Four aspiring musical actresses – Carol, Trixie, Polly and Fay – are struggling to make a living on Broadway in the midst of the Great Depression. When producer Barney Hopkins has the idea of creating a show about the Depression, the girls team up with newly-discovered songwriter Brad Roberts to make it happen. But Brad is not who he seems.

Will Lockhart (James Stewart) becomes entangled in the happenings of Coronado, an isolated western town, after delivering supplies there. He is especially involved with the Waggomans, an influential ranching family, and begins his search for someone selling rifles to the local Apaches, only to find out it is the son of the most powerful man in the area. It is at this point that his troubles begin.