In 1878, when his ranch hands abandon him to join a gold rush, aging rancher Wil Andersen must find replacement drovers for his 400-mile (640km)cattle drive. He rides into deserted Bozeman, Montana, where his friend Anse Peterson suggests hiring local schoolboys. Andersen visits the school, but departs, skeptical that such immature boys could handle the job.
The next morning, the boys show up at Andersen's ranch to volunteer for the drive. Andersen tests their ability to stay on a bucking horse, and as they take turns, Cimarron, a boy slightly older than the others, rides up. He subdues the test horse but gets into a fight with Slim, the next-oldest boy. With no other options, Andersen hires all of the boys, though he sends Cimarron away after he pulls a knife on Slim during another fight.
Andersen locks the boys' guns in a box that will be kept on the chuck wagon during the drive, and they practice roping, branding, and herding cattle and horses. While they prepare, a group of mysterious men led by Asa Watts shows up asking for work, but Andersen catches Watts in a lie and refuses to hire them. The arrival of Jebediah Nightlinger, a black cook, completes Andersen's crew.
On the trail, Andersen notices Cimarron following the herd. When Slim slips off his horse while crossing a river and Cimarron saves him, Andersen lets Cimarron join the drive.
Slowly, the boys become good cowhands, impressing Andersen and Nightlinger. One day Dan, a boy who wears glasses, is chasing a stray horse when he stumbles upon Watts and his gang of cattle rustlers. Watts, who reveals he has been trailing the herd, releases Dan but threatens to slit the boy's throat if he says anything to Andersen.
Because of Watts' threats, Dan returns to the group terrified and refuses to keep watch by himself. Another boy, Charlie Schwartz, agrees to accompany him. When Dan drops his glasses into the ravine where the cattle are resting, Charlie succeeds in retrieving them but is trampled by the herd. The boys hold a funeral for him before continuing on their journey.
Soon after, the chuck wagon throws a wheel. While the others continue on, Nightlinger and a boy named Homer hang back to handle the repairs. Seeing this, Watts and his gang come out of hiding and openly parallel the herd. Andersen sends another boy named Weedy to tell Nightlinger to rejoin the herd as soon as possible and tells the remaining boys to act like boys rather than the men they are becoming when the rustlers approach that evening. Dan tells Andersen he knew Watts had been following them but was scared to tell, and Andersen comforts him.
After dark, Watts and his gang surround Andersen and the boys in their camp. They deliver a battered Weedy, and Watts forces Andersen to surrender his gun and taunts Dan. Andersen intervenes when Watts crushes Dan's glasses, and a fistfight ensues between Andersen and Watts, with Andersen coming out on top. He starts to walk away, but Watts shoots him in both arms and a leg before shooting him twice in the torso. The boys remain passive as instructed, and the rustlers steal the herd.
In the morning, Nightlinger and Homer rejoin the group and find the boys tending to Andersen, who is near death. Andersen instructs Nightlinger to take the boys home and in his final moments tells the boys how proud he is of them.
Following Andersen's burial, the boys overpower Nightlinger and seize the firearms stored in the chuck wagon, planning to avenge Andersen's death. When they catch up to the rustlers, Nightlinger offers to help them make a plan. The boys silently kill three of the outlaws and then use Nightlinger to draw Watts and the rest of his gang into an ambush. Riding in among a stampede of horses, the boys kill all of the rustlers except Watts, whom they find pinned beneath his horse with a foot entangled in a rope. Dan cuts the reins so the horse can get up and Cimarron spooks it, sending Watts to be dragged to death.
Once the boys complete the drive to Belle Fourche, South Dakota, and sell the cattle, they have a stonemason carve a gravestone with Andersen's name and the inscription "Beloved Husband and Father", a reference to the paternal role Andersen came to hold in their lives. They place the marker in the approximate location of his grave and head for home, accompanied by Nightlinger.
The Cowboys has earned somewhat mixed reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, it has an approval rating of 80% based on reviews from 15 critics, with an average score of 7.00/10, while, on Metacritic, it has a score of 52/100 based on reviews from seven critics. The film received praise for its musical score, the original plot, and John Wayne's performance, but several critics debated the film's implication that boys become men or confirm their manhood through acts of violence and vengeance; Jay Cocks of TIME and Pauline Kael of The New Yorker were especially critical of this aspect of the film.[7]
Writing about The Cowboys, film historian Emanuel Levy noted that Wayne frequently appeared in father-like roles throughout his career:
Aware of his repetitive screen roles as a paternal figure, [Wayne] said the movie was based on a formula that worked in Goodbye Mr. Chips and Sands of Iwo Jima. In all three films, an adult takes a group of youngsters and initiates them into manhood by instructing them the "right" skills and values. Wayne did not hesitate to appear in The Cowboys, despite the fact that "no actor in his right mind, would try to match the antics of eleven kids on screen," but for him it became "the greatest experience of my life."[8]
In 1974, Warner Bros. developed The Cowboys as a television series for ABC starring Jim Davis, Diana Douglas, and Moses Gunn. David Dortort, best known for Bonanza, The High Chaparral, and The Restless Gun, produced the series. A Martinez, Robert Carradine, Sean Kelly, and Clay O'Brien were all in both the film and the television series, though only Martinez and Carradine played the same character in each project. At the last moment, ABC decided to reduce the show's runtime from one hour to thirty minutes, which, given the show's large cast, made it difficult to tell stories effectively. Only 13 episodes were filmed before the series was cancelled.
A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the vaquero traditions of northern Mexico and became a figure of special significance and legend. A subtype, called a wrangler, specifically tends the horses used to work cattle. In addition to ranch work, some cowboys work for or participate in rodeos. Cowgirls, first defined as such in the late 19th century, had a less-well documented historical role, but in the modern world work at identical tasks and have obtained considerable respect for their achievements. Cattle handlers in many other parts of the world, particularly South America and Australia, perform work similar to the cowboy.
Home on the Range is a 2004 American animated Western musical comedy film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It was the last Disney traditionally animated film released until The Princess and the Frog in 2009. The film was written and directed by Will Finn and John Sanford, and produced by Alice Dewey Goldstone, from a story by Finn, Sanford, Mark Kennedy, Michael LaBash, Sam Levine, and Robert Lence. It features original songs written by Alan Menken and Glenn Slater, and an original musical orchestral score also composed by Menken.
Cattle drives were a major economic activity in the 19th and early 20th century American West, particularly between 1850s and 1910s. In this period, 27 million cattle were driven from Texas to railheads in Kansas, for shipment to stockyards in St. Louis and points east, and direct to Chicago. The long distances covered, the need for periodic rests by riders and animals, and the establishment of railheads led to the development of "cow towns" across the frontier.
The Pleasant Valley War, sometimes called the Tonto Basin Feud, or Tonto Basin War, or Tewksbury-Graham Feud, was a range war fought in Pleasant Valley, Arizona in the years 1882–1892. The conflict involved two feuding families, the Grahams and the Tewksburys. The Grahams were ranchers, while the Tewksburys, who were part Native American, started their operations as cattle ranchers before branching out to sheep.
Born to the West is a 1937 American Western film, starring John Wayne, Marsha Hunt and John Mack Brown. Filmed in black and white and based upon a Zane Grey novel, the movie incorporates footage from an earlier and higher budgeted silent version, a common practice of the era. The picture features: fast chases, gun-fights, unusual poker gambling and peppy light dialogue for the love interest.
Charles Hugh Roberson was an American actor and stuntman.
The Cowboys is an American Western television series based on the 1972 motion picture of the same name. It aired on the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) television network from February 6 to May 8, 1974. The series starred Jim Davis, Diana Douglas, Moses Gunn, A Martinez, Robert Carradine and Clay O'Brien. David Dortort produced the series. The television show followed the exploits of seven boys who worked on a ranch in 1870s New Mexico.
Tom Horn is a 1980 American Western film directed by William Wiard and starring Steve McQueen as the legendary lawman, outlaw and gunfighter Tom Horn. It was based on Horn's own writings.
The Culpepper Cattle Co. or Dust, Sweat and Gunpowder is a 1972 American revisionist Western film produced by Twentieth Century Fox. It was directed by Dick Richards and starred Billy Green Bush as Frank Culpepper and Gary Grimes as Ben Mockridge. This was the first credited film for Jerry Bruckheimer, for which he received an associate producer credit. Its tagline is "How many men do you have to kill before you become the great American cowboy?" and also "The boy from Summer of '42 becomes a man on the cattle drive of 1866", which references a similar coming of age film starring Gary Grimes. The film is typical of the "hyper-realism" of many early 1970s revisionist westerns. It is particularly noted for its grainy photography and use of sepia toning in some scenes.
The Mysterious Rider is a 1938 American Western film directed by Lesley Selander and starring Douglass Dumbrille, Sidney Toler, and Russell Hayden. Written by Maurice Geraghty based on the 1921 novel The Mysterious Rider by Zane Gray, the film is about a notorious outlaw who returns to the ranch he once owned and takes a job disguised as a ranch hand. Unrecognized by the ranch's current owner, he waits patiently for an opportunity to expose the men who murdered his partner twenty years ago, framed him for the crime, and then stole his ranch. The film was later released for television in the United States as Mark of the Avenger.
Public Cowboy No. 1 is a 1937 American Western film directed by Joseph Kane and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, and Ann Rutherford. Based on a story by Bernard McConville, the film is about a singing cowboy who chases down rustlers who are using airplanes, shortwave radios, and refrigerated trucks to steal cattle.
Rustlers is a 1949 American Western directed by Lesley Selander. The film is a Tim Holt B Western about a group of Arizona ranchers intent on stopping a gang of cattle rustlers.
Comin' Round the Mountain is a 1936 Western film directed by Mack V. Wright and starring Gene Autry, Ann Rutherford, and Smiley Burnette. Based on a story by Oliver Drake, the film is about a Pony Express rider who is robbed and left to die in the desert, where he is saved by a wild horse he captures and later uses to round up other horses to be used in the race for a government contract.
Prairie Moon is a 1938 American Western film directed by Ralph Staub and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, and Shirley Deane. Written by Betty Burbridge and Stanley Roberts, the film is about a singing cowboy who takes care of three tough boys sent west from Chicago after their father dies and leaves them a cattle ranch.
Cowboy Serenade is a 1942 American Western film directed by William Morgan and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, and Fay McKenzie. Written by Olive Cooper, the film is about a singing cowboy and cattleman who goes after a gambling ring after they fleece the cattlemen association's representative of their cattle. The film features the songs "Nobody Knows", and "Sweethearts or Strangers", and the title song.
Saddle Tramp is a 1950 American Western film directed by Hugo Fregonese and starring Joel McCrea and Wanda Hendrix. Its uncredited theme song was "The Cry of the Wild Goose" by Frankie Laine.
Hopalong Rides Again is a 1937 American Western film directed by Lesley Selander and written by Norman Houston. The film stars William Boyd, George "Gabby" Hayes, Russell Hayden, Nora Lane, Harry Worth, Lois Wilde and Billy King. The film was released on September 3, 1937, by Paramount Pictures.
Sioux City Sue is a 1946 American Western film directed by Frank McDonald and written by Olive Cooper. Starring Gene Autry, Lynne Roberts, Sterling Holloway, Richard Lane, Ralph Sanford and Ken Lundy, it was released on November 21, 1946, by Republic Pictures.
John Lacy Cason, also credited as Bob Cason and John L. Cason, was an American actor active in both films and television. During his 20-year career he appeared in over 200 films and television shows. He is best known for his work on the television program The Adventures of Kit Carson, where he appeared in several roles from 1951 to 1953.
The Pecos War, also known as the War of the Pecos and the Chisum War, was a range war fought by cattle baron John Chisum against neighboring small ranchers, farmers, and Native Americans from 1876-1877 along the Pecos River in New Mexico. The conflict was caused primarily by competition: Chisum believed that his livestock and other resources were being depleted upon by people he alleged to be rustlers. At the same time, Chisum was also fighting Mescalero Apaches from the nearby reservations who were said to prey on his herds.
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