Trinity Plus the Clown and a Guitar (1975)

The good folks of Little Lake have just buried Frank Benson, their 13th sheriff.

At six weeks of service before being gunned down, he set a Little Lake record by a little more than seven hours.

Deciding enough is enough — and that they’ve had more than enough of the outlaw El Moro and his band of cutthroats — the residents decide to spend $20,000 to bring a hired gun to town.

The man they’ve decided to hire is Red Jack, a man who proudly wears a red stetson bearing three bullet holes representing past attempts to take his life.

Only Red Jack never makes it to Little Lake. He’s ambushed en route and that red stetson goes floating down a stream.

It’s eventually picked up by a man named Nick, a man so lazy he’s fashioned a bed atop his horse, has the horse ring a bell when it’s time to wake up and uses a ladder to climb from it’s back.

He’s stunned by the hero’s reception he receives when he rides into Little Lake. He’s shocked when he’s offered a sheriff’s badge.

But he accepts when he finds out it comes complete with a $20,000 payday.

Fortunately for the folks of Little Lake, he’s not the only newcomer in town.

Johnny Guitar (George Hilton) has arrived, and he wields a mean guitar.

So have the Gold Sisters, a quartet of acrobatic beauties who can do lots more than bat their eyes at smitten saloon patrons.

George Hilton as Johnny Guitar, showing off the map behind all the trouble in Little Lake in Trinity Plus the Clown and a Guitar (1975)

Rinaldo Talamonti as Nick, shocked to discover he’s being sized for a coffin, not a suit of clothes in Trinity Plus the Clown and a Guitar (1975)

Review:

Considerably more watchable and a bit more entertaining than most post-Trinity Western comedies.

Perhaps that’s because director Franz Antel was from Austria and, at the time, specialized in sex comedies, not post-Trinity knockoffs.

Among the ideas that work here: Gun shy Nick has attracted the attention of a young blonde who spurs him into action whenever the bad guys show up.

At one point, she awakes him from his sheriff’s chair, straps four or five gun belts around his body and guides him to the local saloon, shoving a cigar into his mouth so he’ll look Clint Eastwood tough when he confronts El Moro’s men.

But Hilton and the four beauties who grace his saloon — including lovely Christa Linder — handle most of the action. That’s right, viewers, when the barroom brawls break out, the Gold Sisters are in the middle of the action.

What? You thought this might be a Spaghetti comedy absent of barroom brawls?

Hey, it ain’t that good.

Editor’s Note: I’m unsure which actress plays which member of the Gold Sisters. My best guess is, in the group photo below, from left to right — Sonja Jeannie, Marie Louis Sinclair, Alena Penz and Christa Linder. If anyone knows for sure, please help out by commenting below.

The Gold Sisters — played by Sonja Jeannine, Mary Louis Sinclair, Alena Penz and Christa Linder — arriving in Little Lake in Trinity Plus the Clown and a Guitar (1975)

Katty Santos as Blondie, watching El Moro’s men ride into Little Lake in Trinity Plus the Clown and a Guitar (1975)

Directed by:
Franz Antel
as Francois Legrand

Cast:
George Hilton … Johnny Guitar / Trinity
Rinaldo Talamonti … Nick
Piero Lulli … Priest / El Moro
Hans Terofal … Undertaker
Herbert Fux … Leader of the Badmen
Antonio Gradoli … Mayor
Katty Santos … Blondie
Christa Linder … Gold Sister
Alena Penz … Gold Sister
Sonja Jeannine … Gold Sister
Marie Louis Sinclair … Gold Sister
Carmen Silva … Mamy

Also with: Ignazio Spalla, Mimmo Poli, John Bartha, Dante Cleri, Ettore Arena, Angelo Boscariol, Sisto Brunetti, Marcello Meconizzi, Sergio Valentini, Lina Franchi, Ennio Colainni

Runtime: 92 min.

aka:
Prima ti suono e poi ti sparo
Der Kleine Schwarze mit dem roten Hut
Trinity, the Clown and a Guitar
Trinity, the Clown, the Guitar
Break You First, Kill You Later
Trinity, First to Draw, First to Shoot

Music: Guido & Maurizio De Angelis

Piero Lulli as the sheriff who specializes in reading eulogies over sheriffs in Trinity Plus the Clown and a Guitar (1975)

Herbert Fux as the bandit leader, with what he’s sure will be a winning hand in Trinity Plus the Clown and a Guitar (1975)

Memorable lines:

Sorry, I watched a German language version of this film.

Trivia:

* At the time this film was released, director Franz Antel has just completed a string of eight sex comedies including “The Sweet Sins of Sexy Susan,” “House of Pleasure,” The Hostess Exceeds All Bounds” and “Sexy Susan Sins Again.” By all accounts, they are incredibly tame by today’s standards. The cast of the latter included Jeffrey Hunter, Pascale Petit and Femi Benussi.

* This film would certainly not be considered a sex comedy, though all four Gold Sisters are attracted to Johnny Guitar, which leads to a couple of awkward moments.

* Christa Linder was Miss Austria 1962 and appeared in two other Spaghetti Westerns, “The Tall Women” (1966) and “Day of Anger” (1967).

* The Trinity in the title clearly refers to George Hilton, but it’s Rinaldo Talamonti who makes the Trinity-like entrance in this film. Standing just 5-foot-2, he was a veteran of several sex comedies as well when he took this role.

A Gold Sister, disappointed that she’s lassoed a guitar instead of a man in Trinity Plus the Clown and a Guitar (1975)

One of the gold sisters, preparing for opening night at the saloon in Trinity Plus the Clown and a Guitar (1975)

One of the Gold Sisters, ready for the opening night crowd in Trinity Plus the Clown and a Guitar (1975)

One of the Gold Sisters, preparing for lots of thirsty customers in Trinity Plus the Clown and a Guitar (1975)

Hans Terofal as the undertaker, eager to get the new sheriff sized for a coffin in Trinity Plus the Clown and a Guitar (1975)

Antonio Gradoli as the mayor, welcoming the man he assumes is Red Jack to Little Lake in Trinity Plus the Clown and a Guitar (1975)

Rinaldo Talamonti as Nick, surprised by his reception in Little Lake in Trinity Plus the Clown and a Guitar (1975)

George Hilton as Johnny Guitar, watching the a stranger arrive in Little Lake in Trinity Plus the Clown and a Guitar (1975)