Aside from the novelty of seeing John Wayne on ice skates*, "Idol of the Crowds" is a pretty routine sports B-movie with many familiar story elements.
When the story begins, the New York Panthers hockey team is having a lot of trouble and they send out scouts to find good players. Oddly, they invite Johnny Hanson (Waybe) to try out even though no one on the team has seen him play. As for Hanson, he only wants to play long enough to make enough money to buy a nice chicken ranch!
Well, Johnny is a huge success but gamblers are eager to trip him up...so they first get a girl to pitch woo to him and then try to get him to throw a playoff game. When that doesn't work, they hurt Johnny's kid brother! And, you wonder what's next!
No major surprises here but a modestly enjoyable B-picture.
When the story begins, the New York Panthers hockey team is having a lot of trouble and they send out scouts to find good players. Oddly, they invite Johnny Hanson (Waybe) to try out even though no one on the team has seen him play. As for Hanson, he only wants to play long enough to make enough money to buy a nice chicken ranch!
Well, Johnny is a huge success but gamblers are eager to trip him up...so they first get a girl to pitch woo to him and then try to get him to throw a playoff game. When that doesn't work, they hurt Johnny's kid brother! And, you wonder what's next!
No major surprises here but a modestly enjoyable B-picture.