Those Calloways

Last updated
Those Calloways
Those Calloways poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Norman Tokar
Screenplay by Louis Pelletier
Based onSwiftwater
by Paul Annixter
Starring Brian Keith
Vera Miles
Brandon deWilde
Walter Brennan
Ed Wynn
Linda Evans
Cinematography Edward Colman
Edited byGrant K. Smith
Music by Max Steiner
Production
company
Distributed by Buena Vista Distribution
Release date
November 10, 1964 [1]
Running time
131 mins.
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$3,500,000 (US/ Canada rentals) [2]

Those Calloways is a 1964 American family drama film, adapted from the 1950 children's novel Swiftwater by Paul Annixter. The film was produced by Walt Disney and directed by Norman Tokar. It was the last credit for veteran film composer Max Steiner. [3]

Contents

It stars Brian Keith, Vera Miles, Brandon deWilde, Walter Brennan, Ed Wynn and Linda Evans.

Following the patterned formula for Disney family entertainment, the film follows the trials and tribulations of a Vermont family over a period of time as they attempt to establish a sanctuary for the Canada geese that stopover in their rural community during their seasonal migrations.

On-location New England filming contributes to the film's appeal.

Brandon deWilde had previously worked with Walter Brennan in 1956's Good-bye, My Lady and with Brian Keith in the 3-part The Tenderfoot for Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color in 1964.

Plot

Cam Calloway, a fur trapper of Irish extraction raised by the Micmac Indians, lives on timber land near the backwoods town of Swiftwater, Vermont in the 1920s with his wife Liddy, his 16-year-old son Bucky, his hound Sounder, a black bear cub called Keg, and a pet crow, Scissorbill. Regarded as an eccentric by residents of the town for his lifestyle as a woodsman, Cam's lifelong dream is to establish a sanctuary for the great flocks of wild geese that fly over Swiftwater during their migrations. Cam has inculcated his dedication to the geese in his son, but Liddy is less enthusiastic. Out of love she tolerates his ways and repeatedly forgives his lapses of whiskey drinking. At this time, Bucky starts to fall in love with his childhood sweetheart, 18-year old Bridie Mellott, a local store clerk.

Cam has his sights on making $1100 to buy 30 acres of marshland surrounding Swiftwater Lake, where he will plant a patch of corn to lure the geese into his proposed sanctuary. The final mortgage payment on Cam's own property is also coming due, so with winter approaching he and Bucky seek a virgin area to set out two traplines, hoping for a lucrative season in fox and ermine that will finance Liddy's dreams for a nice home as well as his own. They scout the rough Jackpine Valley, an area never trapped before because it is unknown to the local whites and feared as a place of bad spirits by the Micmacs. Disregarding his own superstitions, Cam forges ahead but falls and breaks his leg.

Bucky and Sounder return to the Jackpine to set out their lines and spend the season working them. When most of the traps are ravaged by a wolverine, Bucky saves the fur season and an injured Sounder by killing the wolverine when it attacks him. Unfortunately the bottom of the fur market has inexplicably fallen out and they realize only a quarter of the profits they have planned for. In his despair, Cam spends nearly all of it as a down payment on buying Swiftwater Lake. As a result, he is unable to pay off the loan on their home and he and his family are evicted. Forced to move to the lake, the Calloways are surprised when many of their neighbors help them build a new home.

Meanwhile, Dell Fraser, a traveling salesman, schemes to convert Swiftwater into a resort for goose hunters. Posing as a conservationist photographer, Dell feigns interest in the project and gives Cam money to plant the corn patch. When the corn comes in, Bucky learns of the deception and Cam confronts the profiteers. Cam drunkenly tries to burn his corn patch to thwart the plan but Liddy saves it. After Cam is seriously wounded by a hunter's shotgun blast, the entire town rallies around him. They organize a petition asking the federal government to buy the marshland for a preserve and keep it out of the hands of the hunters. As Cam recovers from his wound, Fraser and his cohorts leave town, and the dream of those Calloways becomes a reality.

Cast

Home media

Those Calloways was released in Region 1 DVD widescreen by Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment on February 3, 2004.

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Who Framed Roger Rabbit</i> 1988 film by Robert Zemeckis

Who Framed Roger Rabbit is a 1988 American fantasy comedy film directed by Robert Zemeckis from a screenplay written by Jeffrey Price and Peter S. Seaman. It is loosely based on the 1981 novel Who Censored Roger Rabbit? by Gary K. Wolf. The film stars Bob Hoskins, Christopher Lloyd, Stubby Kaye, Joanna Cassidy, and the voices of Charles Fleischer and an uncredited Kathleen Turner. Combining live-action and animation, the film is set in an alternate history Hollywood in 1947, where humans and cartoon characters co-exist. Its plot follows Eddie Valiant, a private investigator with a grudge against toons, who must help exonerate Roger Rabbit, a toon framed for murder.

Disney comics are comic books and comic strips featuring characters created by the Walt Disney Company, including Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and Uncle Scrooge.

<i>The Hunchback of Notre Dame</i> (1996 film) American animated musical drama film

The Hunchback of Notre Dame is a 1996 American animated musical drama film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It is loosely based on the 1831 novel of the same name by Victor Hugo. The film was directed by Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise and produced by Don Hahn, from a screenplay written by Tab Murphy, Irene Mecchi, Jonathan Roberts, and the writing team of Bob Tzudiker and Noni White. Featuring the voices of Tom Hulce, Demi Moore, Tony Jay, and Kevin Kline, the film follows Quasimodo, the deformed and confined bell-ringer of Notre Dame, and his yearning to explore the outside world and be accepted by society, against the wishes of his cruel, puritanical foster father Claude Frollo, who also wants to exterminate Paris' Roma population.

<i>The Nightmare Before Christmas</i> 1993 film by Henry Selick

The Nightmare Before Christmas is a 1993 American stop-motion animated musical fantasy film directed by Henry Selick in his feature directorial debut and produced and conceived by Tim Burton. It tells the story of Jack Skellington, the King of "Halloween Town", who stumbles upon "Christmas Town" and schemes to take over the holiday. Danny Elfman wrote the songs and score and provided the singing voice of Jack. The principal voice cast includes Chris Sarandon, Catherine O'Hara, William Hickey, Ken Page, Paul Reubens, Glenn Shadix, and Ed Ivory.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Walter Brennan</span> American actor (1894–1974)

Walter Andrew Brennan was an American actor and singer. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performances in Come and Get It (1936), Kentucky (1938) and The Westerner (1940), making him one of only three male actors to win three Academy Awards, and the only male or female actor to win three awards in the supporting actor category. Brennan was also nominated for his performance in Sergeant York (1941). Other noteworthy performances were in To Have and Have Not (1944), My Darling Clementine (1946), Red River (1948) and Rio Bravo (1959).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alan Menken</span> American composer (born 1949)

Alan Irwin Menken is an American composer, pianist, music director, and record producer, best known for his scores and songs for films produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios. Menken's music for The Little Mermaid (1989), Beauty and the Beast (1991), Aladdin (1992), and Pocahontas (1995) has each won him two Academy Awards. He also composed the scores and songs for Little Shop of Horrors (1986), Newsies (1992), The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996), Hercules (1997), Home on the Range (2004), Enchanted (2007), Tangled (2010), and Disenchanted (2022), among others. His accolades include winning eight Academy Awards — becoming the second most prolific Oscar winner in the music categories after Alfred Newman, a Tony Award, eleven Grammy Awards, seven Golden Globe Awards, and a Daytime Emmy Award. Menken is one of nineteen people to have won an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar and a Tony.

<i>Home on the Range</i> (2004 film) 2004 American film

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. 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brandon deWilde</span> American theater, film, television actor (1942–1972)

Andre Brandon deWilde was an American theater, film, and television actor. Born into a theatrical family in Brooklyn, he debuted on Broadway at the age of seven and became a national phenomenon by the time he completed his 492 performances for The Member of the Wedding. He won a Donaldson Award for his performance, becoming the youngest actor to win one, and starred in the subsequent film adaptation for which he won a Golden Globe Award.

<i>Treasure Planet</i> 2002 American animated science fiction action-adventure film

Treasure Planet is a 2002 American animated science fiction action-adventure film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. It is a science fiction adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson's adventure novel Treasure Island (1883), and it is the third retelling of the story in an outer space setting, following the Bulgarian film Treasure Planet (1982) and the Italian miniseries Treasure Island in Outer Space (1987). It is the third Disney adaptation of the novel, following Treasure Island (1950) and Muppet Treasure Island (1996). In the film's setting, spaceships are powered by solar sails and resemble the 18th-century sailing vessels of the original Treasure Island.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dell Comics</span> American comic book publisher

Dell Comics was the comic book publishing arm of Dell Publishing, which got its start in pulp magazines. It published comics from 1929 to 1974. At its peak, it was the most prominent and successful American company in the medium. In 1953 Dell claimed to be the world's largest comics publisher, selling 26 million copies each month.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Philip Abbott</span> American actor

Philip Abbott was an American character actor. He appeared in several films and numerous television series, including a lead role as Arthur Ward in the crime series The F.B.I. Abbott was also the founder of Theatre West in Los Angeles.

<i>D2: The Mighty Ducks</i> 1994 film by Sam Weisman

D2: The Mighty Ducks is a 1994 American family sports comedy-drama film directed by Sam Weisman. It is the second installment in The Mighty Ducks trilogy, and a sequel to the 1992 film The Mighty Ducks produced by Walt Disney Pictures, The Kerner Entertainment Company and Avnet–Kerner Productions. Emilio Estevez, Joshua Jackson, Elden Henson, Shaun Weiss, Brandon Adams, Matt Doherty, Garette Ratliff Henson, Marguerite Moreau, Vincent Larusso, Brock Pierce, Robert Hall, and Bob Miller reprise their roles in the film with Michael Tucker, Jan Rubeš, and Kathryn Erbe joining the cast. It was followed by the final film of the series, D3: The Mighty Ducks, in 1996.

<i>Good-bye, My Lady</i> (film) 1956 film by William A. Wellman

Good-bye, My Lady is a 1956 American drama film adaptation of the novel Good-bye, My Lady (1954) by James H. Street. The book had been inspired by Street's original 1941 story which appeared in The Saturday Evening Post. Street was going to be the principal advisor on the film when he suddenly died of a heart attack. A boy learns what it means to be a man by befriending and training a stray Basenji dog and then is forced to surrender her to its rightful owner. Both readers of the story and film-goers found the boy's eventual loss of the dog unexpected.

<i>Tron: Legacy</i> 2010 science fiction action film by Walt Disney Pictures

Tron: Legacy is a 2010 American science fiction action film directed by Joseph Kosinski from a screenplay by Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis, based on a story by Horowitz, Kitsis, Brian Klugman, and Lee Sternthal. It serves as a sequel to Tron (1982), whose director Steven Lisberger returned to co-produce. The cast includes Jeff Bridges and Bruce Boxleitner reprising their roles as Kevin Flynn and Alan Bradley, respectively, as well as Garrett Hedlund, Olivia Wilde, James Frain, Beau Garrett, and Michael Sheen. The story follows Flynn's adult son Sam, who responds to a message from his long-lost father and is transported into a virtual reality called "the Grid", where Sam, his father, and the algorithm Quorra must stop the malevolent program Clu from invading the real world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">27th Young Artist Awards</span>

The 27th Young Artist Awards ceremony, presented by the Young Artist Association, honored excellence of young performers under the age of 21 in the fields of film and television for the year 2005, and took place on March 25, 2006 at the Sportsmen's Lodge in Studio City, Los Angeles, California.

The Tenderfoot (<i>The Wonderful World of Disney</i>) 4th, 5th and 6th episodes of the 11th season of The Wonderful World of Disney

"The Tenderfoot" is a three-part live action television miniseries comedy Western film produced in 1964 for Walt Disney's The Wonderful World of Color. It was broadcast over three weeks from October 18 to November 1, 1964. The show is based on James Henry Tevis' book Arizona in the '50s, and was directed by Robert L. Friend and Byron Paul.

<i>Wreck-It Ralph</i> 2012 animated film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios

Wreck-It Ralph is a 2012 American animated comedy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It was directed by Rich Moore and produced by Clark Spencer, from a screenplay written by Phil Johnston and Jennifer Lee, and a story by Moore, Johnston, and Jim Reardon. John Lasseter served as the film’s executive producer. Featuring the voices of John C. Reilly, Sarah Silverman, Jack McBrayer, and Jane Lynch, the film tells the story of the eponymous arcade game villain who rebels against his "bad guy" role and dreams of becoming a hero.

<i>Zootopia</i> 2016 film by Byron Howard & Rich Moore

Zootopia is a 2016 American animated buddy cop action comedy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It was directed by Byron Howard and Rich Moore, co-directed by Jared Bush, and produced by Clark Spencer, from a screenplay written by Bush and Phil Johnston, and a story by Howard, Moore, Bush, Johnston, Jim Reardon, Josie Trinidad, and Jennifer Lee. The film stars the voices of Ginnifer Goodwin, Jason Bateman, Idris Elba, Jenny Slate, Nate Torrence, Bonnie Hunt, Don Lake, Tommy Chong, J. K. Simmons, Octavia Spencer, Alan Tudyk, and Shakira. Taking place in the titular city where anthropomorphic mammals coexist, it tells a story of an unlikely partnership between a rabbit police officer and a red fox con artist as they uncover a criminal conspiracy involving the disappearance of predators.

Edward Colman was an American cinematographer. He had a prolific relationship with Walt Disney Studios; beginning his relationship with that studio in 1953 as cinematographer for the television series Dragnet. He was nominated for an Emmy Award in 1956 for his work on that program. He also directed many live action films for Disney; notably earning Academy Award nominations for his cinematography for the films The Absent-Minded Professor (1961) and Mary Poppins (1964).

The Witch Mountain franchise consists of American science fiction fantasy-action adventure films, produced by The Walt Disney Company. Based on the 1968 novel Escape to Witch Mountain by Alexander Key, the films deal with extraterrestrial children on Earth seeking to return to their home planet, while antagonists attempt to foil their escape. The franchise includes both theatrical and made-for-television releases.

References

  1. Whit (November 18, 1964). "Film review: Those Calloways". Variety . 236 (13): 7, 22.
  2. This figure consists of anticipated rentals accruing distributors in North America. See "Big Rental Pictures of 1965", Variety, 5 January 1966 p 6
  3. TCM: Those Calloways (1965)