San Antonio (film)

Last updated

San Antonio
San Antonio (film).jpg
Theatrical poster
Directed by David Butler
Robert Florey (uncredited)
Raoul Walsh (uncredited)
Written by Alan Le May
W. R. Burnett
Produced by Robert Buckner
Starring Errol Flynn
Alexis Smith
Cinematography Bert Glennon
Edited by Irene Morra
Music by Ray Heindorf
Max Steiner
M. K. Jerome
Erich Wolfgang Korngold (uncredited)
Color process Technicolor
Distributed by Warner Bros.
Release date
  • December 29, 1945 (1945-12-29)
Running time
109 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$2,232,000 [1] [2]
Box office$3 million (US rentals in 1946) [3] or $5,899,000 [1]

San Antonio is a 1945 American Western film starring Errol Flynn and Alexis Smith. The film was written by W. R. Burnett and Alan Le May and directed in Technicolor by David Butler as well as uncredited Robert Florey and Raoul Walsh.

Contents

The film was nominated for 2 Academy Awards, for Best Original Song ("Some Sunday Morning") and Best Art Direction (Ted Smith, Jack McConaghy). [4]

Plot

Rustlers are running rampant in Texas, but at least one rancher, Charlie Bell, isn't pulling up stakes yet, particularly with the news that old friend Clay Hardin is en route from Mexico back home to San Antonio.

Clay claims to have proof, documented in a book, that Roy Stuart is responsible for the rustling. Clay arrives in town in the stagecoach chartered by Jeanne Starr, an actress from the East whose manager, Sacha, has arranged a job performing in Stuart's saloon, believing it is a legitimate venue.

Clay dismisses Charlie's suspicions that Jeanne is in cahoots with her boss and goes to meet her in her dressing room. Clay does leave the book in Charlie's care. While Clay is wooing Jeanne on the balcony, Sacha goes out for a walk. Stuart fires at Clay, breaking the window behind them. Charlie is drawn to the gunfire. Legare, who is watching, shoots Charlie, takes the book, and threatens Sacha.

There is no civil law in San Antonio: A cavalry troop has been posted to keep the town from boiling over. The Colonel holds a hearing investigating Charlie's death. Sacha is too afraid to testify. Clay is now suspicious of Jeanne. The troop has been ordered to pull out to deal with an "Indian whittle wang." Clay asks the Colonel to give him the job of town marshal so he can find out who killed Charlie. The Colonel gives him 24 hours, until a new marshal can be designated.

Poised to kill Sacha, Stuart learns that he only saw Legare. Legare tells Jeanne he will have Clay killed if she tells him anything. The cavalry rides out and the town fills with hired guns. Clay figures out that Stuart didn't kill Charlie, and at the Bella Union tells him so. Sacha returns to point the finger at Legare. Clay escorts Legare through the Bella Union at gunpoint. Stuart steps on stage and Jeanne warns Clay. A huge gunfight erupts. Stuart pursues Legare outside. Clay follows into the street, also filled with men shooting. Legare hides in the Alamo's ruins. Stuart kills him, takes the book, and escapes on horseback.

Jeanne leaves for New Orleans thinking that Clay has abandoned her. In fact, he is missing. Cut to Clay in hot pursuit of Stuart, determined to arrest him. Ultimately Stuart dies when he hits his head on a rock during the climactic fist-fight. Clay retrieves the book.

He catches up with Jeanne's coach and climbs aboard. He points to the sad look in the eyes of the cattle nearby. Jeanne—who previously talked about cow's "antlers"—mentions the breed, and admits she was born in Fort Worth. They kiss and the coach turns around.

Cast

Production

Development

W. R. Burnett, one of the writers, said Warner Bros had the idea of getting Max Brand to write an Errol Flynn Western. Burnett says "They gave him carte blanche, which they never did, because of his enormous reputation. He used to come in every day with a briefcase and go out every night with a briefcase. We found out later he brought in two quarts of gin every day and drank them up-took the empties out." [5]

Burnett says a few months later he got a call from Jim Geller, head of Warners story department, saying they had a shooting date, Flynn and a color commitment, but Brand had come up with "a very original idea for us. A Western in which there's no action." Geller told Burnett to come up with a story with producer Robert Buckner. [5]

(According to a later article on Brand, the author contributed to the scripts of the Flynn films Uncertain Glory, The Adventures of Don Juan and Montana before becoming a war correspondent and being killed in May 1944. [6] )

Burnett says he wrote the script in three weeks then rewrote it. He says he pitched Marlene Dietrich for Flynn's co star; Jack Warner was enthusiastic but did not want to pay Dietrich's fee especially when he had so many actors under contract. [5]

In March 1944, Warners announced they would make the film from a script by Burnett with Raoul Walsh to direct. It was the third in a series of Westerns he made named after a city, following Dodge City and Virginia City . [7]

In June it was announced that Raymond Massey, who had made Santa Fe Trail with Flynn, was going to play the second male lead. [8] He was initially replaced by Zachary Scott, and Alexis Smith was selected as the female lead. [9] By July David Butler had been assigned to direct and Paul Kelly, not Scott, was to play the villain. [10]

Writer W. R. Burnett said when Butler was given the job of directing, "...it scared the hell out of us because he had never made anything but musicals. But he got a good picture out of it." [5]

Shooting

Shooting started September 1944. The film was shot at Warners' Calabasas Ranch. [11]

Director David Butler said Warners "built probably the longest street that was ever built for a Western at Warners" for the film and "they built it the wrong way." [12]

Butler says he was warned about working with Flynn but "I never met a nicer man in my entire life. He did everything he was told." [12] Butler says Flynn was only drunk once, for a close up, and was always on time.

Actor Hap Hogan died during filming. [13]

"That was a fine, well done picture", said Butler. "We had a lot of fun and Flynn was great." [14]

Reception

Box office

The film was Flynn's most popular movie of the mid-1940s, earning $3,553,000 domestically and $2,346,000 foreign. [2] It was Warners' third most popular film of the year, after Saratoga Trunk and Night and Day . [1]

Critical

In 2019, an article in Filmink magazine said, "There is something anonymous about the film – none of the sequences reach the delirious excesses found in the Dodge City trilogy, for instance; it's less silly than anything in those movies but also less memorable." [15]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Errol Flynn</span> Australian actor (1909–1959)

Errol Leslie Thomson Flynn was an Australian-American actor who achieved worldwide fame during the Golden Age of Hollywood. He was known for his romantic swashbuckler roles, frequent partnerships with Olivia de Havilland, and reputation for his womanising and hedonistic personal life. His most notable roles include Robin Hood in The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), which was later named by the American Film Institute as the 18th-greatest hero in American film history, the lead role in Captain Blood (1935), Major Geoffrey Vickers in The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936), and the hero in a number of Westerns such as Dodge City (1939), Santa Fe Trail, Virginia City and San Antonio (1945).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alexis Smith</span> Canadian-born American actress (1921–1993)

Margaret Alexis Smith was a Canadian-born American actress, pin-up girl and singer. She appeared in several major Hollywood films in the 1940s and had a notable career on Broadway in the 1970s, winning a Tony Award in 1972 for the Stephen Sondheim-James Goldman musical Follies.

<i>Objective, Burma!</i> 1945 film by Raoul Walsh

Objective, Burma! is a 1945 American war film that is loosely based on the six-month raid by Merrill's Marauders in the Burma Campaign during the Second World War. Directed by Raoul Walsh and starring Errol Flynn, the film was made by Warner Bros. immediately after the raid. The plot of the film is almost a carbon copy of "Northwest Passage"; an MGM production which starred Spencer Tracy released in 1940.

<i>Santa Fe Trail</i> (film) 1940 film

Santa Fe Trail is a 1940 American western film directed by Michael Curtiz and starring Errol Flynn as J. E. B. "Jeb" Stuart, Olivia de Havilland, Raymond Massey as John Brown, Ronald Reagan as George Armstrong Custer and Alan Hale. Written by Robert Buckner, the film is critical of the abolitionist John Brown and his controversial campaign against slavery before the American Civil War. In a subplot, Jeb Stuart and George Armstrong Custer—who are depicted as friends from the same West Point graduating class—compete for the hand of Kit Carson Holliday.

<i>They Died with Their Boots On</i> 1941 film

They Died with Their Boots On is a 1941 American biographical western war film directed by Raoul Walsh and starring Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland and Arthur Kennedy. It was made and distributed by Warner Bros. and produced by Hal B. Wallis and Robert Fellows,

<i>Fours a Crowd</i> 1938 film by Michael Curtiz

Four's a Crowd is a 1938 American romantic comedy film directed by Michael Curtiz, starring Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland, Rosalind Russell and Patric Knowles. The picture was written by Casey Robinson and Sig Herzig from a story by Wallace Sullivan. This was the fourth of nine films in which Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland appeared.

<i>Thank Your Lucky Stars</i> (film) 1943 film by David Butler

Thank Your Lucky Stars is a 1943 American musical comedy film made by Warner Brothers as a World War II fundraiser, with a slim plot involving theater producers. The stars donated their salaries to the Hollywood Canteen, which was founded by John Garfield and Bette Davis, who appear in this film. It was directed by David Butler and stars Eddie Cantor, Dennis Morgan, Joan Leslie, Edward Everett Horton and S.Z. Sakall.

<i>Northern Pursuit</i> 1943 film by Raoul Walsh

Northern Pursuit is a 1943 American World War II adventure thriller film directed by Raoul Walsh and starring Errol Flynn as a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) who tries to uncover a Nazi plot against the Allied war effort. The film was set in Canada during the early years of the war.

<i>Gentleman Jim</i> (film) 1942 film by Raoul Walsh

Gentleman Jim is a 1942 film directed by Raoul Walsh and starring Errol Flynn as heavyweight boxing champion James J. Corbett (1866–1933). The supporting cast includes Alexis Smith, Jack Carson, Alan Hale, William Frawley, and Ward Bond as John L. Sullivan. The movie was based upon Corbett's 1894 autobiography, The Roar of the Crowd. The role was one of Flynn's favorites.

<i>Adventures of Don Juan</i> 1948 film by Vincent Sherman

Adventures of Don Juan is a 1948 American Technicolor swashbuckling adventure romance film directed by Vincent Sherman and starring Errol Flynn and Viveca Lindfors, with Robert Douglas, Alan Hale, Ann Rutherford, and Robert Warwick. Also in the cast are Barbara Bates, Raymond Burr, and Mary Stuart. The film was distributed by Warner Bros. and produced by Jerry Wald. The screenplay by George Oppenheimer and Harry Kurnitz, based on a story by Herbert Dalmas, has uncredited contributions by William Faulkner and Robert Florey.

Hollywood Daffy is a 1946 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies cartoon, starring Daffy Duck. The cartoon was written by Michael Maltese and was released on June 22, 1946.

<i>Rocky Mountain</i> (film) 1950 film

Rocky Mountain is a 1950 American Western film directed by William Keighley and starring Errol Flynn. It also stars Patrice Wymore, who married Flynn in 1950. The film is set in California near the end of the American Civil War.

<i>Never Say Goodbye</i> (1946 film) 1946 film by James V. Kern

Never Say Goodbye is a 1946 American romantic comedy film directed by James V. Kern and starring Errol Flynn, Eleanor Parker, and Lucile Watson. Produced and distributed by Warner Brothers, it is about a divorced couple and the daughter who works to bring them back together. It was Errol Flynn's first purely comedic role since Footsteps in the Dark.

<i>Dive Bomber</i> (film) 1941 film

Dive Bomber is a 1941 American aviation drama film directed by Michael Curtiz, and starring Errol Flynn, Fred MacMurray and Alexis Smith. It was produced and distributed by Warner Brothers. The film is notable for both its Technicolor photography of pre-World War II United States Navy aircraft and as a historical document of the U.S. in 1941. This includes the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise, one of the best-known U.S. warships of World War II.

<i>Silver River</i> (film) 1948 film by Raoul Walsh

Silver River is a 1948 American western film directed by Raoul Walsh and starring Errol Flynn, Ann Sheridan and Thomas Mitchell. The film is based on a Stephen Longstreet story that was turned into a novel. It was produced and distributed by Warner Bros.

<i>Escape Me Never</i> (1947 film) 1947 film by Peter Godfrey

Escape Me Never is a 1947 American melodrama film directed by Peter Godfrey, and starring Errol Flynn, Ida Lupino, Eleanor Parker, and Gig Young.

<i>Adventures of Captain Fabian</i> 1951 film by Robert Florey

Adventures of Captain Fabian or Adventure in New Orleans is a 1951 American adventure film directed by William Marshall and starring Errol Flynn, Micheline Presle, Vincent Price, Agnes Moorehead and Victor Francen.

<i>Mara Maru</i> 1952 film by Gordon Douglas

Mara Maru is a 1952 American noir action film starring Errol Flynn, Ruth Roman and Raymond Burr. Directed by Gordon Douglas, it was the last movie Flynn made for Warner Bros where he had started out in Hollywood in 1935.

<i>The Iron Mistress</i> 1952 film by Gordon Douglas

The Iron Mistress is a 1952 American Western film directed by Gordon Douglas and starring Alan Ladd and Virginia Mayo. It ends with Bowie's marriage to Ursula de Veramendi and does not deal with his death at the Battle of the Alamo in 1836.

<i>Montana</i> (1950 film) 1950 film by Ray Enright

Montana is a 1950 American Western film directed by Ray Enright and starring Errol Flynn. It was only the second time Flynn played an Australian on screen, the first time being Desperate Journey (1942).

References

  1. 1 2 3 Warner Bros financial information in The William Schaefer Ledger. See Appendix 1, Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, (1995) 15:sup1, 1-31 p 26 DOI: 10.1080/01439689508604551
  2. 1 2 Glancy, H. Mark. "Warner Bros film grosses, 1921–51." Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television. March 1995
  3. ↑ "60 Top Grossers of 1946", Variety 8 January 1947 p8
  4. ↑ "NY Times: San Antonio". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times . Baseline & All Movie Guide. 2009. Archived from the original on June 28, 2009. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Mate, Ken; McGilligan, Pat; White, Dennis L. "Burnett". Film Comment. Vol. 19, no. 1, Jan/Feb 1983. New York. pp. 58–68, 70, 80.
  6. ↑ Nolan, William F. (May 6, 1979). "west view: Max Brand: the great storyteller who became reluctant 'king of the pulps'". Los Angeles Times. p. s3.
  7. ↑ "SCREEN NEWS HERE AND IN HOLLYWOOD: Warner Bros. to Do Film of San Antonio -- 'The Fighting Seabees' Opens at Globe". THE NEW YORK TIMES. March 18, 1944. p. 18.
  8. ↑ "SCREEN NEWS HERE AND IN HOLLYWOOD". New York Times. June 30, 1944. p. 17.
  9. ↑ "SCREEN NEWS HERE AND IN HOLLYWOOD: Alexis Smith Named for Lead in 'San Antonio'". New York Times. July 1, 1944. p. 10.
  10. ↑ "SCREEN NEWS: RKO to Co-Star Phillip Terry and Audrey Long". New York Times. July 28, 1944. p. 16.
  11. ↑ Tony Thomas, Rudy Behlmer * Clifford McCarty, The Films of Errol Flynn, Citadel Press, 1969 p 143
  12. 1 2 Butler p 214
  13. ↑ "LOOKING AT HOLLYWOOD". Los Angeles Times. October 19, 1944. p. A7.
  14. ↑ Butler p 218
  15. ↑ Vagg, Stephen (November 17, 2019). "The Films of Errol Flynn: Part 3 The War Years". Filmink.

Sources

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.