bank that charges innumerable service fees like it does today. However, instead of focusing on the big-wigs at the company, it focuses on a fictional man, Ramsay (Joel McCrea) and his many difficulties he had establishing banking, transportation and mail services in the wild west. It also focuses on his marriage--one that eventually became very rocky and problematic.

The problem with this film is that it is extremely episodic--with giant jumps in time here and there. As a result, it comes off more like a Cliff Notes version of a story instead of a rich and complete on. Compacting the story much more would have helped immensely, as the characters come off as very stiff and distant to the audience. Not a bad film but one that really should have been a lot better considering the large budget and cast. More money should have been spent on the script and less on extras and sets.

Wells Fargo (1937) is an American Western film directed by
Frank Lloyd
and starring
Joel McCrea, Bob Burns and Frances Dee.
This is the third of four movies in which real life husband and wife McCrea and Dee starred together.

It was nominated for an Academy Award in the category Best Sound (Loren L. Ryder).

User Review

Extremely episodic and disjoint.
30 January 2017 | by MartinHafer (Bradenton, Florida)

Quote from MARTIN

This film is a very fictionalized account of the early days of Wells Fargo---long before it metastasized into the gigantic mega-bank that charges innumerable service fees like it does today. However, instead of focusing on the big-wigs at the company, it focuses on a fictional man, Ramsay (Joel McCrea) and his many difficulties he had establishing banking, transportation and mail services in the wild west. It also focuses on his marriage--one that eventually became very rocky and problematic.

The problem with this film is that it is extremely episodic--with giant jumps in time here and there. As a result, it comes off more like a Cliff Notes version of a story instead of a rich and complete on. Compacting the story much more would have helped immensely, as the characters come off as very stiff and distant to the audience. Not a bad film but one that really should have been a lot better considering the large budget and cast. More money should have been spent on the script and less on extras and sets.

Photos with courtesy of lasbugas
Wells Fargo (1937)