The Searchers, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance and The Shepard of the Hills are favorites. Just can't pass them up if I run across them at a time when I am looking for a movie.
Every normal man must be tempted, at times, to spit on his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats.
Hellfighters was filmed outside of Casper WY on my Great grandfathers ranch at Red Butte. My good friend worked on a ranch right by there and rode his horse over one day to watch and John Wayne invited him to play chess. He plaid a game with him. The movie was about Red Adair fighting oil well fires.
The Director of the John Wayne Birthplace museum is Brian Downes. Brian was a writer for the Chicago Tribune when I did The Oregon Trail in 1993 he came and rode my mule up the Sweetwater River, with the wagon Train. He wrote a few articles about us for the tribune. He loves the Old West and rides and drives horses.
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance was the greatest Western of all time. Had many great actors in it. all were outstanding. the story was over the top. It was the "typical" but better than typical western.
Big Jake, McClintock, and The Searchers are also over the top.
Didn't see where Hondo was mentioned. surprised. excellent movie.
edit to add...... I hate his early hokey singing cowboy movies. of course, they're typical of the era. I hate all those singing cowboy movies. Westerns were terrible and unwatchable for me until they quit with the singing cowboy stuff.
The Searchers and The Shootist. Have them both on DVD.
"Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much" Teddy Roosevelt
A good principle to guide me through life: “This is all I have come to expect, standard lackluster performance. Trust nothing, believe no one and realize it will only get worse…”
