Brighty of the Grand Canyon

Brighty of the Grand Canyon

First edition
Author	Marguerite Henry
Illustrator	Wesley Dennis
Language	English
Publisher	Rand McNally (1953) Aladdin (1991)
Publication date	November 1953 [1]
Publication place	United States
Pages	222
ISBN	978-0-689-71485-6 (second printing)
OCLC	305533

Brighty of the Grand Canyon
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Norman Foster
Screenplay by	Norman Foster
Based on	Brighty of the Grand Canyon by Marguerite Henry
Produced by	Stephen F. Booth for Stephen F. Booth Productions
Starring	Joseph Cotten Pat Conway Dick Foran Karl Swenson Dandy Curran
Cinematography	Ted Saizis Vincent Saizis
Edited by	Joseph Dervin
Music by	Phyllis Lavsky Richard Lavsky
Distributed by	Feature Film Corporation of America
Release date	July 1967 (1967-07)
Running time	89 minutes
Language	English

Brighty of the Grand Canyon is a 1953 children's novel by Marguerite Henry and a 1967 film of the same name based on the novel. They present a fictionalized account of a real-life burro named "Brighty", who lived in the Grand Canyon of the Colorado River from about 1892 to 1922. ^[2]

Book and film

Henry penned her novel after she read an article about Brighty in Sunset Magazine . It won the 1956 William Allen White Children's Book Award.

Thomas McKee, the former manager of Wiley's Camp on the North Rim of the Canyon, read Henry's novel and wrote to express his interest in the book. McKee told Henry that his son, Bob, was Brighty's closest companion. He sent Henry a photograph of young Bob McKee sitting on Brighty's back. Bob became the composite character Homer Hobbs,^{[ citation needed ]} played in the film by Dandy Curran. ^[3]

The other film characters include Old Timer, a prospector played by Dick Foran, and Uncle Jim Owen, a man of the Old West played by Joseph Cotten. Pat Conway appears as Jake Irons, ^[3] who murders Old Timer for his copper ore. Uncle Jim then proceeds to help bring Irons to justice.^{[ citation needed ]} Theodore Roosevelt was played by Karl Swenson. ^[3] Parts of the film were shot at the Colorado River in Utah and the Grand Canyon in Arizona. ^[4]

Statue

Brighty was honored with a bronze statue in the lobby of Grand Canyon Lodge, located near the terminus of Arizona State Route 67 approximately 43 miles (69 km) south of the junction with U.S. Route 89A. The sculpture was made by artist Peter Jepsen. ^[5] The statue was recovered (with damage) from a fire that destroyed the lodge in July 2025. ^{[6] [7]}

Statue of Brighty in the Grand Canyon Lodge in 2019

See also

• Platero

References

1. "Independent Burro; BRIGHTY OF THE GRAND CANYON. By Marguerite Henry. Illustrated by Wesley Dennis. 222 pp. Chicago: Rand McNally & Co. $2.95". New York Times. November 15, 1953. p. BRA34.
2. Henry, Marguerite (1953). Brighty: Of the Grand Canyon. Simon and Schuster. ISBN   0689714858.
3. "Brighty of the Grand Canyon". Turner Classic Movies . Retrieved January 19, 2010.
4. D'Arc, James V. (2010). When Hollywood came to town: a history of moviemaking in Utah (1st ed.). Layton, Utah: Gibbs Smith. ISBN   9781423605874.
5. Lago, Don (2014). Canyon of dreams : stories from Grand Canyon history. University of Utah Press. pp. 174f. ISBN   9781607813156.
6. "Grand Canyon National Park Update on Dragon Bravo Fire". NPS.gov (Press release). National Park Service. July 13, 2025. Retrieved July 14, 2025. Fire managers have confirmed the loss of the Grand Canyon Lodge and numerous historic cabins in the developed area.
7. https://www.threads.com/@grand_canyon_conservancy/post/DNWs7jrh2hn?xmt=AQF0bQzfNfJkz8UxyR_1LE93eTuuxLByY0XjTmceXg1sJg

External links

• The Life and Times of Brighty, the Grand Canyon's Most Legendary Burro, illustated article at Atlas Obscura. Accessed 7/21/2025