 It's The Roy Rogers Show! Happy Trails! Ghosts, Great Nuts Flakes, the great two-minute energy serial brings you The Roy Rogers Show, transcribed on the double-R bar ranch with Pat Brady and the Queen of the West, Dale Evans. Happy Trails! He is, in person, the king of the cowboys, Roy Rogers. Well, howdy, folks. You know, being a cowboy, you need lots of energy. That's why Great Nuts Flakes is the serial I like for strength and energy. Just two minutes after you eat a big bowl full, that whole wheat energy starts going to work for you. Try Great Nuts Flakes, buckaroos. They're great. It is the night before, the night before Christmas. In the Eureka Cafe, the supper rush is over, but the excitement certainly hasn't died down. Boy, oh boy, Roy, in a couple hours, you and me and Nella Vale will be perin' our way up in the hills. Snarling might be a better word for the way that motor sounds, Pat. But I promised I'd go on Nellie Bell and I'll go through with it. I just hope our new broadhead arrows really do the business when we treat some of those snarling cats. Well, of all the ridiculous ways to spend the Christmas holidays, hunting cougars with a bow and arrow. I might say with a bow and arrow yet. Oh, Dale, me and Roy haven't had a chance to do any important hunting for practically a year now. Oh, no. We're a couple of free and easy cowpokes with work all taken care of for a few days, and we're going to spend Christmas having fun. Bullard here will enjoy it, too. Well, Pat isn't getting out of here tonight until every one of the Christmas decorations is up to suit me. And perhaps a block down the main street in the dim night light of the Mineral City General Store, there are two men with a rather different sort of holiday spirit. Hey, we're going to do all right around these parts long. This store had a rip-slotting Christmas rush. Must have been eight, nine hundred in this deal. Well, stuff it in your pockets, Daniels, and let's get out of here. Somebody patrols this alley every night, and I never did trust these hick-town cops. Get used to them, Long. Get used to them. Hey, Duck, somebody's looking in the front door. Where? Oh, yeah. Get hold of your nerves, Long. That's nothing but a man and a kid doing a little window shopping. Window shopping? Nothing. The guy's motioning like he sees us, wants to talk to us. Come on, let's beat it. Not on your life. I got a lot to teach you about this ragged Long. We're letting him in. What? Certainly. We might as well pick ourselves up by handmade passing. I'll confound these spurs always getting in the way. Daniels, you're overdoing this rancher gag. You'll never learn to walk with spurs on. Yes, what did you want? Well, we just thought if the store was still open, well, we're just passing through town. And the stuff in your windows is sure pretty. Well, I'm just closing up, but come on in. You wait for me out there, Jess. I won't be long. Okay, Daddy. My little girl saw the dolls, I guess I'll surprise her. I might as well see that she enjoys Christmas a little. Look, son, my partner and I are late and we're in a hurry to get somewhere. Why don't you just find what you want and leave the money? The prices are all marked. You mean you'd trust me? The way I look and everything? Sure, sure. Well, I just want a small doll. I got just about enough to get us a place to stay tonight. Don't apologize, stranger. Oh, one thing. Go out the back door when you leave and close it behind you. The front door lock doesn't work that way. All right, long let's be on our way. That new gray horse of mine has been stomping and champing at the bit for the last five years. Maybe some people aren't so bad after all. Damn to see Christmas come. Then I guess I can't let Jess know how I feel. Everything's spick and span and sparkling. We've been two hours putting up this silly tinsel. Why don't you turn your weight or lose, Dale? Well, I just want one more string of lights put up and then you archery themes can be on your way. Well, look who's here. Oh, what a cute little girl. What can we do for you, young lady? My daddy asked me to wait for him, but I got so cold that I'd write him a letter so he won't worry. Well, Dale will get your pencil. What's your name, partner? Jess. Jess what? Jess Jess. I'm five and a quarter years old. What do people call your daddy? Oh, his name's Jim Gorman. Gorman. You must be strangers around here. We're strangers everywhere lately. Well, here's the pencil and paper, Jess. Oh, thank you. Be sipped, I can't write. Why don't you tell me what you want to say and I'll write it for you and Roy will take it to your daddy. Oh, that'd be neat. Just say, dear daddy, I got cold and I'm down the street with some nice people. Love, Jess. Hey, that's a nice note that I'll be mighty proud to deliver. Where did your daddy leave you, Jess? I don't just know, but it was down that way and there were dolls in the window. Jess, honey, are you hungry? Well... Why don't you come in the kitchen with me? It's even warmer in there and I'll whip you up the most super hamburger you ever tasted. Well, I seem to eat... Ain't that a cute little sprout, though? She sure is. I wonder how a man could leave a kid like that just standing out in front of a store. Well, I'd better start looking him up and then, well, we can be on our way. Oh, dear, Roy. Hi, Sheriff. Hey, Roy, the doggonest thing just happened. I'm sorry, Sheriff. I don't have time to hear about any Mineral City crime waves right now. Yeah, Roy's got to deliver a note and then me and him are starting out for our Christmas vacation. We're heading for the mountains. Going to spend the holidays hunting Cougars. Well, have a nice time. I can tell you about this fella we caught robbing the general store after you get back. Sure. As long as you call him, that's the main thing. That's a funny thing, though. My deputy was checking the alley and he snatched this fella red-handed coming out the back door. The deputy brought him down to jail, of course, and we searched him, and the only thing he had on him was a little doll and about $1.75 in cash. Wait a minute, Sheriff. What was the man's name? Oh, the name he gave us was Gorman or something like that. But I suppose he's using an alias. Now, Roy, maybe I better close the kitchen door. Seems to me I feel a draft. Now, now, Sheriff, was there anything else special about this fella you was telling us about? Well, he's liked to have blown his top there and the cell claims he's innocent and that he left his little daughter waiting for him in front of the store. But I went down to check and there wasn't anyone there. I took the pass key and checked inside and sure enough, the cash register was as empty as a used eggshell. Pat, we don't have to start out on our hunting trip right this minute, do we? No, not right this minute, we don't. Then why don't you sort of hang around here with Dale and that friend she has in the kitchen? I think I'll take a walk to the general store and maybe over to the jail with the sheriff. Looker can't be dangerous. Now, it's such a silly name. Oh, that's what you think, Jess. Believe me, if me and Roy didn't have our trusty boy and Earl's wife, we wouldn't even dare go up in those hills. Oh, go on. Anyway, nothing could happen to you as long as Bullet was with you. I guess you told him that time, Jess. Bullet pulls those two cowpokes out of many a spot. We had a dog once. That's why Mommy was still here. But Daddy and me couldn't take him along when we just hitched right and don't even know where we're going. Jess, honey, are you sure you've had enough to eat? Oh, sure. But you were right about those hamburgers, Miss Dale. All three of them are really super. All right, don't make a move and don't let anybody open your mouths and nobody will get hurt. All I want is that little girl. Oh, no! You touch that kid now. Oh, Bullet, be quiet. That's just my Daddy with a handkerchief over his face. Jess, I... What? You're this child's father? She's my father. Mister, that thing you're making believe is a gun in your pocket. That wouldn't be your finger by chance, would it? What if it is? This is my little girl. And all we want is to get out of here. I haven't done anything no matter what anyone says. Daddy, this is such a nice place and Miss Dale and Pat are so much fun. And I sent a man named Roy out to bring you a letter. Didn't he find you? No. No, I guess he didn't. You see, Jess, I was a little late getting back to where I asked you to wait. Fella, you didn't happen to sort of maybe break out of a certain building here in town just now, did you? Well... Not that it'd be hard. I've seen cracker boxes that'd be tougher. Could I see you in the kitchen just a minute, Mr. Gorman? Oh, Daddy, Miss Dale makes super hamburgers. Why don't you have one? Come along just for a minute, please. Well, if you say so, ma'am. Now, Jess, if you don't believe what I told you about them goers, I'm going to take you something that'll just... Now, look, mister, we're willing to forget the way you came in here after your little girl, but we're not going to let you go on Didn't you ever have things go so wrong that you got all mixed up? Well, of course, everyone does. But you shouldn't ever steal. We know about the general store being robbed. I didn't do it. I never stole a thing. Did a man named Roy Rogers come down to the jail to talk to you? No, I just talked to the sheriff. Then he left and I saw my chance and I broke out to get Jess. Well, Roy and the sheriff were going back to the jail to talk to you. Now, look, if you're innocent, I'm going to have Pat drive you right back. You can get back in your cell before anyone even notices that you're gone. I am innocent. But what'll happen to Jess? Well, Jess will be fine. Why, she's the nicest company I've had in years. And if you can convince Roy Rogers that you're straight, I'll guarantee that you'll spend Christmas with your daughter. Shine your flashlight down here, Sheriff, around the Hitchin' Rail. We aren't getting any place, Roy. We've poked around that store for more than a half an hour. And what do we know? Well, we know that we found a dollar bill lying on the cash register. And that Garmin had a 98-cent doll with him when he was arrested. And we also know that we found a piece of a spur in the store after it had been swept for the night. And that Garmin wasn't wearing spurs. Well, I know that, Roy. Now, look here. We also know that Garmin wasn't mounted. But there were two horses standing at this rail within the last couple of hours. One of them stood here calm-like, but the other one was an animal that, well, wasn't used to being tied. How can you tell that? From the hoof marks. One of them was stomping all over the place. And if you happen to brush the rail a few times, hey, here you are. Here's what I'm looking for. Can you find some horse hair? Sheriff, have you heard about any gray horses being stolen lately? Not that I remember. But it'd be a simple manner to go back to the office and check all the reports. Good. We'll do that when we go back to talk to Garmin. And then, as soon as it's daylight, Pat and I have some work to do. Work to do? I thought you was going on a hunting trip. Didn't you say something about cougars? Well, the cats can wait for another few hours. First, I'm going to track a gray horse, and then I'll start worrying about cougar tracks. And now it's time for another Roy Rogers reminder. Be a good loser. Yes, buckaroos, that's Roy's reminder for today. You know, even the best of cowboys can't always win at riding, roping, or wrangling. And Roy wants you to know that if you should lose some time, that's the time to grin and say to yourself, well, I just got to practice some more and build up some more strength and energy and make sure that next time I'll win. And say, buckaroos, talking about strength and energy that you need to win in almost anything you do. The best way to get it is to eat good, nourishing food like grape nuts flakes. Roy eats grape nuts flakes for energy. His pictures on every package. Yes, Roy likes those swell-tasting grape nuts flakes because their whole wheat energy starts going to work for you just two minutes after you eat a big, malty-rich bowlful. That's energy you need for most everything you do during the day. And you like sugar-roasted grape nuts flakes. They have a flavor that's malty-rich, makes them mighty good to eat. So if you want to be king of the cowboys in your corral, ask your mom to get you. Grape nuts flakes, the great two-minute energy cereal. Grape nuts flakes is one of the triple-wrapped post-serials. Guaranteed fresh or triple your money back. A wonderful little girl drops in on Roy, Dale, and Pat at the Eureka Cafe, a broken, confused man as accused of robbery, and the holiday hunting trip on which our cowboy friends were planning so excitedly seems to have suffered a further postponement, for it's the day before Christmas now. Roy, I hope this ain't a wild goose chase. Oh, it's too bad we couldn't pick up those tracks this morning. Yeah, that char hadn't come along. Well, we can't let an innocent man stay in jail if we can help it. Jim Gorman's all right, I'm sure. Yeah. Say, do you know anything about this Daniel's fellow Pat? No, except that he and his buddy leased this place about 10 days ago. They'll remember that she'd seen him on a black horse a couple of times and then on a gray. Well, a gray horse was stolen from near Zenith last week. Of course, Daniels may be able to prove he's owned the gray he rides for years, and in that case, I wouldn't know what to do next except go hunting. Well, we'll soon find out. Who, who are they? Who, Trigger, city boy, who? Hey, there's that Daniel's fellow out by the barn. He don't look much like a rancher, does he? No, he doesn't. And if he expects to run a big place like this, he... Shut up there, stranger! You're Rogers and Brady, aren't you? Are you sure, Mr. Daniels? Well, I suppose you came out to pay a little pre-Christmas call. Come on in the house. We haven't got time for that, Mr. Daniels. We heard you moved in here with a fine gray horse, and... Well, maybe he's for sale. Well, yes, I do have a gray horse, and he might be for sale. At a price, though. He isn't the most tractable animal I've ever known, but he's a beauty all right. Come on, he's in the barn. Well, I'm sorry we haven't gotten over to call on you before, Mr. Daniels. I've been pretty busy around my own sped trying to get things cleared up so pat and I could take a little hunting trip. Oh, that's all right. Lots of time for visiting. I expect to be around these parts for a long time. Well, here we are. Hey, there he is. The gray ghost in question. Hey, he's quite an animal. I don't blame you for being proud of him. Had him long? Raised him from a colt. When I saw the little fella standing at his mother's side, that dappled gray hide gleaming in the sunlight, I knew he was the horse for me. I guess there's something you didn't know, though, Daniels. What's that? That a gray colt isn't born gray. They're solid black, except for some hairs on their mane and tail. You stole this horse, didn't you? Look, you can't talk to me like that, Rogers. I can prove I own him. And I can prove that you were in the general store in Mineral City last night, after hours. What? What are you talking about? One of the teeth is broken off the rail in your right spur. And I've got a hunch it's going to match... Long! Help! Oh, no, you don't, Daniels. Don't move. Don't reach for those guns. Long! Long! Let me get in on this, Roy. Gee, look out, Roy. Up in the haymow there. I see him. That'll hold him for a second. Here, Pat, you handle Daniels. Get a ladder to get up there. Now you with the rifle. Don't, don't, don't. We'll fall over the edge. That isn't so far. I jumped up here without too much trouble. Let me go. I don't know anything about the general store robbery. Oh, no. Sounds to me like you do. When you wake up, you can tell the sheriff about it. How are you coming, Pat? I'm coming fine, but you sure can't say the same about Daniels. Nice going, Pat. Now let's get these two tied up in into Mineral City. We want to get started on our hunting trip before dark. We'll have to hurry. Yeah, we sure will. Because we still have to bring Jess's father out from town to the double-R bar, too. Yeah, Dale and Jess will be getting anxious. Let's go. Go ready. Well, he and Pat will be here any minute, honey. They had a couple of errands to do. Are you sure everything is all right? You bet it is, Dale. The sheriff wanted to talk to Jim about a job he can get for him. So I figured I'd just mose you back to see how you and Jess were making out. Oh, we've had a wonderful day, Roy. I guess the Eureka isn't going to be open for Christmas Eve, but shucks, there probably wouldn't have been any business anyway. Well, that's my guitar. Well, sort of. Jess, you had a busy day here on the ranch. Why don't you climb up here in my lap and kind of rest for a minute till your daddy gets here? Hmm? Something sort of soft and nice, huh, Roy? Sure. How's this? Close your sleepy eyes My little heat of western skies is shining down on you Don't you know it's time for bed and a- But she's had a busy day. Good. Pat and I didn't get much hunting done, but maybe one day it'll be enough for us if we can ever get going. Well, it looks like you can start right now. Here we are. There she is, Jim. Jess, I'm sorry I was so long, but I- Shh. She's asleep. Gosh. Do you mind, Roy and Dale? Well, I should say not. You just sit here and enjoy the fire and when Jess is ready to go to bed, there's room all set for both of you. Roy, you and me got things to do, so let's get started. All right. I think I'll just walk outside with you for a couple of minutes. I'll talk to you before we leave, Jim. Everything all right? Fine, Roy. I'd like to talk to you, too. Boy, it's your fine night to head for the hills, isn't it, Pat? Golly, yes. Only there's one little errand I ought to do. You know, they had some dandy tin jeeps, just like Nellabel in the general store and they're gonna be open late tonight and I just thought I- Well, as long as you're going into town, maybe I can ride in with you. Dale, I figure as long as you weren't gonna open up tonight, maybe you'd like to ride over to Bob Nimmis' ranch with me for a few minutes. Oh? What for? Well, they had a litter of puppies over there about seven weeks ago and I thought I'd go over and get one. You know, sort of a little surprise for Jess when she wakes up in the morning. Oh, all right, Roy. All the time out, just about right. And then the three of us can meet back here and head for the mountains. Now, wait a minute. I'm not going cougar hunting with you two characters. Well, I didn't mean way up in the mountains, Dale. We'll say about 2,500 feet up in the foothills. There's some real nice little fir trees growing and I thought if we went up and got a nice one, it'd be fun to watch Jess in the morning. Oh, yes. Shucks, Pat, we can go cougar hunting any time. Oh, yeah, yeah, sure can. I think tree hunting's a much better idea. Wow. Aren't those stars bright tonight? They sure are. Hey, look at that big one right overhead. I don't remember seeing that one before. Gosh, that is a nice one. I don't remember seeing it either. You don't? You've never noticed that star before? No. Why, that's been there for ages. People saw it for the first time almost 2,000 years ago. Well, it's Christmas and I'll bet a lot of you thought today would never roll around. Christmas always seems to take a long time coming, but it sure is worth waiting for, isn't it, Dale? I'll say it is, Roy. And I just hope all of our friends are having as fine a day as we are. I can see that Pat agrees. Ah, sure do, Dale. And speaking for all the gang here at the ranch, we hope Christmas brought you folks everything you wished for. Yes, and we hope that Santa left your stocking just bulging with good things. But the best wish we have for you is for the true spirit of Christmas to stay with you all through the year. You know, the spirit of giving is a good thing to have with you all the time, and peace on earth, goodwill toward men, is well worth keeping in mind every single day of the year. I know you all agree with me on that. And now our sponsor, post-serials, who bring you great nuts flakes, sugar crisp, and so many other good serials, join Dale, Pat, and all of us here at the ranch in sending you best wishes for the holiday season. Yes, from our post-family to your family, merry, merry Christmas, and the happiest new year ever. And for now, goodbye, good luck, and may the good Lord take a liken to you. See you next week.