Category: Western
-
John Wayne: Hidden Secrets of The Searchers That Struck Fear in John Ford’s Heart
John Wayne and John Ford collaborated on some of the Hollywood Golden Age’s best-loved Westerns from She Wore a Yellow Ribbon to Rio Grande. But perhaps their most famous was 1956’s The Searchers, in which Duke played a Civil War veteran spending years searching for his abducted niece played by Natalie Wood. Still a student…
-
The Wild West of Filmmaking: Unmasking the Turbulent Making of How the West Was Won
Back in 1962, MGM released its biggest Western yet, helmed by three directors in Henry Hathaway, John Ford and George Marshall. How the West Was Won had an ensemble cast of no less than 24 stars in a lengthy blockbuster of five parts, set over 50 years, and captured on three-lens Cinerama for projection on…
-
El Dorado Enigma: Decoding Robert Mitchum’s Major Blunder, Shielded by John Wayne
John Wayne made three Westerns with director Howard Hawks about a sheriff defending his office from outlaws. In between 1959’s Rio Bravo and 1970’s Rio Lobo, they shot 1966’s El Dorado, which co-starred Robert Mitchum as the drunken lawman opposite Duke’s gunslinger. Interestingly, Wayne had replaced Mitchum just a decade earlier in 1955’s Blood Alley…
-
John Wayne’S Rise To Stardom And Seamless Transition To Producer In The 1950S
In 1950 John Wayne was the number one box office draw according to the annual “Top Ten Money Making Stars Poll”—a feat he would again achieve in 1951. It was a good decade to be John Wayne: from 1950 to 1959 there were only two years where Duke didn’t land in the top three of…
-
Defying Expectations: The Uncommon Brilliance of ‘For a Few Dollars More’ Over its Classic Predecessor
If Sergio Leone’s first installment in the “Dollar Trilogy”, A Fistful of Dollars (1964), defined the future of the spaghetti western genre, his second installment, For a Few Dollars More (1965), guaranteed the genre’s future. It not only competed the vision that the first film started, but it also surpassed it at the box-office. In…
-
Hollywood’s Maverick: John Wayne’s Trailblazing Approach to ‘Fighting Dirty’ in Westerns
John Wayne continues to exist as one of the timeless faces of the Western film genre. However, he also revolutionized the art of the Hollywood fight sequence in more ways than one. Wayne brought a more realistic and “dirty” way to fight on the silver screen. More modern ideas of fight sequences can thank Wayne’s…
-
Behind the Scenes Shock: John Wayne’s Concerns Over ‘Red River’ Scene Pushed Director Howard Hawks to an Unconventional Move
Red River actor John Wayne was sensitive to violence that he thought was “too much” in motion pictures. As a result, he frequently called out the films that he thought were going for shock value. Additionally, Wayne spoke up against the inclusion of such scenes in his own feature films, which is exactly what he…
-
The Unseen Rebellion: John Wayne’s Defiance of Howard Hawks’ Direction to Avoid ‘Cringing’ in ‘Red River’
Red River actor John Wayne made his share of duds over the course of his career, but he also made numerous strides. As a result, he became one of the biggest movie stars to ever go through the Hollywood machine. Wayne was immensely proud of the work that he put into Red River, but he…
-
Montgomery Clift’s Fiery Disapproval: The Infamous Bear Hunt that Drove a Wedge Between John Wayne and Montgomery Clift on ‘Red River’
Movie star John Wayne himself saw a major turning point in his career when Red River came about. He played Thomas Dunson, who was significantly older than the actor’s real-life age. Nevertheless, Wayne delivered a powerful performance in Red River, claiming it to be the first time he considered himself a “real actor.” While filming,…
-
Behind the Scenes Horrors: Clint Eastwood’s Co-star Survived Poisoning and Strangulation in 1966 Western
Clint Eastwood is one of Hollywood’s most masterful and skilled directors, but that doesn’t mean he hasn’t acted in several iconic films as well. This included his legendary role as Blondie in The Good, The Bad and The Ugly. Unfortunately, one of his co-stars in the film suffered a lot during the filming process and…