'Gabby' Hayes in a dress, Yakima Canutt doing a daring 'horse to horse' tackle...and missing, a high-speed 'stick ride' down a long mining sluice, a chase involving a horse, a car, and a railroad speeder - any one of these novelties would have lofted 'The Lucky Texan' above the standard 'Lone Star Studios' budget horse-opera. A lot happens in 63 minutes: briefly, a couple of amazing coincidences (involving a lame horse and a playful dog) lead Mason (John Wayne) and Benson (George 'Gabby' Hayes) to a rich gold strike. Needless to say, there are a couple of "dirty lowdown polecats" (Lloyd Whitlock and Yakima Canutt) who connive to take it over (as well as steal Benson's ranch). Further complicating matters, the sheriff's ne'er'do'well son is willing to resort to violence and theft to cover his gambling debts, and both good-guys end up in the pokey accused of murder! 'The Lucky Texan' is one of about 80 low-budget westerns Wayne starred in before his breakout role in John Ford's 'Stagecoach' (1939) and the Duke is fine playing his standard good-natured, but tough, hero. Hayes, more of a co-star than a sidekick in this outing, gets to play an ol'timer who owns a dress and makeup box from his earlier career as a thespian starring in 'Auntie Mame' (there is an amusing scene in which Mason incorrectly guesses what part of a woman's anatomy a 'bustle pad' is supposed to enhance). Most of the action is pretty typical for the genre, with Yakima Canutt providing some excellent horse stunts (both as one of the villains and as Wayne's stunt-double). Needless to say, there is a tacked-in romantic subplot involving Benson's granddaughter (Barbara Sheldon) and Mason, but fortunately it doesn't waste too much celluloid. Not a great film by any means, but entertaining, action-packed and short, which is all that really can be asked of its humble genre (but a must see for 'Gabby' Hayes fans, if only for the climatic courtroom scene).