A United Artists rfelease, 1 July 1948, directed by George Archainbaud.CAST: William Boyd, Andy Clyde, Rand Brooks, Elaine Riley, John Kellogg, Helen Chapman, John Parrish, Cliff Clark, Anne O'Neal, Earle Hodgins, Herbert Rawlinson, Don Haggerty, James Harrison. Running time: 59 minutes. (Available on an excellent Platinum Disc or Echo Bridge DVD). COMMENT: This one not only offers a plot line that's rather dull but cheats outrageously in order to bring about a "surprise" ending. Obviously aimed at a kiddies' audience, it wastes an enormous amount of time in the school room. True, Anne O'Neal does well by the typically spinsterish school marm, but Andy Clyde has obviously been encouraged to way over-act. Fortunately, Helen Chapman makes a dandy saloon girl, but she's not in the movie all that much. Admittedly, John Parrish does his best to fill in for Morris Ankrum as the villain and it's good to see barkeep Byron Foulger stooging for Clyde, as well as Earle Hodgins making the best of his running gag as an always-late sheriff. All told though, it's a disinterestedly directed entry that out-stays its welcome even at 59 minutes.

After selling off some Bar 20 cattle Hoppy, Lucky, and California run into some Borrowed Trouble when the rivalry between two saloon owners takes an interesting twist. Borrowed Trouble is stolen from our cowboy heroes by the performance of Anne O'Neal as one feisty schoolteacher who has it in for one of the saloon owners.Seems as though his place during the daylight hours is quite the fascination for her pupils especially those just starting those pangs of puberty. She emphasizes to Hoppy that John Parrish's place is too much for her to deal with and she's going to close it one way or another. All while telling Hoppy that she's no kind of blue nosed reformer though she sure looks like she belongs in Carry Nation's army.Can't go any farther because this story does take an interesting twist. Let's say that some forensic evidence tells the tale to Hopalong Cassidy who O'Neal insists upon calling William.Some nice scenes with Hoppy and the school kids show why he was such an idol among America's youth and Andy Clyde teaching a bunch of kids all smarter than him is a hoot.One of the better of the later Hopalong Cassidy films. All owing to Anne O'Neal.

Miss Abbott (Anne ONeal) is a schoolteacher who is having a running battle with saloon owner Steve Mawson (John Parrish) over the proximity of his saloon to the schoolhouse. Hoppy goes to see the teacher after he catches her breaking the windows in Mawson's saloon by heaving apples through them. Abbott is the stereotypical curmudgeonly, yet curiously likable old spinsterish teacher. Sometimes the supporting actors get all the best lines. After Hoppy introduces himself as Hopalong Cassidy, she tells him "I can't do anything about that, why don't you change it." He informs her that Hopalong is a nickname and that his real name is Bill, so of course she calls him "William" throughout the movie. She also gets in another zinger later when – after she has hit a bad guy – Lucky tells her "You sure knocked him out," she says, "That's nothing, he was unconscious fifteen years ago when he was a student of mine". After the apple-throwing incident, the teacher is kidnapped. Both California and Hoppy briefly look after the school children. Hoppy's scenes with the children are delightful and a highlight of the film. The ending of the film had a nice little twist to it. I agree there's not a lot of action in this film but it is an engaging, funny and quite charming film. As one reviewer said – it's all a matter of taste.

Completed during the final year (1948) of Hopalong Cassidy feature film-making, this effort unsuccessfully blends humour with a customary action element, relating of quarrels among a crusty schoolteacher and two rival saloon owners, with Hopalong (William Boyd) and his two sidekicks, Lucky Jenkins (Rand Brooks) and California Carlson (Andy Clyde) finding themselves trying to mediate the various conflicts while Hoppy and California fill in for the schoolmarm (Anne O'Neal) who has been kidnapped as punishment for breaking saloon windows with apples. Produced by Boyd for United Artists and filmed in California's picturesque Inyo County, the work fails to maintain a consistent tone and, although the cast provides good performances from veteran supporting players Byron Foulger, Earle Hodgins and Cliff Clark, tepid direction from generally reliable George Archainbaud, along with very sloppy editing, leave their markings; there is, however, a nifty score by Darrell Calker who composed for many "B"s, and always adroitly.