ROUND-UP JOINS TCM FOR A SALUTE TO SINGING COWBOYS!

July 2011 will be the month of the Singing Cowboy on Turner Classic Movies, and Henry’s Western Round-up will be putting its two cents in. I was interviewed for a short TCM documentary about people who are crazy for westerns, which will be run in conjunction with the features. I don’t know how much I’ll be in it – there were other interviewees after all -- or exactly when it’ll air, but I’m told it’ll be ready to run by July 1st. I’ll have info on the Facebook page as soon as I know more.

But back to the singing cowboys! Every Friday in July will feature a different line-up of sagebrush troubadours. July 1st will feature five films starring Roy Rogers beginning at 5 p.m. Pacific time: COWBOY AND THE SENORITA, DON’T FENCE ME IN, MY PAL TRIGGER, THE GOLDEN STALLION and TRIGGER JR. July 8th will take aim at Gene Autry with OLD CORRAL, HOME ON THE PRAIRIE, BACK IN THE SADDLE, TEXANS NEVER CRY and WAGON TEAM. On July 15th the night is split between Tex Ritter and Jimmy Wakely, July 22nd it’s Dick Foran and Monte Hale, and on July 29th we’ll hear from Rex Allen, Herbert Jeffrey and Ken Maynard.

Film Review - CHEYENNE WARRIOR

CHEYENNE WARRIOR, made in 1994 and recently released on DVD, is one of the very best Westerns of the last twenty years. Directed by Mark Griffiths from Michael B. Druxman’s original screenplay, it begins at the start of the Civil War, with a young couple, Kelly Preston and Charles Edward Powell as the Carvers, on their way to Oregon. Impatient to get there, instead of waiting to travel with a wagon train, they’ve gone alone. At a trading post at the base of the mountains, the trader Barkley, played by Dan Haggerty, stuns them by revealing that they are too late: the trail will be impassable until spring. They have nowhere to go now, nowhere to wait out the bitter winter, and Kelly is with child. Barkley is as helpful and generous as he can be, but he’s disgusted with their lack of planning, and tells them, “Dumb people just don’t make it out here.”

And that’s a theme that runs throughout the movie: the Wild West is an unforgiving place, and people that don’t learn fast, that rely on old prejudices, rather than observation, to tell their friends from their enemies, die quickly. It’s consistent that intelligence should be at the core of such an intelligently written story. While Cheyenne Warrior delivers all of the basic ingredients one expects from a western, it does so by having those elements arise naturally from the behavior of believable characters, not because it’s time for a shootout or an Indian fight or to burn a cabin.

In fairly short order Rebecca Carver becomes a widow and meets Hawk, played by Pato Hoffman, the Cheyenne warrior of the title, and they must rely on each other to survive. Their relationship is not an easy one – even with his gratitude for her saving his life, she is so obstinate and slow to learn that he nicknames her ‘Not Too Smart Woman,’ but they eventually come to an understanding, and a respect for each other. But the question remains; when she has her baby, will she stay at the trading post, or try to go back home, or go to Hawk’s village, where many would not welcome her. Screenwriter Druxman’s inspiration was to transpose The King and I to the west, and there are some amusing moments that go along with that premise. There is a solid romance to the story, but not the sappy cookie-cutter sort one expects from, say Hallmark Channel pseudo-westerns.

CHEYENNE WARRIOR is the best micro-budget westerns that I have seen, and I have seen a lot. Costing roughly three quarters of a million, looking like Canada but shot in Simi Valley, about a mile from the Reagan Library, it is a text-book example of how producer Roger Corman puts all the money on the screen. With most low-budget westerns of the past couple of decades, you are forced, as an audience member, to forgive things that reflect the budget: the story is recycled or the supporting actors are amateurish or there’s only one horse and no rolling stock. But there are no excuses necessary here: the script and direction and performances are first-rate; Blake T. Evans’ photography is beautiful and evocative, Roderick Davis’ editing is crisp without calling attention to itself, and Arthur Kempel’s score brings to mind the subtler music in John Ford Westerns.

Of course, it all rises and falls on whether we care what happens to Rebecca and Hawk, which means it’s all on Kelly Preston’s and Pato Hoffman’s shoulders, and they are very much up to the challenge. Pato is smart and dignified, but also frequently baffled by and frustrated by Kelly, by turns amusingly and dramatically. He is much more that the cliché noble savage. Kelly’s Rebecca is independent without being strident, with strong beliefs, but willing to learn new ways. She’s also, without being obviously glamorized, at her most beautiful (I may be somewhat prejudiced: she did CHEYENNE WARRIOR and my noir, DOUBLE CROSS, back to back).

In addition to Dan Haggerty, who gives what is my personal favorite of his performances, the supporting cast includes Bo Hopkins as the scout for a wagon train, and Rick Dean (a fine actor who died tragically at age 53) and Clint Howard as a pair of buffalo hunters enamored of the Carvers’ Henry rifle. It seems like an injustice that CHEYENNE WARRIOR was released directly to home video. We should see this one on the big screen. It’s available from Amazon, Netflix, Blockbuster and Roger Corman’s New Horizons Pictures among other places. But if you want to email writer Michael Druxman at Druxy@ix.netcom.com, he will sell you the DVD and the published script, autographed, for $25.

A CHAT WITH ‘CHEYENNE WARRIOR’ AUTHOR MICHAEL B. DRUXMAN

Having read MY FORTY-FIVE YEARS IN HOLLYWOOD…AND HOW I ESCAPED ALIVE, and seen CHEYENNE WARRIOR, I thought I’d do a quick phone interview with author and screenwriter Michael Druxman, to get a couple of good quotes. I reached him at his home in Austin, Texas. I didn’t expect to talk for two hours, but that’s what happens when you meet a kindred spirit. We got to the main event, CHEYENNE WARRIOR, eventually, but he’d just watched the Coen Brothers’ TRUE GRIT the night before, and that got us onto the subject of remakes versus originals, and favorite westerns.

MICHAEL: Overall I think it was a little better than the original. The girl was terrific. I thought that John Wayne was more fun than Jeff Bridges, but performance-wise it was a toss-up. I hate remakes. I think 99% of the time they’re never as good as the originals; case in point, 3:10 TO YUMA. But what happens is the new generation sees the remake, and unless they’re real movie-lovers they never see the original, which is so often much better, because they figure, been there, done that. I never really liked the original TRUE GRIT all that much. I don’t think it’s one of John Wayne’s best westerns. I think it’s a ‘classic’ because he won the Oscar. But I think STAGECOACH, THE SEARCHERS, RED RIVER, THE COWBOYS and THE SHOOTIST are so much better. I wrote a book some years ago called MAKE IT AGAIN, SAM, about remakes. And the point I brought out is you don’t remake a hit, you remake a movie that flopped. They remade SABRINA? You’re competing with the memory of Audrey Hepburn, Humphrey Bogart and William Holden, for cryin’ out loud. But TRUE GRIT turned out to be quite a good film. I understand it’s the most successful western film of all time at this point.

I did a picture with Roy Scheider in Ireland, and we were the only two people in the company over thirty, so we spent a lot of time together, and he says, “The reason they don’t make westerns anymore is because when westerns were popular, everyone had a father or a grandfather who remembered those days, or a part of those days.” Like my father, when he was fourteen years old, was a steward on a ship that went from Seattle to Alaska on the Alaska Gold Rush. My dad was born in 1886. But now that generation is totally gone. In fifty years or less there’s going to be no one around who remembers World War II.

H: What are your favorite westerns?
M: You’ll probably hang up on me when I say it, but I am not a big fan of John Ford – Hello? Hello? I like STAGECOACH, and I like THE SEARCHERS – I think THE SEARCHERS is probably the greatest western ever made. I think part of Ford’s problem was his sense of humor stunk. The worst part of THE SEARCHERS is the wedding scene. It stops the movie. He was one of the greatest director, from a visual standpoint, that we’ve ever had, but his stories were so slow-moving. Hawks was another one. With the exception of RED RIVER, I don’t like his westerns. I think RIO BRAVO is much too long. I interviewed Hawks once. And he said something to me that really took me aback. He said, “I’m not interested in telling stories. I’m interested in making good scenes.” And as a writer, I really find that shocking. Tim Burton says, “I wouldn’t know a good story if it jumped up and bit me in the face.” But I like his movies. Although I didn’t care too much for ALICE IN WONDERLAND once they went down the rabbit hole and it became a CGI movie – I hate CGI movies. The reason we’ve got so many shitty movies is everybody wants something different. The director is interested in making good scenes, the cinematographer wants pretty pictures, the actor is interested in his part, the producer would sell his soul just to get the movie made on budget, and the only person that’s really interested in telling a viable story is the writer, and he’s the first one they kick off the picture. It’s like a dog on a lamppost: everybody wants to put their mark on the movie. The only truly creative part of a screenplay is done by the original writer. Everything else is interpretation. ‘Wouldn’t this work better if you turned the old Eskimo woman into a Hawaiian dancing girl?’ The director has his ideas, the star wants his ideas put in, and what you find so many times is the thing that was so appealing in the script, by the time they’re ready to film, is gone. But now they’re under a time-pressure thing, because they’ve got to start shooting by Monday. So they’re forced to go with the latest version of the script, which may not be the best one, and that’s why you get shitty pictures.

H: Whose western do you like?
M: I like the westerns of Anthony Mann – I think they’re terrific. I love the westerns of Delmer Daves. I liked the westerns of Budd Boetticher, with Randolph Scott – Boetticher used to be a publicity client of mine. Randolph Scott I think is my favorite western star. I like John Wayne movies. A client of mine, George Sherman, directed BIG JAKE, which is a pretty good movie. I like THE GUNFIGHTER. You know what’s a great little western that’s not out on DVD is THE LAST POSSE with Broderick Crawford. I like DANCES WITH WOLVES. There’s a B western called DAWN AT SOCORRO with Rory Calhoun, OPEN RANGE. I like SHANE – the only problem with SHANE is Alan Ladd. If they put in Gary Cooper or Randolph Scott, someone who can act… A great fun western is THE OKLAHOMA KID, with Bogart and Cagney. The other Cagney one I really like is RUN FOR COVER. Ernest Borgnine’s in it.

H: You came to Hollywood to make movies, and you did, but with about a 32 year period as a publicist in the middle. During that time did you ever give up your goal of making movies?
M: No, I never gave it up, but I was enjoying the first several years. I was playing with the big boys – I was at the studios every day. I was representing people like Eddie Dmytryk – who did (directed) WARLOCK, which was a damned good western. Of course he did a shitty western when he was with me, called SHALAKO. The Dmytryk western I love is BROKEN LANCE, which Delmer Daves wrote.

And there was a particular story that Michael wanted to tell.

M: The original concept of CHEYENNE WARRIOR was The King and I in the old west. And I carried this idea around in my head for seventeen years. And I didn’t write it because the western was pretty much dead. Then DANCES WITH WOLVES and LONESOME DOVE and UNFORGIVEN – and Clint Eastwood makes a damned good western – they came out, and I decided to sit down and write this. And it’s essentially a love story.

The person who changed Michael’s life forever was Roger Corman.

M: And I have the greatest respect for Roger Corman: he can take a dollar and a half and make a movie that looks like a million bucks. And he gives people a chance – he let me direct my first feature movie when I was fifty-eight years old! How many producers would do that? I quit the PR business and became a screenwriter thanks to Roger Corman, who kept hiring me, and for ten years I made a very good living. Roger Corman did not want to make this movie, because it had a female protagonist, and Roger’s movies mostly appeal to young males. His producer really pushed to do it.

H: Your female lead in CHEYENNE WARRIOR is Kelly Preston. What’s she like?
M: She was sweet. This was before PULP FICTION came out. At one point, when (she and her husband, John Travolta) got here, they offered the part of the husband to Travolta. Which I think was a three or four day shoot. His agent said, we want $100,000 a day and top billing, because PULP FICTION was about to come out, and that was gonna rejuvenate him. So that didn’t happen. And the Dan Haggerty part they originally offered to Robert Duvall.
H: He didn’t want it?
M: He wanted too much money.
H: I think it’s the very best performance I’ve seen Haggerty give.
M: He said to me, ‘You son of a bitch, it’s the only movie I’ve ever been killed in!’
It became one of the highest-grossing movies that New Horizons had ever made, and the people at the studio said it was the best movie they’d ever made. I’m very proud of that. There’s one thing in the picture that I strenuously objected to. (SPOILER ALERT!) In my script, they don’t go to bed together. And the director said, ‘we’ve gotta have the sex,’ and I said at that time they could have become the best platonic friends, and maybe there’s that thought, but it wouldn’t happen. The other thing, where he did listen to me. I had seen the first cut of the film, where they’re eating outside with all of the Indians. They had rewritten that scene so it was Christmas, and they were talking about the Christ child. And I said to them, “It’s Christmas on the Great Plains, and they’re sitting outside. Are you crazy?” All mention of Christmas was taken out. It was shot in the Simi Valley about a mile from where the Reagan Library is. It’s all houses now. Had they moved the camera a foot to the right or the left you would have seen telephone poles.

It’s amazing how CHEYENNE WARRIOR took off. Because it played one or two theatres, then it went directly to DVD and Showtime, and I would go into video stores, and when someone’s browsing, looking for something to rent, and without telling them who I was I’d say, ‘Here’s a good movie.’ And they’d say, ‘I saw that – I love that film!’ When did that come out – ’94? I still get fan-mail from that film; Pato Hoffman still gets fan-mail. People said, ‘Do a sequel! Do a sequel!’

He had the story, but the sequel wasn’t made.

M: I took the story I would have used as a sequel, changed the characters’ names, reworked it a bit, and I wrote a script called SARAH GOLDENHAIR, which begins with the Sand Creek Massacre, and goes on from there. That was in play for a while, but it didn’t happen. Then a year or two later, Roger calls and he says, “Okay, you win. I want you to write a sequel to CHEYENNE WARRIOR.” So I went back to my original story, and he offered me more money than he’d ever offered me to write it, because Frances (Doel, Corman’s story head) said, “If not Michael, who?” He approved the story-line, I wrote the first draft.

Mike wrote two different versions for Corman, but they’re both sitting on the shelf for now. It was not going to be a small picture; it was going to be shot in Canada, but the whole Canadian film-production financing situation changed. We jump ahead to the present day…

M: I tried to decide what I wanted to do next, writing-wise. I have a book of short stories that’s going to come out in August, from Bear Manor Fiction, and one of the stories has to do with Jesse James, for western fans. (The book’s) called DRACULA MEETS JACK THE RIPPER, AND OTHER REVISIONIST HISTORIES. I was also not very happy with what they did with my movie DILLINGER AND CAPONE. I had retained the publishing rights to the script. So I went back to my script, pulled out the essence, and wrote it as a short story. I also retained the publishing rights to both of those CHEYENNE WARRIOR sequels. So my next publishing project, I’m going to publish the two screenplay sequels, and SARAH GOLDENHAIR, in the same book. That will probably be coming in 2012 or so. But I must tell you that the character of Rebecca is not in the sequel. It’s about Hawk.

QUENTIN GETS HIS CAST FOR 'DJANGO UNCHAINED'!

Tarantino’s ‘Spaghetti Southern’ is set to go. Will Smith is out (good – he had his chance with WILD WILD WEST) and Jamie Foxx is in as title character of a slave turned bounty hunter, trained by German dentist Christoph Waltz! Django is out to rescue his wife from the clutches of Calvin Candie (Leo DiCaprio), owner of plantation/brothel CANDYLAND, with Samuel L. Jackson as his gentleman's gentleman. Among those rumored to fill out the cast are Franco Nero, Keith Carradine and Treat Williams. Aiming for a Christmas 2012 release, the Weinstein production is expected to lens starting in the fall in Louisiana.

RELEASE DATE SET FOR UNI R.I.P.D. STARRING ‘GUNSLINGER’ BRIDGES

Universal has announced a release date of June 28th, 2013 for the previously (in May) announced newest in the seemingly endless line of comic-book-based supernatural pseudo-westerns. R.I.P.D. from Dark Horse Comics, written by Peter M. Lenkoy, is about the Rest In Peace Department, a ghost police force, and Ryan Reynolds stars as a recently slain cop. Jeff Bridges will play his Old West gunslinger partner, a role originally announced for Zach Galifianakis, before schedule conflicts intervened. Director Robert Schwentke has lately helmed the Bruce Willis actioner RED and Jody Foster suspenser FLIGHT PLAN. Screenwriting team of Phil Hay and Fred Manfredi have scripted CLASH OF THE TITANS and other effects-heavy actioners.


‘THE ROY ROGERS SHOW’ COMES TO RFD-TV!

Starting Sunday, July 3rd at 9:30 a.m. Pacific time, RFD-TV brings the Roy Rogers Show back to the airwaves! Roy, Dale, Trigger, Bullet, Buttermilk, Pat Brady and Nellybelle will all be back and if you haven’t seen this show since you were a kid – or never saw it – you’ll be delighted with how well it holds up. No surprise really as the writers, directors and supporting players were largely the cream of the crop from Republic Pictures. Each show airs Sunday at 9:30, then repeats Thursday at 2:30 p.m. and Saturday at 9:00 a.m.. Unfortunately this will take the place of the Happy Trails Theatre on the RFD-TV schedule, but the Roy Rogers features are widely available, and shown frequently on Encore Westerns and TCM – check the article on the TCM singing cowboy salute for details. If you’d like to get in the mood, click HERE to see a medley of TV show openings, starting with the Roy Rogers Show.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-r6A7TzvUI&playnext=1&list=PLF189E2DE6A53A40D

BILLY THE KID TINTYPE SELLS FOR $2,300,000

The most optimistic conjecture had predicted half a million at the most, but the tintype considered the only authenticated photo of the young Regulator fetched nearly five times that. The winning bidder, 71 year old Palm Beach businessman William Koch, who traveled to Denver for Brian Lebel’s 22nd Annual Old West Show and Auction told the New York Daily News, “I love the Old West. I plan on enjoying it and discreetly sharing it. I think I’ll display it in a few small museums.”

The fact that in the picture, Billy sports a Winchester in his right hand, and a Colt pistol in the holster on his left hip, gave credence to the legend that Billy was left-handed. However, tintypes being a reverse image, the pistol was actually on his right hip. I’ll have more details on other items in the auction in next week’s Round-up.

FREE SATURDAY MATINEE AT THE AUTRY

on Saturday, July 2nd at noon, the Autry will screen Gene in RYTHYM OF THE SADDLE (Republic 1938) with Smiley Burnett, and COW TOWN (Columbia 1950) costarring Gail ‘Annie Oakley’ Davis and Jock Mahoney.



GLEN CAMPBELL DIAGNOSED WITH ALZHEIMER’S

Fans of country music were saddened this week to learn that the Wichita Lineman singer is suffering from the early stages of Alzheiemer’s disease. Campbell, 76, whose final studio album will be released in the end of August, decided to go public with the diagnosis. His wife Kim explained to PEOPLE MAGAZINE that he’s hoping to begin a series of farewell concerts in the fall, and if by chance he should forget a lyric, he didn’t want his audience to think that he’d been drinking. It’s a tragic, slow end to a brilliant career. One of the unexpected effects of the release of the Coen brothers’ remake of TRUE GRIT is that many movie fans saw the 1969 version again, and many have noted how well Campbell’s performance as Le Boeuf holds up.

ROBERT MITCHUM WESTERN FEST AT THE BILLY WILDER

Weekends in July will be packed with double-bills of that sleepy-eyed cowpoke Robert Mitchum, presented at the Billy Wilder Theatre in the Westwood Hammer Museum. It all starts Friday, July 8th at 7:30 PM with PURSUED (1947), directed by Raoul Walsh from a Niven Busch screenplay, and BLOOD ON THE MOON (1948), directed by Robert Wise from a Lillian Hayward script. Saturday July 9th it’s Nicholas Ray’s THE LUSTY MEN scripted by They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? novelist Horace McCoy. On Sunday July 10th, at 11:00 a.m., it’s THE RED PONY (1949) scripted by John Steinbeck from his own stories, and directed by Lewis Milestone. This one’s not just family-friendly, it’s free! All the screenings listed are in 35MM, and later in the month will be THE SUNDOWNERS, TRACK OF THE CAT, RIVER OF NO RETURN, THE WONDERFUL COUNTRY, WEST OF THE PECOS, RACHEL AND THE STRANGER, and EL DORADO. To learn more visit www.cinema.ucla.edu.

STORIES YOU MAY HAVE MISSED IF YOU DIDN'T CHECK THE ROUND-UP FACEBOOK PAGE THIS WEEK

Quentin Tarantino pinned down his cast for DJANGO UNCHAINED; MEEK'S CUTOFF screened at the Egyptian; AMC ran LONESOME DOVE and 17 episodes of THE RIFLEMAN this weekend, and you could have saved 50% on memebership to the Autry Museum. Check Facebook often, and don't miss a thing!

THE AUTRY NATIONAL CENTER

Built by cowboy actor, singer, baseball and TV entrepeneur Gene Autry, and designed by the Disney Imagineering team, the Autry is a world-class museum housing a fascinating collection of items related to the fact, fiction, film, history and art of the American West. In addition to their permenant galleries (to which new items are frequently added), they have temporary shows. The Autry has many special programs every week -- sometimes several in a day. To check their daily calendar, CLICK HERE. And they always have gold panning for kids every weekend. For directions, hours, admission prices, and all other information, CLICK HERE.

HOLLYWOOD HERITAGE MUSEUM

Across the street from the Hollywood Bowl, this building, once the headquarters of Lasky-Famous Players (later Paramount Pictures) was the original DeMille Barn, where Cecil B. DeMille made the first Hollywood western, The Squaw Man. They have a permanent display of movie props, documents and other items related to early, especially silent, film production. They also have occasional special programs. 2100 Highland Ave., L.A. CA 323-874-2276. Thursday – Sunday 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. $5 for adults, $3 for senior, $1 for children.

WELLS FARGO HISTORY MUSEUM

This small but entertaining museum gives a detailed history of Wells Fargo when the name suggested stage-coaches rather than ATMS. There’s a historically accurate reproduction of an agent’s office, an original Concord Coach, and other historical displays. Open Monday through Friday, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. Admission is free. 213-253-7166. 333 S. Grand Street, L.A. CA.


FREE WESTERNS ON YOUR COMPUTER AT HULU

A staggering number of western TV episodes and movies are available, entirely free, for viewing on your computer at HULU. You do have to sit through the commercials, but that seems like a small price to pay. The series available -- often several entire seasons to choose from -- include THE RIFLEMAN, THE CISCO KID, THE LONE RANGER, BAT MASTERSON, THE BIG VALLEY, ALIAS SMITH AND JONES, and one I missed from 2003 called PEACEMAKERS starring Tom Berenger. Because they are linked up with the TV LAND website, you can also see BONANZA and GUNSMOKE episodes, but only the ones that are running on the network that week.

The features include a dozen Zane Grey adaptations, and many or most of the others are public domain features. To visit HULU on their western page, CLICK HERE.

TV LAND - BONANZA and GUNSMOKE

Every weekday, TV LAND airs a three-hour block of BONANZA episodes from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. They run a GUNSMOKE Monday through Thursday at 10:00 a.m., and on Friday they show two, from 6:00 to 8:00 a.m.. They're not currently running either series on weekends, but that could change at any time.

NEED YOUR BLACK & WHITE TV FIX?

Check out your cable system for WHT, which stands for World Harvest Television. It's a religious network that runs a lot of good western programming. Your times may vary, depending on where you live, but weekdays in Los Angeles they run DANIEL BOONE at 1:00 p.m., and two episodes of THE RIFLEMAN from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m.. On Saturdays at 2:00 p.m. it's THE RIFLEMAN again, followed at 2:30 by BAT MASTERSON. And unlike many stations in the re-run business, they run the shows in the original airing order. There's an afternoon movie on weekdays at noon, often a western, and they show western films on the weekend, but the schedule is sporadic.

Also, AMC has started showing two episodes of THE RIFLEMAN on Saturday mornings.

That oughta cover it for the week, but if anything else turns up, you'll find it here, or on our Facebook page.

Happy Trails,

Henry

All Contents Copyright June 2011 by Henry C. Parke - All Rights Reserved

THE UNSINKABLE DEBBIE REYNOLDS!

AUCTION NETS STAR COLLECTOR $18.5 MILLION!

While Hollywood-themed auctions happen every year, it’s been decades since anything like ‘Debbie Reynolds -- The Auction’ has taken place. The breadth and scope of her collection is without parallel, and guestimates of what the take would be were all over the map. It was predicted and hoped that she would earn a few million, but no one was prepared for the staggering amount that was paid.

The biggest price-tag of all was the white dress Marilyn Monroe wore, standing over the subway grating in THE SEVEN YEAR ITCH, which fetched $4,600,000! Although Western items were a very small part of the sale, some of them did very well. A Cesar Romero ‘Cisco Kid’ costume brought $5,000. Two of his gun-rigs and pistols sold as well, the more low-key bringing $5,000, and the one with the silver buckles drawing $8,500. The get-up Marlene Dietrich wore while singing “See What The Boys In the Back Room Will Have,” in DESTRY RIDES AGAIN, went for $8,000. Glenn Ford was a bidder favorite, most items going for double the estimate. His boots and hat went for $2,000, and wardrobe items from CIMARRON, THE SHEEPMAN and THE ROUNDERS brought $3,750. His well-worn personal saddle, a gift from Debbie Reynolds, and estimated at $600-$800, sold for $3,750.

Betty Hutton played Annie Oakley in the Cole Porter musical ANNIE GET YOUR GUN, and her Helen Rose-designed wild west show get-up sold for $11,000. Her hillbilly rags from the same role brought $1,700. Judy Garland was originally cast in the part, and a two-piece dress and blouse designed for her by Walter Plunkett and Helen Rose brought $7,000. Howard Keel played marksman Frank Butler in the movie, and his suit, boots and hat went for $2,700. His Winchester .30-30 model 1894 lever-action rifle with ‘FB’ inlaid in the stock sold for $4,000.

Robert Redford’s dress jacket from BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID sold for $8,500 – without the pants. Marilyn Monroe’s gold saloon-girl dress from RIVER OF NO RETURN, designed by Travilla, brought six times the low-end estimate: $510,000.

There were many costume items from HOW THE WEST WAS WON, in which Miss Reynolds costarred. James Stewart’s suede trapper outfit cost $17,000. Gregory Peck’s overcoat and pants were $4,500, and his suit was $4,000. Thelma Ritter’s blue silk gown, now faded nearly white, sold for $2,750. George Peppard’s cavalry lieutenant’s jacket brought $7,000, far above the $800-$1,200 estimate. Debbie’s silk floral gown sold for $11,000, and Plunkett’s costume sketch of it sold for $4,750. The eggplant-colored gown she wears as an old lady near the end of the picture went for $17,000. Even the paper went high: a set of eight lobby cards, estimated at $200-$300 fetched $1,900, and a linen-backed six-sheet poster cost $2,250.

And in six months, Debbie’s selling the other half of her collection! I think it’s a wonderful thing that the collection is bringing her such a windfall. Back in the late 1960s and early 1970s, the studio system was crashing and burning, and frantic studio drones, with no sense of the value of their companies’ history, burnt and shredded everything they could get their hands on, selling off the costume, prop, art and research departments and bulldozing the lots. A very few people, like Debbie Reynolds and Jane Withers, bought up what they could to preserve it. From the beginning, forty years ago, Miss Reynolds’ goal was to build a museum, to share her collection with the public. She managed it, in Las Vegas, for all of five years, and was nearly bankrupted because of it. She has been a wonderful steward of Hollywood history all of these years, and she deserves every penny. Moreover, speaking as someone who fears that younger generations don’t care about films from Hollywood’s golden age, the prices these items are bringing suggest that they do care.

Still, it’s a pity that the collection could not be kept together. Unexpectedly, the auction catalog begins with an introduction by George Lucas, who says in part, “Thanks to Debbie, these iconic pieces are intact and in excellent condition – a rarity in an industry too often driven by the Next Big Thing, rather than respect for the past. As time passes, there are fewer opportunities for fans to avail themselves – firsthand – of this rich heritage, and I hope that true cinema-philes will see this collection for what it is: a treasure.” It was nice of Lucas to write an introduction. But why didn’t he, instead, write a check, preserve the collection, and build the Debbie Reynolds Museum?

AND SPEAKING OF AUCTIONS…

Don’t forget Brian Lebel’s Old West Auction this Saturday, June 25th, in Denver, Colorado. I’ve mentioned in previous Round-ups about the Billy the Kid tintype, and the bizarre Buffalo Bill Cody divorce documents, but there’s much more. There is a tremendous collection of Bill Cody items, beautiful Indian artwork, and paper items and weapons related to the Lincoln County Wars, the Hole in the Wall Gang, and even Pat Garrett’s autograph. To learn more, go HERE.

http://www.denveroldwest.com/owaucthighlights.html

BOOK REVIEW

Michael B. Druxman’s memoir, MY FORTY-FIVE YEARS IN HOLLYWOOD…AND HOW I ESCAPED ALIVE, is not your usual showbiz autobiography. For one thing, Druxman is not a household name. He’s not a movie star, he only directed one feature, and while he’s written several, none of them were blockbusters. He did not have a gigantic career in Hollywood, but he’s had a good one, and he’s a talented writer. It’s not so much ‘The Story of My Triumphs’ as it is ‘What Happened While I Was Trying to Get My Foot In the Door.’ And what happened was a series of unusual careers.

His interest in showbiz began when, as a child vacationing with his parents in Los Angeles, he met the great Jimmy Durante, who not only gave him an autograph, but made a big fuss over the cute little kid. Going back home to Seattle, Michael haunted the major hotels when stars came to visit, and collected the signatures of Eddie Fisher, Gypsy Rose Lee, Ricardo Montalban, Howard Duff and Ida Lupino. Hired as an extra for IT HAPPENED AT THE WORLD’S FAIR, he got to hang out with Elvis, but was unimpressed: his taste in stars ran to the Golden Era of film. As he grew, his interest and involvement with local theatre eventually led him to Hollywood, where he directed a short film that was shot by soon-to-be exploitation legend Ted V. Mikels.

Paying the rent by writing resumes, he learned about the publicist game – planting news stories in trades like The Variety and The Hollywood Reporter, for actors and directors who figured visibility led to employment. Undercutting all the pros – his one-inch ad in Variety promised, “A PRESS AGENT FOR $25” -- he was soon hard at work, and his first client was Sal Mineo. Some clients were relative unknowns, like Charles Wagenheim, the assassin from FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT, who was playing a continuing role on GUNSMOKE as the town drunk. Others were well-known actors like Howard Keel, Robert Horton, Charles Nelson Reilly, Madlyn Rhue, Pat Harrington, Edd ‘Kookie’ Byrnes, Steve Kanaly, John Rusell and Dan O’Herlihy, songsters Paul Francis Webster and Sammy Fain, directors Budd Boetticher and Edward Dymytrk, and producer Stanley Rubin. He has wonderful stories trying to get press from threats against Michael Ansara, and a premature obit for Abe Vigoda.

But though Druxman had entre to all the studios, and hobnobbed with stars for more than two decades, he wanted to be the creative talent himself. His next career was that of a star biographer, and after writing about Paul Muni, Basil Rathbone and Merv Griffin, he turned playwright. This was the time of one-man shows like Hal Holbrook’s MARK TWAIN TONIGHT and James Whitmore’s WILL ROGERS show. Druxman wrote shows about Clark Gable, Spencer Tracy, Carole Lombard and Al Jolson. William Conrad, radio’s Matt Dillon and arguably the best voice-actor in history, was all set to play Orson Welles for him, but JAKE AND THE FATMAN intervened.

Still, Druxman wanted to write for the big screen, and after writing many a spec script, finally got a green light for the crime comedy KEATON’S COP, starring Lee Majors , Abe Vigoda and Don Rickles. The finished product wasn’t everything he’d hoped, but it was his foot in the door, and it led to a career writing for Roger Corman and his wonderful story editor, Frances Doel. For the king of the low-budgets he wrote DILLINGER AND CAPONE, about their imagined meeting, starring Martin Sheen and F. Murray Abraham. He wrote NIGHTFALL, RAPTOR and BATTLE QUEEN 2020, and directed THE DOORWAY, in Ireland, starring Roy Scheider. But the work that he is most proud of is the screenplay for his Corman-produced western, CHEYENNE WARRIOR. Druxman has great respect for Corman, and his ability to get every dollar on the screen.

You won’t just learn about his showbiz career. You’ll learn about his family, his women, his in-laws. I assumed a chapter entitled ‘Cashing Checks’ was about working for fly-by-night producers, but it’s actually about when Druxman ran a check-cashing business.

As I said, it’s not the life-story of a mega-star, but haven’t we read enough of those? It’s the life-story of a man who created his own path to success in the film business, and it’s enjoyable and informative reading for anyone who’d like to read beyond the superficial gloss, and anyone who’s similarly trying to cut their own trail in this town. It’s also very funny. It’s from Bear Manor Media, a publisher that produces in-depth and specialized film and TV-related books. To visit the publisher, go HERE. In next week’s Round-up I’ll have an interview with Michael Druxman, and a review of CHEYENNE WARRIOR, which is the best tiny-budget western I’ve seen.

http://bearmanormedia.bizland.com/id528.html


VISITING WARNER BROTHERS STUDIO RANCH

During the year and a half that I’ve been writing the Round-up, one of my favorite benefits has been the chance to visit those magical locations, Western movie towns and sets. Melody Ranch, Veluzat Ranch and Paramount Ranch are all a kind of dream-world to me, and to be present for the filming of a Western is icing on the cake.

The very first time I visited a movie ranch was when I was a kid, on vacation in L.A., and we jumped a fence at Spahn Ranch, where a DEATH VALLEY DAYS crew had left the day before. My sister and I ran up and down the street, having shootouts, never dreaming that it would soon become the base-camp for Manson and his band of lunatics.

About twenty-five years ago, I was working at the Warner Brothers lot in Burbank. When my parents and sister, Deirdre, came out to visit, I got them a drive-on, so I could get them on the lot and take them to lunch in the commissary. Afterwards, we roamed the Western streets, and Deirdre took the pictures that are on the left. I’m sorry to say that the western street is gone now, bulldozed for a parking structure. At least we have memories, and a few pictures.

‘REEL INJUN’ AND GENE IN 35MM AT THE AUTRY

On Thursday, June 23rd, the Autry will show the brilliant and often hilarious documentary REEL INJUN, which examines the role of American Indians in film from the American Indian point of view. Also shown will be the short AMERICAN INDIAN ACTORS. This program is from 7 to 9:30 p.m., and a Q&A with filmmakers will follow. Free tickets are available online and at the box office.

On Saturday, June 25th at 2:00 p.m. they’ll show HEART OF THE RIO GRANDE (1942), which, unlike the first-Saturday-of-the-month screening will be a 35mm print from the UCLA Archives.

HAPPY TRAILS THEATRE ON RFD-TV

On Thursday June 23rd at 2:30 pm it’s SPOILERS OF THE PLAIN (1951), with Roy, Trigger, Penny Edwards, Gordon Jones, William Whitney directing, and Sloan Nibley supplying a tale of rockets, satellites, foreign spies, and Foy Willing and the Riders of the Purple Sage. On Saturday, June 25th at 9:00 a.m. it’s THE COWBOY AND THE SENORITA. It’s Roy’s first movie with Dale, and let us hope they show the full 78 minute version rather than the 52 minute chop-job.

THE AUTRY NATIONAL CENTER

Built by cowboy actor, singer, baseball and TV entrepeneur Gene Autry, and designed by the Disney Imagineering team, the Autry is a world-class museum housing a fascinating collection of items related to the fact, fiction, film, history and art of the American West. In addition to their permenant galleries (to which new items are frequently added), they have temporary shows. The Autry has many special programs every week -- sometimes several in a day. To check their daily calendar, CLICK HERE. And they always have gold panning for kids every weekend. For directions, hours, admission prices, and all other information, CLICK HERE.

HOLLYWOOD HERITAGE MUSEUM

Across the street from the Hollywood Bowl, this building, once the headquarters of Lasky-Famous Players (later Paramount Pictures) was the original DeMille Barn, where Cecil B. DeMille made the first Hollywood western, The Squaw Man. They have a permanent display of movie props, documents and other items related to early, especially silent, film production. They also have occasional special programs. 2100 Highland Ave., L.A. CA 323-874-2276. Thursday – Sunday 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. $5 for adults, $3 for senior, $1 for children.

WELLS FARGO HISTORY MUSEUM

This small but entertaining museum gives a detailed history of Wells Fargo when the name suggested stage-coaches rather than ATMS. There’s a historically accurate reproduction of an agent’s office, an original Concord Coach, and other historical displays. Open Monday through Friday, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. Admission is free. 213-253-7166. 333 S. Grand Street, L.A. CA.


FREE WESTERNS ON YOUR COMPUTER AT HULU

A staggering number of western TV episodes and movies are available, entirely free, for viewing on your computer at HULU. You do have to sit through the commercials, but that seems like a small price to pay. The series available -- often several entire seasons to choose from -- include THE RIFLEMAN, THE CISCO KID, THE LONE RANGER, BAT MASTERSON, THE BIG VALLEY, ALIAS SMITH AND JONES, and one I missed from 2003 called PEACEMAKERS starring Tom Berenger. Because they are linked up with the TV LAND website, you can also see BONANZA and GUNSMOKE episodes, but only the ones that are running on the network that week.

The features include a dozen Zane Grey adaptations, and many or most of the others are public domain features. To visit HULU on their western page, CLICK HERE.

TV LAND - BONANZA and GUNSMOKE

Every weekday, TV LAND airs a three-hour block of BONANZA episodes from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. They run a GUNSMOKE Monday through Thursday at 10:00 a.m., and on Friday they show two, from 6:00 to 8:00 a.m.. They're not currently running either series on weekends, but that could change at any time.

NEED YOUR BLACK & WHITE TV FIX?

Check out your cable system for WHT, which stands for World Harvest Television. It's a religious network that runs a lot of good western programming. Your times may vary, depending on where you live, but weekdays in Los Angeles they run DANIEL BOONE at 1:00 p.m., and two episodes of THE RIFLEMAN from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m.. On Saturdays at 2:00 p.m. it's THE RIFLEMAN again, followed at 2:30 by BAT MASTERSON. And unlike many stations in the re-run business, they run the shows in the original airing order. There's an afternoon movie on weekdays at noon, often a western, and they show western films on the weekend, but the schedule is sporadic.

Also, AMC has started showing two episodes of THE RIFLEMAN on Saturday mornings.

HAPPY FATHER’S DAY!

I’m getting this report out a little later than usual because my daughter took me out to lunch and to do some gold panning. I was thinking of my favorite fathers in Western TV and films. On the tube it’s Chuck Connors as Lucas McCain on THE RIFLEMAN, with Lorne Greene as Ben Cartwright on BONANZA as a close second. Favorite dad in a dysfunctional family would be Leif Ericson as Big John Cannon on HIGH CHAPARRAL. But when it comes to features, aside from Van Heflin in SHANE, nothing much came to mind. Who do you like as a western father figure?

Have a great week!

Happy trails,

Henry

All Contents Copyright June 2011 by Henry C. Parke – All Rights Reserved

BUFFALO BILL’S FIGHT FOR LIFE!

We all know that Buffalo Bill Cody led a life of adventure and danger, but few of us guessed how close to home that danger was, nor did we see parallels to Charlie Sheen’s recent troubles! But Brian Lebel’s 2011 Denver Old West Auction, in Denver, Colorado, from June 24th through June 26th, brings some amazing details to light. In 1905, Louisa Cody and Buffalo Bill were on the brink of divorce (they later reconciled). Her original copies of witness depositions are going on the auction block. Here are a few interesting quotes:

She was angry, and she shook her fist at me, and said “I will bring you Codys down so low the dogs won’t bark at you.”

She claimed that he was unloyal to her and immoral with other women

She said she would rule Colonel Cody or ruin him and I said, “You had better leave him alone.” She said “Before he goes from under my control, I will kill him.”

She gave him a drug she called “Dragon’s blood.” I don’t know what it is. She gave it to him in his coffee. She told me she had given him two doses and wanted to give him the third. She put it in his coffee and I switched cups and give her the Colonel’s cup and the Colonel the one that didn’t have anything in it and it made her sick.

She said he is a drunk. You are a drunken brute.

During the time that you have testified to his drinking, gambling, and frequenting houses of ill fame, where were his wife and babies?

The estimate is from $5,000 - $8,000. I’ve already described in the Round-up another item up for bid, the famous tintype of Billy the Kid, the only authenticated photo of the Brooklyn-born bandit. Among the other fascinating pieces of Western history are a pair of Clayton Moore's Colt Single Actions, a John Wayne movie hat, Buck Jones's belt buckle, and a gold and diamond presentation badge of Leo Carrillo’s.

To learn more about the auction, go HERE.

(Photos: Buffalo Bill poster, divorce documents, Cody's watch, Billy the Kid tintype)
http://www.denveroldwest.com/owaucthighlights.html

AT THE AUTRY

At Saturday’s screening of a 35mm print of George Steven’s SHANE, the most startling revelation about the film in curator Jeffrey Richardson’s introduction was that Jack Palance had so much trouble getting on and off of a horse in those early days that they actually played the ‘off-the-horse’ shot in reverse to get him back on!

But he also revealed some good news about up-coming screenings. On Thursday, June 23rd, the Autry will show the brilliant and often hilarious documentary REEL INJUN, which examines the role of American Indians in film from the American Indian point of view. Also shown will be the short AMERICAN INDIAN ACTORS. This program is from 7 to 9:30 p.m., and a Q&A with filmmakers will follow. Free tickets are available online and at the box office.

On Saturday, June 25th at 2:00 p.m. they’ll show HEART OF THE RIO GRANDE (1942), which, unlike the first-Saturday-of-the-month screening will be a 35mm print from the UCLA Archives. Speaking of first Saturdays, on Saturday, July 2nd at noon, the Autry will screen Gene in RYTHYM OF THE SADDLE (1938) and COW TOWN (1950).

Also, the titles and dates for the monthly ‘What Is A Western?’ series have been announced for the next ten months. All on Saturday at 1:30 p.m., and all 35mm prints, the films will be:
July 9th 2011, ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST (1968)
August 13th, 2011 GUNFIGHT AT THE O.K. CORRAL (1957)
September 17th 2011 TOMBSTONE (1993)
October 22nd, 2011 WINCHESTER ’73 (1950)
November 12th,2011 UNFORGIVEN (1992)
January 21st,2012 THE PROFESSIONALS (1966)
February 11th, 2012 THE WILD BUNCH (1969)
April 14th 2012 MY DARLING CLEMENTINE (1946)
May 12th 2012 BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID (1969)
June 9th 2012 THE GUNFIGHTER (1950)



COMING SOON: JOHN CARTER OF MARS BY WAY OF MOAB, UTAH

Actor Joe Billingiere has doubled for Steven Seagal, helped bring Josh Brolin back from the dead in JONAH HEX, and will soon be seen as Chief White Eagle Feather in the upcoming YELLOW ROCK. But the picture he did that has all the steam-punks buzzing is JOHN CARTER OF MARS, based on the series of novel Edgar Rice Burroughs wrote before moving on to create TARZAN.

“Actually we shot JOHN CARTER OF MARS between JONAH HEX and YELLOW ROCK, but they’re shooting two movies at one time. And as we weren’t really on Mars, there’s a lot of CGI. I was involved in the opening scenes of the book, where John Carter is involved in the Old West of the 1860s or 1870s. He gets caught in a fight, a battle between the U.S. Cavalry and some native peoples.” Joe plays Apache #1. “He and his partner are caught in the middle, and escape to a cave. The Native Americans follow him, and they see some sacred symbol which scares them, and it’s unclear what happens in that cave, but somehow he’s transported to Mars. When I got the call to go for that audition, I was really excited, because I’m a reader, and I grew up borrowing those books from my library – I read so fast I used to take two or three at a time. I read that whole series, which is Edgar Rice Burroughs’ first series. The first book is called A PRINCESS OF MARS, and it’s really the beginning of what morphed into sword and sorcery.

“Luckily I was cast, and Andrew Stanton, the director, was fantastic, just what I think a director ought to be. He was friendly, personable, very accurate in how he directed us and explained what he wanted in the scenes. It was just a lot of fun. And of course we shot it in Moab, Utah. The red rocks of the Southwest, the incredible formations. We had a day off and four of us actors rented a Jeep and drove off to Arches National Park; awesome scenery, great heights.”

JOHN CARTER OF MARS stars Taylor Kitsch, Lynn Collins,Willem Dafoe and Thomas Haden Church, and has a projected release date of March 2012. We’ll have a more extensive interview with Joe in the coming weeks.

Photos: Joe Billingiere between two John Carter of Mars illustrations)

EVENTS YOU MAY HAVE MISSED IF YOU HAVEN’T CHECKED OUR FACEBOOK PAGE THIS WEEK

When events of interest come to my attention at the last minute, I post them on our Facebook page. We had a plethora of them for this Saturday, June 11th: a 70mm screening of GLORY at the Aero with director Joel Zwick; a 35mm screening of SHANE at the Autry; a Raoul Walsh bio-signing and double feature at the Egyptian with author Marilyn Ann Ross and actors L.Q. Jones, Jack ‘Jimmy Olsen’ Larson and Richard Erdman; and a four-day free preview of ENCORE WESTERNS CHANNEL, featuring a 24 hour James Arness marathon. Keep an eye on our Facebook page for late-breaking Western movie news!

DEBBIE REYNOLDS – THE AUCTION – JUNE 18TH

The beautiful and immensely talented Debbie Reynolds struck Hollywood like a comet when, in 1948, she won the Lockheed-sponsored Miss Burbank title, her talent being lip-synching to a Betty Hutton record (an odd choice, considering she also played the French horn, and was a champion baton twirler). On the panel of judges were talent scouts for both Warner Brothers and M.G.M. The Warner’s rep won the coin toss, winning the opportunity to screen-test the high-schooler, and the rest is Hollywood history. She was still so young when she did THE DAUGHTERS OF ROSIE O’GRADY (1949), co-star Marcia Mae Jones told me, that she sold her troop’s Girl Scout Cookies to all of the other actors on the set.

She became a star at the tail end of the Golden Age with films like SINGIN’ IN THE RAIN, THE UNSINKABLE MOLLY BROWN and HOW THE WEST WAS WON. Sadly, the Studio System began to implode in the late 1960s, and the majors began selling off their props and costumes and finally their real estate in a frantic bid to stay above water. Debbie, as big a fan as she was a star, was a ubiquitous sight at the MGM and 20th CENTURY FOX auctions, where she amassed the world’s greatest collection of movie wardrobe from classic films. Her goal was always to create a museum to share her collection with the public, and in 1993, after many false starts she got her museum, in Las Vegas, with the Debbie Reynolds Hollywood Resort and Casino. Sadly, the museum only lasted for about five years, before financial problems forced the casino’s closure. Since then, re-openings were announced at Hollywood and Highland and adjacent to Dollywood, but neither happened, and now Debbie is selling her collection. The auction, by Profiles in History, will take place on Saturday, June 18th, at the Paley Center For Media, at 465 North Beverly Drive in Beverly Hills.

Although the majority of items are not Western in nature, there is plenty to interest any movie fan. Among the items with a cowboy connection are Marlene Dietrich’s ‘Frenchie’ costume from DESTRY RIDES AGAIN; Cesar Romero’s pistol, gunbelt and costume from the CISCO KID series; Glenn Ford’s saddle, hat and boots; Howard Keel’s Winchester, boots and costume from ANNIE GET YOUR GUN; Marilyn Monroe’s saloon-girl gown, by Travilla, from RIVER OF NO RETURN; and costumes of James Stewart, Gregory Peck and Debbie Reynolds from HOW THE WEST WAS WON.

Previews continue at the Paley, Wednesday June 15th through Friday June 17th, from noon to 5 p.m., with the auction beginning Saturday at noon. To find out more, and download the catalog, go HERE.

(Photos: Debbie Reynolds in HOW THE WEST WAS WON; Cesar Romero's CISCO KID costume; guns - above, SGT. YORK guns, below, CISCO KID; Monroe RIVER OF NO RETURN dress; Glenn Ford's hat, boots and saddle and, in background, W.C. Fields' costume from MISSISSIPPI. All auction pics courtesy of Sabrina Parke)

http://www.profilesinhistory.com/debbie-reynolds-auction/debbie-reynolds-the-auction

THE AUTRY NATIONAL CENTER

Built by cowboy actor, singer, baseball and TV entrepeneur Gene Autry, and designed by the Disney Imagineering team, the Autry is a world-class museum housing a fascinating collection of items related to the fact, fiction, film, history and art of the American West. In addition to their permenant galleries (to which new items are frequently added), they have temporary shows. The Autry has many special programs every week -- sometimes several in a day. To check their daily calendar, CLICK HERE. And they always have gold panning for kids every weekend. For directions, hours, admission prices, and all other information, CLICK HERE.

HOLLYWOOD HERITAGE MUSEUM

Across the street from the Hollywood Bowl, this building, once the headquarters of Lasky-Famous Players (later Paramount Pictures) was the original DeMille Barn, where Cecil B. DeMille made the first Hollywood western, The Squaw Man. They have a permanent display of movie props, documents and other items related to early, especially silent, film production. They also have occasional special programs. 2100 Highland Ave., L.A. CA 323-874-2276. Thursday – Sunday 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. $5 for adults, $3 for senior, $1 for children.

WELLS FARGO HISTORY MUSEUM

This small but entertaining museum gives a detailed history of Wells Fargo when the name suggested stage-coaches rather than ATMS. There’s a historically accurate reproduction of an agent’s office, an original Concord Coach, and other historical displays. Open Monday through Friday, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. Admission is free. 213-253-7166. 333 S. Grand Street, L.A. CA.


FREE WESTERNS ON YOUR COMPUTER AT HULU

A staggering number of western TV episodes and movies are available, entirely free, for viewing on your computer at HULU. You do have to sit through the commercials, but that seems like a small price to pay. The series available -- often several entire seasons to choose from -- include THE RIFLEMAN, THE CISCO KID, THE LONE RANGER, BAT MASTERSON, THE BIG VALLEY, ALIAS SMITH AND JONES, and one I missed from 2003 called PEACEMAKERS starring Tom Berenger. Because they are linked up with the TV LAND website, you can also see BONANZA and GUNSMOKE episodes, but only the ones that are running on the network that week.

The features include a dozen Zane Grey adaptations, and many or most of the others are public domain features. To visit HULU on their western page, CLICK HERE.

TV LAND - BONANZA and GUNSMOKE

Every weekday, TV LAND airs a three-hour block of BONANZA episodes from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. They run a GUNSMOKE Monday through Thursday at 10:00 a.m., and on Friday they show two, from 6:00 to 8:00 a.m.. They're not currently running either series on weekends, but that could change at any time.

NEED YOUR BLACK & WHITE TV FIX?

Check out your cable system for WHT, which stands for World Harvest Television. It's a religious network that runs a lot of good western programming. Your times may vary, depending on where you live, but weekdays in Los Angeles they run DANIEL BOONE at 1:00 p.m., and two episodes of THE RIFLEMAN from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m.. On Saturdays at 2:00 p.m. it's THE RIFLEMAN again, followed at 2:30 by BAT MASTERSON. And unlike many stations in the re-run business, they run the shows in the original airing order. There's an afternoon movie on weekdays at noon, often a western, and they show western films on the weekend, but the schedule is sporadic.

Also, AMC has started showing two episodes of THE RIFLEMAN on Saturday mornings.

That's all until next week, folks!

Happy Trails,

Henry

All Contents Copyright June 2011 by Henry C. Parke - All Rights Reserved

REMEMBERING JAMES ARNESS

A week ago we were wishing Jim Arness a happy 88th birthday, and now we’re saying farewell. To those of us who grew up in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, Jim simply was Matt Dillon. Arness was to Western television what John Wayne was to the Western movie – and it’s no coincidence that it was Wayne who urged Arness, against his instincts, to take the role in GUNSMOKE, and even filmed an introduction to the show’s pilot, touting Jim as the ideal choice for the role.

But James Arness was more than just the personification of the frontier marshal. He was a man, a real man. He grew up in Minnesota and Wisconsin, went to war, fought in the infantry and had his leg shattered at Anzio. In addition to the badge he wore on TV, he also wore a Combat Infantry Badge, a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star.

When he came to Hollywood, he appeared in Westerns, but also war movies, comedies, sword and sandal programmers, pirate pictures and sci-fi movies before he won his career-defining role. He also discovered surfing, one of his greatest passions. He wrote about his remarkable life, with James E. Wise, Jr., in JAMES ARNESS: AN AUTOBIOGRAPHY.

I never met James Arness, although as a ten-year-old kid visiting the real Dodge City, Kansas, I searched the town desperately for him (I did eat breakfast at a restaurant which purported to be Miss Kitty’s, but none of her girls were there). So I spoke to a few people who knew Jim and had worked with him.

Earl Holliman remembers, “I did three or four GUNSMOKES, but most of the time I had little if anything to do with Jim. You know the format of that show. Jim Arness would be there in the beginning, and say, ‘Boys, I’m riding into Where-ever,’ and you didn’t see him again until the last frame of the thing, when he rode up and said, ‘Hey, hold it!’ or shot the villain. But I did the first TV movie, RETURN TO DODGE, and on that I did work closely with him in some scenes – in fact I think I died in his arms. He was a nice, down to earth guy, and not at all carried away by his fame. I never talked to anyone who didn’t like him.

“Long before I really knew him, early in my career, when I was trying to flesh out my talent to some degree, I was taking dance lessons, and I ran into him in the little dressing area. I was going into a private session, and he was going into a dance class with a bunch of really young people, and this was really early-on in GUNSMOKE. What he was doing, and a very admirable thing, he was broadening his horizons by making himself more agile. He wanted to work on his movement. To see this great big guy in dance class with a bunch of late teenagers! I admired him for it.”

Morgan Woodward guested on GUNSMOKE more than any other actor – remarkable considering he wasn’t on once in the first decade. “I couldn’t do GUNSMOKE because of a casting director that I’d had a run-in with at a different studio, so he would never invite me in. In 1965 he died, unfortunately for him, fortunately for me. They brought on a new casting director, who knew my work, and I started doing GUNSMOKE. And although it was an unwritten law that no actor could do more than one GUNSMOKE a year, I did nineteen in ten years. I worked with Jim Arness often, very often. He was certainly one of the nicest men that I had ever met – not just in show business, but anywhere. Just an absolutely wonderful gentleman and a great friend. The series ended in 1975, and we’ve remained friends since that time. I talked to him two or three weeks ago, and (his death) didn’t come as a surprise because I’d seen him some months ago, and he was in terrible shape, and I think he knew the end was near.

“Jim knew that I was a pilot, and he started asking me questions about being a pilot, and said he’d thought about taking flying lessons. And I said, ‘Well, I’ll tell you what, Jim. I’ve seen the shooting schedule, and you’re going to be finished right after lunch, and so am I, so let’s just head out to the airport, and get in my plane and see how you like it.’ Well, we just had a marvelous time. I had a surplus Army airplane that you could push the canopy back and let the breeze blow on you, and he just absolutely loved it. The next morning I went by the aero shop and bought him a private pilot’s course and gave it to him, and said, ‘Okay pal, here you go: take off!’ Jim went on to get a commercial license and was checked off in twin-engine aircraft. Quite a pilot, he did very well.

“He was in the infantry in the war, that’s where he was injured, at Anzio. Got caught in a machine-gun fire, and spent several months in the hospital. In GUNSMOKE, if he had to walk in the street they tried to shoot it in the morning, because by noon he was really limping pretty badly. One leg was shorter than the other, and it was almost like he swung his right leg.”

Joe Don Baker, who guested twice on GUNSMOKE recalls, “I had just come from New York when I was working with him. I’d been studying acting for five and a half years. So I was used to people preparing before they’d do a scene. You know, you’d go off and talk to yourself, get yourself in the mood. (On GUNSMOKE) we’d be on the set, they’d start the countdown to action – rolling, sound -- and he would be telling jokes and just talking about anything, right up until they said ‘action.’ Then he would ‘click,’ and he would be Matt Dillon, he would just jump into the Matt Dillon character, just from telling jokes to throwing down on somebody. In a fraction of a second he’d be from telling jokes to doing Matt Dillon. Another thing I remember, after a scene was over, he’d just reach down and unbuckle his gunbelt, let it drop, but by that time the prop man was behind him, and he’d reach over and snatch it as soon as it started dropping. Pretty cool! They had this routine down, he and the prop man.

“One time we were getting ready to do a scene, and he didn’t know what part I was playing, so he picked me out as the bad guy and was jumping down on me like Matt Dillon. Until somebody said, ‘No Jim, he’s the good guy.’ He said, ‘Okay, which one’s the bad?’ He was just a nice guy, and I really liked working with him.”

I asked Rob Word, Western writer and producer, and one of the Founding Fathers of the Golden Boot Award, what his memories of Jim were. He emailed back:

(l to r: Rob Word, James Arness, John Mantley, Bruce Boxleitner, Morgan Woodward, Jim Byrnes)

Lots of stories and thoughts about Jim. Did you know he LOVED do-nuts? At 6'7" I guess he never had to worry about his weight!

"Gunsmoke" set a record as the longest running dramatic television series with the most episodes. Producing 39 episodes a year when it premiered on September 10, 1955, "Gunsmoke's" total of 635 episodes leaves "Law & Order's" measly 22 episodes a year standing in the dust! Ain't no show ever gonna topple that total.

When James Arness got his Golden Boot Award in 1989, we had Victor French as the presenter. Well, ya shoulda been there! That night we were also honoring Fess Parker, Cesar Romero, George Montgomery, Beverly Garland, Guy Madison, Jock Mahoney and Louis L'Amour. A roundup of classic western heroes all gathered in an overstuffed banquet room filled with about 900 fans and 40 more western stars, writers and producers in the audience.

Pat Buttram was our always hysterical Master of Ceremonies and everyone knew the evening was gonna go long. Hell, we looked forward to it! We saved Big Jim's Award for last and had the irascible actor/director Victor French as his presenter. They'd worked together often and Victor really wanted to do it. Well, it was 11:30pm when Victor finally took the podium and he set a still standing record for the looooongest speech by a presenter in our 25 year history. He started out very funny, telling lots of stories about Jim's pranks on set and giving the packed house of western fans some real inside stuff, some of it off color. As he rambled on and on...the clock passed midnight and even hard core fans were beginning to eye the door.

Finally, someone had the good sense to remind Victor to "cue the clips" and to usher Victor off. Jim came out smiling and laughing to a standing ovation. The room was shaking with hoots and hollers of appreciation. Jim made a few choice comments about "ole Victor" and kept his acceptance speech short, even though he said he couldn't make up the time Victor had already appropriated. What a memorable night and what a gracious man.

Producer John Mantley was one of Jim's closet friends. They not only did three TV series together, they flew planes, fished and vacationed together. A few years ago, when John was diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease, we had a special dinner at my house for some of John's close friends. Of course, Jim and his wife, Janet, came. So did "Gunsmoke" veterans Morgan Woodward (he did 20 episodes as 20 different characters), Bruce Boxleitner and Jim and Toni Byrnes. When the guys started telling stories about the show, Jim's signature rollicking laugh must have triggered John Mantley's memory because it kicked in and we all had more laughs than expected. What a great time.

Jim was, and will continue to be, a hero to many generations. He can't help it. His presence on screen, especially as Marshal Matt Dillon, and the quality of the programs he chose to do, will keep him in our thoughts forever. Even now, there's so much to see of Jim on TV.

We're lucky, he's on TV Land Monday through Friday in the hour long color episodes of "Gunsmoke." While Encore's Westerns Channel runs the wonderful black and white hour long episodes and the five "Gunsmoke" TV movies. Even TCM has begun rebroadcasting Jim's fabulous mini-series "How the West Was Won" (aka "The Family McCahans") created by Jim Byrnes and produced by John Mantley, both "Gunsmoke" veterans, on Saturday mornings.

Like Matt Dillon, James Arness is a true legend.


The following message to his fans was posted on James Arness' website:

Hi friends,

I decided to write a letter to you for Janet to post on our website in the event I was no longer here.

I had a wonderful life and was blessed with so many loving people and great friends. The best part of my life was my family, especially my wife Janet. Many of you met her at Dodge City so you understand what a special person she is.

I wanted to take this time to thank all of you for the many years of being a fan of Gunsmoke, The Thing, How the West Was Won and all the other fun projects I was lucky enough to have been allowed to be a part of. I had the privilege of working with so many great actors over the years.

I was honored to have served in the army for my country. I was at Anzio during WWII and it makes you realize how very precious life is.

Thank you again for all the many letters, cards, emails and gifts we received from you over the years. You are and always have been truly appreciated.

Sincerely,
Jim Arness


TONTO DEPP FINALLY HAS A KEMO SABE

It’s been about two years since Johnny Depp agreed to play the ‘faithful Indian companion’ Tonto in Jerry Bruckheimer’s new version of THE LONE RANGER. And for two years, the name most often mentioned for the Masked Rider of the Plains has been George Clooney. Finally there’s word that the role has been cast, and the winner is (drum roll) Armie Hammer! If you don’t recognize the name you probably will know the face – you saw it twice recently, as he played both Winklevoss twins in SOCIAL NETWORK. (No word yet on whether Klinton Spilsbury will cameo as his dad) Gore Verbinski, who directed the first three PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN films and the recent semi-Western cartoon, RANGO, is set helm.

THE AUTRY NATIONAL CENTER

Built by cowboy actor, singer, baseball and TV entrepeneur Gene Autry, and designed by the Disney Imagineering team, the Autry is a world-class museum housing a fascinating collection of items related to the fact, fiction, film, history and art of the American West. In addition to their permenant galleries (to which new items are frequently added), they have temporary shows. The Autry has many special programs every week -- sometimes several in a day. To check their daily calendar, CLICK HERE. And they always have gold panning for kids every weekend. For directions, hours, admission prices, and all other information, CLICK HERE.

HOLLYWOOD HERITAGE MUSEUM

Across the street from the Hollywood Bowl, this building, once the headquarters of Lasky-Famous Players (later Paramount Pictures) was the original DeMille Barn, where Cecil B. DeMille made the first Hollywood western, The Squaw Man. They have a permanent display of movie props, documents and other items related to early, especially silent, film production. They also have occasional special programs. 2100 Highland Ave., L.A. CA 323-874-2276. Thursday – Sunday 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. $5 for adults, $3 for senior, $1 for children.

WELLS FARGO HISTORY MUSEUM

This small but entertaining museum gives a detailed history of Wells Fargo when the name suggested stage-coaches rather than ATMS. There’s a historically accurate reproduction of an agent’s office, an original Concord Coach, and other historical displays. Open Monday through Friday, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. Admission is free. 213-253-7166. 333 S. Grand Street, L.A. CA.


FREE WESTERNS ON YOUR COMPUTER AT HULU

A staggering number of western TV episodes and movies are available, entirely free, for viewing on your computer at HULU. You do have to sit through the commercials, but that seems like a small price to pay. The series available -- often several entire seasons to choose from -- include THE RIFLEMAN, THE CISCO KID, THE LONE RANGER, BAT MASTERSON, THE BIG VALLEY, ALIAS SMITH AND JONES, and one I missed from 2003 called PEACEMAKERS starring Tom Berenger. Because they are linked up with the TV LAND website, you can also see BONANZA and GUNSMOKE episodes, but only the ones that are running on the network that week.

The features include a dozen Zane Grey adaptations, and many or most of the others are public domain features. To visit HULU on their western page, CLICK HERE.

TV LAND - BONANZA and GUNSMOKE

Every weekday, TV LAND airs a three-hour block of BONANZA episodes from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. They run a GUNSMOKE Monday through Thursday at 10:00 a.m., and on Friday they show two, from 6:00 to 8:00 a.m.. They're not currently running either series on weekends, but that could change at any time.

NEED YOUR BLACK & WHITE TV FIX?

Check out your cable system for WHT, which stands for World Harvest Television. It's a religious network that runs a lot of good western programming. Your times may vary, depending on where you live, but weekdays in Los Angeles they run DANIEL BOONE at 1:00 p.m., and two episodes of THE RIFLEMAN from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m.. On Saturdays at 2:00 p.m. it's THE RIFLEMAN again, followed at 2:30 by BAT MASTERSON. And unlike many stations in the re-run business, they run the shows in the original airing order. There's an afternoon movie on weekdays at noon, often a western, and they show western films on the weekend, but the schedule is sporadic.

Also, AMC has started showing two episodes of THE RIFLEMAN on Saturday mornings.

I had some other stories to run, but losing Jim Arness kind of knocked my writing schedule for a loop. It's a little after ten p.m. on Sunday, and I'm going to publish this, then finish watching GUNSMOKE: THE LAST APACHE.

Adios Amigos!

Henry

All contents copyright June 2011 by Henry C. Parke -- All Rights Reserved