There is no doubt that John Wayne, Jimmy Stewart, and Henry Fonda are three of Hollywood’s greatest stars. They individually made many classics but rarely worked together. But did you know that there is a Western that the trio appeared in together? Although they didn’t meet onscreen, the threesome appeared together for the first and last time in the star-studded triple Oscar-winning 1962 classic, How the West Was Won.
This film had the unique distinction of being directed by three of Hollywood’s best directors, who also shared the honor of making the first-ever full-length feature film using the Cinerama process. How the West Was Won comprised five interrelated segments, with Henry Hathaway directing three of them, while John Ford and George Marshall directed one segment each.
What Is ‘How the West Was Won’ About?
How the West Was Won is an American fictionalized historical account of the period between the great westward migration and the establishment of law and order in the Wild West. The film follows three generations of the Prescott family across decades, spanning significant American history events, like the Gold Rush, the Civil War, and the construction of the railroads. This epic journey is told through the lens of the Prescott family, beginning with Zebulon (Karl Malden) and his wife, Rebecca (Agnes Moorehead), who tragically perish in their search for a better life.
To show how dangerous the journey west was in the 1830s, the first chapter, “The Rivers,” directed by Henry Hathaway, depicts the perils of navigating rivers. The chapter captures Zebulon and his family’s hardships and adventures as they make their way westward. It is in this chapter that Jimmy Stewart is introduced, playing opposite Carroll Baker as the frontiers of Wild West love blossom. The second chapter, also directed by Hathaway and titled “The Plains,” covers the next generation of the Prescotts and focuses on one of the daughters, who initially decides to go back east but later finds herself in St. Louis. Debbie Reynolds as Lilith Prescott teams up with another Western genre pioneer, Gregory Peck as Lilith’s broke and opportunistic love interest, and follows their drive to make it in life despite the odds. “The Plains” is set in the early 1850s.
The third chapter, “The Civil War,” directed by John Ford, is set against the backdrop of the American Civil War and provides a bridge between the stories of The Prescotts’ daughters and their children. This chapter follows Zeb Rawlins (George Peppard), the son of Jimmy Stewart and Carroll Baker’s characters, as he enlists and fights for the Union in the war. It also introduces John Wayne to the film. George Marshall’s “The Railroad” segment, set in the late 1860s, captures the competition between railroad lines as they carve up new territories. Henry Fonda joins the fray in this chapter, reprising his role as an American on-screen father figure, serving as Zeb’s guide in the absence of his father. The final chapter, “The Outlaws,” directed by Hathaway, is set in the late 1880s and serves as the culmination of the Prescott family’s journey as they settle in the West. We see the surviving members reflecting on their past and witnessing the emergence of a tamed West that thrives under the rule of law.
‘How the West Was Won’ Is John Wayne, Jimmy Stewart, & Henry Fonda’s Only Movie Together
Bing Crosby, the legendary multimedia star, approached MGM in 1960 with a proposition to develop a television showstopper based on photographs of the Wild West appearing in Life magazine. Alongside the project, he recorded an album of the same title, How the West Was Won, intending to donate some of the proceeds to St. John’s Hospital. MGM bought the rights to the film. The initial plan was to film six segments featuring twelve-star actors of the time, including Bing Crosby himself, Gary Cooper, and others. Cooper, who died of cancer before filming began, was replaced by Jimmy Stewart.
In the end, How the West Was Won eventually featured an A-list cast of heavyweights John Wayne, Jimmy Stewart, and Henry Fonda, alongside Singin’ in the Rain star Debbie Reynolds, Gregory Peck, and Harry Morgan, among other seasoned actors. Although John Wayne, Jimmy Stewart, and Henry Fonda do not appear in any scene together, their presence in the film is palpable.
Who Does Jimmy Stewart Play in ‘How the West Was Won’?
Jimmy Stewart is the first of the trio to appear. Unlike in his previous Westerns where his characters seemed to be in control of their destiny, like Grant McClaine in Night Passage, for which he broke his working relationship with Anthony Mann, in How the West Was Won, Stewart’s character appears somewhat lost. He portrays Linus Rawlings, a restless lone traveler in the Wild West known as “the mountain man,” in Henry Hathaway’s opening chapter “The Rivers.”
Who Does John Wayne Play in ‘How the West Was Won’?
As Stewart exits the screen, John Wayne enters. Wayne portrays General William Sherman, a real-life figure in the Civil War renowned for his strategic prowess. In How the West Was Won, Wayne’s character appears solely in the pivotal Battle of Shiloh, where he plays a key role in securing an improbable victory for the Union soldiers. In this battle sequence, director John Ford, with whom Wayne collaborated on a record of fourteen films, subtly questions the rationale behind the war.
Who Does Henry Fonda Play in ‘How the West Was Won’?
Henry Fonda joins the fray much later, portraying Jethro Stuart alongside John Stewart’s onscreen son, Zeb, who has now joined the US Cavalry. Zeb acts as a peace ambassador between the railroad construction company and Indigenous Americans. Fonda, reprising his iconic everyman persona, embodies Jethro Stuart as a humane and justice-seeking individual.
Through his interactions with Zeb, Jethro guides the young cavalryman toward doing the right thing and upholding the promises made in the peace agreement with the Indigenous people. Witnessing his superior renege on these promises, Zeb experiences an internal conflict that makes him resign from his position, which fuels his character arc.
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