The film, starring Walter Brennan, Lon McCallister, Jeanne Crain, June Haver and Charlotte Greenwood, is based on the novel The Phantom Filly by George Agnew Chamberlain (1879–1966).

The owner, Godaw Boole (Charles Dingle) welcomes Sparke, and introduces him to Char Bruce (Jeanne Crain), a tomboyish girl who loves to race horses.

A servant (George Reed) informs him that his uncle Thunder Bolt (Walter Brennan) was once part of harness horse racing as a respected sulky driver.

Returning home, Sparke informs his family about his love for horses, but Thunder orders him to put his focus on school instead.

The next day, he ignores his uncle's demands and visits the racing track, where his instinctive rapport with a stallion impresses Godaw's seductive daughter Cri-Cri (June Haver), who is home from private boarding school.

In November 1940, 20th Century Fox first announced its plans to shoot a film about trotting tracks, called Home in Indiana.

[2] In March 1942, agent Charles K. Feldman planned on making a film adaptation of the Chamberlain novel, with Howard Hawks as a proposed producer.