The Great Dan Patch (1949)

Undescribable Perfection

So much average

Powerful

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

was i in for a surprise. what an absolute dud from all angles. I'm crazy about Gail Russell but in this movie we could clearly see the puffed eyes due to years and years of alcohol absorbing. she did the acting o. Dennis O keefe that wasn't a role for him...he doesn't know how to use his hands...hes bland and he is simply a so so actor. Ruth Warwick was good in what she did. I'm really sorry to have seen Charlotte Greenwood in this...she is usually funny and energetic....in PATCH she is boring and the role doesn't fit her at all. The racing are overlong and the story is plain dull. why i gave it at least a 4...the black man who sang the song MIXED...so well. Glad i bought it at a cheap price. I cant get over poor Gail Russell...a waste of what could had been a great actress.

David Palmer (Dennis O'Keefe) has graduated from college as a chemist but returns to his father's horse farm in Indiana to sort things out. He has been engaged to a beautiful schoolteacher (Ruth Warrick) and they will probably wed soon. David's father raises harness-racing horses and is very excited about a stallion named Joe Patchen. Training the horse is his longtime employee and his teenage daughter, Cissy (Gail Russell). But, at his first race, Joe P has an unfortunate accident and ruins one his legs. Undeterred, Mr. Palmer Sr. decides to breed the horse and see what happens. Fast forward three years. David is married and far wealthier, due to an invention. His wife couldn't be happier but, David feels something is missing. He begins spending more time with Joe's son, horse Dan Patch, who is even swifter than his sire. Cissy, too, has blossomed into a beautiful, sweet young lady who secretly loves David. With Dan Patch winning race after race, David gets caught up in the excitement, as does the entire country. But, could his personal life with his wife suffer? Does he truly love Cissy, too? This 1949 film highlights the true story of a horse, Dan Patch, who set many records for harness racing and was well-loved throughout the whole USA. Few have heard of him today, unfortunately, but many viewers will love watching his "tale". The cast is quite nice, with O'Keefe a dignified, handsome leading man and Russell unusually pretty. Watch out for Warrick, who went on to fame in the soaps! She makes a darn good "villianess". All of the supporting actors are very fine as well. Naturally, the film's look is the standard of the times but the editing and camera shots are interesting. Costumes, sets, script, and direction are worthy. Of course, there is some obvious political "incorrectness", as the horse farm's workers are African-American and shown in a mostly subservient role. Likely it is historically accurate to their positions but, they are shown here as stereotypically "step-and-fetch-its" without much intelligence. That's too bad but the story is still a good one and worth watching, despite its problems. If you love horses, you should try to find dear Dan P. I got mine at the Dollar Tree store, for a buck, and it brought much more pleasure than it cost.

The film is really only a little about Dan Patch. It's more about the relationship of the great horse's owners, and that is largely fictionalized.David Palmer (Dennis O'Keefe) comes home to find that his father, Dan Palmer (Henry Hull), has purchased another trotting horse, named Zelica. She has great potential, but is injured in her first race and retired to being a brood mare. Her first foal is named Dan Patch, after her owner and after his sire, Joe Patchen. Ben Lathrop (John Hoyt) and his tomboy daughter Cissy (Gail Russell), who has a huge crush on David, are hired as trainers. David's wife, Ruth (Ruth Warwick), is a social climber who has no interest in his horses, only in improving her status among the elite of Indianapolis. After Dan Palmer dies, David takes over running the farm as a hobby and turns it into a training stable with Ben and Cissy in charge. A financial setback causes Dave to sell Dan Patch to M. W. Savage (in August 1902, according to the telegram in the film). The greater history of Dan Patch's popularity is covered in the final six minutes of the film. There are some good trotting scenes in the process, but the melodramatic story contradicts the title.In reality, Dan Patch was owned by Dan Messner and trained by Johnny Wattles. Manley Sturgis bought Dan Patch in 1900, and sold him to Marion Willis Savage of Minnesota in 1902. Savage was the man who toured Dan Patch throughout the country in a private rail car, capitalizing on the horse's fame by branding everyday products with the Dan Patch name.

I got this movie in a package and thought that it did not look like anything that I would like. I'd never seen Dennis O'Keefe, who is quite watchable... He plays a pretty good role, as does Ruth Warwick as his highly unlikeable, social climbing wife... Lots of good character parts, although the woman that Dennis thinks of leaving his wife for is a bit on the boring side, tho true blue. This is no Seabiscuit, and there are no huge surprises; however, for a fluff movie, the issues of divorce and possible adultery are quite intriguing (for the era). So you see, I thought the movie was much more about the people. I can't quite tell if my comments look as if I liked the movie or not... I did like the movie.