While strolling through the DVD/video section at my local K-Mart this evening, keeping my eyes open for any good deals on westerns, I spied The Happy Trails Theatre series. These are '40s and '50s vintage Roy Rogers movies on DVD, and there are ten in the series, of which I bought the four available titles. Here's what it says, in way of general description, on the back of each DVD -
ROY ROGERS, the King of the Cowboys, and DALE EVANS, his saddlemate onscreen and off, host a roundup of Roy's best films, which made him #1 at the box office for all Western stars, every year from 1942 to 1954. The only versions authorized by the Rogers estate, they're mastered with the best available source material and contain added bonuses as Roy, Dale, and their guests recall the "happy trails" they've traveled together!
The ten titles currently available are:
Robin Hood of the Pecos
North of the Great Divide
South of Caliente
Jesse James at Bay
Down Dakota Way
Bells of Coronado
Twilight in the Sierras
West of the Badlands
Along the Navajo Trail
Sons of the Pioneers
For those who care, these are GoodTimes DVDs (I didn't notice that until after I got home). The quality seems pretty decent, and the special features so far are pretty good (Roy Rogers & Dale Evans Biography, Sidekicks Feature, Roy Rogers Museum Tour - probably the old one in Victorville). They were $6.99 each, and I am satisfied with them as additions to my fledgeling Roy Rogers collection of videos and DVDs.
The part I particularly liked was the little introduction/commentary before the movie, by Roy Rogers, Dale Evans, and Dusty Evans, their grown son (I think the guest changes on each DVD). They shared some interesting information both before and after the film. Maybe GoodTimes has gotten their act together.
So . . . as Roy would say . . . "Good bye, good luck, and may the good Lord take a likin' to ya!"
Chester