McNairy County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 25,866. Its county seat and largest city is Selmer. McNairy County is located along Tennessee's border with the state of Mississippi.
Buford Hayse Pusser was the sheriff of McNairy County, Tennessee, from 1964 to 1970, and constable of Adamsville from 1970 to 1972. Pusser is known for his virtual one-man war on moonshining, prostitution, gambling, and other vices along the Mississippi–Tennessee state line. His efforts have inspired several books, songs, movies and a TV series. He was also a wrestler known as "Buford the Bull" in the Mid-South.
Walking Tall is a 1973 American neo-noir biographical vigilante action thriller film based on the life of Buford Pusser, a professional wrestler-turned-lawman in McNairy County, Tennessee, played by Joe Don Baker. The film was directed by Phil Karlson. It has become a cult film with two direct sequels of its own, a TV movie, a brief TV series, and a remake that had its own two sequels.
Forrest Meredith Tucker was an American actor in both movies and television who appeared in nearly a hundred films. Tucker worked as a vaudeville straight man at the age of fifteen. A mentor provided funds and contacts for a trip to California, where party hostess Cobina Wright persuaded guest Wesley Ruggles to give Tucker a screen test because of Tucker's photogenic good looks, thick wavy hair and height of six feet, five inches.
Brian Manion Dennehy was an American actor of stage, television, and film. He won two Tony Awards, an Olivier Award, and a Golden Globe, and received six Primetime Emmy Award nominations. Dennehy had roles in over 180 films and in many television and stage productions. His film roles included First Blood (1982), Gorky Park (1983), Silverado (1985), Cocoon (1985), F/X (1986), Presumed Innocent (1990), Tommy Boy (1995), Romeo + Juliet (1996), Ratatouille (2007), and Knight of Cups (2015). Dennehy won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Miniseries or Television Film for his role as Willy Loman in the television film Death of a Salesman (2000). Dennehy's final film was Driveways (2020), in which he plays a veteran of the Korean War, living alone, who befriends a young, shy boy who has come with his mother to clean out his deceased aunt's hoarded home.
Tucker: The Man and His Dream is a 1988 American biographical comedy-drama film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, starring Jeff Bridges as inventor Preston Tucker. The film recounts Tucker's story and his attempt to produce and market the Tucker 48, which was met with scandal between the Big Three automobile manufacturers and accusations of stock fraud from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Joan Allen, Martin Landau, Elias Koteas, Frederic Forrest and Christian Slater appear in supporting roles. Landau won the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor and was nominated for the Academy Award in the same category.
Sheree North was an American actress, dancer, and singer, known for being one of 20th Century-Fox's intended successors to Marilyn Monroe.
The Abominable Snowman is a 1957 British fantasy-horror film directed by Val Guest and written by Nigel Kneale, based on his own BBC television play The Creature. Produced by Hammer Films, the plot follows the exploits of British scientist Dr. John Rollason, who joins an American expedition, led by glory-seeker Tom Friend, to search the Himalayas for the legendary Yeti. Maureen Connell, Richard Wattis and Arnold Marle appear in supporting roles.
Finders Keepers is a 1984 American comedy film directed by Richard Lester and starring Michael O'Keefe, Beverly D'Angelo, Brian Dennehy, and Louis Gossett Jr., with an early performance by Jim Carrey. The film was adapted from Charles Dennis' 1974 novel The Next-to-Last Train Ride. The film opened on May 18, 1984, earning $865,207 during its first weekend in 753 theaters.
The Crooked E: The Unshredded Truth About Enron is an American television movie aired by CBS in January 2003, which was based on the book Anatomy of Greed by Brian Cruver. The film, which stars Brian Dennehy, Christian Kane and Mike Farrell, and was directed by Penelope Spheeris, was a ratings hit for the network.
Walking Tall: Final Chapter is the third installment of the Walking Tall film series. The film was directed by Jack Starrett. It opened in the U.S. on June 17, 1977; its on-screen title is Final Chapter: Walking Tall. All Walking Tall films were shot in Chester and Madison Counties, Tennessee; Buford Pusser was sheriff of McNairy County.
To Catch a Killer is a two-part television film from 1992, directed by Eric Till and starring Brian Dennehy and Michael Riley. It is based on the true story of the pursuit of American serial killer John Wayne Gacy.
How to Be Very, Very Popular is a 1955 American comedy film written, produced and directed by Nunnally Johnson. The film starred Betty Grable in her final film role and Sheree North in her first leading role.
Christopher Trumbo was an American television writer, screenwriter and playwright. Trumbo was considered an expert on the McCarthy-era Hollywood blacklist. His father, screenwriter Dalton Trumbo, was blacklisted by Hollywood for nearly a decade for refusing to testify to Congress, as one of a group known as The Hollywood Ten.
Walking Tall is an American television drama series that ran on NBC in 1981 for one season of seven episodes. The first 5 episodes aired Saturday nights at 9:00 p.m.. The last 2 episodes aired Tuesday nights at 10:00 p.m.. NBC reran all 7 episodes from April–June 1981. This one-hour show was a continuation of the 1973 film Walking Tall, which was based on the life of McNairy County Sheriff Buford Pusser. In this series, Pusser is the sheriff of the fictionalized McNeal County, Tennessee, fighting criminals each week in 1969.
Hoodlum Empire is a 1952 American film noir crime film directed by Joseph Kane starring Brian Donlevy, Claire Trevor, Forrest Tucker, Vera Ralston, Luther Adler and John Russell. It was inspired by the Kefauver Committee hearings dealing with organized crime.
Walking Tall may refer to:
The Old Man & the Gun is a 2018 American biographical crime film written and directed by David Lowery, about Forrest Tucker, a career criminal and prison escape artist. The script is loosely based on David Grann's 2003 article in The New Yorker titled "The Old Man and the Gun", which was later collected in Grann's 2010 book The Devil and Sherlock Holmes. The film stars Robert Redford, Casey Affleck, Danny Glover, Tika Sumpter, Tom Waits and Sissy Spacek. Redford, then 82 years old, announced his intent to retire from acting after completion of the film.
Abandoned and Deceived is a 1995 American drama film written and directed by Joseph Dougherty. The film stars Lori Loughlin, Brian Kerwin, Farrah Forke, Eric Lloyd, Bibi Besch and Rosemary Forsyth. The film premiered on ABC on March 20, 1995.
