On May 31, 1958, the Trail Drive-In in Sarasota, Florida, got creative and booked a “Big Western Show” featuring six pictures with “Gun” in the title. Their resulting “Gun Roundup” offers up a pretty solid night of 50s Westerns:
The Stranger Wore A Gun (1953) Directed by Andre de Toth Starring Randolph Scott, Claire Trevor, Joan Weldon, George Macready, Lee Marvin, Ernest Borgnine
Top Gun (1955) Directed by Ray Nazarro Starring Sterling Hayden, William Bishop, Karin Booth, James Millican, Regis Toomey, Hugh Sanders, John Dehner, Rod Taylor
Gunslinger (1956) Directed by Roger Corman Starring Beverly Garland, John Ireland, Allison Hayes
Gun The Man Down (1956) Directed by Andrew V. McLaglen Starring James Arness, Angie Dickinson, Emile Meyer, Robert J. Wilke, Harry Carey, Jr., Don Megowan
That’s six hours well spent. Would’ve loved to have been there! (By the way, you can recreate this bill with your DVD and Blu-Ray collection!)
Cheyenne (1955-62) was more than just an excellent 50s Western TV show. It was the first hour-long Western, the first hour-long dramatic TV show to run more than a single season. It was also the first TV series produced by a major studio (Warner Bros.) that wasn’t derived from an established film property.
Now on Blu-Ray from Warner Archive — 107 episodes on 30 discs, Cheyenne is one of the best examples of classic TV in high definition I’ve seen so far. Scanned in 4K from the original camera negatives, these things are just stunning.
In its first season, Cheyenne shared its time slot with King’s Row and Casablanca, two WB shows based on their films. After the first season, those two vanished and Cheyenne had other slot-mates (Sugarfoot in the third season).
Clint Walker plays Cheyenne Bodie, a cowboy/scout riding across the post-Civil War West. Each week, he rides into a new spot and happens upon a new batch of folks. The plots are very much in line with what the laters B Westerns had been — and what we think of today as a 50s Western.
Cheyenne was raised by the Cheyenne after his parents were killed by another tribe. He later lived with a white family (the particulars vary a bit from show to show). He’s fair, kind, strong and always ready to help out those in need. And as if to prove the idea that “no good deed goes unpunished,” Cheyenne’s servant nature often lands him in a real mess.
Warner Bros. put their major-studio muscle behind their TV product, and it shows. Cheyenne fits right in with what Warners was doing with Western features in the late 50s. From the sets to the casts to the music, these episodes play like 50-minute versions of what WB was sending to theaters. For example, James Garner and Angie Dickinson appear in a second-season episode (“War Party”) about the same time they were in Warner’s Randolph Scott picture Shootout At Medicine Bend (1957).
The directors who did episodes of Cheyenne is a bit of a Western Who’s Who, with pros like George Waggner, Paul Landres, Thomas Carr, Joe Kane, Howard W. Koch, Paul Henreid, Lew Landers and Arthur Lubin.
Same with cinematographers. Shooting Cheyenne were folks like Harold E. Stine, Carl E. Guthrie, Bert Glennon, Ted McCord, William H. Clothier, Harold Rosson, William P. Whitley and Ellis W. Carter.
From week to week, the cast was incredible. Here’s just a sample of the folks who turn up over the course of the show: James Garner, Jack Elam, Ray Teal, Myron Healy, Bob Steele, Kathleen Crowley, Leo Gordon, Ann Robinson, Rod Taylor, Marie Windsor (above), Adele Mara, Gerald Mohr, Peggie Castle, Robert J. Wilke, Penny Edwards, Dennis Hopper, James Griffith, Angie Dickinson, John Qualen, Lee Van Cleef, Denver Pyle, Phil Carey, James Coburn, Nestor Paiva, Slim Pickens, John Carradine, Frank Ferguson, Joan Weldon, Tom Conway, Guinn “Big Boy” Williams, Edd Byrnes, Evelyn Ankers, John Russell, Claude Akins, Don “Red” Barry, Don Megowan, Dan Blocker, Adam West, Connie Stevens, Faith Domergue, James Drury, Lorne Greene, Mala Powers, Merry Anders, Alan Hale Jr., R. G. Armstrong, Ahna Capri, Ellen Burstyn, Sally Kellerman, Michael Landon, Harry Lauter and Ruta Lee. In three of the early episodes, LQ Jones (below) is his sidekick Smitty. (I left out dozens because it would’ve made for a pretty ridiculous paragraph.)
Cheyenne was a hit and it made Clint Walker a star. With a hit show, the exacting schedule that came with it, no features on the horizon, and an exclusive contract that paid him just $150 a week, after the third season, Walker was unhappy.
Clint Walker: “… I found out they [Warner Bros.] turned down some pretty nice features that I could’ve done… I heard that when people inquired, they were told, ‘When Clint Walker does features, he’ll do ‘em for Warner Bros.’ So that’s where we had the difference of opinion.” *
So, Clint Walker, well, walked. The show zigzagged to a “fake Cheyenne,” Bronco Layne (Ty Hardin) and kept going until Walker was coaxed back into the saddle. Warners put him in the excellentFort Dobbs (1958), which I’d love to see make the leap to Blu-Ray. Bronco Layne got his own series for a while, called simply Bronco.
This is an excellent TV series, a consistent favorite of fans of 50s Westerns — and for good reason. And Warner Archive has given us all good reason to pick up this set. They look wonderful. The audio has plenty of punch. They’re uncut and have the original WB openings and closings in place. A nice slipcover thing holds the seasons nice and neat.
Cheyenne was a home run back in 1955 — and it’s a home run on Blu-Ray 70 years later. Highly, highly recommended.
*From a phone conversation with this author back in 2010.
Along with all the comments this blog (and the other one) receive, I get plenty of emails. Got an interesting one the other day about Tim Holt, who was born 106 years ago today.
The question was, what Tim Holt RKO would I recommend as a good entry point? Wow, since they’re all so good, that’s hard. But I settled on Overland Telegraph (1951). While it doesn’t have the incredible Lone Pine locations of some of the others, Tim and Chito (Richard Martin) are joined by a top-notch cast — Gail Davis, Hugh Beaumont, Mari Blanchard, Robert Wilke and George Nader. Lesley Selander does his usual masterful job as director.
I’m curious — which one would you have recommended?
This post goes out to Mr. Jerry Entract, a big fan of the Tim Holt Tuesday posts that used to turn up on this blog (and really should return).
Well, here’s one I never thought we’d see, especially on Blu-Ray. Colt .45 (1957-1960) was one of Warner Bros’ Western shows of the late 50s — based (rather loosely) on their 1950 film starring Randolph Scott. It didn’t become a rerun favorite like Maverick or Cheyenne, and they haven’t been seen anywhere in years. (I saw a couple of episodes in 16mm at a Western film show ages ago.) Now all three seasons are available, and looking just heavenly, in a new Blu-Ray set from Warner Archive.
Wayde Preston plays Christopher Colt, a government agent posing as a Colt gun salesman. As he roams the West, he gets involved in all sorts of stuff, usually leading to some fancy shooting on his part. In the first season’s titles, Preston shoots toward the camera, then does some nice pistol-spinning as he puts his twin Colts back in their holsters. (Reminds me a little of the titles to The Rifleman.)
Wayde Preston and James Garner hanging around the Warner lot.
Though they run just half an hour and the budgets were obviously pretty slim, it’s a good show. All the WB Western series looked good, benefitting from excellent stock footage, using some nice WB sets and boasting terrific guest stars. Colt .45 featured Charles Bronson, Wayne Morris, Angie Dickinson, Robert Conrad, John Doucette, Ray Teal, Frank Ferguson, I. Stanford Jolley, Kathleen Crowley, Lee Van Cleef, Jack Lambert, Glenn Strange, Leonard Nimoy, Virginia Gregg, Paul Fix, Robert J. Wilke, Dorothy Provine, Lyle Talbot, Roy Barcroft, Adam West and Sandy Koufax(!).
Some solid directors worked on it, too — guys like Lee Sholum, Paul Landres, George Waggner, Lew Landers, Edward Bernds and Oliver Drake.
The first season is excellent, but then things kinda went awry. Wayde Preston left the show (the usual pay dispute, they say), making for a short second season. For the third season, Donald May took over as Sam Colt, Jr., Christopher Colt’s cousin.
Warners evidently badmouthed Preston and he had a hard time landing parts around town. He was brought back toward the end of the third season, now supporting his cousin Sam. Colt .45 didn’t last beyond that third season and Preston eventually headed to Italy to make spaghetti Westerns and Anzio (1968).
With just two-and-a-half seasons (only 67 episodes), and a star who disappears midstream, it sorta makes sense that Colt .45 wouldn’t enjoy the perpetual syndication of other Western shows of the period. When it’s good, it’s really good, usually because of a solid story or an exemplary performance — Wayne Morris and John Doucette, for example, are excellent in their episodes.
Then there are the Blu-Rays. I’ve never seen a black & white TV show look this good — ever. There’s not a lot of old TV on Blu-Ray. I Love Lucy! and The Andy Griffith Show are, and they can’t hold a digital candle to this set. It’s stunning. From the logo in the grips of Preston’s Colts to the sewn-up holes in John Doucette’s shirt, the detail here is really incredible. (Of course, this highlights stuff like the stock footage stage driver looking nothing like the guy who speaks to Preston seconds later, but who cares?) The contrast is perfectly dialed in and the grain is just right. Whoever twiddled the knobs on this thing, I’d like to buy you lunch! Same goes for the folks in the vaults watching over this old material.
In short, the fact that Colt .45 made its way to video at all is a real surprise. That it would come out of left field looking like this, well, that seems like a miracle. Colt .45 – The Complete Series comes highly recommended. I think you’ll like the show, and I know you’ll be blown away by the care Warner Archive has given it.
Directed by Rudolph Maté Starring Tony Curtis, Colleen Miller, Arthur Kennedy, William Demarest, Robert J. Wilke, Chubby Johnson, I. Stanford Jolley
Explosive Media is really coming through for the rest of the year, bringing some prime 50s Westerns from Universal-International to DVD and Blu-Ray. I’ve already covered Seven Ways From Sundown (1960) and Hell Bent For Leather (1960), excellent Audie Murphy pictures, coming in May and June.
Watch this blog, since we’ll do one of these releases a day through the week.
Coming in July is Rudolph Maté’s The Rawhide Years (1955). Tony Curtis is a riverboat gambler who flees when he’s implicated in a murder. He returns three years later to clear his name, track down the real killers and be reunited with his girl (Colleen Miller).
Curtis is cool and Arthur Kennedy makes a nasty villain here. Irving Glassberg shot this in Technicolor and 2.0. Rudolph Maté and editor Russell Schoengarth keep things moving at a steady pace. Can’t wait to see this in high-definition. Highly recommended.
Directed by Ray Nazarro Starring George Montgomery, Audrey Long, Carl Benton Reid, Eugene Iglesias, Joe Sawyer, Douglas Kennedy, Hugh Sanders, George Chesebro, Robert J. Wilke
Critics’ Choice and Mill Creek have been quietly adding to their Critics’ Choice Collection, bringing out some cool double- and triple-featureson DVD. The George Montgomery Western Triple Featureset gives us Indian Uprising (1952), Battle At Rogue River (1954) and Masterson Of Kansas (1954). Those last two were also part of Mill Creek’s set The Fastest Guns Of The West: The William Castle Western Collection, which many of you probably already own.
While the repetition is unfortunate, it’s great to have Ray Navarro’s Indian Uprising available again. It’s a cavalry picture, shot at Corriganville, Bronson Canyon and the Iverson Ranch in Super Cinecolor by Ellis Carter. I kinda doubt these will ever make it to Blu-Ray, but the DVD transfers are top-knotch — and the price is nice, too.
Kino Lorber is serving up four terrific Universal Westerns in March, an announcement that gets. 2020 off to a great start.
Canyon Passage (1946)
Directed by Jacques Tourneur
Starring Dana Andrews, Brian Donlevy, Susan Hayward, Patricia Roc, Ward Bond, Hoagy Carmichael, Andy Devine, Lloyd Bridges
Canyon Passage was Jacques Tourneur’s first Western and first film in color. It’s got a great cast (Ward Bond is terrific — and very scary) and incredible Technicolor photography from Edward Cronjager, who also shot Lang’s Western Union (1941). This is a very overlooked, underrated film.
Night Passage (1957)
Directed by James Neilson
Starring James Stewart, Audie Murphy, Dan Duryea, Dianne Foster, Elaine Stewart, Brandon de Wilde, Jay C. Flippen, Robert J. Wilke, Hugh Beaumont
Shot in Technirama, a high-fidelity combination of VistaVision and anamorphic widescreen, Night Passage is as sharp as movies could get in the late 50s. And with loads of incredible location work in Durango, Colorado, it’s stunning — and a perfect candidate for Blu-Ray. The movie itself, while it’s no masterpiece, has been unjustly maligned. You’ll find the story behind all that in an old post.
Man In The Shadow (1957)
Directed by Jack Arnold
Starring Jeff Chandler, Orson Welles, Colleen Miller, Barbara Lawrence, John Larch, Royal Dano, James Gleason
There are a thousand reasons to be excited about this modern-day (well, 1957) Western — Jeff Chandler, Orson Welles, B&W CinemaScope and Jack Arnold, for starters. Welles and producer Albert Zugsmith got to talking here, which led to Touch Of Evil (1958).
The Rare Breed (1966)
Directed by Andrew V. McLaglen
Starring James Stewart, Maureen O’Hara, Brian Keith, Juliet Mills, Ben Johnson, Jack Elam, Harry Carey, Jr.
The best thing The Rare Breed has going for it is its incredible cast — how could it go wrong? Not to mention the Technicolor/Panavision cinematography of William H. Clothier.
All four films will feature a commentary (I’m doing both Passage films) and an original trailer. It’s no easy to recommend these things!
Directed by Anthony Mann
Starring James Stewart, Ruth Roman, Corinne Calvet, Walter Brennan, John McIntire, Jay C. Flippen, Henry Morgan, Steve Brodie
It’s always a good day when another James Stewart/Anthony Mann movie makes its way to Blu-Ray. Arrow Academy has announced The Far Country (1954) for release this November.
The Far Country was Mann and Stewart’s fourth Western together, and it’s a good one. The cast and crew were well-acquainted and the movie feels like a well-oiled machine. Set in Alaska, though shot in Canada, the picture lets Mann and DP William H. Daniels make the most of the locale in widescreen. Speaking of widescreen, Arrow has promised to give us the movie two ways, in both 1.85 and 2.0 aspect ratios. Universal-International at this time was often using 2.0 — Man Without A Star (1955), Mole People (1956), etc.
Like the other Mann/Stewart Westerns, this one’s essential, folks.
Here are a couple of interesting movie marquees from 1958. First, Gary Cooper in Anthony Mann’s Man Of The West playing in Buenos Aires.
Next is a marquee for a theatre on a military base somewhere. Friday’s feature is Frontier Gun, a Regalscope picture with John Agar, Joyce Meadows, Barton MacLane, Robert Strauss, James H. Griffith and Morris Ankrum. It was directed by one of my favorite unsung directors, Paul Landres. On Tuesday is It! The Terror From Beyond Space, a terrific little science fiction thing starring Marshall Thompson and directed by Edward L. Cahn.
That marquee is as good a pitch for joining the military as anything I’ve ever seen. Take me back to 1958 and sign me up!
Directed by Ray Nazarro
Screen Play by Don Martin and Richard Schayer
Story by L.L. Foreman
Director Of Photography: Lester White
Film Editor: Buddy Small
Cast: George Montgomery (Cruze), Dorothy Malone (Charlotte Downing), Frank Faylen (Fairweather), Neville Brand (Tray Moran), Skip Homeier (Cass Downing), Douglas Kennedy (Gad Moran), Fay Roope (Mayor Booth), Douglas Fowley (Bartender), Robert J. Wilke (Hort Moran)
__________
I covered Lone Gun (1954) shortly after it appeared on Shout Factory’s four-movies-on-one-DVD package, Movies 4 You Western Classics. A solid George Montgomery picture, it’s worth a second look.
It’s easy to dismiss a movie like The Lone Gun as just a programmer. From its original reviews to DVD reviews, that’s the way a lot of folks have seen it. The plot’s nothing new. They were obviously working on a tight budget and short schedule. They ride past the same Iverson rocks you’ve seen in dozens of pictures like this.
But in some ways, these things that seem like liabilities are some of the key strengths of The Lone Gun. Because, interestingly, they let us see what a huge difference good writing, direction and acting can make to something familiar.
Mayor Booth (Fay Roope): “Robert Booth’s the name. I own the Malpine Hotel.” Cruze (George Montgomery): “Mine’s Cruze. I own this shirt and those two horses out there.”
The story’s so simple. Montgomery ends up the marshal of Malpine, and he’s soon on the trail of the Moran brothers (Neville Brand, Douglas Kennedy and Robert J. Wilke), brothers/rustlers/killers/trash who are hiding their rustled cattle among the small herd of Charlotte and Cass Downing (Dorothy Malone, Skip Homeier), siblings trying to keep their small ranch afloat. Also on hand is Fairweather (Frank Faylen), a gambler who’s cleaned out the pockets of just about everybody in town — and one of Cruze’s only friends.
Glance back at that previous paragraph (above the Moran brothers), and consider those names. That’s one helluva cast, and it’s a joy to spend 74 minutes with them. Ray Nazarro is an old hand at stuff like this, and his direction is as brisk and efficient as you’d expect. Everyone else involved, from editor Buddy Small to director of photography Lester White, is up to the same high standard.
The Lone Gun is in color “by the Color Corporation Of America.” That translates to SuperCinecolor. It was shot to be projected at 1.66. The Shout Factory DVD offers pretty decent color — remember, this is SuperCineColor. It’s full frame, with plenty of that annoying dead space at the top and bottom. My TV lets me zoom it a bit to approximate the original 1.66, which looks a whole lot better.
The reason folks dismiss movies like this is often because there are so many of them. Which for those of us who can’t get enough of these things, is good news indeed. The Lone Gun, thanks largely to its cast, is one I like a lot.
Oh, and another thing. It’s original title was Adios, My Texas. If you ask me, they were wise to change it.
50 Westerns From The 50s.