''Way Out West'' is a 1930 American

pre-Code Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the Cinema of the United States, American film industry between the widespread adoption of sound in film in 1929LaSalle (2002), p. 1. and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorshi ...

parody film, directed by

Fred Niblo Fred Niblo (born Frederick Liedtke; January 6, 1874 – November 11, 1948) was an American pioneer film actor, director and producer. Biography He was born Frederick Liedtke (several sources give "Frederico Nobile", apparently erroneously) in Yo ...

, starring

William Haines Charles William Haines (January 2, 1900 – December 26, 1973) was an American actor and interior designer. Haines was discovered by a talent scout and signed with Goldwyn Pictures in 1922. His career gained momentum when he received favo ...

Leila Hyams Leila Hyams (May 1, 1905 – December 4, 1977) was an American film and stage actress, model, and vaudevillian, who came from a show business family. Her relatively short film career began in 1924 during the era of silent films and ended in 19 ...

Polly Moran Pauline Theresa Moran (June 28, 1883 – January 25, 1952) billed as Polly Moran, was an American actress of vaudeville, stage and screen and comedian. Career Born in Chicago, Illinois, Moran started in vaudeville, and widely toured North A ...

, and

Ralph Bushman Ralph Everly Bushman (1903 – 1978), was an American actor. He appeared in 55 films between 1920 and 1943. In his early film career, he often was credited as Francis X. Bushman Jr. The son of notable silent film star Francis X. Bushman and ...

. It tells the story of Windy, a con man who cheats a group of cowboys out of their money. When they discover his cheating and learn that he has been robbed, they force him to work on a ranch until he has paid his debt.

Plot

Windy, a sideshow barker, cheats a group of cowboys out of their pay, but is then robbed himself. When the cowboys discover they have been cheated, they initially decide to hang him, then decide to make him work off his debt. He falls in love with ranch owner Molly, and when he saves her life after she is bitten by a rattlesnake, he wins her heart.THE SCREEN; Triumphant Impudence.
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Cast

as Windy *

as Molly Rankin *

as Pansy *

Cliff Edwards Clifton Avon "Cliff" Edwards (June 14, 1895 – July 17, 1971), nicknamed "Ukulele Ike", was an American singer, musician and actor. He enjoyed considerable popularity in the 1920s and early 1930s, specializing in jazzy renditions of pop standar ...

as Trilby *

as Steve (as Francis X. Bushman Jr.) *

Vera Marshe Vera Marshe (July 15, 1905 – March 25, 1984) was an American film and television character actress. Biography Born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on July 15, 1905. She began her career by appearing in a number of short films during the 30 ...

as La Belle Rosa * Charles Middleton as Buck Rankin *

Jack Pennick Ronald Jack Pennick (December 7, 1895 – August 16, 1964) was an American film actor. After working as a gold miner as a young man, serving as a US Marine, he would go on to appear in more than 140 films between 1926 and 1962. Pennick was a ...

as Pete *

Buddy Roosevelt Buddy Roosevelt (born Kenneth Stanhope Sanderson; June 25, 1898 – October 6, 1973) was an American film and television actor and stunt performer from Hollywood's early silent film years through the 1950s. Biography Roosevelt was born as Kenn ...

as Tex *

Jay Wilsey Jay Wilsey (February 6, 1896 – October 25, 1961) was an American film actor (born Wilbert Jay Wilsey). He appeared in nearly 100 films between 1924 and 1944. He starred in a series of very low-budget westerns in the 1920s and 1930s, billed ...

as Hank *

Catherine Moylan Catherine May Moylan (July 4, 1904September 9, 1969) was an American film and television actress, model, and beauty queen who won the 1926 International Pageant of Pulchritude. She subsequently appeared in two Broadway productions before having ...

as Carnival Show Girl

Production

''Way Out West'' was made on a budget of $413,000, one of the more expensive William Haines vehicles.Mann (1998), p. 169

Response

''The New York Times'' deemed ''Way Out West'' "an impertinent, moderately comic affair tinctured with slapstick and romance". The film made a profit of $84,000, making it one of the less profitable of Haines's films of the period. Gay film historians, noting the homosexuality of William Haines, suggest that ''Way Out West'' is "one of the gayest films ever made". Haines biographer William J. Mann cites latent

homoeroticism Homoeroticism is sexual attraction between members of the same sex, either male–male or female–female. The concept differs from the concept of homosexuality: it refers specifically to the desire itself, which can be temporary, whereas "homose ...

and inside gay humor throughout the film. In one particular example, viewed in light of the

Pansy Craze The Pansy Craze was an American national queer movement. During the Pansy Craze of 1930–1933 (however the exact dates are debated), drag queens, known as "pansy performers", experienced a surge in underground popularity, especially in Los Angel ...

that was beginning to reach Hollywood, Windy is mistaken for the cook Pansy. When called by her name, he replies "I'm the wildest pansy you ever picked!" Richard Barrios, author of ''Screened Out: Playing Gay in Hollywood from Edison to Stonewall'', concurs: "For anyone seeking gay text or subtext in any of Haines's movies, this is the one to study."Barrios, Richard (2003). ''Screened Out: Playing Gay in Hollywood from Edison to Stonewall''. Psychology Press. , pp. 47—48

References

External links

''Way Out West''
at the

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''Way Out West''
at

Turner Classic Movies Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie channel, movie-oriented pay television, pay-TV television network, network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasti ...

1930 films 1930s Western (genre) comedy films American LGBT-related films Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films American Western (genre) comedy films American black-and-white films Films directed by Fred Niblo 1930s LGBT-related films 1930 comedy films 1930s American films {{1930s-US-film-stub