Shooting High
| Shooting High | |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Alfred E. Green |
| Produced by | John Stone |
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| Starring | |
| Music by | Samuel Kaylin |
| Cinematography | Ernest Palmer |
| Edited by | Nick DeMaggio |
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Production
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| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
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Release date
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Running time
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66 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Shooting High is a 1940 American Western film directed by Alfred E. Green and starring Jane Withers, Gene Autry, and Marjorie Weaver. Written by Lou Breslow and Owen Francis, the film is about a generations-old feud between two families that is resurrected when the town banker tries to contrsuct a highway through the area bearing a monument to the frontiersman ancestor of one of the families.Shooting High was Gene Autry's first film away from Republic Pictures, his first as a mere co-star, his first without the comic presence of Smiley Burnette since 1934, and his first playing a character other than himself.
The Carsons and the Pritchards have been feuding in the town of Carson's Corners for generations. The budding romance between Will Carson (Gene Autry) and Marjorie Pritchard (Marjorie Weaver) is now being threatened by the long-standing feud. Margorie's father, Calvin Pritchard (Frank M. Thomas), is the bank president and mayor of Carson's Corners. Calvin pretends to support Will's courtship of his daughter because he needs to acquire a piece of Carson property for a proposed highway through the area. When Will learns of Calvin's true motives, he accuses Marjorie of scheming with her father to steal Carson land.
The long simmering feud between the Carsons and the Pritchards erupts over Will's accusation. Just as the families renew their bickering, Gabby Cross (Jack Carson), a publicity agent for Spectrum Pictures, arrives in town and offers the townspeople $20,000 to use Carson's Corners as a filming location for a movie he is making about Wild Bill Carson, Will's grandfather and the founder of Carson Corners. Still angered by Will's undermining his highway plan, Calvin refuses Gabby's offer. His youngest daughter, Jane (Jane Withers), suggests a compromise that would allow Spectrum Pictures to use the town as a filming location if the highway proposal were approved by the Carsons.
With all parties agreeing to the proposal, the movie company arrives in town and begins production. The star of the film, Bob Merritt (Robert Lowery), begins to court Marjorie. Wanting her sister to marry Will, Jane and the sheriff devise a plan to frighten Merritt out of town, telling him a lynch party is after him. After Merritt leaves town, the head of Spectrum Pictures threatens to sue Pritchard for the defection. Gabby suggests giving the part to Will, who agrees on the condition that Pritchard extend the Carson mortgages.
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Wikipedia