Go West
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For the first and last time, the Marxes went back in time for a picture (unless you include Irwin Allen's 1957 picture, The Story Of Mankind, where the three brothers all appeared, but in different scenes). It's 1870 and the boys are trying (for various reasons) to migrate west. After a comical scene where the three are trying to swindle each other for train fare, we find them in the west without any logical explanation as to how they actually got there.
Terry Turner (John Carroll) is in a bind. He wants to marry Eve Wilson (Diana Lewis), but her grandfather won't allow it. It seems that Terry's granddad sold Eve's grandpappy a worthless piece of land some forty years earlier, and he is unwilling to let it slide. Terry tries to smooth things over by talking the New York and Western Railroad into purchasing the land, known as "Dead Man's Gulch," to use as part of the route for their line west.
Unfortunately, Wilson has given the deed to brothers Joe (Chico) and Rusty (Harpo) Panello as security on a 10-dollar loan. Beecher (Walter Woolf King) wants to get a hold of this land himself, so he can force the railroad into buying his own land for the same purpose, at his price. Enter S. Quentin Quale (Groucho), who would like to swindle the Panello brothers, but winds up joining with them in trying to thwart Beecher's plans.
Chico livens up the proceedings with one of his most creative piano solos to date, and Harpo entertains us on a makeshift harp, improvised from an Indian's loom. The climactic train ride is brilliant.
JOE: All we want to know is where is the train?
QUALE: The train? It's out on the tracks. It seldom comes in here.
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General
Cast:
| Groucho Marx | S. Quentin Quale | ||
| Harpo Marx | Rusty Panello | ||
| Chico Marx | Joseph Panello | ||
| John Carroll | Terry Turner | ||
| Diana Lewis | Eve Wilson | ||
| Robert Barrat | Red Baxter | ||
| Walter Woolf King | John Beecher | ||
| June MacCloy | Lulubelle | ||
| George Lessey | Railroad President | ||
| Mitchell Lewis | Halfbreed ("Indian Pete") | ||
| Tully Marshall | Dan Wilson | ||
| Edward Gargan | Railroad ticket clerk | ||
| Arthur Housman | Drunk in saloon | ||
| Harry Tyler | Telegraph clerk | ||
| Iris Adrian | Mary Lou, first saloon girl | ||
| Joan Woodbury | Melody, second saloon girl | ||
| Joe Yule | |||
| Clem Bevans | |||
| Lee Bowman |
| Director | Edward Buzzell | ||
| Written by | Irving Brecher | ||
| Cinematography | Leonard Smith | ||
| Art directors | Stan Rogers | ||
| Cedric Gibbons | |||
| Set decorator | Edwin B. Willis | ||
| Musical director | George E. Stoll | ||
| Orchestrator | George Bassman | ||
| Composer "Ridin' the Range" | Roger Edens | ||
| Composer "As If I Didn't Know", "You Can't Argue With Love" | Bronislau Kaper | ||
| Composer "From the Land of the Sky Blue Water" (Harp Solo) | Charles Wakefield Cadman | ||
| Lyricist | Gus Kahn | ||
| Editor | Blanche Sewell | ||
| Recording director | Douglas Shearer | ||
| Costume designers | Dolly Tree (women) | ||
| Gile Steele (men) | |||
| Assistant director | Sandy Roth | ||
| Producer | Jack Cummings | ||
| Production company / Distribution | Metro-Goldwyn-Meyer (Loew's Inc.) | ||
| Runtime | 80 min. | ||
| Release date | 06 Dec 1940 | ||
| New York opening | 20 Feb 1941 | ||
| Spanish title | Los hermanos Marx en el oeste | ||
| French title | Chercheurs d'or | ||
| Swedish title | En dag i Vilda Västern | ||
| Italian title | I Cowboys del deserto | ||
| Finnish title | Päivä lännessä | ||
| Norwegian title | Ville Vesten |
Posters and Lobby Cards for this movie. Click to enlarge.
Musical numbers
| Performed by | Comments | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Main Title | |||
| You can't argue with love Music and lyrics by: Bronislau Kaper | |||
| Rindin' the Range Music and lyrics by: Roger Edens | |||
| My Bonnie Lies Over The Ocean | |||
 view | As If I Didn't Know Music and lyrics by: Bronislau Kaper | ||
| From the Land of the Sky Blue Water Music and lyrics by: Charles Wakefield Cadman |
