Stagecoach (1966 film)

Last updated

Stagecoach
Poster of the movie Stagecoach.jpg
Theatrical poster design by Norman Rockwell
Directed by Gordon Douglas
Screenplay byJoseph Landon
Based on
Produced by Martin Rackin
Starring
Cinematography William H. Clothier
Edited by Hugh S. Fowler
Music by Jerry Goldsmith
Production
company
Martin Rackin Productions
Distributed by 20th Century Fox
Release date
  • June 15, 1966 (1966-06-15)
Running time
115 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$3.5 million [1]
Box office$4 million (US/ Canada) [2]

Stagecoach is a 1966 American Western film, directed by Gordon Douglas between July and September 1965, as a color remake of the Academy Award-winning John Ford 1939 classic black-and-white western Stagecoach . [3] Unlike the original version which listed its ten leading players in order of importance, the major stars are billed in alphabetical order. [4]

Contents

Plot

In 1880, a group of strangers in Wyoming Territory boards the east-bound stagecoach from Dry Fork to Cheyenne. The travellers seem ordinary, but many have secrets that they are running from. Among them are Dallas, a prostitute who is being driven out of town; an alcoholic doctor, Doc Boone; pregnant Lucy Mallory who is meeting her cavalry officer husband; and whiskey salesman Samuel Peacock. As the stage sets out, U.S. Cavalry Lieutenant Blanchard announces that Crazy Horse and his Sioux are on the warpath; his small troop will provide an escort part of the way.

Cast

ActorRole [note 1]
Ann-Margret Dallas, The Dancehall Hostess
Red Buttons Mr. Peacock, The Whiskey Salesman
Mike Connors Hatfield, The Card Shark
Alex Cord The Ringo Kid
Bing Crosby Josiah Boone, The Alcoholic Doctor
Bob Cummings Henry Gatewood, The Embezzler
Van Heflin Curley Wilcox, The Marshall
Slim Pickens Buck, The Stage Driver
Stefanie Powers Mrs. Lucy Mallory, The Expectant Mother
Keenan Wynn Luke Plummer, The Killer
          with
Brad Weston               Matt Plummer
Joseph Hoover            Lieutenant Blanchard
John Gabriel                Captain Jim Mallory
Oliver McGowan          Mr. Haines
David Humphreys Miller             Billy Pickett
Bruce Mars                        Dancing Trooper
Brett Pearson                  Drunken Sergeant
Muriel Davidson       Mrs. Ellouise Gatewood
Ned Wynn                   Ike Plummer
Norman Rockwell       Busted Flush the Poker Player
Edwin Mills                 Sergeant Major
Hal Lynch                   Jerry the Bartender
          and
The Westernaires [5]   US Army Cavalry
Uncredited (in order of appearance)
Walker Edmiston Cheyenne Wells Fargo agent
Priscilla Morrill Eloise
Harry Carter poker player
Ottola Nesmith landlady
Kam Tong Waldo
  1. ↑ As indicated on the poster — character names are not specified in on-screen cast credits

David Humphreys Miller and Norman Rockwell

Also in the cast, playing their sole credited film roles, were two artists, 15th-billed David Humphreys Miller, a 47-year-old western historian who specialized in the culture of the northern Plains Indians and created, among his works, 72 portraits of the survivors of the Battle of the Little Bighorn, and 20th-billed Norman Rockwell, 71 years old, who was engaged to be on the set in order to paint the portraits of the stars and assigned the small role of a town poker player nicknamed Busted Flush. [6] The film's closing-credits sequence features the full-screen inscription, THE CAST AS PAINTED BY NORMAN ROCKWELL, followed by images of each of the ten leading players in the same order as in the opening credits. The portraits were also used in the poster for the film. [7] [8]

Production

Development

Producer Martin Rackin said he became interested in making the movie after he finished a stint as head of production at Paramount. He said he felt the original was dated and modern audiences were not that familiar with it. He also believed Westerns were the "bread and butter of the industry". [9]

A friend of his was buying the rights to the film, but was short of money. Rackin stepped in and succeeded in selling the film to Darryl F. Zanuck at Fox. [9]

He hired Gordon Douglas to direct. The men had worked together ten times before and Rackin called him "the most underrated director in Hollywood – he even made Harlow look interesting – a workhorse who keeps helping out when a studio is in trouble and just hasn't had the right material." [9]

Alex Cord was recommended to Rackin by Edmond O'Brien and Richard Quine. [10]

Locations

Filming started July 6, 1965. [11] Location scenes included Boulder, Colorado. [12]

A statement in end credits reads: "The Producers express their appreciation to the owners of the Caribou Country Club Ranch at Nederland, Colorado, and to the Park Department of that state, for their cooperation in the making of this film." [4]

Comparison to 1939 film

In parallel with the 1939 version, Ann-Margret replaces Claire Trevor as the dancehall hostess/prostitute Dallas. [13] Red Buttons takes the role of Mr. Peacock, the alcohol peddler in a minister's garb, played in 1939 by 8th-billed Donald Meek. Michael Connors portrays the tough gambler, Hatfield, originated by John Carradine.

Alphabetically-fourth Alex Cord [14] is the Ringo Kid, the role that made second-billed John Wayne into a star beyond the quickly made low-budget B-western series which had primarily represented his screen appearances during the 1930s. [15] In fifth place is Bing Crosby, [16] making his final major acting appearance in a theatrical feature, playing the alcoholic Doc Boone, bringing his own interpretation to the character portrayal which won fifth-billed Thomas Mitchell the 1939 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. [17]

Sixth-placed Bob Cummings plays the embezzling banker Gatewood, a role assigned in 1939 to 9th-billed Berton Churchill. Seventh in line, Van Heflin, is the marshal, Curley, played in the original by 7th-billed George Bancroft. The eighth alphabetical position is taken by Slim Pickens as the coach driver, Buck, initially portrayed by third-billed Andy Devine, while ninth place falls to Stefanie Powers as the pregnant Army wife, Lucy Mallory, played in 1939 by the 6th-billed Louise Platt. [18]

At the end of the alphabetical cast, Keenan Wynn, in tenth place, is Luke Plummer, the patriarch of a family of killers, portrayed in 1939 by western star Tom Tyler, billed 11th in the end credits. Finally, 12th-billed supporting player Joseph Hoover portrays the Lieutenant, a character originated by Tim Holt, who was listed 10th in the 1939 credits. [19]

Soundtrack

Opening credits
sings "Stagecoach to Cheyenne"
Words and music by
Lee Pockriss and Paul Vance
Uncredited
Music by Jerry Goldsmith
Lyrics by Ruth Batchelor
Orchestrated by Harry Betts
Vocal arrangement by Bill Brown
Performed by the Bill Brown Singers
by Lee Pockriss and Paul Vance
Orchestrated by Shorty Rogers
Vocal arrangement by Bill Brown
Performed by the Bill Brown Singers

Reception

Box office

According to Fox records, the film needed to earn $6,300,000 in rentals to break even and made $6,950,000, meaning it made a profit. [20]

Critical

Variety summed it up as: "New version of “Stagecoach” is loaded with b.o. appeal. Ten stars repping a wide spectrum of audience interest, an absorbing script about diverse characters thrown together by fate, plus fine direction and performances are all wrapped up in a handsomely mounted Martin Rackin production...Crosby projects eloquently the jaded worldliness of a down-and-outer who still has not lost all self-respect. Much humor evolves from his running gag with Red Buttons, the preacher-dressed and -mannered liquor salesman played earlier by the late Donald Meek." [21]

The New York Times review included: "The action fans may not be short-changed, but only a few of the principals achieve more than surface effects. In a decided departure from the norm, Bing Crosby, as the unshaven, sodden surgeon, is casual, natural, glib and mildly funny. Mr. Heflin is authoritative and taciturn as the marshal intent on keeping his prisoner, the Ringo Kid, from being shot down by the savage Plummers, and Mr. Cord is properly hard, sinewy and determined as that vengeful lone cowhand. [...] But “Stagecoach,” after all, is a horse opera, and the horses, the eye-catching scenery, those dependable hands, and superb sound and fury make it an enjoyable trip most of the way." [22]

Quentin Tarantino is an admirer of the film, saying it "can stand proudly alongside the John Ford version" and adding that he particularly enjoyed the performances of Bing Crosby, Alex Cord and Mike Connors, as well as the direction of Gordon Douglas. [23]

Filmink argued Cummings was better than Barton Churchill in the 1939 original. [24]

Film guide reviews

Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide (2014 edition) gave Stagecoach 2½ stars (out of 4), describing it as a "[C]olorful, star-studded Western" which "is OK, but can't hold a candle to the 1939 masterpiece". Maltin also calls it "[O]verlong" and notes that "Wayne Newton sings the title song!". [25] Steven H. Scheuer's Movies on TV (1972–73 edition) also granted 2½ stars (out of 4), characterizing it "[A]n all-star remake of the classic" and evaluating that "[T]he Ford version was better, but the action is still pretty good the second time around". A later edition (1986–87) shortened the capsule review to "[A]n all-star…" and "[A]ction is still pretty good…". A still later edition (1993–1994) retained "[A]n all-star", but revised the second sentence to "[D]oesn't live up to its predecessor, but OK on its own terms".

Assigning 2 stars (out of 5), The Motion Picture Guide (1987) posited that "[W]hy Hollywood insists on remaking classics will always be a puzzle. John Ford's 1939 version of the Haycox story was a genuine western classic and this is a genuine western omelette. The presence of Crosby, in his last acting job in movies, saves the movie from being a total mess. In 1986, a TV version of the picture was done with several country music stars in the leads, as well as Liz Ashley and Anthony Newley. It was so awful, it made this movie look good by comparison". Later in its write-up, The Guide opines that "[W]hereas the original had engaging characters and not all that much violence, this one concentrates on bloodletting, the dialog is a failed attempt to be 'adult', and the performances are generally substandard. Norman Rockwell appears briefly. He'd done the excellent portraits of the actors used with the end credit and they rewarded him with a role in the picture, his first and only. Wayne Newton sings 'Stagecoach to Cheyenne' (Lee Pockriss and Paul Vance). It's the kind of song one dislikes upon first hearing and hates upon the second". [26]

VideoHound's Golden Movie Retriever (2011 edition) does not have a separate entry for the 1966 version but, at the end of its write-up for the 1939 classic is the sentence, "Remade miserably with [sic] in 1966 and again—why?—as a TV movie in 1986".

Among British references, TimeOut Film Guide critic Paul Taylor advised to "[L]ook again at the credits before you're tempted: this is the witless remake of Ford's classic, with neither colour nor Cord anything like adequate recompense for Bert Glennon's dusty monochrome or Wayne's early strut as the Ringo Kid" (from 2009 edition). [27] Leslie Halliwell in his Film Guide (5th edition, 1985) felt even less charitable, denigrating it as an [A]bsolutely awful remake of the above; costly but totally spiritless, miscast and uninteresting". Finally, David Shipman in his 1984 Good Film and Video Guide, does not grant it any stars (Shipman's top number is 4), questioning "[Y]ou wonder why they dared – or bothered. In Ford's film (see previous entry), everything works, but here, almost nothing does". He concludes with "Keenan Wynn plays a bad man waiting for the stage to arrive. His professionalism, and that of Heflin and Crosby, are some consolation".

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bing Crosby</span> American singer and actor (1903–1977)

Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. was an American actor, singer, television producer, television and radio personality, and businessman. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. Crosby was a leader in record sales, network radio ratings, and motion picture grosses from 1926 to 1977. He was one of the first global cultural icons. Crosby made over 70 feature films and recorded more than 1,600 songs.

<i>Stagecoach</i> (1939 film) American film by John Ford

Stagecoach is a 1939 American Western film directed by John Ford and starring Claire Trevor and John Wayne. The screenplay by Dudley Nichols is an adaptation of "The Stage to Lordsburg", a 1937 short story by Ernest Haycox. The film follows a group primarily composed of strangers riding on a stagecoach through dangerous Apache territory.

<i>How the West Was Won</i> (film) 1962 film

How the West Was Won is a 1962 American epic Western film directed by Henry Hathaway, John Ford and George Marshall, produced by Bernard Smith, written by James R. Webb, and narrated by Spencer Tracy. Originally filmed in true three-lens Cinerama with the according three-panel panorama projected onto an enormous curved screen, the film features an ensemble cast formed by many cinema icons and newcomers, including Carroll Baker, Lee J. Cobb, Henry Fonda, Carolyn Jones, Karl Malden, Gregory Peck, George Peppard, Robert Preston, Debbie Reynolds, James Stewart, Eli Wallach, John Wayne and Richard Widmark. The supporting cast features Brigid Bazlen, Walter Brennan, David Brian, Andy Devine, Raymond Massey, Agnes Moorehead, Henry (Harry) Morgan, Thelma Ritter, Mickey Shaughnessy and Russ Tamblyn.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andy Devine</span> American actor (1905–1977)

Andrew Vabre Devine was an American character actor known for his distinctive raspy, crackly voice and roles in Western films, including his role as Cookie, the sidekick of Roy Rogers in 10 feature films. He also appeared alongside John Wayne in films such as Stagecoach (1939), The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, and How the West Was Won. He is also remembered as Jingles on the TV series The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok from 1951 to 1958, as Danny McGuire in A Star Is Born (1937), and as the voice of Friar Tuck in the Disney Animation Studio film Robin Hood (1973).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Ford</span> American film director (1894–1973)

John Martin Feeney, known professionally as John Ford, was an American film director and producer. He is regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers during the Golden Age of Hollywood, and was one of the first American directors to be recognized as an auteur. In a career of more than 50 years, he directed over 130 films between 1917 and 1970, and received six Academy Awards including a record four wins for Best Director for The Informer (1935), The Grapes of Wrath (1940), How Green Was My Valley (1941), and The Quiet Man (1952).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas Mitchell (actor)</span> American actor and writer (1892-1962)

Thomas John Mitchell was an Irish-American actor and writer. Among his most famous roles in a long career are those of Gerald O'Hara in Gone with the Wind, Doc Boone in Stagecoach, Uncle Billy in It's a Wonderful Life, Pat Garrett in The Outlaw, and Mayor Jonas Henderson in High Noon. Mitchell was the first male actor to gain the Triple Crown of Acting by winning an Oscar, an Emmy, and a Tony Award.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rhonda Fleming</span> American actress and singer (1923–2020)

Rhonda Fleming was an American film and television actress and singer. She acted in more than 40 films, mostly in the 1940s and 1950s, and became renowned as one of the most glamorous actresses of her day, nicknamed the "Queen of Technicolor" because she photographed so well in that medium.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mary Crosby</span> American actress

Mary Frances Crosby is an American actress, the only daughter of actor/singer Bing Crosby and his second wife Kathryn Grant. She played Kristin Shepard in the television series Dallas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patrick Wayne</span> American actor

Patrick John Morrison, better known by his stage name Patrick Wayne, is an American actor. He is the second son of movie star John Wayne and his first wife, Josephine Alicia Saenz. He made over 40 films, including eleven with his father.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alex Cord</span> American actor (1933–2021)

Alexander Viespi Jr., known professionally as Alex Cord, was an American actor, best known for his portrayal of Michael Coldsmith Briggs III, better known as Archangel, in 55 episodes of the television series Airwolf (1984–1986). Early in his career, he was credited as Alex Viespi.

<i>Cheyenne Autumn</i> 1964 film by John Ford

Cheyenne Autumn is a 1964 American epic Western film starring Richard Widmark, Carroll Baker, James Stewart, and Edward G. Robinson. It tells the story of a factual event, the Northern Cheyenne Exodus of 1878–79, told with artistic license. The film was the last Western directed by John Ford, who proclaimed it an elegy for the Native Americans who had been abused by the U.S. government and misrepresented in numerous of his own films. With a budget of more than $4 million, the film was relatively unsuccessful at the box office and failed to earn a profit for Warner Bros.

<i>Sergeants 3</i> 1962 film

Sergeants 3 is a 1962 American comedy/Western film directed by John Sturges and starring Rat Pack icons Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., Peter Lawford and Joey Bishop. It was the last film to feature all five members of the Rat Pack, as Sinatra would no longer speak to or work with Lawford following the abrupt cancellation in March 1962 of a visit by Lawford's brother-in-law, President John F. Kennedy, to Sinatra's Palm Springs house.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Singing cowboy</span> Archetypal cowboy hero of early Western films

A singing cowboy was a subtype of the archetypal cowboy hero of early Western films. It references real-world campfire side ballads in the American frontier. The original cowboys sang of life on the trail with all the challenges, hardships, and dangers encountered while pushing cattle for miles up the trails and across the prairies. This continues with modern vaquero traditions and within the genre of Western music, and its related New Mexico, Red Dirt, Tejano, and Texas country music styles. A number of songs have been written and made famous by groups like the Sons of the Pioneers and Riders in the Sky and individual performers such as Marty Robbins, Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, Tex Ritter, Bob Baker and other "singing cowboys". Singing in the wrangler style, these entertainers have served to preserve the cowboy as a unique American hero.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brett Halsey</span> American actor

Brett Halsey is an American film actor, sometimes credited as Montgomery Ford. He appeared in B pictures and in European-made feature films. He originated the role of John Abbott on the soap opera The Young and the Restless.

<i>Going Hollywood</i> 1933 film

Going Hollywood is a 1933 American pre-Code musical film directed by Raoul Walsh and starring Marion Davies and Bing Crosby. It was written by Donald Ogden Stewart and based on a story by Frances Marion. Going Hollywood was released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer on December 22, 1933.

<i>Stagecoach</i> (1986 film) 1986 film directed by Ted Post

Stagecoach is a 1986 American Western television film directed by Ted Post and written by James Lee Barrett. It is a remake of the 1939 film of the same name, itself based on a short story by Ernest Haycox. It is the second remake of the film, after the 1966 feature film. Kris Kristofferson stars as the Ringo Kid. Willie Nelson portrays famous gunslinger and dentist Doc Holliday, Johnny Cash portrays Marshal Curly Wilcox and Waylon Jennings plays the gambler Hatfield. All four stars were associated as members of the country music supergroup The Highwaymen. The supporting cast features Elizabeth Ashley, Anthony Newley, Tony Franciosa, Mary Crosby, June Carter Cash and Jessi Colter. The film aired on CBS on May 18, 1986.

Rhythm on the Range is a 1936 American Western musical film directed by Norman Taurog and starring Bing Crosby, Frances Farmer, and Bob Burns. Based on a story by Mervin J. Houser, the film is about a cowboy who meets a beautiful young woman while returning from a rodeo in the east, and invites her to stay at his California ranch to experience his simple, honest way of life. Rhythm on the Range was Crosby's only Western film and introduced two western songs, "Empty Saddles" by Billy Hill and "I'm an Old Cowhand " by Johnny Mercer, the latter becoming a national hit song for Crosby. The film played a role in familiarizing its audience with the singing cowboy and Western music on a national level.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bing Crosby filmography</span>

This is a filmography for the American singer and actor Bing Crosby.

<i>Duffys Tavern</i> (film) 1945 film by Hal Walker

Duffy's Tavern is a 1945 American comedy film directed by Hal Walker and written by Melvin Frank and Norman Panama. The film stars Ed Gardner, Bing Crosby, Betty Hutton, Paulette Goddard, Alan Ladd, Dorothy Lamour, Eddie Bracken and Brian Donlevy. The film was released on September 28, 1945, by Paramount Pictures.

Apache Wells is the name of both fictional and real locations in southern Arizona.

References

  1. ↑ Aubrey Solomon, Twentieth Century Fox: A Corporate and Financial History, Scarecrow Press, 1989 p254
  2. ↑ Solomon p 230. See also "Big Rental Pictures of 1966", Variety, 4 January 1967 p 8. Please note figures are rentals not total gross.
  3. ↑ Stagecoach at RareFilm
  4. 1 2 Kleiner, Dick (August 5, 1965). "SHOW BEAT: Rains Swamp Stagecoach". The Florence Times . Retrieved February 13, 2015. Syndicated Hollywood columnist for Newspaper Enterprise Association describes his visit to Stagecoach's picturesque filming location in Nederland, Colorado
  5. ↑ "Westernaires appear in the movie "Stagecoach" (1966)" (Westernaires Alumni Association website)
  6. ↑ "Norman Rockwell Goes Hollywood" (Norman Rockwell Museum of Vermont website)
  7. ↑ Stagecoach poster at the Norman Rockwell Museum
  8. ↑ Curry, Adrian. "Movie Poster of the Week: The Movie Posters of Norman Rockwell" (MUBI, 09 July 2010)
  9. 1 2 3 Style Changes Upgrade '65 'Stagecoach' Scheuer, Philip K. Los Angeles Times 5 Sep 1965: b11.
  10. ↑ The Perils of Re-staging the 'Stagecoach' Rackin, Martin. Los Angeles Times 11 Apr 1965: M11
  11. ↑ Keenan Wynn 'Stagecoach Killer Martin, Betty. Los Angeles Times 21 June 1965: C16.
  12. ↑ Hollywood Backstage video highlights, time stamp 5:20 on YouTube
  13. ↑ Vagg, Stephen (September 6, 2021). "Surviving Cold Streaks: Ann-Margret". Filmink. Retrieved March 9, 2023.
  14. ↑ Austin, Guy in Hollywood. "Show Business / Rodeo rider turns film star… / Will this new Ringo succeed John Wayne?" (The Sun-Herald {Sydney}, June 19, 1966, page 93)
  15. ↑ Kehr, Dave (October 14, 2011). "The Man Who Dared to Fill John Wayne's Boots". The New York Times . Retrieved May 27, 2024.
  16. ↑ Wilson, Earl. "Bing Says Sinatra Is Hard To Coop Up" (The Herald Trubune {Sarasota}, August 21, 1965, page 19)
  17. ↑ Bastardo, Luigi. "Stagecoach (1966) DVD Review: The Version Everyone Forgot About / Twilight Time brings us a beautiful transfer for a rather underrated remake of the John Ford classic." (Cinema Sentries, November 22, 2011)
  18. ↑ "Stagecoack" at Bing Crosby Internet Museum (April 2004)
  19. ↑ Erickson, Glenn (October 5, 2011). "Stagecoach (1966)". DVD Savant. Retrieved March 1, 2017.
  20. ↑ Silverman, Stephen M (1988). The Fox that got away : the last days of the Zanuck dynasty at Twentieth Century-Fox . L. Stuart. p.  325. ISBN   9780818404856.
  21. ↑ Variety. May 25, 1966.
  22. ↑ Weiler, A. H. (June 16, 1966). "5 Other Movies Have Local Premieres". The New York Times.
  23. ↑ "QT Movie Club (with Quentin Tarantino!)" (Podcast). Pure Cinema Podcast. March 2, 2021. Event occurs at 2:36:00. Retrieved July 25, 2021.
  24. ↑ Vagg, Stephen (October 29, 2024). "Movie Star Cold Streaks: Robert Cummings". Filmink. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
  25. ↑ Maltin, Leonard (September 4, 2012). "Stagecoach". Leonard Maltin's 2013 Movie Guide: The Modern Era. ISBN   9781101604632 . Retrieved March 1, 2017. ISBN   1101604638
  26. ↑ The Motion Picture Guide (Chicago, 1987), volume VII, pp. 3094–95
  27. ↑ Taylor, Paul. Stagecoach (TimeOut)
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.