Posted in 1954, Allan Dwan, Barbara Stanwyck, Chubby Johnson, Jack Elam, Myron Healey, RKO, Ronald Reagan on March 8, 2023| 13 Comments »
At the risk of appearing political, here’s an interesting article on Barbara Stanwyck, Ronald Reagan and Allan Dwan’s Cattle Queen Of Montana (1954). It’s from American Greatness, written by Emina Melonic. She’s tougher on the movie than I’d be — I’m a sucker for mid-50s Dwan pictures — but I really enjoyed it.
Click on the chunk above to get to the article. And if you’re like me, you’re gonna want to revisit the movie.
And the marquee image up top, what movie is it from?
Posted in Alan Hale, DVD/Blu-Ray News, Errol Flynn, Raymond Massey, Ronald Reagan, Van Heflin, Ward Bond, Warner Archive, Warner Bros. on August 26, 2021| 10 Comments »
Directed by Michael Curtiz
Starring Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland, Raymond Massey, Ronald Reagan, Alan Hale, Van Heflin, Guinn “Big Boy” Williams, Ward Bond
Warner Bros. had a real knack for stomping all over American history in the name of making a good movie. Santa Fe Trail (1940) is a prime example.
Historic figures like “Jeb” Stuart (Errol Flynn), John Brown (Raymond Massey), George Armstrong Custer (Ronald Reagan), Robert E. Lee and Jefferson Davis pop in and out of this thing, bumping into each other in very non-actual ways. But none of that matters, since the performances and direction are great, and the whole thing runs at about a mile a minute.
This was the seventh of Flynn’s pictures with Olivia de Havilland. They’d do only one more together Raoul Walsh’s They Died With Their Boots On (1941), with Flynn playing George Armstrong Custer, who Reagan plays in this one. Raymond Massey is terrific as John Brown — who cares about the realities of it.
It’ll be great to see Santa Fe Trail in high definition after its years in public domain VHS/DVD hell. Highly recommended.
Posted in 1955, Allan Dwan, Coleen Gray, John Payne, Leo Gordon, Rhonda Fleming, RKO, Ronald Reagan on October 18, 2020| 8 Comments »
Rhonda Fleming
(August 10, 1923 – October 14, 2020)
Rhonda Fleming, “The Queen Of Technicolor,” has passed away at 97. Here she is in Allan Dwan’s Tennessee’s Partner (1955).
Posted in 1953, Chubby Johnson, Dorothy Malone, DVD/Blu-Ray News, Nathan Juran, Ronald Reagan, Russell Johnson on June 4, 2019| 13 Comments »
Directed by Nathan Juran
Starring Ronald Reagan, Dorothy Malone, Preston Foster, Alex Nicol, Ruth Hampton, Russell Johnson, Chubby Johnson, Dennis Weaver, Tom Steele
Just a reminder that Nathan Juran’s Law And Order (1953), a solid Western from Universal-International, is coming to Blu-Ray next month from Shout Factory. Can’t wait to see Clifford Stine’s gorgeous Technicolor photography in high definition.
Ronald Reagan’s a fed-up lawman who decides to hang up his guns. But you know how those things work out — soon he’s having to strap em back on to settle an old score. Reagan’s cool, Dorothy Malone is beautiful in three-strip Technicolor, and director Nathan Juran settles in for a good run of Westerns at U-I.
I don’t care what your politics are, this one comes highly recommended.
Posted in 1953, Dorothy Malone, DVD/Blu-Ray News, Nathan Juran, Ronald Reagan, Russell Johnson, Shout Factory, Universal (International) on April 10, 2019| 41 Comments »
Directed by Nathan Juran
Starring Ronald Reagan, Dorothy Malone, Preston Foster, Alex Nicol, Ruth Hampton, Russell Johnson, Chubby Johnson, Dennis Weaver, Tom Steele
It’s good to have another 50s Western making its way to Blu-Ray. It’s been a bit of a desert out there. Shout Factory has announced a July release for Nathan Juran’s Law And Order (1953), a solid Technicolor picture from Universal-International. The DVD is quite nice and I’m eager to see how much better Clifford Stine’s gorgeous cinematography comes off in high definition.
Ronald Reagan’s a fed-up lawman who decides to hang up his guns. But you know how those things work out — soon he’s having to strap em back on to settle an old score. Reagan’s cool, Dorothy Malone is beautiful in three-strip Technicolor, and director Nathan Juran settles in for a good run of Westerns at U-I.
I don’t care what your politics are, a Universal 50s Western is coming to Blu-Ray — and that always gets my vote. Recommended.
Posted in 1953, 1955, Allan Dwan, Nathan Juran, Ronald Reagan on February 6, 2016| 14 Comments »
Ronald Reagan
February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004
I’m ashamed to have missed Tim Holt’s birthday on the 5th. I’m not gonna screw up Ronald Reagan’s. He’d be 105 today.
Here he is in Law And Order (1953). I resisted the temptation to post yet another photo from Allan Dwan’s Tennessee’s Partner (1955), a picture I love.
Posted in 1955, Allan Dwan, Blogging, writing, etc., John Payne, Locations/Ranches, Rhonda Fleming, RKO, Ronald Reagan on January 31, 2014| 1 Comment »
I really love Allan Dwan’s Tennessee’s Partner (1955).
I’ve always enjoyed Dennis’s blog dedicated to the Iverson Movie Ranch. It’s a frequent stop for me. Earlier this month, he posted some stuff on Tennessee’s Partner (1955) and its extensive use of the Iverson Ranch. Cinematographer John Alton did a masterful job on this one, and I doubt the ranch ever looked better than it did here.
If you’re new to this blog, be prepared to lose an hour or two or three.
Posted in 1953, Audie Murphy, Budd Boetticher, Character actors, Fritz Lang, Ronald Reagan on January 16, 2014| 17 Comments »
Russell Johnson, who just everybody in America knows as The Professor from Gilligan’s Island, passed away today at 89.
He’s seen above (center) with Alex Nicol and Ronald Reagan in Law And Order (1953). He appeared in other 50s Westerns such as Rancho Notorious (1952, he runs the chuck-a-luck wheel), Seminole (1953) and Ride Clear Of Diablo (1954).
Posted in 1953, 1954, 1955, 1957, Allan Dwan, Books, Cinematographers, Coleen Gray, Dan Duryea, Festivals, screenings, Harry Carey Jr., John Payne, John Wayne, Olive Films, Pre-1950, Randolph Scott, Republic Pictures, Rhonda Fleming, RKO, Ronald Reagan, VCI Entetainment, Ward Bond on June 13, 2013| 4 Comments »
Director Allan Dwan’s career was as old as the Movies themselves, and many of the early technical developments were his doing. Going into the mid-50s, he was still making innovative, unique, personal films — usually for smaller studios that would leave him alone and let him do what he did best.
I went Wig City over Allan Dwan’s films of 50s, thanks to DVDs of his work from VCI, and that helped spawn this blog. So I was really stoked to hear about The Museum of Modern Art’s Dwan series — which will include several of those Westerns.
From the MoMA web site: The Museum of Modern Art presented a major retrospective of Dwan’s films in 1971, with Dwan in attendance, and while another exhibition was certainly due after 42 years, this series was prompted by the publication of Frederic Lombardi’s definitive study of Dwan’s work, Allan Dwan and the Rise and Decline of the of the Hollywood Studios (McFarland, 2013).
If you can make it to any of these, by all means do so. The Westerns are:
June 14-15, 18
Frontier Marshal (1939)
With Randolph Scott, Nancy Kelly, Cesar Romero, John Carradine, Ward Bond.
This was once almost impossible to see (the bootleg tape I had of it was impossible to see). Another take on the O.K. Corral story. I prefer Randolph Scott with more age on him, but this is a really cool film.
June 24-25
Woman They Almost Lynched (1953)
With Audrey Totter, Joan Leslie, John Lund, Brian Donlevy, Ben Cooper.
Dwan made a string of films for Republic that are worth seeking out (Olive Films, you reading this?), with Sands Of Iwo Jima (1949) being the best known. Dwan approaches this as a spoof — evidently, he didn’t see any other way — and the results are terrific.
June 29-30
The Restless Breed (1957)
With Scott Brady, Anne Bancroft, Jim Davis, Scott Marlowe, Evelyn Rudie.
Dwan’s last Western. A revenge tale gets a light comic touch.
July 3,5
Tennessee’s Partner (1955)
With John Payne, Rhonda Fleming, Ronald Reagan, Coleen Gray.
John Alton’s Superscope cinematography almost steals the show, making the Iverson Ranch look like the most beautiful place on earth.
July 3, 6
Silver Lode (1954)
With John Payne, Dan Duryea, Lizabeth Scott, Harry Carey, Jr.
A key 5os Western, and the damnedest McCarthy comment you’ve ever seen. Again, Alton and his cameras roam the ranches of Hollywood to amazing results.
Be sure to look at the complete listing. I highly recommend Slightly Scarlet (1956), an incredible Technicolor, Superscope film noir shot by John Alton.
Thanks to Stephen Bowie.
Posted in 1952, 1954, 1956, 1959, Barbara Stanwyck, Howard Hawks, John Sturges, Kirk Douglas, Making Movies, Mara Corday, Republic Pictures, Rex Allen, Richard Widmark, Robert Mitchum, Ronald Reagan, Roy Rogers on February 25, 2013| 7 Comments »
Rex Allen and Roy Rogers, somewhere on the Republic lot.
Mara Corday studies the Raw Edge (1956) screenplay.
Donna Reed and Richard Widmark at work on Backlash (1956). That’s John Sturges obscured in the ball cap.
Howard Hawks shows Kirk Douglas how to do a fight scene for The Big Sky (1952).
Ronald Reagan and Barbara Stanwyck discuss the arms situation on the set of Cattle Queen Of Montana (1954).
Satchel Paige and Robert Mitchum shoot the breeze between takes on The Wonderful Country (1959).
50 Westerns From The 50s. 