You Can't Beat the Percentage - Recap

An old man, Pop, is digging graves at the cemetery as a younger man watches him. When Bart notices them and rides up, Pop explains that he doesn’t know who they’re for and are just trying to keep ahead. He tells Bart that Dave Lindell sends them most of their business. The younger cowboy says that he’s there to kill Lindell and rides off.

Bart rides into town, bidding a brief welcome to Sheriff Bill Satchel. He then tracks down Lindell at the Buckhorn, his saloon, hotel, and gambling den and tells him what he learned. Lindell is unconcerned and Bret asks to set in on a game of California Poker. As they sit down to play, Lindell introduces Myra, the saloon girl. Bart asks for one card for his hand and the dealer, Harry, “accidentally” deals him two. Bart calls him on it and Lindell points out that Harry could have fouled his hand. The gambler discovers he was dealt a fourth ace and figures that Harry did it deliberately. Myra brings him a complimentary sandwich and Lindell dismisses her. However, when Bart picks up his hand, he discovers that he has six cards.



On his bet, Lindell taps Bart. While Bart works out what to do, Myra slaps Pop for touching her. Lindell takes offense but Harry tells him to sit back down because it means nothing. Meanwhile, Bart picks up his sandwich and starts eating, and then goes all-in. He reveals four aces and Lindell concedes, but then asks for half of the sandwich. There’s no sign of the card inside, despite Lindell’s suspicions. Lindell ends the game for the night and tell Bart he can take a room there for the night. Once Bart walks away, Lindell asks Harry what happened to the sixth card, the one that another player slipped to Bart. However, the saloon owner discovers the card in his own breast pocket and laughs.

In his room, Bart receives a visitor: Myra. She asks how they did and Bart tells her that they made $2,800, and then they kiss. She explains that she sent a letter to him but was surprised to see him there so soon. When Bart asks for details, Myra says that she plans to take over the saloon and wants Bart to help. He’s not interested in settling down but asks what she has planned. Myra assures him that he’ll recognize every move and tells him to keep the entire $2,800 for front money. However, once she’s outside, she tells Harry that Bart has $2,800 of their money and they can’t let him get away with it. Harry is more interested in getting away with her, but Myra says that Lindell can’t see them together. She then goes down the hallway and runs into the young cowboy, Brazos Kincaid.



The next day, Lindell asks Pop what happened and the old man says that he didn’t do anything to provoke her. Lindell sends him on his way and then invites Bart in for breakfast. He asks for a description of Brazos and Bart provides it but has no idea where he is now. When Bart wonders why Lindell is worried, Lindell claims that he was just big-talking the other night. Lindell offers Bart a job as a floor manager and won’t take no for an answer. Bart gives in and Lindell tells him that his first job will be to get Brazos out of town.

As Bart rides to the stable, Brazos confronts him and explains that his initial plan is to spook Lindell. However, when he was hiding out, he reconsidered his grudge against Lindell. He explains that five years ago, Lindell came through Brazos’ Texas hometown and took Brazos’ girlfriend, Myra, with him. Brazos saw Myra with Bart and figures that nothing is worth killing over her. Bart asks if there’s anything he can do and takes his gun just in case, and tells him to ride back home.



As Brazos rides down the street, Bart hears a gunshot. He runs to investigate and finds Brazos, dead, and a man running away. Bart wings him in the shoulder and goes in pursuit, and the shooter ducks into the back of the Buckhorn. Meanwhile, Pop calls over Sheriff Satchel, who wants to know what happened. Pop claims he only heard one shot but admits that there could have been a second one. Bart explains that he fired the second shot, Brazos’ gun hasn’t been fired, and his has only been fired once. Pop confirms that Brazos was the man who threatened Lindell at the cemetery and Satchel assumes that Bart finished Brazos off. Bart insists that he’s no killer and admits that he didn’t get a good look at the man, but has an idea for how they can find the wounded shooter.

Bart shows Satchel the back door to the Buckhorn and figures that Lindell is the shooter. They go inside and hear a gunshot from Lindell’s office. They go in and Lindell claims that he was cleaning his gun and shot himself in the shoulder. When he hears what happened, Lindell congratulates Bart on doing his job. Lindell claims he was there for hours but Satchel asks him for an alibi. The owner calls Myra in and she claims that Lindell has been there since supper. Bart says that he must have been mistaken... and Satchel locks him up.



In jail, Bart insists that he’s innocent and that Lindell set the entire thing up. Satchel refuses to release him to break Lindell’s alibi. Myra arrives and asks for a few minutes alone. Once Satchel locks them in and leaves, Myra asks what Brazos said to Bart. She explains that she left her hometown of her own free will so that she could be free and clear. She still wants to take over the Buckhorn with Bart and he suggests that she clear his name. Bart is surprised to learn that she was telling the truth and as far as she knows, Lindell was there the entire night. He figures that Myra made a deal with Lindell and promises that if he’s free, they can do some serious talking about taking over the Buckhorn. Satisfied, Myra kisses Bart and then leaves.

Later, Harry comes to see Myra. Before inviting him in, she pretends to be packing. When the dealer comes in, Myra says that she can’t take it anymore and is going to leave town. Harry wants to hole up somewhere far away and work while Myra stays at home and doesn’t have to work as a saloon girl. Myra says that she wants that more than anything. However, first she wants a clean start and needs Harry’s help getting Bart out of jail. As Harry leaves Myra’s room, Lindell notices him walking away.



Harry rides to the jail and tells Satchel that he received a private message from Maverick. The dealer knocks out Satchel when his back is turned, unlocks Bart’s cells, and tells him to ride out while he can. Bart tells Harry to check his horse while he searches Satchel for his bankroll. However, someone guns down Harry in the street. Bart hauls the corpse inside, puts it up on a table, and covers it with a cloth.

Satchel wakes up and looks outside, and then comes back to discover Bart free and pouring a cup of coffee. Bart tells Satchel what happened and the sheriff figures that Bart must be innocent since he didn’t try to ride off. When Bart explains that if he had gone outside and been shot, everyone would have dropped the investigation, Satchel gives him 24 hours to figure out who the killer is. Bart wants Satchel to pretend that he’s dead and assures Satchel that he’ll be back the next night.

As Satchel locks up for the night, Pop comes by and the sheriff explains that Bart died during an escape attempt and the gravedigger can have him in the morning. The next day, Pop is digging a grave when Bart rides up and offers to buy a marker for Brazos’ tombstone. As he works, Pop explains that Lindell took him at poker four years ago, slipping him an extra card, and he’s been trying to work off his debt ever since. Bart notices that he’s working on a fancy headstone and Pop says that he works on it every now and then. As Bart prepares to leave town, Pop tells him that he’ll miss the wedding of Lindell and Myra. Bart figures that Myra has finally landed him, but Pop explains that Lindell has been the one pursuing Myra for years, and she’s the one who’s refused until now. Bart wonders why she’s marrying Lindell now and figures that he’d better attend the wedding.



Satchel tells Lindell what happened, omitting the fact that Bart is still alive. The sheriff suggests that Lindell sent Harry, but Lindell insists that he had nothing to do with it. Satchel claims that Bart left, but Lindell points out that Bart left his clothing in his room. Lindell goes to his office and puts on a gun belt, and tells his assistant Charley to take some men and make sure that Bart doesn’t show up at the wedding.

Bart rides up and watches as the townspeople go into the Buckhorn to celebrate the wedding. He sneaks around to the back alley and finds a ladder, but hides as Charley and his men come out. Charley puts one man, Joe, on watch while he takes the others to search the town. Bart knocks the man out.

Inside the Buckhorn, Myra watches the townspeople congratulate Liddell. She goes into her room and finds someone standing behind a curtain. It’s only a pair of boots that Bart has placed to distract her. He asks what she’s up to and Myra says that she finally has Dave in a spot where he has to marry her. She claims that she can then take over the Buckhorn and split it with Bart, but Bart points out that she could have married Lindell any time in the last five years. He figures that she was already married to Brazos and asks about the baby. Myra admits that she was married and couldn’t convince Brazos to divorce her, so she did everything she could to get Brazos to divorce her. He refused and kept telling her she could come back with him. Myra claims that Lindell killed Brazos for her, but Bart doesn’t believe it. He explains that she must have shot Brazos, ran in, and offered everything to Lindell if he would provide an alibi for her. Myra then sent Harry to get Bart out before he figured it out, and then shoot him down outside.



Charley finds Joe tied up in the back and goes into the Buckhorn. He runs inside and tells Liddell that Bart is there.

Bart figures that Myra initially summoned him to help her take over the Buckhorn as she claimed. However, when Brazos showed up, she decided Bart was more use to her dead. Myra admits that she set the whole thing up, smashes a vase, and screams for help. Bart grabs her left arm and pulls down the left sleeve, revealing that she has a bullet wound.

Downstairs, Lindell hears the screams and starts to go upstairs. When Satchel tries to stop him, Lindell’s men disarm him. Charley busts into the room and sees the boots beneath the curtain. He shoots and Bart guns him down. He steps out and Lindell and his man prepare to shoot him. Pop arrives and throws a chair at them, and Bart shoots Lindell. The other man shoots Pop, and Satchel grabs a gun and shoots the last man. While Bart looks after the dying Pop, Myra runs to Lindell. Bart tells Satchel what happened and Lindell says that it’s over. Pop tells Bart that he finished the last marker and tells Bart to look at it as he dies.



Later, Satchel brings Pop’s marker into town and shows it to Bart. Pop was carving his own marker, figuring he wouldn’t survive. Bart tips his hat to Satchel and rides away.

Share this article with your friends