You’ve got till 4/6 at 11:59PM PST to head ‘em off at the pass. Mount up!
Archive for the ‘Budd Boetticher’ Category
50s Westerns DVD News #119: Warner Archive Wild West Hero Sale.
Posted in Audie Murphy, Joel McCrea, William Elliott, Andre de Toth, Randolph Scott, Budd Boetticher, Lesley Selander, DVD reviews, releases, TV, etc., Gary Cooper, William Castle, George Montgomery, Tim Holt, Delmer Daves, Kirk Douglas, Rory Calhoun, Glenn Ford, Robert Mitchum, Fred MacMurray, Robert Taylor, Jeff Chandler, Jeffrey Hunter, Charlton Heston, Burt Kennedy, John Ireland, Robert Ryan, Johnny Mack Brown, Lee Van Cleef on April 4, 2013 | Leave a Comment »
Screening: The Man From The Alamo (1953).
Posted in 1953, Budd Boetticher, Festivals, screenings, Glenn Ford, Julie Adams, Universal (-International) on February 22, 2013 | 3 Comments »
To mark the anniversary of the siege of the Alamo, The Egyptian is running Budd Boetticher’s The Man From The Alamo (1953), starring Glenn Ford and Julie Adams.
It’s good. It’s in 35mm. And Miss Adams will be in attendance.
Saturday, February 23, 7:30PM
The Egyptian Theatre
6712 Hollywood Boulevard
Hollywood, CA 90028
Happy Birthday Lee Marvin.
Posted in 1956, Books, Budd Boetticher, Lee Marvin, Randolph Scott on February 19, 2013 | 7 Comments »
Lee Marvin
(February 19, 1924 – August 29, 1987)
Finally seeing Budd Boetticher’s Seven Men From Now (1956) set me off down the trail that would lead to this blog and its book-in-progress namesake. It’s one of the best movies I’ve ever seen, Western or otherwise.
A huge part of the film’s success is our birthday boy, Lee Marvin. With scenes like the one above, there was no way he was going to remain a character actor. And as we all know, and as films like The Professionals (1966) and Point Blank (1967) prove, he wouldn’t stay one for long.
This’d be a good day (especially since it’s raining here in Raleigh) to curl up on the sofa with that new Marvin biography.
The 3:10 To Yuma (1957) Pulls Into The Library Of Congress.
Posted in 1952, 1953, 1954, 1956, 1957, Anthony Mann, Budd Boetticher, Burt Kennedy, Delmer Daves, Gary Cooper, Glenn Ford, Howard Hawks, Jimmy Stewart, John Ford, John Wayne, Nicholas Ray, Randolph Scott, Sterling Hayden, Van Heflin on December 21, 2012 | 18 Comments »
Blake Lucas pointed this out, and it’s certainly worth highlighting here — 3:10 To Yuma (1957) has been added to the National Film Registry by the Library Of Congress.
It’s the seventh 50s Western to make the Registry, the others being High Noon (1952), Shane (1953), The Naked Spur (1953), Johnny Guitar (1954), The Searchers (1956) and The Tall T (1957). While you can maybe argue the titles (I would’ve gone with Winchester ’73), you certainly can’t complain about the directors they’ve chosen to honor.
So when’s Rio Bravo (1959) gonna get in there?
50s Westerns DVD News #107: Western Horizons: Universal Westerns Of The 1950s.
Posted in 1952, 1954, 1956, Alan Ladd, Budd Boetticher, Dorothy Malone, DVD reviews, releases, TV, etc., George Sherman, Jeff Chandler, John Sturges, Lee Marvin, Raoul Walsh, Reynold Brown, Richard Widmark, Robert Ryan, Rock Hudson, Rory Calhoun, Ward Bond on November 28, 2012 | 53 Comments »
Turner Classic Movies and Universal have come through with exactly the kind of set many of us have been waiting for. Western Horizons: Universal Westerns Of The 1950s brings together five excellent examples of why Universal was top gun in Hollywood in the 50s. The absolutely essential set, slated for release on February 18, 2013, will include:
Horizon’s West (1952) stars Robert Ryan and Rock Hudson as brothers on opposite sides of the law. Directed by Budd Boetticher, it costars Julie Adams.
Saskatchewan (1954) gives us Alan Ladd, Shelley Winters, J. Carrol Naish and Jay Silverheels in a Canadian mounties picture directed by Raoul Walsh.
Dawn At Socorro (1954) stars Rory Calhoun, Piper Laurie, Lee Van Cleef and Skip Homeier and was directed by George Sherman. (Love that Reynold Brown artwork, above.)
Backlash (1956) puts Richard Widmark, Donna Reed, William Campbell, and Edgar Buchanan in the capable hands of John Sturges.
Pillars Of The Sky (1956) from George Marshall is a CinemaScope cavalry picture with Jeff Chandler, Dorothy Malone, Ward Bond and Lee Marvin.
Universal made so many worthwhile cowboy movies in the 50s — and this is a good lineup. Let’s hope it’s the first of many.
Julie Adams, Universal-International And 3-D.
Posted in 1953, 1954, 3-D, Budd Boetticher, Jack Arnold, Julie Adams, Technical, Universal (-International), Van Heflin on October 17, 2012 | 8 Comments »
The 3-D Film Archive has posted a terrific new article, “An In-Depth Look At Creature From The Black Lagoon.” This is a site that just keeps getting better and better — be sure to check out their history of the early-50s widescreen race.
Going beyond Creature, the article covers Universal’s contributions to 3-D technology and widescreen exhibition, which I found fascinating. I also didn’t realize that by the time of Creature‘s release, the 3-D fad was already dying out, and many of its bookings were flat. (It’s amazing they even bothered with 3-D for Revenge Of The Creature.)
They also review the new 3-D Blu-ray edition of Creature From The Black Lagoon, appearing in the eight-disc set Universal Classic Monsters: The Essential Collection. I’ve heard many positive things about the film’s new transfer, but was alarmed to learn here of its re-convergence — director Jack Arnold’s unique, deeper effects set it apart from other 3-D pictures.
Since Julie Adams stars in Creature, I opted for a couple stills from one of her other Universal 3-D films, Wings Of The Hawk (1953). It co-stars Van Heflin and was directed by Budd Boetticher. Sadly, it’s very hard to see these days.
Speaking of Miss Adams, have you read her book?
50s Westerns DVD News #95B: Masterson Of Kansas (1954).
Posted in 1954, 1958, Budd Boetticher, Columbia, DVD reviews, releases, TV, etc., George Montgomery, Randolph Scott, William Castle on September 19, 2012 | 8 Comments »
Yesterday, I complained about the DVD packaging for The Oregon Trail (1959). So today, it’s nice to feature something a little more pleasing to the eye, the upcoming and highly recommended Masterson Of Kansas (1954) from the (renamed?) Choice Collection. This new template has been put to use for all their Western releases for October 2, such as Buchanan Rides Alone (1958).
Speaking of Buchanan, Laura recently wrote on the film, and found it the weakest of the Scott/Boetticher pictures. While I agree to a point — it’s certainly not as strong as, say, The Tall T (1957), seeing it as a kid might have been the beginning of my 50s Westerns obsession.
Ride Lonesome: The Films Of Budd Boetticher.
Posted in 1957, 1958, 1959, Budd Boetticher, Burt Kennedy, Columbia, Festivals, screenings, Randolph Scott on June 22, 2012 | 8 Comments »
UCLA Film & Television Archive and
the Hugh M. Hefner Classic American Film Program present
Ride Lonesome: The Films Of Budd Boetticher
The Billy Wilder Theater
July 13, 2012 – August 12, 2012
10899 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90024
(310) 206-8013
Click here for films, times and other details. More about ‘em here.
Thanks to Henry Cabot Beck for the info.
Happy Birthday: John Wayne.
Posted in Budd Boetticher, John Wayne on May 28, 2012 | 1 Comment »
Saturday would’ve been John Wayne’s 105th birthday. Here he is in The Comancheros (1961).
Been thinking about this picture quite a bit lately. Partly because the Blu-ray is gorgeous. And because I’ve been thinking about what would’ve happened if Budd Boetticher had accept Duke’s offer and directed it. What a different film it would’ve been (though I like it just fine the way it is), and what a different career Budd would’ve had.
Isn’t it amazing that over 50 years after this picture came out, we care about this stuff?
Happy birthday, Duke.
50s (TV) Westerns News #77: Maverick, The First Season.
Posted in Budd Boetticher, DVD reviews, releases, TV, etc., Television on February 14, 2012 | 7 Comments »
Here’s something else we’ve all been waiting for. The first season of Maverick. With James Garner and Jack Kelly, it’s a terrific show, one of the best Western shows ever on television. This first season has the extra benefit of having three of its 27 episodes, including the pilot, directed by Budd Boetticher.
I try to stay focused on features and leave TV to those more qualified (like Stephen Bowie at The Classic TV History Blog), but I’ll make an exception in this case.
