Henry Silva
(September 23, 1926 – September 14, 2022)
The great character actor Henry Silva has passed away, a few days short of his 96th birthday.
From Westerns like The Tall T (1957, above) and The Bravados (1958) to gangster pictures like Johnny Cool (1964) to Rat Pack things like Oceans 11 (1960) to a slew of foreign action movies, it was always a good sign to see Silva’s name pop up in the credits. He rarely got a role that wasn’t a villain of some sort, but when he did, he was terrific.
Toby, I’ve always been a fan of Henry Silva and too me he was the personification of bad guy cool in all of the roles he portrayed in movies and tv. Silva was an unforgettable screen presence and I first recall viewing him in THE JAYHAWKERS(filmed 1958-59, released 1959) on tv’s NBC SATURDAY NIGHT AT THE MOVIES in 1964.
For me, one of the most tense chilling moments in a movie was in a scene between Chink(Henry Silva) and Pat Brennan(Randolph Scott) in THE TALL T(1956). I don’t want to give the scene away for those who haven’t viewed the movie, yet. Anyway, the chilling line that Chink(Silva) said and the reaction on Brennan’s(Scott) face changed the tone of the movie from that point onward.
Henry Silva didn’t receive many leading man roles, but I think he gave a top-notch performance in JOHNNY COOL(filmed 1962, released 1963). This movie would lead to his leading roles overseas during the 1970’s where he starred in several action-packed Euro-crime thrillers.
In my opinion, Henry Silva made every movie and tv show, that he appeared in, better by his mere presence. I think he is a very fine actor, who is well worth viewing.
HENRY SILVA R.I.P.
Here is a trailer for JOHNNY COOL.
Johnny Cool is great! It’s weird, I found the soundtrack LP to it at an estate sale about a week ago.
RIP Henry Silva .He made a good bad guy.
RIP Marsha Hunt .She passed away Sept 7 2022,a month short of her 105 th birthday.
I watched THE TEN COMMANDENTS the other day .Yul Brynner plays Rameses who refuses to free the Hebrews.A couple of years later in THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN he plays the leader of a band of gunfighters who save a Mexican village from bandits .
Graham, I always liked Yul Brynner and he was really good in THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN(1960), as was everyone else in that top-notch cast. Actually I first viewed the sequel RETURN OF THE SEVEN(1966) before I viewed the original. I viewed it on the NBC SATURDAY NIGHT AT THE MOVIES in 1970. I first caught THE MAGNIFICEINT SEVEN on Memphis’ WREC Channel 3 LATE MOVIE in 1975. So, I think the sequel is a good Western, but it couldn’t top the original, which is a Classic.
The first Western movie that I saw Yul Brynner in was INVITATION TO A GUNFIGHTER(filmed 1963, released 1964). I first saw it on the NBC SATURDAY NIGHT AT THE MOVIES in 1967. I was intrigued by the mysterious Creole gunfighter from New Orleans named Jules Gaspard d’ Estaing(Yul Brynner). This is an offbeat Western that really gets a viewer to thinking and Brynner is excellent in the role. I think the movie is well worth viewing and there is a Blu-ray from Kino Lorber.
I don’t think there has ever been an actor before or since quite like Yul Brynner.
Walter, I read where Brynner said he would only do RETURN OF THE SEVEN if Steve McQueen was not involved and McQueen said he rejected it because the plot was absurd if you can believe them,but Brynner’s excuse makes sense because of what happened between them in the original.
I got an email from Imprint saying they are releasing THE AVENGERS : THE EMMA PEEL COLLECTION 1965 – 1967 This has 16 discs and has loads of special features .It is pretty pricey at AUD189.95.
For me Henry Silva’s penultimate film Jim Jarmusch’s
GHOST DOG : WAY OF THE SAMURAI (1999) with the
great Henry up to his old tricks at 73.
GHOST DOG is one of the few 90’s films that I really like
and if you are a Henry fan you’ll love it.
THE HILLS RUN RED was an above average Spaghetti with
Henry and Dan Duryea (as a government agent no less)
having the time of their lives. Their involvement make the
film worth watching. Leading man Thomas Hunter better
known as a writer is OK in a brooding Mark Stevens..ish
sort of way.
John, I’ve never viewed Jim Jarmusch’s GHOST DOG: WAY OF THE SAMURAI(1999) or THE HILLS RUN RED(1966). I’ll check them out, because of your recommendation.
Have you, or anyone else here, ever viewed TIGRERO: A FILM THAT WAS NEVER MADE(filmed 1993, released 1994)? It is a documentary/travelogue written and directed by Mika Kaurismäki and starring Jim Jarmusch and Sam Fuller.
A little background here. In 1954 Sam Fuller traveled to the Brazilian jungle to scout locations for an adventure movie called TIGRERO that was to star John Wayne, Ava Gardner, and Tyrone Power. The project was later scrapped by 20th Century-Fox. In 1993 Fuller and independent moviemaker Jim Jarmusch retraced the journey, returning to the Amazon basin, where Fuller experiences a poignant reunion with the Indigenous Karaja people he first encountered in 1954. Fuller, at age 81, was a spry and energetic cigar chomping storyteller and Jarmusch was his usual off-beat self.
I first saw this entertaining documentary on a vhs tape during the 1990’s.
Thanks for that sensational info Walter.
The Duke,Power and Gardner in one film
imagine that.
Sorry chaps I’m having mega computer problems today
I cannot figure how to make the text make the full
column width I meant to say that GHOST DOG was a
wonderful Swan Song to Henry.
gcwe1
Have you seen the Collectors Choice/Mill Creek version of
THE BLACK KNIGHT on their Alan Ladd action triple I’ve
been after a watchable version of this film for ages.
Thank you.
John k,I have THE BLACK KNIGHT on THE ALAN LADD COLLECTION Vol 2 from Via Vision.I forget what the print is like so I will check it out and get back to you.They normally do a good job on their releases.
John k ,THE BLACK KNIGHT from Collector’s Choice is a very good print .I am not a big fan of these movies .I am a big fan of Alan Ladd and Robert Taylor and I didn’t like THE KNIGHTS OF THE ROUND TABLE very much,however Ladd’s film wasn’t bad.
Another film where Henry had a rare role as the hero was
FIVE SAVAGE MEN (ala The Animals) a revenge rape
Western similar to HANNIE CAULDER….Christopher Lee’s
only Western as far as I know.
FIVE SAVAGE MEN featured Michele Carey (EL DORADO)
who takes the ultimate revenge on Keenan Wynn,yes
it’s an exploitation flick but Henry is very good despite
the material.
I remember the widescreen locations being very good and
Henry alone was the reason I saw this one in cinemas.
Needless to say it was granted an “X”certificate in England.
How dear Peggy Stewart got involved in this one who knows!
Regarding HELLFIRE and Republic Westerns from the last
thread a company called Park Circus has had high def
restorations of Republic titles for several years.
These include HELLFIRE,THE PLUNDERERS,and
THE OUTCAST.
Park Circus supply films to every country other than the
USA and thus far have had no takers.
Many revival labels are now dealing with the studios
direct like the ongoing Imprint/Paramount deal.
I guess the only way we will see these high def Republic
transfers is through streaming ‘though myself I’m purely
a physical media guy and furthermore I don’t have TCM.
Despite all of this Kino Lorber Imprint and Explosive Media
are keeping me more than happy with my viewing needs.
I’m very surprised that a tentpole Republic release
(the first in Naturama) like THE MAVERICK QUEEN has
not had an official Blu Ray release-Heaven knows it’s not
as if the film lacks star power.
John K, I’ve never viewed FIVE SAVAGE MEN/THE ANIMALS(filmed 1970, released 1971), but it sounds like, from what I’ve read, it makes HANNIE CAULDER(1971) look like a Classic.
I’m with you concerning THE MAVERICK QUEEN(filmed 1955, released 1956). This movie has a top-notch cast led by Barbara Stanwyck, Barry Sullivan, Scott Brady, Mary Murphy, Wallace Ford, and Jim Davis. I think it is well worth viewing.
Graham, I’ve read that about Brynner and McQueen before. Although, it looks like too me that at this time McQueen was much to busy to make the RETURN OF THE SEVEN, because he was in Asia filming THE SAND PEBBLES(filmed 1965-66, released 1966) and before that filming NEVADA SMITH(filmed 1965, released 1966). McQueen’s big years at the movie box office were from 1965-75, whereas Brynner’s big years were from 1956-60. Looks like too me that Brynner needed RETURN OF THE SEVEN more than McQueen did.
I have THE AVENGERS: THE EMMA PEEL COLLECTION 1965-1967. Which is the 16-disc collector’s edition from Studio Canal. I bought it at Wal-Mart for less than $20. This collection is in dvd and is a good print, so in these days of high inflation, I’ll stick with it. I presume the Imprint collection is Blu-ray.
I was always really disappointed in those Magnificent 7 sequels. If they’d been done as stand-alone Westerns, the would’ve played a lot better, I think.
Toby, yes, the sequels were no where near the .45 caliber of the original THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN.