Barnyard Follies
| Barnyard Follies | |
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Original 1940 Lobby Card
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| Directed by | Frank McDonald |
| Produced by | Armand Schaefer |
| Screenplay by | Dorrell McGowan Stuart E. McGowan |
| Story by | Robert T. Shannon |
| Starring |
Mary Lee Rufe Davis Harry Cheshire June Storey Ralph Bowman Joan Woodbury Jed Prouty Victor Kilian Isabel Randolph |
| Music by |
William Lava (uncredited) Cy Feuer, director |
| Cinematography | Ernest Miller |
| Edited by | Charles Craft |
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Production
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| Distributed by | Republic Pictures |
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Release date
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Running time
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68.5 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Barnyard Follies is a 1940 Republic Pictures musical comedy drama B movie directed by Frank McDonald with music directed by Cy Feuer and dance choreography by Josephine Earl. Set in the rural American West, a small-town orphanage struggles to become self-supporting through its 4-H Club projects. The screenplay, written by Dorrell McGowan and Stuart E. McGowan, is based on a story concept by Robert T. Shannon. Released October 6, 1940, the film stars Mary Lee, Rufe Davis, Harry Cheshire, June Storey, Ralph Bowman, Joan Woodbury, Jed Prouty, Victor Kilian, and Isabel Randolph.
Pappy Cheshire, his assistant Louise Dale, and farmhand Bucksaw Beechwood manage an orphanage at the village of Farmdale. Pappy has loaned $5000 of community provided orphanage funding to the orphans for their new 4-H Club projects so the orphanage will become self-supporting. Of the opinion this is a ridiculous idea, community leaders Hiram Crabtree, Sam Spitz, and Mrs. Uppington pressure Pappy to return the money within 30 days.
Hearing on the radio that Pappy's long lost brother, Henry, died and left Pappy $20,000, Bubbles Martin, one of the teenage orphan girls, tells Pappy about his good fortune, part of which turns out to be a nightclub, The Peep Inn, that Pappy and Bubbles visit in the city. Pappy plans to close the place, sell the building, and use the proceeds for the orphanage. He approaches The Peep Inn's group of musicians, girl dancers, and their director, Jeff Hill, to settle their contract at 50 cents on the dollar for their release. The entertainers refuse the offer and Pappy insists they get on the train and come to Farmdale to work for him for the remainder of their contract.
When Jeff Hill and troupe arrive at the orphanage, Jeff is immediately smitten with Louise but she gives him the cold shoulder. Receiving a check for only $900 from his brother's estate after taxes and expenses, Pappy is unable to pay the community back. Jeff wants to put on a show, "The Barnyard Follies", to earn enough money to solve the financial problem but Dolly and the other girl dancers quit when they learn of the plan. Bubbles gets the orphans to do the show with the help of Jeff.
The Fire Inspector prevents the show from taking place. Under the pressure of Hiram and Sam, Pappy Cheshire leaves the orphanage. When the haystack goes up in flames the Fire Department comes. As the Fire Department begins to leave, one of the fire trucks gets stuck on the bridge in the driveway at the orphanage. With the entire Fire Department now at the orphanage waiting for the fire truck to be freed, the Mayor of Farmdale allows the show to proceed. Pappy returns when he hears on the radio that the orphan's 4-H Club animals are going to be auctioned off. Mrs. Uppington accuses Hiram Crabtree and Sam Spitz of political graft as their motive for driving Pappy Cheshire to leave. Hiram and Sam flee the scene. All ends well and Jeff and Louise are arm in arm by the end of the movie.
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