Man and Boy (1971 film)

Man and Boy
Directed by	E.W. Swackhamer
Written by	Harry Essex Oscar Saul
Produced by	Marvin Miller
Starring	Bill Cosby Gloria Foster Leif Erickson George Spell Douglas Turner Ward John Anderson Yaphet Kotto Shelley Morrison Henry Silva
Cinematography	Arnold Rich
Edited by	John A. Martinelli
Music by	J. J. Johnson
Production companies	J. Cornelius Crean Films Inc. Jemmin Inc.
Distributed by	Columbia Pictures
Release date	June 23, 1971 (1971-06-23)
Running time	98 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Man and Boy is a 1971 American western film directed by E. W. Swackhamer ^[1] and starring Bill Cosby. ^{[2] [3] [4] [5] [6]}

Plot

In the wake of the American Civil War, an ex-soldier and his family move west to settle in lawless Arizona. ^[7]

Cast

• Bill Cosby as Caleb Revers
• Gloria Foster as Ivy
• Leif Erickson as Mossman
• George Spell as Billy
• Douglas Turner Ward as "Christmas" ^[8]
• John Anderson as "Stretch"
• Henry Silva as Caine
• Dub Taylor as Atkins
• Yaphet Kotto ^[9] as Nate
• Shelley Morrison as Rosita
• Richard Bull as Thornhill
• Robert Lawson as Lawson
• Jason Clark as "Red"
• Fred Graham as Himself
• Jack Owens as Himself

Production

In 1970, Cosby made plans to have Man and Boy produced in six weeks. ^[10] Marvin Miller, producer, said "We integrated our towns because that is the way it was." ^[10] Filming began on January 11, 1971, in Scottsdale, Arizona ^[11] After three weeks of production and $3500,000 spent and money running out, Miller contacted John Crean, a mobile home builder in Long Beach, California, to see about more financing. Crean liked that the film was going to be G-rated. ^[11] Filming ended one week earlier than planned with a total cost of $800,000. ^[11] At this time all of the major studios were looking to distribute the film. ^[12] Del Shields, assistant producer, said there were six blacks on the production crew. More than normal on a movie set. ^[13] Through Cosby's production company, Jemmin, Inc., Cosby noted that those who don't have money, will. ^[14]

Music

Man and Boy's music was composed by J. J. Johnson. ^{[15] [16]} Quincy Jones arranged the soundtrack for the film. ^{[17] [18]}

Release

Columbia Pictures released the film in June 1971. ^[19]

Critical response

Roger Ebert wrote that Cosby reminded him of Will Rogers on film. The film does not have structure. ^[20]

See also

• List of American films of 1971

References

1. Fisher 2016, p. 283. sfn error: no target: CITEREFFisher2016 (help)
2. Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine : "Man and Boy – Title Song". YouTube .
3. Thomas, Bob (February 13, 1972). "Films In 72 To Reflect One Goal: Entertainment". Toledo Blade . Block Communications. p. 46. OCLC   12962717 . Retrieved August 28, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
4. Green 2017, pp. 1013–1014.
5. Strachan & Mask 2016, p. 239. sfn error: no target: CITEREFStrachanMask2016 (help)
6. Monaco & Pallot 1991, p. 131.
7. BFI.org
8. Robinson 1971, p. 52.
9. Monaco & Pallot 1991, p. 306.
10. Robinson 1971, p. 43.
11. Robinson 1971, p. 44.
12. Robinson 1971, p. 46.
13. Robinson 1971, p. 48.
14. Robinson 1971, p. 50.
15. Berrett & Bourgois 2001, p. 242.
16. Henry 2013, p. 154.
17. Monaco & Pallot 1991, p. 285.
18. Henry 2013, p. 123.
19. Mask 2023, p. 45.
20. Ebert, Roger (December 23, 1971). "Man and Boy". RogerEbert.com . Ebert Digital LLC. Retrieved August 28, 2025.

Sources

• Green, Michael (2017). Race in American Film: Voices and Visions That Shaped a Nation (eBook). Vol. 3. London: Bloomsbury Publishing. pp. 1013–1014. ISBN   979-8216135067.
• Ian Gregory Strachan; Mia Mask, eds. (2016). Poitier Revisited: Reconsidering a Black Icon in the Obama Age (Paperback). London: Bloomsbury Academic. ISBN   978-1501319822.
• Berrett, Joshua; Bourgois, Louis G. (2001). The Musical World of J.J. Johnson (eBook). Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press. ISBN   978-1461673286.
• Monaco, James; Pallot, James (1991). The encyclopedia of film (Hardcover). New York City: Perigee Books. ISBN   978-0399516047.
• Henry, Clarence Bernard (2013). Quincy Jones: His Life in Music (eBook). Jackson, Mississippi: University Press of Mississippi. p. 154. ISBN   978-1617038624.
• Robinson, Louie (April 1971). "New Cosby film depicts black family's struggle in West after Civil War". Ebony . Vol. XXVI, no. 6. Ebony Media Operations, LLC. pp. 42–44, 46–48, 50, 52, 54. ISSN   0012-9011.
• Mask, Mia (2023). Black Rodeo: A History of the African American Western (eBook). Champaign, Illinois: University of Illinois Press. p. 45. ISBN   978-0252054020.
• Austin Fisher, ed. (2016). Spaghetti Westerns at the Crossroads: Studies in Relocation, Transition and Appropriation (eBook). Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. ISBN   978-0748695461.

External links

• Man and Boy at IMDb