Gunpoint (film)

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Gunpoint
Directed by Earl Bellamy
Written byMary Willingham
Willard W. Willingham
Produced by Gordon Kay
Starring Audie Murphy
CinematographyWilliam Marguiles
Edited byRussell F. Schoengarth
Music by Hans J. Salter
Color process Technicolor
Production
company
Universal Pictures
Distributed by Universal Pictures
Release dates
  • January 18, 1966 (1966-01-18)(New York City-Premiere)
  • April 6, 1966 (1966-04-06)(Los Angeles-Premiere)
  • April 27, 1966 (1966-04-27)(United States)
Running time
86 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$500,000 [1]

Gunpoint is a 1966 American Western film directed by Earl Bellamy and starring Audie Murphy. [2] It was Murphy's final film for Universal Pictures.

Contents

Plot

In a small town in 1880s Colorado, a gang of outlaws led by Drago (Morgan Woodward) rob a train and kidnap a saloon singer, Uvalde (Joan Staley). Determined to chase them down, the sheriff, Chad Lucas (Audie Murphy), forms a posse which includes Uvalde's fiancé, Nate Harlan (Warren Stevens), a young kid, and Lucas's deputy (Denver Pyle) – who is secretly in league with the outlaws. During the chase Nate realises that Chad and Uvalde used to be lovers. The posse battles Indians, horse thieves and conflicts among themselves before discovering Uvalde; eventually the sheriff's pursuit is successful.

Cast

Production

The film was the last of seven Westerns Audie Murphy made with producer Gordon Kay, starting with Hell Bent for Leather (1960). [1] Parts of the film were shot at Kanab Canyon in Utah. [3] Scenes from earlier Universal films starring Murphy, including Kansas Raiders , The Cimarron Kid , Ride Clear of Diablo , Night Passage , Gunsmoke and Sierra, were re-used in this film.

When Hedda Hopper asked him what the story was about, he told her, "Same story only we're getting older horses". [4] Leading lady Joan Staley suffered a horse riding accident during production which limited her subsequent career. After making the movie, Murphy went to work in Europe for a number of years.

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 Don Graham, No Name on the Bullet: The Biography of Audie Murphy, Penguin, 1989 p 291
  2. Gunpoint at the Audie Murphy Memorial Site
  3. D'Arc, James V. (2010). When Hollywood came to town: a history of moviemaking in Utah (1st ed.). Layton, Utah: Gibbs Smith. ISBN   9781423605874.
  4. Hedda Hopper (April 3, 1965). "Audie Murphy to Invade Europe". Los Angeles Times. p. 17.